I have a lake near me that is our city's drinking water and only allows their jon boats with trolling motors on the lake. I have absolutely zero clue what the bottom of this lake looks like and I would really like to get an idea. 

 

Ive looked at the Deeper 3.0, but have read some pretty bad reviews. I'm looking for something that doesn't require drilling and won't break the bank. 

 

Any help is greatly appreciated, thanks!

Get any depth finder. Mount the transducer on the end of a 1X2 piece of wood about 2 feet long. Using a "C" clamp, clamp the board to the transom of the boat. You can adjust the board up or down to get the transducer just where you want it. Get a small, rechargeable battery for power. Every depth finder made can be used this way.

I mounted one on an old trolling motor that no longer functioned .

 

I have a hummingbird that has a suction cup transducer.  Just pop it right on the back and off you go.   It's also chargeable so you don't need a battery.   I use it for the same thing.   Local reservoir that only allows you to use their rowboats.  

1 hour ago, Deeare said:

I have a hummingbird that has a suction cup transducer.  Just pop it right on the back and off you go.   It's also chargeable so you don't need a battery.   I use it for the same thing.   Local reservoir that only allows you to use their rowboats.  

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. What model hummingbird? 

Didn't know enough to DIY it when I had this question five or six years ago.  So, I got a Humminbird Fishin Buddy.  Still works well.  Six AA batteries will last three long days on the water....haven't tried rechargeables.  I had to replace the battery holder assembly two years ago..maybe $15.  Been a good investment.

I screw the TD into a piece of 1x3 stock, zip-tie the wires, connect to a 7ah battery, and put the head unit and battery in a small soft sided, six pack cooler.  Use a C-clamp to attach the TD to the transom.

The original portable depth finder, the Lowrance Lo-K-Tor. Works as good now as it did then 

 

1 hour ago, Choporoz said:

Didn't know enough to DIY it when I had this question five or six years ago.  So, I got a Humminbird Fishin Buddy.  Still works well.  Six AA batteries will last three long days on the water....haven't tried rechargeables.  I had to replace the battery holder assembly two years ago..maybe $15.  Been a good investment.

 

^^ This.  

 

I have had one for 8 years, great investment.  Went to rechargeable  batteries about a year ago and also broke the battery holder assembly (aftermarket replacements are better built).

Invest in a GOOD fishfinder. I use a Garmin 73SV which is capable of Sidevu, downvu, 2d, and gps. I suggest you look at the new Stryker (sp?) series. Lots of value packed into those units.

 

get one of these portable transducer mounts:

http://www.basspro.com/shop/en/sully-transducer-brackets-for-outboard-motors?hvarAID=shopping_googleproductextensions

 

add the appropriate RAM mount, and you have a very good unit that you can put on just about any boat. Don't get a cheap unit because it's cheap. Invest.