ford4wd08 Posted February 28, 2019 Posted February 28, 2019 Hello all, I own a 19 ft fish and ski with two older humminbird units on it (586c and a 597 ci HD). I know these are old and outdated. I have had a busy couple of years and haven't been able to get out and fish like I've wanted to, but that is going to change this year... This is where I need some advice, I'm familiar with most of the options in fish finders out there. I am trying to decide on what I actually need. I am on a budget (who isn't right?) and would like to upgrade my equipment at some point in the next few weeks. What are the must haves on a fish finder? Do I really need side imaging or down imaging? I fish in Tennessee River Reservoirs, I don't think they get that deep... Also, it GPS mapping required? Has anyone bought the versions were you can create your own maps? Is that effective if you primarily fish one body of water? I also have Navionics on my Samsung Tablet. My thoughts of now are the Humminbird Helix 5 or Garmin Striker 5 with side imaging as a possibility with both. I have also considered the Hook2 as well. Sometimes there are just too many options... Quote
Russ E Posted February 28, 2019 Posted February 28, 2019 Side and down imaging opens up the underwater world and gives a good picture of what is down there. GPS helps you get right back to a previous found area and shows where you are on a contour map. It has opened up a lot of areas, that I previously never new existed. On reservoirs it has become a vital fishing tool for me. On small lakes, it helps, but is not usually the main factor for my success. Quote
ford4wd08 Posted February 28, 2019 Author Posted February 28, 2019 I'm debating moving my humminbird 597 up front to the trolling motor. I believe it has DI capabilities. That could buy me some time and let me get a better unit for the console.... Quote
LonnieP Posted March 1, 2019 Posted March 1, 2019 I don’t know what your budget is but I would buy the biggest screen you can afford. If you run split screens it will be hard to see on a 5” unit. Quote
FishOn!GetTheNet Posted March 3, 2019 Posted March 3, 2019 I agree with Lonnie and Russ. I have a Garmin 7” with Quickdraw,sideview,downview,chirp and panoptix.forgetting the panoptix sideview is great for finding structures rocks,weeds,stumps,tree piles. And once found marked on the map. I have made two of my own maps on lakes that weren’t in my preloaded and it has helped me so much with eliminating bad spots. Also @ 7” I wish I had a 9 or even 12” because when I’m in side scan I can’t split screen I need the whole screen so I don’t miss anything. And a little tip on side scan the sonar shadows really help identify what you’re looking at. Just keep looking you should be able to find @ least a 7” screen with it all for 350-400$ Quote
ford4wd08 Posted March 4, 2019 Author Posted March 4, 2019 After fishing Saturday and using my old graphs, I think I've zeroed in on a plan. I'm going to move my current console humminbird up to the bow. It has down imaging. Then get a good unit with side imaging to the console. I'm going to aim for 7 or 9 inch screen. I would also like the unit to have mapping or be able to create it's own. Quote
ford4wd08 Posted March 7, 2019 Author Posted March 7, 2019 After looking around some more, I found this elite TI on ebay... https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lowrance-Elite-5-Ti-Touch-Combo-with-CHIRP-Sonar-HDI-Transducer-000-12421-001/173417987251?hash=item2860847cb3:g:BZwAAOSwWcdbT31a It appears to be the original TI without the total scan transducer. I'm thinking this would be a good unit for the trolling motor, as I probably would never use the side scan capabilities up front. Any thoughts? Quote
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