Fishing Rhino

Howdy! I'll be stopping in your neck of the woods, closer to Bristol, tomorrow night, then on to Pickwick for the road trip.

Welcome from Westport, MA. about 30 miles to the south of you. If you'd like to hook up sometime send me a pm.

Then you've never been on the north end of the New Jersey Turnpike around the refineries. But, on the other hand, it doesn't smell as badly as it did thirty or forty years ago. And what were once landfills with trash blowing all over the place now look like hills in the middle of the marshes, or the Meadowlands. Of course, that was all the result of man's artistry, not nature's. The smell of Newark NJ is enough to make you gag. I would say the Adirondack park, which is about the size of Vermont, ranks up there with the most beautiful places in the US. The smell around Brunswick, GA gives Newark a run for its money. I don't know what concoctions they brew to turn wood into pulp, but it's none too pure.

Then you've never been on the north end of the New Jersey Turnpike around the refineries. But, on the other hand, it doesn't smell as badly as it did thirty or forty years ago. And what were once landfills with trash blowing all over the place now look like hills in the middle of the marshes, or the Meadowlands. Of course, that was all the result of man's artistry, not nature's.

I know what Lucky does for real. He's a politician.

We've always used the term depth sounders, not fish finders. I too do not consider them to be fish finders. They are habitat finders. But, because the term is commonly used, I will use the term fish finder from time to time. And, I use one term transition bottom to describe both structural and cover changes of the bottom. Sounding is a nautical term for dropping a weight, usually a "sounding lead" to the bottom then take a measurement of the amount of line it took from the surface of the water to the bottom. Hence the term for the electronic gizmos of "depth sounders". Eventually someone noticed flashes between the surface and the bottom, and found they were sometimes fish. From flashers to paper recorders to images on cathode ray tubes to the units of today. To think that their initial purpose was nothing more than showing the depth of the water. The next step, and we are very close now will be a virtual image of the water column and the bottom with everything looking much like a televised real image of the bottom. It will make the side imaging look like something from the stone ages.

If you need to drill, and don't want the drill bit to skate around and chip the gel coat, get a brad point twist drill. It will not skate around, and, the tangs at the outer edge will cut, not lift the gel coat as a regular twist drill does. For the 3M 5200, I am a strong believer in the stuff, but, do not use it in places where you may need to separate the two components. Use a marine grade silicone sealant to fill the holes. It will provide absolute protection against water intrusion, but will not create a nearly unbreakable bond between the mount and the boat.

The rugged, ragged coastline of Maine. The Grand Canyon. The Sonoran Desert and Sedona. The Shenandoah Valley. The Everglades. Point Loma, California. The Blue Ridge Mountains. The Smoky Mountains in Tennessee. New England in the fall. Niagra Falls. The list is endless.

I do not know about the Lowrance units, and the internal antenna thing, but I'll say this. I doubt that there is any serious problems with any brand receiving satellite signals with the internal antenna, or the puck mounted directly on the deck or the rail. I do know Lowrance sells adapters for the remote antennas they do have so they can be mounted on a mast. I wish I could cite the source, but alas I cannot. But there was an article about remote/external GPS receivers acquiring signals faster than those of the same brand with internal antennas. Since my unit came with a remote, I mounted it on a mast so it could "see" all the available satellites, none being blocked by a console, the control head, the motor or any other part of the boat. I checked again last night, and with my boat insided the garage, which blocked the "view" of my mast mounted antenna, I was receiving signals from nine satellites from various directions around the boat. The test showed the lat/lon readout to be accurate within 38 feet. Nearby trees, some overhanging the garage further blocked signals from my boat's location. A puck mounted on the deck rail or a unit with an internal antenna should get better signals than I received in the garage. All the articles I read stated that even if some of the satellites were blocked by parts of the boat, the antenna should see enough satellites to provide a reliable fix on your position. I mounted mine on the mast for the best possible reception, and to speed up the acquisition process.

I'll be there.

That's not the problem. The average guy is not going to give the wires going through the frame a second thought. Til, one of those wires shorts out the lights, and he struggles to find out why he's blowing fuses. Of course, by then, the entire trailer should be re-wired. At what cost? Not to mention this gem from the Tracker page on the BPS web site. [bBuild the best boat possible for the best price possible. No compromises, no excuses and no shortcuts. That's the TRACKER® way. So much for truth in advertising. They did compromise. They did take shortcuts. They did not make excuses when I complained about the compromises and shortcuts.

Thanks. One of the reasons I posted it was because the stem and fold down mount were things I had not seen. I did read about the stem on the Humminbird manual, but it was rather vague. Just another alternative for those who are planning to go down the same route. I did spend a few days thinking about and laying things out. Didn't want them to be overly vulnerable, nor in the way (which would make them vulnerable).

I wish I could. But it won't fit in her side. There is a shelf along the back of the garage on her side. The motor would hit it before it got back far enough to clear the fold away tongue. My truck won't fit there either. When I'm done using the garage on the house as a fiberglass shop, my boat and truck will stay there in heated and air conditioned comfort, but only when I have a project to do out there. She's the one who will have to walk outdoors to get to her car.

End of discussion. He owns the boat and that says it all. What really puzzles me is no one has mentioned or gotten onto him about the windshield tennis ball hanging in the one pick. LOL. I saw that, but didn't bother to take another picture. That's so I don't drive through the back of the garage when I pull into that space. When the ball touches the windshield my truck is perfectly positioned, with barely enough room to pass in front or behind it.

Thanks for the compliment. First, it's not my way, as much as I'd like to take credit for it. When I first became interested in side scan sonars, I did a lot of reading about them. That was a bit over a year ago. Back then, many if not most of the control heads contained the antenna. In Humminbird, the prefix "ci" after the number indicated an internal antenna. Do you think there might be a reason why they are not usually available on the more expensive models. At least on the Humminbirds. I don't see them listed for the 898, 998, or 1198, though they were on the earlier versions. Maybe they are available, but I don't see them listed. In my reading, I discovered that external gps receivers had faster acquisition rates. Further, if you go to the automobile navigation sites, Garmin, Tom Tom, etc., you'll find they have magnetic based gps antennas available for vehicles which have problems acquiring satellite signals with the internal antenna of the nav system in the car. So the antenna is stuck on the roof. When I turned on my unit with the boat inside a garage, it acquired nine of the 15 or 16 satellites with no problems. Since you only need three to get a reliable fix, it was in good shape. Chances are that a puck mounted on the rail will provide acceptable service with no problems. But, it only cost a few bucks to optimize the system, so why not? If you go to some of the side scanning forum you will find threads dealing with instances where someone needed to move a puck because the unit was unreliable in certain headings. Do it once. Do it right. There is a saying among the auto racing fraternity. Good enough is not good enough. Same thing for those who make their livings at sea. Leave nothing but the weather to chance. If something is better and within your budget, do it.

Sorry that my prior post stated that the 798 was not compatible with Navionics. I stand corrected, though there is nothing on the Humminbird product site which states that it is compatible, while it does for the 800, 900, 1100 series do. Your best bet is to contact a dealer or Humminbird regarding Navionic compatibility to settle it in your mind. No need to spend the extra 500 bucks when the 798 will do what you want.

The avatar might no be the best choice. Here's a better one. A much older photo showing a much younger me, over thirty years ago.

Razor? What's a razor? See avatar.

Featureless? Hydrilla is a feature. Perhaps you meant there is no or not much "structure". Cover is also a "feature", and hydrilla provides plenty of cover. I agree with the kayak, jon, canoe or Pelican type of boat to cover the entire pond. A portable fish finder would be invaluable in finding what I like to call "transition bottom". That takes into account both structure and cover.

In that case, you haven't seen the Humminbird installation instructions. And from Lowrance: Mounting The GPS module can be mounted on any flat surface, provided there is access behind the mounting surface for the screws. The optional magnet allows the module to be easily used on cars or off-road vehicles. The optional pole mount adapter lets you mount the antenna on a pole or swivel mount that uses standard marine 1"-14 threads. Surface Mount The GPS module can be easily installed on any flat surface that is at least 3-1/2" (90 mm) wide. Be sure that a clear, unobstructed view of the sky is available at the selected location. GPS signals travel "line-ofsight" at very high frequencies, so nearly anything blocking the antenna can stop the unit from finding a satellite. Caution: Do not mount the GPS module in the direct path of a radar antenna's beam. Radar radiates high-energy signals that can interfere with GPS signal reception. In an automobile, you may achieve good reception by simply placing the external antenna on the top of the dash, at the base of the windshield. A piece of the rubber non-skid shelf liner material available in recreational vehicle supply stores will help hold the antenna in place. This may not work well if you have a cab-over design pickup truck camper or motor home. If dashboard reception is poor, simply relocate the antenna module elsewhere on the vehicle for a clearer view of the sky. Once you've determined the mounting location, use the template on the following page to drill the screw holes. The screws supplied with this unit are about 1-1/8" long (4 mm x 30 mm). Drill 3/16" (4.75 mm) holes for the mounting screws. If you need to route the cable through the mounting surface, drill a 7/8" (22 mm) hole for the cable's connector. The notch in the antenna housing allows the cable to pass through, if desired, instead of routing it down through the mounting surface. After drilling the holes, pass the O-ring over the cable and press it into the groove on the bottom of the antenna housing. (If you are using the housing notch to route the cable outside, you may need to cut a notch in the O-ring for a proper fit.) Now attach the antenna to the mounting surface, using the supplied 4 mm screws and the lock washers. Route the cable to where it connects to the network and plug it in. The GPS module installation is finished. Magnet Mount The optional magnet lets you temporarily mount the GPS module on any ferrous metal surface, such as a car roof. Under side view showing where to place the magnet. To use the magnet, simply peel the backing off the magnet's adhesive coating and press the magnet to the bottom of the antenna housing. The module is ready for use. Pole Mount The GPS module attaches to the optional pole mount adapter with the supplied 4 mm screws. You can route the cable through the notch in the module housing and down the side of the pole. Or, you can pass it down through the pole mount adapter and run the cable inside the pole. The 1"- 14 threads on the pole mount adapter fit a standard marine antenna mounting pole. A console, a motor, and in the case of a receiver sharing a mount with the control head, the control head itself can block satellite transmissions. There is a reason Garmin, Lowrance, Humminbird and others make pole mount adapters for their gps receivers/antennae. In most cases, a flush mount will be adequate. However, all the info I've read says that a clear, unobstructed view of the sky is preferred. I chose to optimize mine according to the preferred method recommended by the manufacturers. That does "float my boat". It's a lesson learned from more than 25 years at sea as a commercial lobsterman. Do everything on the water in the best possible way, within the constraints of your budget.

"To optimize performance of the GPS receiver, mount it in an area that has full exposure to the sky. The effective area of reception is 10° above the horizon. Different circumstances determine the mounting method appropriate for your GPS receiver." Humminbird manual

The countdown is on in earnest. The Humminbird 898 is functioning as it should, on dry land. The transducer will get wet on Friday for its baptism. Outta here by 2:00 a.m. on Thursday. Friday, I'll finish breaking in the motor, do some prospecting and fishing, and maybe do some reconnaissance, checking out where the big boys are hanging. Looking forward to meeting everyone who is attending. See some of you on Saturday, when the military comandeers my vessel, and meet the rest of you on Sunday. Safe and uneventful journeys to all of you.

I'm happy with it.

Here's another, perhaps important, consideration. I checked out the 700 series and did not see that they were Navionics or Lakemaster compatible. If you are primarily fishing a few local lakes/ponds, and not venturing to new horizons, it might not be a major consideration. But if you do plan to venture forth to new horizons on occasion, it's something to which you should give a measure of consideration. That will bump you up another five bills to the 898, plus the chips.

Regarding the vents. There is a simple solution which prevents any incidental water which does get splashed into them from getting to the fuel tank. Put a loop or two in the vent line. Unless the vent ingests a lot of water, it will never make it to the fuel tank. It settles in the bottom of the loop(s), and there it stays until it evaporates. There are/were some fancy little doohickeys, don't know what they were called, but they had a water collector in the line. Inside was a float which was like the needle and seat arrangement in carburetors. The "plug" prevented gas fumes from escaping into the bilge. But, when enough water collected, the float would lift the plug and let water escape until the plug once again sealed the drain hole. The loopy vents worked fine for us at a much lower cost.