Great pictures Harv.


Here is a shot of the rip rap by the RR tressel on Lavon. You can see the fish and their shadow.

Unbelievable!!!!!!! why did i spend $1500 on 2 lowrance lms's

I like the 2D Lowrance better than the Bird, but I had no problem adjusting to the difference. It was a small price to pay for being able to share data though.

Once while in the bay, we saw some dolphins. We drove by and they started following our boat. As we slowed, they swam past and they showed up as seven pictures of dolphins on our side imaging. It loked like they do when just looking at them normally. I think they were turned sideways while swimming. It was AMAZING!! Most fish show up as white dots, but you could probably see a 1000 lb catfish real well. If you catch him, let me know. haha

Sorry Ronnie, but most of us in the BPS marine dept do know our stuff. May not be the expert you seem to be, but we work hard to stay on top of things.

As for the original question, go with Lowrance unless you want the sidefinder. The sonar clarity, and gps simplicity as well as map speed is really slanted in the favor of Lowrance. BUT the side finding tech is awesome for those willing to put in the time to figure it out. Also, with the SI yu have to run a 2nd transducer if you want any readings on your sonar while you are running.

mattman,
PM sent

I will let everyone know....I will have a 997 here in a few weeks. It will be mounted right next to my trusty lcx-25c. But here is the question...
will it help me be as good as Randy Taylor or Ronnie Manning claim to be

I mean we all need to be as great as both of them

Mine works fine at speed!

Hi Matt,

If you work in the BPS Grapevine marine dept, I might have bought my 997SI from you. I know this, you guys sure were patient while I looked, and looked, and looked, over many months. I sure appreciate all the help I got from you guys, that's for sure.

The 997SI will work at speed though. Check out my 3rd picture (52 on the gps). The image isn't great, but it's still useable. I do think some guys use a second high-speed transucer with a switch, though, which gives a better 2D image.

Harv

Everything we are hearing (even from the Humminbird reps) is that you have to use a 2nd tranducer to get even a 2d reading on plane. If ya'll are getting a bottom reading at speed, where are ya'll mounting the transducer. Really interested in this, this is news to me.

Hi Matt,

Good question. Give me a few minutes and I'll post a couple of mounting pictures.

Harvey

I agree with mattman on this.

Lowrance also has their version of the SI coming out in 09'.

Hi Matt,

As promised (since others are probably curious as well), here are some mounting pictures. Basically, I was careful to mount the transducer so it meets the hull at the exact midpoint of the transducer. Also note that it has a (very slight) downward tilt, per the manual, which helps prevents cavitation (I believe) just in front of the transducer.

Left view - close up



Left view - wide view The transducer sits on the right-hand side of the pad, near the edge of the step.



Right hand view Note the jack plate. I think the six-inch offset I get from the jack plate makes an enormous difference in the amount of turbulent flow seen by the transducer, since it backs the prop that much further away.



Close-up of mounting underneath console. I included this picture because I think for large units (including the large Lowrance units), the recommended mounting hardward is totally inadequate. Typically, you're supplied some stainless steel wood screws and expected to mount the unit with them. Don't do it! Particularly if you use a configurable mount, such as the Ram-100U that I use, you need a MUCH more substantial mount. I used stainless bolts with aircraft-style teflon locking nuts. This is a mounting arrangement that will hold up under vibration.



Hope the pictures are useful to you.

Harv

I have one and I am not getting anything at speeds. So I dont know what those guys are talking about.

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