Finished the electronics on my kayak

[FryDog62]

Well, it’s been adding things piecemeal gradually for 3 years… but since I sold my bass boat and have decided to keep my Autopilot Kayak for awhile - maybe indefinitely, I finally completed my electronics. 
 

I added a Garmin 9 inch and Livescope Plus previously, and this week I added a larger Helix and 360 Imaging. Once I got used to both technologies on my boat, I always felt I was missing something until now.  
 

We’ll see if I can catch fish now lol…

[gim]

Hey Fryer you need to change your call sign at the bottom and remove the "Lund Pro-V Bass in Northern waters in the Summer." 🧐

 

 

[FryDog62]

3 minutes ago, gimruis said:

Hey Fryer you need to change your call sign at the bottom and remove the "Lund Pro-V Bass in Northern waters in the Summer." 🧐

 

 

You might say, I’m still in some sort of state of denial…

[gim]

[casts_by_fly]

Do you have the livescope pole on the right with the head unit in the left?  Then the opposite for the 360?

[FryDog62]

20 minutes ago, casts_by_fly said:

Do you have the livescope pole on the right with the head unit in the left?  Then the opposite for the 360?

Good catch. I originally had the Livescope transducer pole on the left next the Garmin screen. However the mounting hardware (Fishing Specialties) is a fixed mount that sticks out approx 5 inches over the gunnel. When I added the uprights for my rod tubes to the trailer, sliding the kayak on and off I would occasionally smack the mount on the uprights, almost tore it off a couple times when the wind/waves were coming in hard. So I moved the Livescope pole to the other side out of the way.  Then, when I added the 360 transducer mount - it had to go on the left side, but I found a different mounting pole (Dugout Kayak) that unscrews and I can pull it out of the way when launching/retrieving and not smack the uprights of the rod tubes. 
 

All things you try to think about ahead of time, but sometimes you don’t and have to adjust later.  So a little left brain/right brain pole adjustments.  I could switch the poles around but it wasn’t a hassle today so will leave it as is… Maybe it’s good training for my first stroke lol !! 

[Koz]

On 7/3/2024 at 4:23 PM, FryDog62 said:

 However the mounting hardware (Fishing Specialties) is a fixed mount that sticks out approx 5 inches over the gunnel.

 

I'm glad they gave me the bag of extra nylon bolts for that mount. I've sheared 3 or 4 of them already.

 

Do you think that having the head units mounted that high or going to interfere with setting the hook or landing fish? That was my concern with that type of setup. 

 

That's why I built my custom center mount close to the deck for my Garmin 93 and why I have my Helix 7 far forward on the rail. Of course, I'm short and even with the raised seat I'm still sitting low in my kayak. Maybe that's the difference.

[FryDog62]

Actually I built the center mount specifically so the GPS units are out of the way from casting, flipping, jerking, or landing fish. Before that, I really didn’t like the units on the side gunnel gear tracks - I thought they really interfered with normal activities. 
 

The reason I built my own is that it sits lower than the after-market options out there that sit up another 3-6 inches higher. Mine is flush with the gunnels, and the units have never been in the way. 
 

Of the DIY things I have done with the kayak, that has been the best one by far. I have a parts list I can share. It cost me $75 two years ago, with inflation it’s probably closer to $100 now but I’d do it again…