Depth finders
 

I've almost given up on finding a depth finder/transducer combo that works in the "shoot through hull".

Since I have tried 2 other times when my engines are out I figured I'd ask.

I use epoxy to mount both times.

I have the same issues. It will work at idle sometimes:rolleyes:

My Puck is epoxied into the bottom it looks like they cut a hole into the bottom and replaced the plug with the transducer. This is supposed to be the correct way to make them work:confused:
The only way it will ever work at speed is to have it in clean (non aerated water). I guess I will have to keep guessing:crazy: :rolleyes:

They only work shooting through a solid resin hull. If there is any coring they work poorly if at all. There are very few hulls anymore that dont use coring. Even my transom mount doesnt work above planning speeds. I only have 1/4' of coremat in my hell (hehe) hull and the shoot-through didnt work either.

I gave up after the second or third install!

So guy's I'm taking it that the hull transducers are a waste of time correct?
I'm playing with mine now because I'm trying to figure out why it is not reading. I just sent my gage to Livorsi to have them check it to see if it is working OK.
i can't believe that you can't get these to work regardless of the hull design. heck that is what the are designed to do.

I've done a little home work since my last post. It seems that there is a transducer area in bilges (at least mine). This is where there is no balsa core. The sonnar can not shoot through air (balsa is mostly air). I had mine mounted there and it still does not work right.

I think the stepped hulls are fighting a loosing battle if they will not shoot through air...Sorry Scott.

I have a Lowrance in my Powerquest and it works. In my bilge it is mounted right at the bottom of the vee. It looks like there is no core right there. It did stop working last season and Lowrance sent me a new one with a new transducer for 54 bucks. I bought the boat used but they still did that,

I just thought of something. When Lowrance sent me the new one with the transducer it was a wide angle transducer. I left the one that was in the boat in. That one is a narrow angle transducer. Mine reads at all speeds. It looks different than the transducer that they sent me. The narrow angle isn't listed on their site. So I don't know where Powerquest got it. It looks like a small hockey puck. Maybe that is the problem.

I have a Lowrance, works up to 50 or 60mph. I had a teleflex, it rarely worked.

I did yet more research. The Hummingbird uses at 200khz signal and the Lowrance 192Khz. The lower the frequency the more penetrating power (old engineering days)

I was hoping someone designed a transducer that worked well in this situation.

I though some of the newer boats would have found a solution, Maybe not?

Has anyone had any luck with the Gaffrig depth gages and hull transducer?

alternative transducer mounting method
 

I am about to mount the transducer in the bilge of my boat and was instructed by Faria to use the following method (when using a thru-hull style transducer)-

Trim off the excess plastic from the body of the transducer (mine is cylindrical with a tapered flange of plastic around the head of it).

select a piece of PVC pipe that is as close to the diameter of the transducer as possible (mine is about 2") and cut the pipe to 4-6" length.

Trim one end of the small piece of pipe at an angle similar to your hull so the pipe will stand up vertically when you epoxy or resin it to the inside of your hull.

Epoxy it down, but only apply the epoxy to the pvc, don't let it spread over the center of the area your mounting to. Obviously you want the transducer to have a direct connection to the fiberglass.

Add a small amount of oil to the pipe and drop the transducer in. You have a completely fluid connection to the hull!

This was recommended by Faria, and I guess it sounds like a pretty good method. I'll know soon enough. What's everyone think?

I've got a Gaffrig "shoot thru hull" in my Checkmate which is balsa core and it works fine.When I get up to about 50+ it will start to give some funny reads. Otherwise seems to be pretty accurate.
I'll post a pic later.

Re: alternative transducer mounting method
 

This sounds like how my last Fountain was done. The boat was a nonstepped hull, with the transducer set in a 3" dia x 2" tall pvc tube filled with epoxy. I couldn't tell if the pvc tube was set into the hull bottom or just glassed to the bottom. Either way, it worked every time, all the time, at any and all speeds!

Now my new boat with a single step, it is absolutley worthless POS! Takes up dash space as far as I'm conscerned. Damn thing does not work at any speed faster than floating with the current. This I don't understand, cause even at idle speeds when the hull is still 100% wet w/o air bubbles, the depth thing stops working!