NAVMAN depth/fish finders ???

[BillP]

Has anyone tried a NAVMAN depth/fish finder? I'm looking at one for a pontoon boat and want it for basic depth finding in under 30'. I'm interested in the NAVMAN for the engine hr meter and fuel consumption meter that other brands don't offer.<br /><br />How about it? Anyone know anything about this brand?<br /><br />Thanks,<br />Bill

 

[jollymon]

Re: NAVMAN depth/fish finders ???

BillP,<br /><br />I have just started looking at the NAVMAN unit, I also have a pontoon. The only other option I have seen is the Floscan fuel meter, and a seperate fish finder.<br /><br />Because of the limited space on my helm, I like the idea of the combined unit. Also the combined unit from NAVMAN is about $250 vs, $175 for a fish finder and $350 for the Floscan.<br /><br />The biggest draw back that I see, is if either unit dies they both are out. But because the sell the FF module and Fuel module separtly, you should be able replace the bad module.<br /><br />Does anyone have any experince with this unit????

 

[Capn Mike]

Re: NAVMAN depth/fish finders ???

I purchased the NAVMAN chart gps with the flowscan option, and it works great. I think a chart gps is the only way to go now....it's a lot easier to use than a non-chart unit, since the map is all laid out in front of you. Navman uses C-Map, which most of the boaters around here use. <br />On a 200+ mile round trip down and then back up the Columbia river, I found the fuel flow meter worked well. Not sure I saved enough to pay for it (it was an $85 option) since I chose to go faster than optimum fuel usage, but at least I learned what I should have been doing...

 

[BillP]

Re: NAVMAN depth/fish finders ???

Navman seems to have a lot of features...another nice one is a batt gauge. I've read the fuel flow gauge needs to be calibrated and will work down to 1.5 gph. Not sure this will work on a 50hp 4-stroke (except at near full throttle) but I wouldn't buy a Flowscan because it is overkill for this engine. <br /><br />Navman has a 2 year warranty compared to the 1 year from Lowrance. I've owned Eagle/Lowrance products and been 100% satisfied. The problem is they do not offer batt voltage, eng hrs or fuel flow. I could add individual units to do this but having just one unit on that tiny dash is preferred. <br /><br />I've been surfing the web looking for reviews on Navman but come up empty.