Don't throw away that broken Eagle Fishfinder

I just had my second Eagle Fishfinder failure.  I guess I need to quit buying the "bottom of the line" garbage.  Fortunately for me, the failure this time was the female end of the connection and the previous time it was the mail end.  I saved the old "head" which contains the male connection and was able to connect it to my cable and it appears to be working.  The connectors are really bad.  I try and just leave it connected rather than risk bending or breaking a pin but the design really sucks.  Maybe I should just put a little goop on it and make the connection permanent?  Any other solutions????

That's what I did. Put Noalox, which is dielectric grease, on the male pins on the head and plugged in the cable. I never unplug the head and it stays on the kayak 100% of the time. Eagle 245DS almost five years old. Zero problems. I just make sure and rinse the salt off the screen so it doesn't get etched.

I started leaving the head on all the time because before that I would forget it was off and unplugged and then hose down the kayak with freshwater which was getting the female plug end wet.

 I think most powerboats plug their FF in and it stays plugged in all the time. I don't believe these cables are meant to be plugged & unplugged everytime they are needed and they certainly aren't meant to be wet like I was doing by hosing off the kayak with the cable unplugged.

There really needs to be better FF out there for Kayakers. I've about had it with the Eagles. Thanks for confirming that I'm not the only one.

My Eagle Cuda 350 is 3 years old and works like its brand new.  I always take it off after every trip and lightly spray it with water.  I put a drop of Corrosion X inside the female connector and stick it back in then pull it out.  I do take off because I alternate between my Revo and T13.
Takes a minute to do.
My baby has lots of years left on it.  I mostly do saltwater trips.

Both of my Cuda's (250/350) have problems with the positive lead getting corroded    I NEVER unplug them (don't need too how I have mine setup on the outback) but it happened to both of them.  I didn't use the grease, so likely all my fault.  I knew that electricity and water was bad, but my guess is that electrolysis occurred  and disintegrated my positive pin.

When I recently noticed my 350 not working, I was at Berry and figured out a quick temporary fix.  I'm not sure it will last, so I dont recommend it    I reluctantly pulled the power/ducer plug from the unit, and saw that the pin was basically dust at this point.  I scraped out the rust/dust and then took a #6 baitholder hook and cut off the eyelet of the hook, then shoved it in the plug/female end, and then cut off the bend of the hook, leaving a straight piece that protruded about 1/8" out, and then slammed that sucker into the base.  It worked, but I also had to zip tie the cable to the headunit so it wont pull out, or strain the connector.  I am guessing this will last about 1-3 more trips 

If/when it does die again, i'll try doing the same thing, and then goop the hell out of it 

Ditto on the dielectric grease.  No matter the brand of fishfinder, dielectric grease is the key to a long fishfinder life for kayak fishing.  Without it, corrosion of the connectors will happen... it's just a matter of time.

(Just be glad you didn't ruin a higher end unit for not using the grease).

I have two Eagles, a Fisheasy 240 and a 245DS.  The 240 must be getting close to 10 years old... it's had the snot beat out of it but still works like a champ.  The DS is probably 5 years old... ditto. 

Did I mention dielectric grease?

Dielectric grease it is!  I bought some today and will use it regularly.  It's too bad Eagle doesn't have a little better connecting plug though.  I had a Magellen fish finder years ago that had a much more solid connector that was not only stronger but more water resistant with a locking collar as opposed to the push-in plug.  Thanks for input and suggestions!

Martin


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Ditto on the dielectric grease.  No matter the brand of fishfinder, dielectric grease is the key to a long fishfinder life for kayak fishing.  Without it, corrosion of the connectors will happen... it's just a matter of time.

(Just be glad you didn't ruin a higher end unit for not using the grease).

I have two Eagles, a Fisheasy 240 and a 245DS.  The 240 must be getting close to 10 years old... it's had the snot beat out of it but still works like a champ.  The DS is probably 5 years old... ditto. 

Did I mention dielectric grease?

Ditto x 100 on dielectric grease.  It WILL solve your problem!!!!

One other thing I forgot to mention that can cause corrosion is leaving the battery attached when you're not using the fishfinder. When you're done fishing for the day unplug the leads from the battery. Leaving them attached will continue to bring power to the head unit and the voltage, even with the FF turned off, at the pins & plug will cause extra corrosion. Just like a car battery under the hood. Undo the cables and you won't get any more corrosion.

That's what I did. Put Noalox, which is dielectric grease, on the male pins on the head and plugged in the cable. I never unplug the head and it stays on the kayak 100% of the time. Eagle 245DS almost five years old. Zero problems. I just make sure and rinse the salt off the screen so it doesn't get etched.

+1 I have an Eagle 250 which is 6 years old and works great after quite a few surf dunkings. I fill the male side 1/2 full with dielectric grease then push the female side in which pushes the extra grease out and forms a waterproof seal then never take it off. I have a Humminbird 383C also but prefer my Eagle 250 and 350 because they have been 100% reliable with regard to the sonar and have less energy demand. I use dielectric grease to seal the gaskets on my GPS, camera and any exposed switches like on my drywell.

 

  Di-electric grease,  I know what it is, where does one find it? Maybe west marine?  Radio shack? I've simply sprayed my FF connections with reelx or wd40 after useage.

  Di-electric grease,  I know what it is, where does one find it? Maybe west marine?  Radio shack? I've simply sprayed my FF connections with reelx or wd40 after useage.

Your local Auto Parts store has them. 

Home Depot in the electrical area.

spark plug boot lub is one of the same = 5yrs and counting on my FishEasy rinse and let it dry. The plastic screen can be coated w/lemon oil (pledge furniture polish) it will make it look like new and keep it from getting too salted. (water beads right off it)

I eliminated the plug on my FFer. I used tinned copper marine wire and greased it with DEG and then folded it and shoved it into the female end on the unit. Then I sealed it with goop for a permanent connection. I put tinned crimp on U connectors on the other end (battery end) and just connect it there. No problems since I used this method.