FishBottom Finder reading

[jere1972]

need help understanding how to read a fish finder/bottomfinder, manuals don't seem to give much detail on what all the graphic displays mean, different color variations and so forth, people talk about finding hard bottom ??? don't know how that displays, are there any sites that give good info on this, what might be the best and cheapest fish/bottom finder, I've looked at West marine they range from $60 on up to over $1k, would a GPS/combo be a good choice! again I have no knowledge on these things never really needed them till now, finally have a boat capable of going off shore

 

[foodfisher]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

Might get some replies in the electronics forum.

 

[dingbat]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

There is no generic answer. Each machine displays things differntly which is why your not finding much on the subject.

You mention offshore. How deep and what species are you targeting? For offshore use, the most popular are Furuno and Simrad followed in no particluar order, Raymarine, Sitex and Lowrance.

BTW: The best is not cheap and the cheap are not best

 

[kahuna123]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

tjohnson388@tampabay.rr.com

I live here. Email with questions.

 

[giericd]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

ok, a few things you need to know is you should get a gps/finder combo! here is the reason, you travel off shore burning fuel and time looking at your finder, just by chance using your finder alone you find good bottom and have a great day catching fish, what are the chances you will ever find that spot again with out a gps??? some of my best spots are the size of a car, little rock piles here, a few over there and i am sure that some are about the size of a golf cart and only come off the bottom 1-2' there is no way to ever find them again with out the gps feature! the combo units are more money than just a fishfinder, but what you save between just a finder and finder gps combo you will pay for 10 times in time and gas looking for that spot that "is around here some where" trust me been there done that! as far as telling hard bottom you cant say because every brand displays it differently and even further you can change the color in settings on a lot of units. best thing to do is take your boat some where like the beach a few yards out where you know it is sand and look at the color is shows up as on your machine (probably yellow) do the same over mud, again probably yellow indicating semi soft material. on my machine rock showe up as red, so does metal and other hard objects and it will have a more jaged look. what helped me was a trip to the keys where i could see the bottom in 30' of water, i saw red rise up off the bottom, it had a thin yellow line above it and then there was blue and green little fingers (looked like grass) rising up off the yellow. i could see that it was rocky with fans and large sponges growing on the rocks. 2 years ago i was trolling about 8miles out of naples over sand bottom hoping to pick up a king fish on the way home and i started to see the colors change to thin red with the blue and green fingers. i dropped down a small finger mullet and the second it hit bittom i hooked a 18" red grouper. for the next few hours you would get hooked up as fast as you could get a jig to the bottom. My average trip i limit out on redgrouper release about 6-10 legal size fish and about 40-50 undersize fish all thanks to understanding what my finder was telling me and for the GPS feature to keep bringing me back there! It does take a little practice telling if it is bumpy/rough bottom which is good or just the movement of the boat going up and down with the waves.

 

[kahuna123]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

I agree. There is NOTHING that sucks more than a hour trip in 3 ft seas with all your buddy's aboard and you can't find any good bottom. It is VERY important that your bottom finder reads well at speed. If not it pretty much worthless at finding new spots. I've had them all over the years. My last boat I had a Raymarine C120 plotter and a Si Tex CVS 832. Si Tex was my customer before they moved up North. You don't need to go to that extent but you need to get off the wallet when it comes to offshore electronics. Bass boat toys won't cut it. First choice would be Furuno. Simrad is great stuff but leans more to the commercial market. I have never been a fan of Lowrance.

The good part about West Marine is they take anything back. The bad part is most manufactures won't or can't afford to deal with them.
I looked online and the Si Tex color max series was really reasonable on E Bay and I can vouch their customer service is great. Half the price of Raymarine and Furuno. The colormax wide looks like a good buy for the money

 

[jere1972]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

Has anyone used any of the new DI products from Humminbird, any thoughts on those units

 

[jere1972]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

was looking for a combo unit fish/gps, My intent was to be in 20-80 feet water off of St pete Fl. wanted something in the upto $700 range, with the best bottom detail, the DI units from Humminbird looked interesting. not sure of the GPS sys though, but again I know nothing about these things always used the $70 unit from walmart with the little fishy icons that would blib on the mono screen. good for depth only. however I'm not a hardcore boater or fisherman just the once twice a month kind, so trying to not break the bank of a novice user

 

[dingbat]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

Don't know your water conditions, wave, chop etc, but if it's anything like the Chesapeake Bay's short heavy chop, you can bag the DI and side scan on all but the clamest of days. Neither unit has heave compensation and the constant up and down motion blurs the picture quite bad.

Finding a used Sitex or Furuno is going to be your best bang for the buck.

 

[giericd]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

I have a lowrance unit and have used garmin units. I love my Lowrance! It should be in the upper end of your price range, i got mine at bass pro for $700 then spent the Extra $200 on the navionics fishing chip. you are about 120 miles north of me and i have checked out your area with the fishing chip in, don't waste the money on the chip! I don't even use mine. the next year modle after mine is the HD versions, with the color and picture quality i get with mine i cant imagine it getting any better, i would be scared to see the HD quality! Those little fish bleeps you see on the screen..... 99% of the time it is nothing! My boat drafts 12", i have been in 24" of water and the fish bleeps shows a huge school of fish under my boat, yeah right , but when you are in 30' of water and you see some nice rocks on the bottom and there a few fish bleeps just above the rocks or tucked in close to the bottom just infront or behind the rocks THATS MONEY! you just found mister grouper. best recomendation is to buy the best quality unit you can afford, the ocean is unforgiving at times and fishing can be even harder the last thing you want it to be limited by your equipment. once you get the unit play with it a lot to figure out how to mark and delete points, to zoom in/out,switch from full screen map to full screen sonar to split screen. go over known mud/ sand to see how the return looks and even look at it as you pull the boat up on the trailer to see how the hard cement of the ramp looks on the machine. Tampa has some great grass flats go on to the flats and look at the color of the grass and how it looks on your machine if you see some thing that looks similar to the return of grass when you are in 30'-150' of water you are going to catch fish

 

[kahuna123]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

I have a lowrance and have used Garmin units. I bought them at a Bass Pro fishing shop. What a joke. BASS PRO FISHING SHOP. Have you ever used a Furuno, Si Tex. NO.
Go to your local marina. Look at ANY real offshore boat and tell me what you see. You kill how many shorts???? Wow aren't you special. Post like yours are the reason for the problems we have now.

 

[giericd]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

WOW kahuna, a little pent up frustration hu. As indicated above it doesn?t matter as much what brand someone chooses to purchase as long as it is a quality unit unlike the humming bird units that are $49.99 new. Get good quality regardless of brand and learn how to use your equipment to its full potential. If you are buying good quality it doesn't matter if you buy it from West Marine, Sawyers Marine, Bass Pro.... if you are going to argue that fact then you are truly showing your back side. As far as Furuno, Si TEX yes I have used them and I have been on plenty of off shore boats, I didn't feel the need to name every brand I have ever used or every type of boat I?ve been on, I just named The 2 brands I have had on my boats. Where I live the majority of the people using Si Tex and Furuno are the super rich pleasure boats in the 50'+ range that have never seen a fishing pole they have them mainly because those boat manufactures have a contract with those navigation companies. The radar feature on them is great, but you can get radar and auto pilot with other brands as well like hum oh LOWRANCE and GARMAN. I'm not pushing those brands but for what most of us use the machine for radar and auto pilot are not needed unless you are chasing birds off shore. The original post was asking how to read a bottom machine and what the CHEAPEST ones were that were not junk (up to $700) we all gave good advice.
Now enough being politically correct. I am a conservationist and I'm willing to bet I've released more keeper snook in season than you have ever even caught; I go fishing to enjoy it and TO CATCH FISH! I never keep fish out of season, never keep fish that are legal size but are real close to the min size, all ways use circle hooks and revive fish properly before release, I guarantee the mortality rate of the fish I catch is as close to non-existent as it can get. I live for fishing, protecting the fish and releasing them unharmed is in my best interests so I can enjoy my sport and have successful trips another day. Don't be mad at me because I know what I am doing and have successful trips. Let?s see, $40 gas for my vehicle to tow my boat to the ramp and back home, $20 in soda and water, $15 in ice, $60 fuel for the boat, $10 ramp fee, $20 bait, not to mention the thousands of dollars I have in quality rods/reels/lures/hooks/leader/weights, boat, nav/gps, all to go fishing, Do you think I am going to stop fishing because I am catching fish? Before you open your mouth and say something stupid like trying to blame me for the "problems we have now" you retard you might want to educate yourself with why we have the problems we have now. Here is a start for you, contact you state and federal agencies and complain that they are not concerned with fish populations if the recreational anglers take is measured in "per Fish" and the commercial industry is measured by the TON. Read a little about NOAA and their faulty fish stock assessments, faulty data, faulty scales to measure fish populations. Get involved in some programs to help protect the fishery or volunteer to help plant some Mangrove trees, or if that is too much for you then simply lean over the side of your boat the next time you are on the water and pick up that beer can that is floating around. What a douche

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

I have a lowrance and have used Garmin units. I bought them at a Bass Pro fishing shop. What a joke. BASS PRO FISHING SHOP. Have you ever used a Furuno, Si Tex. NO.
Go to your local marina. Look at ANY real offshore boat and tell me what you see. You kill how many shorts???? Wow aren't you special. Post like yours are the reason for the problems we have now.

Si-tex and furuno are great units. But your wrong to say that most offshore boats are equipped with these units. 10 years ago maybe, but not anymore! Lowrance out sells all the other competetors COMBINED. Do you think that is because there units suck? Or I guess you just think there cheap. The fact is lowrance products and services have come along way in the past 10 years and they have cornered the market. So finding one of these units at a some what good price for good quality performance is easy. If you want to spend the extra money on the more expensive stuff, go ahead. To each his own. But the only difference I have seen is that you can read deeper depths better and that mostly is dependent on the transducer you run. They also will have better pixals, but thats just about the extent of it unless you start talking ping depth finders.

So stop trying to trash lowrance, because they do the job well and are perfect for individuals that are budget conscious but still want quality. If you are running charters and have the tax right off, by all means by the Furuno or Si-tex.

Now, to the op's original questions. Stay away from the cheap units, they just don't work well. I like lowrance, but garmin is a bit more user freindly to the inexperienced. Buy a unit with nmea compatability and network compatability. This way you can add features as you realize you want more. Or figure out you need more. I run two lowrance hds-7insights, Br-24 radar and side scan. My units work great, I have been very pleased with them and lowrance keeps updating the units to be even better through upgrades you can download off your computer to the unit.

The Hummingbirds are good units to, and they are suppose to have great service. They are also coming out with alot of new things this year. I have just never been a fan, but in the area I'm in now, I see many of them.

Call or email Jim at Boemarine.com. He will be able to point you to the right purchase for your use and area and budget.

 

[dingbat]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

Si-tex and furuno are great units. But your wrong to say that most offshore boats are equipped with these units. 10 years ago maybe, but not anymore! Lowrance out sells all the other competetors COMBINED. Do you think that is because there units suck? Or I guess you just think there cheap. The fact is lowrance products and services have come along way in the past 10 years and they have cornered the market. So finding one of these units at a some what good price for good quality performance is easy. If you want to spend the extra money on the more expensive stuff, go ahead. To each his own. But the only difference I have seen is that you can read deeper depths better and that mostly is dependent on the transducer you run. They also will have better pixals, but thats just about the extent of it unless you start talking ping depth finders.

So stop trying to trash lowrance, because they do the job well and are perfect for individuals that are budget conscious but still want quality. If you are running charters and have the tax right off, by all means by the Furuno or Si-tex.

There is no need to trash Lowrance, but having actually owned Si-Tex, Furuno and Lowrance units, I can tell you that you're making some bad assumptions on pixel counts and performance. If you knew firsthand the differences between the units, the $100-$200 more you would spend have paid for a Furuno or Si-Tex unit would seem like a bargain in the long run.

BTW: Just because Mickey D's serves more people than anyone else, doesn't make them the best restaurant in town. Quality and quantity rarely go hand in hand.

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

There is no need to trash Lowrance, but having actually owned Si-Tex, Furuno and Lowrance units, I can tell you that you're making some bad assumptions on pixel counts and performance. If you knew firsthand the differences between the units, the $100-$200 more you would spend have paid for a Furuno or Si-Tex unit would seem like a bargain in the long run.

BTW: Just because Mickey D's serves more people than anyone else, doesn't make them the best restaurant in town. Quality and quantity rarely go hand in hand.

What exact units have you run and with what transducers?
If you know the differences, then state them. But to compare Lowrance to McDonalds is just silly.

Tell you what, you put up your fish finder, chart plotter, radar, what ever you want to display and I will do the same. I doubt to the average boater they will be able to tell the difference in which one is better. The fact is, Lowrance has sold as many units as all the other competetors combined. It isn't because there cheap or there technology isn't up to par. It is because it is good technology for a reasonable price.

Show me a Si-tex or furuno in the price budget that the op gave that will be better than lowrance, garmin, raymarine, or hummingbird.

Also the Si-tex have had lots of issues with there hardware. The ones I mentioned are also going to be much more user friendly than the Si-tex or Furuno. Yes they have better adjustment possibilities but are harder to use. All electronics are not created equal, but in the price range, damn close!

 

[giericd]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

Truer words never spoken-criscraft254 & dingbat

 

[kahuna123]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

Thanks dingbat. It never ceases to amaze me how much advise someone can give who doesn't live here, fish here, grew up here. Having OWNED a marine electronics shop, been and still am a marine electrician. I do have an opinion of who to trash. Based on warranty, dealer support, parts availability when something could be fixed cheap, durability in a salt environment, performance versus cost. There are no bass boats 20 miles offshore in 3 foot seas.
Chriscraftf you must work for them. Cornered the market??? What have Garmin and Hummingbird been doing???? How would you know that???

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

Thanks dingbat. It never ceases to amaze me how much advise someone can give who doesn't live here, fish here, grew up here. Having OWNED a marine electronics shop, been and still am a marine electrician. I do have an opinion of who to trash. Based on warranty, dealer support, parts availability when something could be fixed cheap, durability in a salt environment, performance versus cost. There are no bass boats 20 miles offshore in 3 foot seas.
Chriscraftf you must work for them. Cornered the market??? What have Garmin and Hummingbird been doing???? How would you know that???

First of all, no one said anything about a bass boat! Doesn't matter what area or what type boat you are running, people still want performance from there units. And I'm from the coast by the way. Spent many years running offshore and have run many different types of units. What was the name of your electronics shop? Do you still own it? Dealer support? I bought mine from Boe Marine, they support me fine from hundreds of miles away. Your electronics shop isn't going to repair a unit under warranty, they are going to send it out. Durability and water resistance is pretty much the same on most units these days and most are water proof. Parts availability may be important to a dealer but not so much to the average consumer? I am self employed, don't work for any electronics company. Its pretty easy to look up anything about a public company these days, feel free to do your own research. Might start with total units sold in a particular year for a particular company.

You can call it anything you want, marketing, affordable units, styling, whatever. Check with any offshore retailer and see what brand they sell the most off. Heck, you can just ask your salesman if nothing else. I'm not saying any of this should be a determining factor, but good products sell.

 

[foodfisher]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

Should have left this in the saltwater fishing forum.

 

[jere1972]

Re: FishBottom Finder reading

WOW this is starting to look like my wifes facebook wall!!! wish I could retract my thread, Guys,,,I'm just a novice marine electronics user, who wanted some insight and help! did not want to start a fight , I did not feel comfortable with the knowledge of the sales crew @ my local West Marine, they seemed a bit clue less and just promoted bells and whistles, I have an eagle gps unit which I am still trying to figure out, never used one for marine applications, tried it the other weekend with a published reef # in tampa bay the unit did it's job, but I'm still learning about that! so I think the gps for now is ok for guiding me to local reef's and wrecks here in the Tampa sarasota area till I feel I have gotton some experience with a marine GPS, so I think I just need to replace my fishfinder/bottom finder, which is also an Eagle unit, they came with the boat, the fishfinder seems almost like a childs toy there are no real controls, the unit seems to lag and has the display properties of a hand held video game unit I had back in the 80's, I have floated over mud bottom and oyster bars, and roamed an area I knew had bridge debis and the echo back really showed no signs of raised concrete debis, no noticable difference on bottom density, I did see depth or ledge change when motoring down the Alafia river but only @ speeds under 6mph, so I think this is one of those crap $49 bought it a Wal-Mart units, So i'm just looking for a decent finder, and now that I have to replace $1000 worth of ignition parts due to a loose stator magnet that broke away, my budget is blown, I did see a couple of units @ West Marine in the $200-300 range that looked decent but I don't remember what they were! so I will try to take another look @ them on Saturday, and post back makes and models, hopefully if you guys have a few spare minutes you could look up the specs on the 2-3 units and tell me what you think! again I only plan on fishing in the tampa are with an occasional trailered trip to the Keys, I plan on going no further then about 10-15 mile out and that may be too extreme for my 2020WA KeyWest, I don't know have not had her out of the bay yet!
BUt I do very much appreciate the feed back! and sorry if I started this thread in the wrong forum! as you can see I'm new