Transducer on aluminum v-hull

[Earl D]

I want to mount a transducer on the stern of a 12' v-hull aluminum boat. I think drilling holes through the aluminum is a bad idea. I would appreciate any comments up to and including how to mount a transducer on an aluminum stern.
Thanks for any comments.

 

[airshot]

Some folks trust epoxy glues to hold a piece of mounting board of some sort to attach the transducer to. Some drull just two holes to bolt on a mounting board then make all the holes needed in the mounting board. Have saw some make a bracket that attaches above the water line with clamps or bolts that hold their transducers. Personally, I mount a piece of plastic lumber, with two bolt holes well sealed, big enough to mount everything to then I can make all the mounts and adjustments without drilling more thru holes.. With the quality of sealants today, thru holes are not a problem as long as you don't create swiss cheese with to many !

 

[Texasmark]

I mount mine inside near the centerline, just in front of the transom. Have done this for many years on aluminum boats. The transducer operates on sound waves and the aluminum conducts them very well, maybe better than mounting outside.
I use a rigid epoxy and eliminate as many bubbles as possible, pushing the ducer down in the epoxy until it stops. Roughing up the bottom surface of the ducer and the mounting point in the boat will help the epoxy to remain attached....since ducers are usually very slick as built. If you have a side looking transducer this won't work.

On finding a position you might take a gallon plastic bag and put enough water in it to cover the head of the ducer. Then put it where you think you want it and take a measurement. Then without the bag, put it in the water behind the transom and compare responses. If it suits you go for it. The ducer works very well at speeds mounted as mentioned.

I started doing this decades ago when fishing upper tributaries where moss and logs would get hung up on it. Also worked on my glass boats when water skiing it didn't get hit by folks mingling around the transom. On glass boats you have to ensure that there is nothing but glass between where you mount it and the water...insulating foam or air spaces will render it inop.

 

[dingbat]

I mount mine inside near the centerline, just in front of the transom. Have done this for many years on aluminum boats. The transducer operates on sound waves and the aluminum conducts them very well, maybe better than mounting outside.

May have gotten away with this years back with a fixed, single frequency unit, albeit with reduced sensitivity, but it’s not going to fly with a system (CHIRP) using long duration, multi-frequency (slurred) transmissions.

Problem being, the “ringing” of the aluminum (think of a bell). Not only drowns out some of the returning signals, but can also cause a frequency shift as the signal passes thru hull. Not a good thing when looking at both the timing and frequency of the signals

 

[airshot]

Glad to see inside mount worked for someone as it bever worked for me on aluminum hulls. Like mist everything there must be some tricks you need to find. On those I tried, they worked to some degree but not as accurate and didn't work well at speed. But...hey, things change.....

 

[jlh3rd]

I want to mount a transducer on the stern of a 12' v-hull aluminum boat. I think drilling holes through the aluminum is a bad idea. I would appreciate any comments up to and including how to mount a transducer on an aluminum stern.
Thanks for any comments.

maybe something like this.

 

[JimS123]

Drill 2 holes thru the transom in spots needed to mount the ducer in the right place. Inside the hull mount a wood block (or aluminum if you prefer) and thru-bolt it. Seal the inside and out with 5200. The tinny in my signature has had that setup in place for 30 years and I never saw it leak a drop.

 

[Texasmark]

PIRANHA MAX 4 from Hummingbird is what I use that works fine for me and at around a hundred bucks, no big drain on the wallet.​