What kind of fish finder??

[fishtillwedrop]

We live in Arkansas. Mostly enjoy crappie, trout, bass and especially catfishing. We are looking to purchase our first fish finder. Leaning more towards the Eagle 320C or 320 VS Eagle 480C or 480. Not sure between the mono or color. Most of our fishing is done in "murky", shallow water. Saw where the Lowrance is better for shallow water? Can anyone please help us in making the best decision. Thanks

 

[JB]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

Lowrance and Eagle use the same electronics and transducers, FTWD. Save yourself a few bux and pass up the additional features of the Lowrance version.

I use an Eagle Cuda 168 for that kind of fishing.

 

[RobDar]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

Personally...
I took my eagle cuda off my boat...tied fireworks to it and blew the piece of garbage to pieces.

Eagle fishmark series is more reliable and definately more accurate.

 

[FLATHEAD]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

The one that came with my boat is a "Navman" Biggest piece of crap ever, soon to be replaced. I also have an Eagle fishmark 320 on the boat. For the money it is not bad. I bought before the big rise on GPS finders. If I had to do it over again I would get one with GPS and mapping capability's.

I also have a little Eagle Cuda portable that I use on my little Jon boat. It aint much but it does a decent job of showing temps and bottom contour

 

[fishtillwedrop]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

Not to seem "stupid", but exactly what does the GPS do? Does it just show the whole layout of the lake, or does it keep track of your locations you came from?

 

[gonfishn]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

It really doesn't who the maker is,they all lie. I swear they have a computer chip that always show fish, then rewinds itself and starts all over.

I go with JBs selection. I mainly use mine for finding structures and where the weed line stops. The other 90% is to read everything you can on the fin you are hunting. By knowing their habits and where they hang out greatly increases your success.

I'm a gator man here and it is the hardest fin to catch. I feel real good if I catch 4 or 5 a year.

 

[eurolarva]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

Not to seem "stupid", but exactly what does the GPS do? Does it just show the whole layout of the lake, or does it keep track of your locations you came from?

Yes it will plot where you are on a body of water and then draw lines showing where you came from. It is possible to put way points down say if you get a fish so you can easily locate that area when you come back. Some mapping software availble for most GPS include Navonics and Lake master which for a bunch of lakes will actually have depths and structure on the GPS. If it were me cause I am cheap is I would get an ifinder H2O and a really good Fish finder without the GPS. The reason is I use my H20 more in my car then I do fishing however I always use it fishing as well. I have Navonics for fishing and plan on buying mapcreate for non water landmarks like highways, fast food that type of thing

 

[gonefishie]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

the color one would give you better view in bright glarring sunlight and give you better definition of the different bottom compositions. Color graph will show mud, rock, sand, etc.. in different colors. Monochrome will show them in different shades of gray, which will be hard for beginner to tell the different but you will get use to it. I believes the 480's have better resolution, if you can afford it, go for it. Modern day transducer don't have problem with shallow water up to a little less then 1ft. If you're interest in GPS, check out the thread title "quality of these fish maps" started by Expidia.

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=207468

Disclaimer: I hereby, can not be held responsible in anyway for your wife getting mad at you for compulsively, excessively or just plain spending too much money on your "fishing toys".

 

[ECHO 1]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

Not sure what is the best, i have an Eagle fishmark 320 and it seems that the case is warping and my screen fogs up in the inside, also hve a Humming bird
pirana max 20 on the bow, took a good hit on some ruff water and the thing went blank, It's in the shop as i speak.

 

[phishvt]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

I have the Eagle FishElite 480 (Sonar + GPS) and love it. It's great to be able to add waypoints to get back to those hard to find humps that hold fish out in the "middle of nowhere". Without the GPS, I'd waste plenty of gas driving back and forth to find some of these spots again. The route tracking feature is also great, particularly in the spring when there is alot of debris in the lakes. I feel better about picking my way back through the same route I came out in, especially if it's getting dark.

I recently purchased the Navionics Premium Hot Maps for $150. The Hot Maps come on a SD memory card that plugs into the FishElite 480. The map shows depth contours in great detail. Having this map has been great for trolling along the edges of drop-offs and knowing what to expect ahead so I can turn ahead of time and not bury the downrigger balls in the mud. It's also been great for driving straight to humps/shoals that I could never find before.

 

[Hoss the Hermit]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

Best one I ever saw was a little old man that lived down the road. Sumb***h never would tell me where he found 'em, though

 

[heycods]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

Best one I ever saw was a little old man that lived down the road. Sumb***h never would tell me where he found 'em, though

Dang that feller sure got around for an old man, I sure miss him, I heard he died!

 

[etbill52]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

It really doesn't who the maker is,they all lie. I swear they have a computer chip that always show fish, then rewinds itself and starts all over.

I go with JBs selection. I mainly use mine for finding structures and where the weed line stops. The other 90% is to read everything you can on the fin you are hunting. By knowing their habits and where they hang out greatly increases your success.

I'm a gator man here and it is the hardest fin to catch. I feel real good if I catch 4 or 5 a year.

I agree, I have a Humming bird, thinking about trying it in a bath tub full of water.

 

[Doug158]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

I have a Lowrance with GPS and a matrix 10 with GPS I will never be without a GPS again after going fishing with a buddy who grew up on Clarks Hill Lake had a storm blow in and the the Pea soup fog and even creeping around got us lost took 3 miserable hours to find the ramp he now has the Fancy high dollar Lowrance with everything but a microwave

 

[Hoss the Hermit]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

Ever hear of a compass and a map? GPS are great at times, use mine lots, but I NEVER go out without a compass.

 

[Jarhead44]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

i have the Eagle 502 c GPS/ fishfinder. i love the 5 in screen and you can't beat the price compared to the lowrance.

 

[_brad_]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

The 320C is a decent finder for the price. I have the 320 and I like it.

Works well for ice fishing also.

 

[Zero Balance]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

I have a Humminbird 981C-SI for my boats. It's great both in the river on my 16' jetsled (Carful not to scrape the gravel ) and on lake Mi. on my 23' boat. Those DS600 series Ray Marine units are nice too.

Best? All in what you need I reckon.

 

[skimmer]

Re: What kind of fish finder??

I just put an eagle seafinder 480df in, happy with it so far its got 480x480 res and I get a perfect picture at 20 knots it'd probably be fine at 40, my boat only goes 20 I've seen navmans and humminbirds that can't be read at speed.