I'm about to get a new fish finder but I'm not sure if i should pay up for side scan. I would like to hear from folks that have one . Any help would be great .

Don't get one without it.

Console = Side Image

Bow = Down image

I have both down scan and side scan and rarely use them. Most important for me is quality sonar for fishing in the lake for whites and strippers. If you fish a lot of structure and base most of your fishing off the presence of trees or such, down and side scan show that much better than the sonar ever will.

I currently have four Humminbird Side Imaging units, did have another one and just sold that over a month ago.

Side Imaging is my primary sonar tool along with 360 which is still Side Imaging that rotates. I don't use Down Imaging at all for fishing, just for demo screen shots. I use 2D sonar for the FishID sometimes to tell if the displayed fish are the size I want to try to catch.

Side Imaging shows what is in the water column and out away from under the transducer as as far as the Range setting is as long as the transducer is not buried in the bottom.

If you spend the time to REALLY learn how to use it you can learn to find any type of fish!

To expand on Saltydawg88's post:
I was fishing a couple of days ago and saw a fish beside a stump at about 1:00 twenty feet away--water visibility was about 2"

I cast a wacky rigged Trick worm to it, it took it and I set the hook and got 1/2 of the worm back. I picked up another rod with a finesse worm rigged the same way, cast back to the stump, it took it again, set the hook and ended up with a trash fish:




This is what I saw. The long shadow is the stump and the crappie was on the left side of it. I had been catching bass spawning beside stumps basically "sight fishing" with sonar.

ok side scanner it is , thanks to all

Its definately a must have in my opinion.

I wish I could get my 360 to read this good.

I found that there are times when you get really good 360 images, but most of the time things are a bit distorted because of boat movement, angles, etc. Don't try to get 360 screens to compete with side images. They are just different. Getting a pretty image is not what is important, finding the structure, cover or fish is. I can idle up to a waypoint and I don't need a marker buoy to find an object. I can pretty much hit my target each and every time from 50' away with the 360.

There is nothing better for finding hydrilla edges and clumps.

cool thanks to all