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Tunaluvr,
Have you looked at Furuno's web site. They have some pretty cool pics of the CH250 being used. They even show some screen shots of a school of Albacore, which may be of interest to you. http://www.furunousa.com/Furuno/Room...E825D3D8%5D%5D
Thanks for the reply Justin, I started to feel that you had to be in a special membership here to get some replies back.
I did look at the furuno website and saw all those pictures. But I figured that it would be better to get some opinions from others who have this unit instead of getting information only from the manufacturers website. They will always say good things about there products. I wanted to get honest feedback from people who have this machine.
I've never seen one in person so I want to be sure that this is something I really want before investing in this project.
Thanks for the reply Justin, I started to feel that you had to be in a special membership here to get some replies back.
I did look at the furuno website and saw all those pictures. But I figured that it would be better to get some opinions from others who have this unit instead of getting information only from the manufacturers website. They will always say good things about there products. I wanted to get honest feedback from people who have this machine.
I've never seen one in person so I want to be sure that this is something I really want before investing in this project.
You might want to check out some forums dedicated to the fishery you're targeting. They are very popular with the big boys in Cabo going after the billfish. No offense to any one here, including myself, but most of us don't own boats that could easily handle a hoist and an 8" hole.
I've used the CH250 as well as the CH300 before and they are both outstanding searchlight sonars. What sort of boat are you going to put it on?
I've installed a few. It takes some time to get aclimated to what you are seeing. It will take 2-3 trips before you start to become a natural. If you can afford it, there is nothing else like it. If you are using it for palagec fish chasing schools of bait, usually you have birds telling you the same infomation. Very cool fishing tool non-the-less.
A friend of mine has a CH250 on a big Viking that I have seen in operation a number of times. I think it may be more useful for commercial fisherman trying to ensure their net is in the right place than for recreational guys. It does show bait and fish around the boat out to a few hundred feet with useful detail once you get used to the display orientation.
It seemed to me as one of the other posters noted that there was usually some other indication that would have led an experienced helmsman to drag the baits towards those marks -- birds working, a weedline, temperature break, etc. The CH250 did not seem to add that much in real life. The installation on the boat is a monstrous thing, a huge tube affair a few feet high. The whole deal with installation cost a small fortune and just did not seem worth it to me. This boat also had the best in conventional downward-looking sounders that Furuno makes with multiple beam angles shown on a 15" screen. Now that was worth having!!
Cool, thanks. What is the minimum clearance that is needed for the sonar set up under cover?
If you mean how far does it stick down. Retracted, the fairing that needs to be built in to the keel will be about 2-3 inches lower than the keel itself. Deployed the transducer pod is another 8 inches.
It is somewhat true about the horizontal range. If it is choppy you might only see bait balls just 500 ft. away. The biggest advantage is knowing which way the bait is moving, if you are chasing it, Also if you turn and look behind with the SL Sonar, you can get a feel how many dolphin - tuna are schooled behind the boat. ... a tuna tower and polorized glasses can almost do the same. If you can afford the $30K installed price and are an avid tuna guy, then go for it. I don't know anyone who regretted getting this.
I've got a wesmar hd 800 series in my OA. The issue is that at anything above 7knots you start seeing a lot of artifact. I use it mostly to pick my way into anchorages and areas that I'm not familiar with, works great for finding rocks and other things that are bad to bump into before you are on top of them. I've used it fishing, it works ok to find bait about 100 yds on either side of the boat. It came with the boat, after living with it for 3 years I wouldn't spend the coin to put one in.
A friend has a CH270 on his 35' Cabo and loves it. Fishes billfish along with some tuna and island fish like yellowtail and white sea bass here in CA. If you have the coin it is a useful tool.
Come on, someone must have this unit on thier boat. Don't be too secretive. Need some advise if its worth it.
I had it on my last boat and liked it enough to put it on my current boat. Last time, I went with an 88khz transducer, this time 150 khz. Tradeoff between resolution and range. In my experience, range beyond 800 feet is not too useful.
As others mentioned, it is complicated, but only because it offers lots of control over its functions. It does have several preset memories, so you can assigned keys (kind of like radio station buttons on your car radio) to the various configurations.
As far as how useful, shows you fish and bait that would otherwise go unnoticed (unless you went right over the top). So, you see 5 to 10 times as much as you would with a downward looking fishfinder. It helps to know what to do with that info, however. I have a long way to go, but a few examples: Say you are trolling along a current or temp break. You will typically notice that one side or the other (no telling which) will have more bait or fish, so concentrate on that side. Example 2, you are watching for bottom structure. Put it in the side scan mode (it sweeps sideways from port to starboard, back and forth). You cover a much wide swath than with a fishfinder that looks only straight down. That can be very helpful, especially if you are looking for a specific wreck or something. Example 3, you are tuna trolling. If you see fish to one side or another, you can turn toward them and increase the chance of getting hooked up. This works really well with dorado, too. I have even found kelp paddies this way (guy in the tower must have been asleep). Bottom line, its a useful tool, and if you enjoy playing with electronics, it will keep you busy when there are no fish to catch. Not cheap, however.
Thanks for the replies. I plan on using it to search for the bait fish that the tunas and wahoo's are praying on. I figure that by running the ledges, it would help to find the direction of the bait schools instead of having to run right over them and work that area's for the larger fish.
Just need to get an idea of the clearance needed to install this. I'm building a new boat and trying to get my plans done for it.
Just need to get an idea of the clearance needed to install this. I'm building a new boat and trying to get my plans done for it.
You should be able to find the specs on Furuno's site pretty easily. The "sound dome" (which looks like a dome and houses the transducer) is lowered through a 10" (maybe its only 8", or maybe 8" is ID and 10" is OD) tube that is cut into the hull. Ideally, the top of the tube will be above the water line. That way, you won't have to hull the boat if it ever becomes necessary to pull the sound dome. The hoist that raises and lowers the sound dome (its lowered for use, and retracted for running above 14 knots or when not in use) comes in two versions -- a long reach and a short reach. I can't remember the reach lengths, but if you have room definitely go for the long reach -- that will put the sound dome deeper beneath the hull when not in use. The long reach requires more overhead clearance.
Furuno sonar 
