|
|
Posts: 750
Location: Minneapolis, MN | I'm wondering what size most people use for their bow mounted GPS/Fishfinder. We are looking to add one this year, specifically for the map and weigh points, to make things easier. Currently I drive from the front of the boat, my dad sits in the back, and in order to really know where I’m going I need to pop off the console screen so I can rotate the GPS around to face the front of the boat, and then the screen sits on the floor waiting to get kicked and eventually broken. I'm really hoping I cans tick with a 5" screen due to price. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1638
Location: Minnesota | Buy what you can afford. I'm running a 1198 si on the bow
Edited by muskyhunter47 4/11/2014 6:20 PM
|
|
| |
|
Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | depends on how good your eyes are. rule of thumb, buy the boat you can afford and the electronics you can't ... |
|
| |
|
Posts: 397
| jonnysled - 4/11/2014 4:32 PM
depends on how good your eyes are. rule of thumb, buy the boat you can afford and the electronics you can't ...
Lol how true!! I have a 522c on the bow it works nice but am wanting a bigger screen. I am looking at an elite 7 good price and a bigger screen |
|
| |
|
Posts: 337
Location: Watersmeet, Michigan | I've got a 900 series up there, which is fine, but I sure wouldn't complain about an 1100 up there being too large.
Fr. K |
|
| |
|
Posts: 897
| I agree with sled. My eyes are fine and I run a 5", 520C. I'd like a bigger one so I can see more of the structure when zoomed in, but what I have works fine. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 35
| I transferred electronics to a new used boat in 2010. LMS 532C and an LCX 111C. The 111 is a big screen, and I ended up swapping positions vs. the old boat ... I put the big screen on the bow. Couldn't be happier, as the majority of time looking at a finder is done up front. Even on a long ride, the 5" small screen is more than sufficient from the console. Old boat was a tiller, so I liked the big screen back there. Just my $0.02 |
|
| |
|
Posts: 43
Location: Waite Park, MN | I have been using an HDS10 up front, but I am moving to a 12" Touch. I have at least 3 or 4 regions on the screen, e.g., map, sonar, side and down imaging plus sonic hub always in front of me. I've been in the AV business for many years, and I'll always say, "There's no such thing as too-big of a screen"! I wish there was room for a 12" on my dash, I'd put one there too...... |
|
| |
|
Posts: 791
Location: WI | I'm with sled. Go big ! Best bang for your buck is the elite 7. In my opinion it's the perfect bow unit since you can use down scan off the front of the boat. One other option for guys with older units or even hds units is switch them up depending on what your doing. Say you have a 5" and 7" unit. As long as they have the same power cord you can switch them around. If you are primarily casting put the 7" up from for the day and the 5" at the console for basic nav from spot to spot. I did this for years until I got my two elite 7 s. I know have an extra power cable and ram ball at the console and put both there when trolling or out with the family. Full screen for map and full screen for sonar. I'm all about versatility.
The power cable and std sonar transducers from lowrance have been the same since the early 2000s til present with the hds units. The will all work anywhere.
|
|
| |
|
Location: Eastern Ontario | I`m currently using 2 5 inch on the helm one on full chart and one on full sonar. I will be replacing one of these hopefully this month with HDS 7 touch with side and down scan. On the bow I run a 5 inch unit on full chart with all sonars turned off. I am starting to believe with a lot of bass guys that on pressured waters the sonar pulse alerts fish to your presence. I have fished my home lake for 30 years and really don't need sonar when casting. |
|
| |
|
Posts: 1184
Location: Iowa Great Lakes | I run a HDS 5 on the dash and a HDS 7 on the bow... I spend all my time up front so prefer a bigger screen there.... |
|
| |
|
Posts: 163
Location: NoDak | hds 5 on dash, and 959 bird up front, the larger the map portion is the easyer and faster to see where your at, get the biggest screen you can afford, i sugest either the ELITE 7 or 859 humminbird, have used 2 elite 7's on my dads boat there nice. now when it comes to gps chips i am thrilled with the features that LAKEMASTER has in there chips, like shallow water highlight and target depth highlight, here is why i love the idea so much. my lakes have huge flats running hundreds of yards off shore to 7 feet deep and then varrying amounts of slope from 3 feet depth gain in 50 feet to 20+ feet in 20 feet. weeds growing from 8' to 16' so here is my set up to make it easy to understand at a glance, "red" shallow water highlight <7' and target depth of 12' + - 4' either side of 12 foot conture. so i will have red then "clear" at some space either (wide or skinny)((shows me slope)) then green showing me where the normal weeds are located also showing me the slope based on how wide it is.. picture for imagining my madness
Attachments
----------------
 55.png (135KB - 123 downloads)
|
|
| |
|
| Yeah, get the biggest you can comfortably afford...even if it means buying used.. I've never heard anyone say that they wish they would have gotten one with a smaller screen! I also agree with Samuwenn, that lakemaster chip is the cat's ass.. |
|
| |
