3dees

I still don't see the advantage. everything your showing can be seen with the arches. plus with the arch you can tell if the fish is coming into the cone, leaving it, or dirctly under it.

looks good in theory, but here is a quote from Lowrance manual. " fish ID is not the most accurate method of fish detection since structure and suspended debris may be shown as a fish symbol on the display". by the way, I have been reading sonars since the days of the Green Box. I may not be the best in thier interpetation, but I'm certainly no rookie. maybe HB does it differently. I'll have to read thier manual sometime. I have always heard and read that the fish symbols were for people who want an easier method interpeting the display even though it may false readings.

I would go with the tm mount seeing that I spend 90% of the day on the bow. if you fish shore line shallows, then it's not that important. for trollers, you would want it on the transom. I would'nt be happy with only one.

I can't understand why people say the Lowrance is too complicated. you can leave it in auto and it will do everything you want it to. that means just turning it on. if your looking for units that display fish symbols, you should do a little reading. when using this mode, everything under the baot will show as fish. anyone who knows anything about fishfinders will tell you to never use the fish symbol mode.

just type in carpet graphics. he's the only seller on e-bay but they are 30.00 each. they are much thicker than regular decals. they have a no skid surface and the adhesive is really strong. I also have two smaller wired to fish decals on the back deck that were 12.00 each from the wired to fish web site. fishes in trees, whatever man.

whats the difference? I have a big motor on the back that reads Mercury. my boats side decal says Crestliner. should I take them off? I guess you won't buy a hat or tee shirt unless they are plain.

I have the carpet graphics from e-bay. I checked two other sources and they were even more expensive. I need one more (motorguide) and I'll have enough.

awesome toys. any reason for mounting it on the starboard side? I'm thinking about getting one but my thinking is since most people who fish with me are right handed the pole would be in the way more on the starboard. it would also be easier to see the pole while driving the boat if it were on the port side.

riveted or welded. each can be great and each can have it's problems. I see some really old riveted Lunds on the water that are still going strong. the thing with Tracker is'nt that they make bad boats. there are many people completely happy with them. the problem I see over and over is Trackers unwillinness to fix any problems in a timely matter if at all. I know it's a problem in my area, which is why I went with Crestliner instead.

the Lowrance Elite 7 HDI imo give you the best bang for the buck. sonar, down scan, and gps on a wide 7" screen. the Elite 7x is even cheaper if you don't need gps. I usually run split screen with 2d and dsi unless I'm dropshotting. dsi is useless for dropshotting.

I have always bought new. I like the comfort of knowing that a warranty will take care of any expensive repair. I looked at the Z-6 two years ago, and decided it was just too small even though I fish alone most of the time. for about the same price I went with a Crestliner VT 19 with the 115 Opti. the front deck is like an aircraft carrier and all the storage I need. after many years of glass (Stratos), I was a little worried about going tin, but now in my third season I don't regret decision.

the manual, I believe, states that for best results speed should be aroung 5 mph. DSI was never designed for high speed. I had that unit on my bow but sold it because DSI is'nt right for every situation. I now have an Elite 7 HDI and use sonar/DSI split screen. your better off with it on the bow, as long as you don't do much dropshotting.

I agree that the Xpress is probably the best tin out there. I believe that Xpress and G3's are the only tins with pad hulls. resale value is what it is. get more for it but pay more for it. owners of any boat are going to praise thier rigs. I have looked in on the Xpress forum on that bass boat forum and while most owners are very happy, the one thing that comes up a lot is leaking compartments. that probably would'nt stop me from buying one as I don't fish tourneys and being retired I can pick my days to go out. Xpress is like the Ranger of aluminum. great resale but expensive as hell to buy. lots of glass boats that can compete with ranger. if I wanted the fastest tin on the water then yes I would look no further than Xpress. I have seen 19' Xpress' going for over 35,000 and for a tin bassboat I think thats crazy.

you do know that Xpress is probably the most expensive tin out there right? great boats, but too pricey for me. besides Tracker, the Ranger, Triton, Lowes, and Crestliner are all solid aluminum boats. as for new vs. used, it depends on your mechanical knowledge. I'm dangerous with tools so only new for me. I can rig electronics and other things, but besides winterizing I won't touch the motor. dealers charge a fortune to work on them. I would really stay away from motors with high hours and tourney boats. if you do go used, don't do anything until you have the engine and boat completely checked out and even that won't mean much in a year or two. I have a Crestliner VT19 w/ 115 opti and it's a miser on gas. they are rated for 150 hp if you need the speed. the 4 strokes are not going to give you better mileage. they are just so quite and no need to add oil all year. I checked the prices on the Xpress vs the Crestline and the base price was about the same. the difference was that Xpress charged extra for features that were standard on my boat. in the end for the same size boat and engine the Xpress was 3,000.00 more, plus the fact that there is no Xpress dealer within 500 miles of me. good luck.

I believe that all HDS-M units are mapping only. no sonar. where is your transducer now? reading the bow unit from a transom mounted transducer is'nt the best option. why would you want to read whats 20 feet behind you. do you need mapping on the bow? the HDS 5X is the cheapest HDS and you can link it to the LSS with the sonar transducer on the trolling motor.

I went with the Crestliner VT19. in my third season and I'm still impressed how well this boat handles and fishes. larger front deck than my last two 19' Stratos's. a bit of a rough ride, but that a con of any tin. customer service is second to none.

made some upgrades to my VT19 during the offseason. took the HDS 7 off the bow and replaced the Elite 5 on the console. installed an Elite 7 on the bow. added some carpet graphics my grandson's got me for Xmas. must say, the Elite 7 is a steal for the price.

you should include a small medical kit because eventually you will need it.

I'm using 6 CU201's and 2 CU101B's (lefties) that are 8 years old and I would'nt part with them for any reel out there. IMO these were the best Curado's made.

the problem is they are DSI only. I had the Elite 5 DSI for one season and sold it. DSI is not very useful in some situations. the Bird 561 is downscan and 2D. I would prefer that even though I am Lowrance user.l

I want to add these to my lockers also, but I'm not sure how to measure since they come in different lenths.

looks like a nice unit, but for the same price I would go with the new Lawrence Elite 7 for the larger screen and for 100.00 more you will add GPS.

I have had both brands and never had a problem with either. it's a Ford Chevy thing. by the way, the holes will match for both brands.

there are a lot of nice tins being made today. I went with Crestliner over Tracker and Lowe, and I do not regret my decision. I have the VT19 with a 115 Opti, and all the upgrades. priced a bit higher than the Tracker but IMO a better built boat and customer service second to none.

I had the Elite 5 DSI and it came with the tm bracket.