Humminbird Down Imaging...*sniff sniff*

I recently purchased a new T15 so knowing that Humminbird makes the plastic through hull transducers I started looking at fish finder combo units on their website. After poking around for a while I happened upon the 597ci HD DI Combo (http://store.humminbird.com/products/410761/597ci_HD_DI_Combo) with their new Down Imaging technology. "Sounds cool", so I check to make sure they have a plastic through hull transducer for these units. No go....so I sent an email to Humminbird support and this was their response:

"Thank you for contacting Humminbird. We appreciate your interest in our products. You are correct, we do not have a plastic thru-hull for the down imaging. I have not heard anything about having a thru-hull for that model."

So sad....guess I'll have to settle for the 587ci HD Combo (http://store.humminbird.com/products/399598/587ci_HD_Combo)

Poor me

Keep in mind that this does not mean they absolutely will not make a through hull transducer for their down imaging units....It just means that this particular support guy just doesn't know. I'll remain hopeful.

-FF

There might be a mix-up in terminology man, I'm fairly positive that the "kayak transducer" is just a standard transom mount transducer with a different mounting bracket.  A thru-hull transducer, at least the one I'm sure HB is describing, is one in which you'd drill a big gaping 3" hole in the bottom of your boat and the transducer element is mounted thru the hole, leaving the element on the outside and wiring on the inside.  They're powerful units, usually in the 1kw range and used in conjunction with the higher end electronics.

The transducer in the pics looks like its a transom mount, even if they don't have a bracket you should be able to rig it up.


edit:  I just looked at the transducer for the 587ci and it has the same notched circle mounting point as the 597....if they make the kayak bracket for the 87 then it should work for the 97.

Maybe I wasn't clear enough when I asked Humminbird support. You don't seem to get it either. What I'm looking for is a transducer that will fit in the scupper hole in my Trident. If you go to their website and look at transducers...then look at the through hull transducer category most of them look like this http://store.humminbird.com/products/313998/XTH_9_20_P

If you look at the 587ci HD , then look at the related Accessories section in the bottom left you can click the view all link which will show you all the compatible accessories for that unit. At the bottom of the list you will see "XTH 9 20 P", which is the through hull transducer (through scupper) for that unit. Do the same with the 597ci HD DI and you won't see XTH 9 20 P or any other similar transducers.

-FF

Alright I gotcha, there's a way to make it happen though, I wouldn't let it deter me. 

Alright smart guy.    Without gooping the transducer to the inside of the hull, how would you make it work?

-FF

BTW I love the Cobra Kai pic in your sig. That is pure awesome!!

-FF

I've seen lots of guys make an external mount for their transducer on their rudders, or even just off the side of the yak.  Guess it depends on how badly you want to use that thing 

There are three reasons I really want to go with the through scupper transducer instead of the gooped to the hull method:

1 - I want accurate temperature readings from the transducer. When you put the transducer inside the hull of the yak and shoot the signal through the plastic you get an accurate reading in the morning but when when the sun comes up and the yak heats up so does the temperature sensor. Sometimes the difference between finding the bass and not finding them is a simple matter of a couple degrees in water temp.

2 - Clutter inside the hull - Now that I've got a rod pod I plan to use it for rod storage. I don't need cables mucking up the works inside my hull...getting caught on rods = no good.

3 - I think I ended up with bubbles in my goop the last time I tried to mount it inside the hull. The sonar works fine most of the time but every once in a while I'd get f'd up signals which meant I needed to power cycle the fish finder to get it to work correctly.

Down imaging seems cool but I'd rather keep my install as clean as possible.

-FF

2x4's, bungee cords and a hammer 




Depends on the dimensions of the transducer, off the top o my head I'm thinking mount it inside a fairing block with a tube up the scupper. If not, some kind of rudder mount.

Another question.....does anybody have one of these down imaging FF's and can give some feedback on how much better they are and if they're worth the extra cost. The 'simulated screen images' sure look good in the ads. jim

Another question.....does anybody have one of these down imaging FF's and can give some feedback on how much better they are and if they're worth the extra cost. The 'simulated screen images' sure look good in the ads. jim

I have a Humminbird 797c2 side scan sonar and a 788ci FF, both are combo GPS units.  the 788 has a slightly larger screen which is easier to see.  I paid over 1k for the 797c2 and around 650 for the 788ci.  I rarely use the 797c2, I don't think the side scan is worth the extra money.  I use the 788 in my Gregor and Pro Angler.  the 797 came with a excellent transducer, I could see a 1 oz. jig at 60+ feet on the FF screen when I was jigging for Macks at Caples Lake last summer

Another question.....does anybody have one of these down imaging FF's and can give some feedback on how much better they are and if they're worth the extra cost. The 'simulated screen images' sure look good in the ads. jim

I just received my 570DI on Friday.
I took out the old noodle that held the old Eagle transducer and installed a new one for the H-bird TD (it's longer).
In fact, the goop is still drying.
The new noodle (foam) will hold both the HB TD and the Eagle TD. ( Not at the same time but I can use the same set up for either).
There are a few cool features with the HB I like. One example, the on screen cursor wihch tells you the depth of wherever you put the cursor on the screen is a great feature.
I still think Eagle has a better plug, mount and easy to use menu than the HB but the down imaging seemed too good to pass up.
I will make a post as soon as I give it a shot for real.