Fishfinder/ GPS advice

[stevenhickeys]

Hello,

I recently purchased a 19' Bluefin I/O and I am very concerned about hitting underwater shoals, rocks, and other hazards (before my current fish finder warns me and it's too LATE!!) I would like to buy a used fish/gps unit to help me fish and avoid these hazards. I am willing to spend @ $300 for a used system considering the new ones are way up there.

I do most of my boating in Lake Ontario, Genesee River, and I get up the the Adk Mts once a year. I know some units use chips for different bodies of water for their lake depth information. Do most all bodies of water have chips that contain this information and are there some manufacturers that have the bottom information I am looking for in most NYS bodies of water??

Any advice with models and manufacturers would be great. I don't know if I am asking for too much but it would seem to me there should be something out there that is simple to use and can warn me about "documented" hazards before I tear out my beloved Cobra unit!!

SH

 

[Larry3215]

Re: Fishfinder/ GPS advice

Your best bet is to look on the websites of the chip/map suppliers to be sure the lakes you want are indeed covered. Advertising can be deceptive. You can get by with a cheaper GPS unit IF the nav maps you want are available. Navionics, C-Map etc. They are not all the same and some offer different grades or details levels on the maps. You might see an advertised gps map that has lake "data" but that may just be shoreline and not depth data. Go on the different websites and see if they have examples showing exactly what you can get for the specific lakes you are interested in.

For example, I was doing some similar shopping for a Navionics chart for lakes here in Wa State - only some lakes are covered and the level of detail varies a LOT from one lake to the next and one chip type to the next.

One more note - be careful about getting one too old. Charting technology is changing rapidly and you may not be able to get up to date chips for an older model.

 

[stevenhickeys]

Re: Fishfinder/ GPS advice

Thank you Larry for the advice. Are there any manufacturers that you favor or have experience with to begin my search? Any that you would not recommend?

SH

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Fishfinder/ GPS advice

At least in my experience, most of the sub $300 units do not contain depth. They are shoreline details only. Might be some diamonds in the rough out there that do it, just haven't seen many.

 

[Todd4]

Re: Fishfinder/ GPS advice

I'm no expert, but I recently researched this and ended up with a Humminbird (5??ci HD). It's mid-line, fine for inland waters, but probably not as well recieved (like Ray Marine, etc) for serious offshore use. I love it for what it does - I tell it to color shade anything less than xx feet and know at a glance exactly where its OK to go (my lakes are not constant level, so they can vary each time I go out). I would not buy a B&W screen - MUCH easier to see in color (but more $$$).

Most chartplotters include coastal waters, but will require additional map chips for any detail of inland lakes. If that's what you want, check out Navionics. They have chips with varying degrees of detail (depending on what your chartplotter can handle). Just make sure of two things (don't assume anything): 1) Your lake(s) are included with the detail you want (topography), and, 2) the chip will work with your charplotter.

BTW - it took me 10 hours to figure out how to get my chartplotter to recognize my Navionics chip. It's simple once you you find the CORRECT instructions on the internet (not from Humminbird or Navionics, though).

Good luck shopping!

Todd

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Fishfinder/ GPS advice

The Lowrance Elite 4 is a FF GPS color combo for $299.00, $365 with the Navionics chip.
Used is risky, electronics don't always age well.

 

[Larry3215]

Re: Fishfinder/ GPS advice

Humminbird has a new Fishfinder/GPS combo that looks very interesting and the price is in your range - lower if you shop around.

581i HD DI Combo :: Humminbird

 

[Howard Sterndrive]

Re: Fishfinder/ GPS advice

I am willing to spend @ $300 for a used system considering the new ones are way up there.

I think the Navionics chip for my area was $180, so $300 is a tight budget for the whole shebang.

I have a Humminbird 385c. I am happy with it. Getting the chip in and running was very straightforward.

If you have a smartphone, the Navionics app is only $20 or so. Once loaded it uses the phones GPS and requires no connection or dataplan to operate.