A rant about the new electronic units.

[Fishing Rhino]

Today, I was thoroughly disgusted by what I saw.

I am considering what fish finding devices I will get for my new boat.

It really boils down to two brands, Humminbird, and Lowrance. I am considering the HDS8 and the comparable Humminbird unit.

The technology is great. The images are great. The magic they can do with navigation, side imaging, down scanning is great.

But the packaging leaves much to be desired.

I've read horror stories about the Lowrance units not being watertight. I now know why. The Humminbird is better but still below par as far as I am concerned.

For those who are not familiar with me, I was a commercial lobsterman, who owned his own boat, for well over twenty years, so I am well versed in the havoc water can wreak on electronics once it finds entry.

Salt water is exponentially worse than fresh water because it is an electrolyte capable of conducting and creating electic currents.

The problem with both units, particularly the Lowrance are the ports that receive the chips.

On the Lowrance the door to access these ports has the unit designation of HDS10, or 9, or 8, etc.

This door is held closed by a strip of metal on the door and a magnet on or in the case.

At the BPS, two of the display units had doors that would not stay closed. No doubt this was due to customers looking at the units and pushing buttons and pulling doors.

On the back side of the door was some type of rubber or neoprene gasket. The seal on this gasket is dependent upon the feeble pull of the magnetic device that holds the door closed to ensure a tight seal.

The door is situated horizontally on the face of the unit and is about two inches wide. Rain, and spray that lands above this door will run down into this crevice.

It then is up to the gasket sealing tightly against the area around the ports to prevent water from entering the unit.

I have zero confidence that the gasket will dependably perform this task over a period of time. I wouldn't trust it. The magnet cannot provide enough force to make a trustworthy seal.

The Humminbird is better on two counts. It is oriented vertically, so the smaller of the two dimensions can allow water to get behind the door.

It also has what I consider to be a better seal. It is tubular or nearly so. In addition, there is a tab on the top edge of the door that fits into a notch in the case. At the bottom is a thumbscrew-like fastener which at least provides adequate force to produce a much better seal than that on the Lowrance.

However both are terrible designs. But the Humminbird is better.

So, what is my solution. Put the chip ports on the bottom of the unit, and have rubber plugs, which press in to the receiving area to seal them.

If there is some type of plug failure, gravity is on your side. In addition, a slight ridge of plastic, that protrudes from the case by a quarter inch or so, will shed any rain or spray that runs down to the bottom of the case, before it can reach the sealed port.

With that method, you have three things working in your favor. The plug, the ridge, and gravity.

Plus, the ports and chips are out of the way.

That doggoned door on the Lowrance will open if you brush against it because it's on the side of the unit.  Will it happen often?

Once is too much.

Murphy's law. If something can go wrong, it will go wrong. And it will go wrong at the worst possible time.

I will likely end up with one of these units. But everytime I install a chip, I will seal the crevice around the door by applying 3M electrical tape over that gap.

Not very esthetic, but esthetics aren't worth much if something doesn't work.

[nubasser]

Very valid points,I say let Lowrance and Hummingbird know what will solve the issues.If I run a company I would like to know if something could fail in a product.Who knows,maybe the will take your input and use it on a unit.Perhaps even give you free product or discounts on a unit.

[RoLo]

You spoiled old geezers are all alike.

You've been spoiled by the Foruno radar and North Star Loran-C on your lobster boat.

I really pity the salesman who tries to sell you gyroscopic, 16-beam, Side-Scan Radar.

I'm kidding of course, and keep up the good detective work Tom,

you're educating us all

Roger

[b.Lee]

I like it! Great review of two products.  Only experience can say.

[mudkart]

Great post.

A friend had the HDS8 and it failed for the exact reason you describe, i.e. water intrusion, shortly after purchase.

Lowrance couldn't fix his unit, and they had no exact replacements available (perhaps due to the newness of the HDS and high demand).  So, they sent him an HDS10 that appears to be working OK.  He's OK w/ the exchange. 

[Fishbone]

I spoke to a Lowrance rep last week about leak problems. I had heard they fixed the problem and he confirmed it saying that the sealant was the problem. Either a poor selection or a defective batch.

I'm steering away from Lowrance in favor of HB.

I 'm also concerned about the cable connections on the HB being water tight. I'm not impressed with the photos that show something that looks like home computer connectors.

Looks like I'll need to carry a rain hood with me.

[Fishing Rhino]

I spoke to a Lowrance rep last week about leak problems. I had heard they fixed the problem and he confirmed it saying that the sealant was the problem. Either a poor selection or a defective batch.

I'm steering away from Lowrance in favor of HB.

I 'm also concerned about the cable connections on the HB being water tight. I'm not impressed with the photos that show something that looks like home computer connectors.

Looks like I'll need to carry a rain hood with me.

Two words for your plugs and other connections.  Dielectric grease.  it will protect against water intrusion, thus prevent corrosion, and facilitate disconnecting and reconnecting.

Works great on the base of light bulbs as well.

I use it on my snowplow lights and connections.  Prevents corrosion caused by the salt that is spread on the roads to melt snow and ice.

http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=8196

[Fishbone]

Good tip. Thanks

[SkeeterZX225]

I've got Humminbird units on my boat and have fished in some downpours and pulled the boat to the lake in the same. I've never had any trouble with water getting into the SD card slots and causing trouble.

[Fishing Rhino]

I've got Humminbird units on my boat and have fished in some downpours and pulled the boat to the lake in the same. I've never had any trouble with water getting into the SD card slots and causing trouble.

They are definitely better than the mess on the Lowrance, but they could be better.  One problem with that seal, and the watertight integrity is gone.

Why have it in a vulnerable spot.  Much better on the bottom of the unit.  You have redundancy in the protection against water intrusion.  It wouldn't add any cost to the unit, and would be a definite improvement.

[tennwalkinghorse]

I like it! Great review of two products. Only experience can say.

2X Thanks

[I Love BassResource]

I've used the previous generation Lowrance units, pretty harshly and I couldn't have been happier (27/28, lms 520c).

I've now equipped my boat with the new HDS units. After much comparison and debate, I simply think the Lowrance units offer a better image and a more functional user interface than the comparable HB units do, just my opinion of course.

I also recall most of the leaks were found on the HDS 7 units, and have since been corrected. This really doesn't surprise or bother me, as most new product runs will have some initial problems to work through.

What does bug me, is the increasing cost of these units. On one hand, the technology is simple amazing, so I"m sure there are tons of R&D to recover. On the other hand I'm not convinced, Navico isn't marking these things up like mad.

[NBR]

Why not call Lawrance/Eagle and Hummingbird and talk to a tech rep about your issues. I have called from time to time and alwaqys gotten reasonible answers. Most retail clerks are giving you their opinion based on training and for the most part the trining is poor.

Some times you get an unknowledgeable tech rep at the company.