Wayne P.

With the proper "prop guard" you can drag the lower unit along the bottom with the motor running. I used the pitch fork type for years in shallow rivers using a Merc 2.2. Occasionally a rock would get by the fork and shear the prop pin, but I carried spares "just in case". Some places I have been, the bottom of the boat was dragging. You expect that in rivers. The skid plate types work better though.

Just install a prop guard. There are several types available. Some even make their own from a pitch fork.

I would have if my motor wasn't a 4-cycle. I gave away all the 2-cycle oil I had when it got that motor.

A mixture of OFF insect repellant with 30% DEET, Coppertone 50 SPF sunscreen lotion, WD-40, 87 octane gasoline, and marine grease. I have used all of those individually, a combo should be great.

I made a mistake in my list, The new Lowrance HDI unit does Down Scan and 2D sonar.

IMHO, that unit makes way more sense than the DSI units do. It can actually be used for fishing.

There are no units by any company that do Side Imaging/Structure Scan in your price range. The only imaging capable units in your price range are either Lowance DSI or Humminbird DI. Of those, only the Humminbirds have regular 2D sonar and Down Imaging. The Lowrance DSI units are Down Scan only. Humminbird has the widest selection with that technology in your price range--- 346c DI, 386ci DI Combo, 561 DI, 571 HD DI, 581i HD DI Combo, 587ci HD DI Combo, 596c HD DI, 597ci HD DI Combo and some discontinued models of some of those same series. Additionally there are a couple more special sale models that are not on the Humminibird web site. You have to contact a dealer to see what those models are and the price--I don't remember the model numbers of those. Lowrance units are the Elite-4x DSI, and Elite-5x DSI, Elite-5 DSI, Mark-5x DSI, Elite-7x HDI

I doubt anyone has, BPS doesn't have them either. They are listed as less expensive than the 7" DI unit that Humminbird has--- 858c DI.

I use yellow superline and put red accents on it. That contrast makes it more visible in most lighting conditions.

Marine electronics dealers have that much off as their normal prices. They don't sell MSRP like Cabelas does.

No it isn't "safe to say" --being in the catalog means nothing. You can order them and get put on backorder if they are not in stock. BUT if you want a lower price, BPS is NOT the place to make a purchase. Contact the before mentioned "marine electronics dealers"

Whether imaging sonar or traditional sonar, both are recorded images on the display with the first row of screen pixels being current data and the rest is history. The imaging technology does not use a camera, it uses a sonar transducer.

Humminbird Down Imaging with a Side Imaging unit has three selectable widths. The widest setting is about what the 83 kHz 2D pulse covers. The narrowest setting is about what the 200 kHz covers, and the medium setting is about midway of the two. Humminbird Down Imaging units have 75 degees of coverage with 455 kHz and 45 degrees of coverage wth the 800 kHz for the Down Imaging function. For the 2D sonar they have a 25 degree cone with the 200 kHz and a 16 degrees cone with 455 kHz. A Down Scan only unit is basically worthless for fishing, it is a good search tool though and makes a good companion for a 2D sonar unit.

Yes, that is the recommended size on the RAM web site selection page. Look it up yourself in the marine electronic mount section. The 1 1/2" will do a little better with the lighter unit, but it wll move when you hit boat wakes with that light flat hull.

If I was you, I would use the D size. I don't get in boat wakes or waves more than 1' since I fish small waters that are HP restricted or electric-only.

No, I wouldn't consider the swing mount. No, I am not using the D size. Mine is the 1 1/2" ball model RAM-111U. It works somewhat OK on rough water on a heavy fiberglass bass boat at the console. I have used it on a friend's 21' Triton at Lake Fork and Guntersville. He uses that size for his 998c SI. Both of us also use a shock block between the gunnel and RAM arm in case the water gets really rough iike it was in May at Fork. The wind sort of blows in Texas, LOL. I have four of that size RAM system, I use one of them at the bow, another one on a board to make the unit a portable for demos and SAR on other boats, and one in my den. The RAM-D-111U would give you the reach you need and have the display adjustable enough so it is not past the gunnel if you want it protected from side impact on trees/docks. That is why I got the longer arm version.

Yes, I have read that too, That mostly applies to a bow mounted unit, but the RAM D will move if the water is rough enough. Surely you wouldn't take that tin can out on Erie when the wind blows though. If you want the adjustability of the ball type mount, there are larger sizes. The swing arm types that have no ball would be more stable in rough water if you can put one in a usable position. Visit the RAM web site and look at all the stuff there, not just the marine class mounts.

I am using the RAM-111U, but I just fish small waters. The recommended mount size is the RAM-D-111U or RAM-D-111U-C. That will handle boat wakes and wind waves. I chose the metal to put the mount on, not the plastic. That unit is heavy.

Not so philosophical for me. It allows me to catch bass---that's it. If I didn't go fishing I wouldn't catch any fish, Same thing with other sports/hobbies. I wanted to hit golf balls, sooooo, I used to play golf a lot.

Contact this company with your model, serial number, and symptoms http://www.jonestrollingmotor.com/

I use Humminbird Side Imaging. I am so used to just using that technology that I rarely even use traditional 2D sonar unless I am using vertical presentations. I use it at the console and bow. It shows me what is away from under the boat as well as what is under the boat. While I am fishing, I scan the area to see where the fish are so I am fishing where the fish are, not just random casting. Basically I "sight fish" all year, at all depths. In shallow water, with regular sonar, the bottom coverage is very small, but with the Imaging technology the coverage is whatever the Side Imaging range setting is (up to 360' on each side of the transducer). I think I have posted this screen shot before with my trolling motor mounted transducer and bow unit. This is a shallow water image where I was fishing a creek channel on the right side and I didn't have to run the trolling motor into the fish to see where they were. There is a school of small baitfish in the creek and at the top of the image (the white streaks just being recorded) are some bass. I caught two of them after I saved that image. Note: the water depth where the boat is and the range setting---

Straighten the wire somewhat and roll it between two wide wooden boards while pressing it firmly. A hard wood, like oak, works the best.

It depends on the waters you navigate of you need the RAM-D size---I use the 1 1/2" with my units.

No, the less expensive Humminbird Combo units do not have any waters with contours. They just have a basic background map. BUT any GPS unit will save waypoints, and draw a track as you move about. A color Humminbird Combo unit in your price range is: http://store.humminbird.com/products/604309/386ci_Combo You can get a unit that does 2D sonar, Down Imaging, and GPS chartplotting in a gray scale display in your price range also: http://store.humminbird.com/products/604319/581i_HD_DI_Combo Do your shopping at a marine electronics dealer instead of a big box general sporting goods place like BPS or Cabelas. Those businesses sell below MSRP and the general stores sell at MSRP unless there is a special sale.

That is one of those deals if you think it makes a difference, it does. If you think it doesn't make any difference, it doesn't. That goes for lure colors, fishing line types and colors, scents, etc.