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Does anybody know what options might be available for us Cat owners regarding mounting the transducer? The structure scan ducer is around 7" long plus the kick up bracket for transom mounting. I am considering structure scan to compliment my Furuno 585 1Kw thur hull set up. I was thinking about getting one on back order but I dont know if mounting it will be possible for my setup. Worst case, I might be able to make a retractable bracket that mounts on my swim ladder mount but that is certainly not ideal.
There's a pic at the Lowrance link from p.1. I'm wondering if the transducer can be mounted directly to the bottom of the hull, instead of on a bracket?
There's a pic at the Lowrance link from p.1. I'm wondering if the transducer can be mounted directly to the bottom of the hull, instead of on a bracket?
It can be mounted to the bottom of the hull. I cant do that since my boat is trailered unless I cut the bunk which I dont think I would want to do. The ducer itself is about 6" long.
do I need other than scaning transducer for HDS-5 to get downscaning sonar?
Just the package I put in the link above assuming you have an network port available on the back of your HDS display. If all your network ports are used up, you will need a network hub such as a marinized one from Lowrance. I know many people who also use off the shelf 10/100 ethernet switches for computers on their boats.. Only downside is they dont last as long and you would either need an inverter or one that uses a 12v AC/DC converter which could be eliminated for direct DC connection to a fuse panel.
I've used systems like this quite a bit. I currently own both a Marinesonic towed array sidescan and the Humminbird version. The biggest limitation of the Humminbird is that it runs out of screen space at about 120 feet. If this unit goes to 300, it is a huge improvement.
The motion of the boat is a problem to hull mounted transducers. They really want flat water for a decent image. Since the image is based on the time from the ping to the echo, the boat heeling randomly does mess up the picture. The deeper the water, the more distortion you get. Even changes in course show up, so they really need a steady hand or a good autopilot. The speed of the boat also plays into it. These are not high speed systems. But, I am going to put myself on Jim's list for one!
Towing a fish on a cable does a lot to eliminate the movement of the boat from being a problem, but even then if the sea surface is too rough, surface noise can cut down resolution. Towing a fish is a task which takes effort and concentration. Turning on a dash mounted unit is a whole different thing.
I wonder why they made the transducer with the cable coming out the trailing end? The first time I had it on my boat it was the wrong way round, so you can just imagine how confusing that was!
Good question, probably had something to do with the element array.
I mounted the transducer w/cable facing the transom and changed the orientation in Structure Scan setup.
The transducer is held to the SS bracket with 6 bolts & nuts. You can mount it either way i.e. swap ends, just change the setup as in the above shot so it will display the correct side (right or left) of the element return to the corresponding display.
Structure Scan only works with the transducer Fishton posted a picture of as far as I know, you can select either 455 kHz for distance, 800 for closer in detail.
