Ocean Kayak tandem ff/gps mounting?

Hi Guys and Gals,
I just got dragonfly fishfinder/gps for my tandem ocean xl kayak. Can anyone give me advice on best compromise place to mount it? I am solo (the middle seat spot) probably 80% of time, and sitting in the rear seat well maybe 20% of time when my younger daughter comes with me. It seems like the only place would be right behind the front seat, but then that person can't really lean back.
Anyone solved this well? Would really appreciate any suggestions or photos. Thanks!

i would suggest two different ram balls or other type mounts on the left side.  with transducer shoot through hull underneath the rear hatch (assuming you have a gaspachi hatch there?), but making sure you have enough slack cable to be able to switch the FF around.

Actually, I'd probably recommend a scotty or railblaza starport low profile flush mount as those will be lower profile for the front paddler, so they wouldnt have to worry about dodging a ram ball on their paddle stroke.

so this is what I would do if I were you:

Measure your left (or right) side rail on the XL, to see if you have suitable space to mount a flushmount.  the scotty needs 4" in length and 2" in width.
Here's a link for reference but I think you can get them cheaper at fisherman's warehouse.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001M4HT34/

I'd buy two of them and place them where you need them in the center and rear position.

Then I would also buy a scotty universal fishfinder mount, which would plug into the flush mount.
(again link just for reference) http://www.amazon.com/Scotty-Universal-Sounder-Fishfinder-Mount/dp/B00FPQZ95K

Since these are to be used for fishfinders, you could get away with rivets instead of bolts if you don't have internal access.

Nice thing about these is that you could then use the other one as a rod holder if you're not using it.

As for the transducer, If you have a hatch for internal access, I'd do a water bath cutout.  if not, you'll need to find another way.  I would mount the battery inside the hull near that rear hatch in some sort of bag or box, either hanging from padeyes, or velcroed to the bottom of the hull.  since malibu 2 doesn't really have hatches, you don't have to worry about water intrusion. then i would run the cables up the left side of the kayak somewhere near the center, coming out of the hull with either a hobie or west marine wire cap.  Leave enough cable slack so that it could reach either FF position.

Fairly simple install and I think you could get it done for less than $50 total.

BMB, really appreciate the expert advice. Yes, I was wondering about how much of an interference it would be to have the ball mount which it comes with mounted on either side where a paddle stroke would be happening.
The transducer with this ff is a long thin thing, not in front of me, but I'd say about 7" long by maybe 1 1/4" and it tapers. It would be weird hole to cut. Thinking maybe I should have it off the back, though I don't like the idea of catching kelp or breaking off when beach launching or beach exiting. I'll try to attach a photo.
Thanks, Warren

BMB, really appreciate the expert advice. Yes, I was wondering about how much of an interference it would be to have the ball mount which it comes with mounted on either side where a paddle stroke would be happening.
The transducer with this ff is a long thin thing, not in front of me, but I'd say about 7" long by maybe 1 1/4" and it tapers. It would be weird hole to cut. Thinking maybe I should have it off the back, though I don't like the idea of catching kelp or breaking off when beach launching or beach exiting. I'll try to attach a photo.
Thanks, Warren

I have the same and made a cutout out of the gardening knee pads for my eddyline 12.  turned out fine.  the question is whether you have enough flat space inside of your hull to mount it. 

I would suggest using RAM Mounts, you will have more choices and its easier to pivot your unit to your liking. 
If you have a D7 (I own one) go with 1.5 inch mounts.  For 5 inch screen and smaller, 1 inch mounts are good.  As BMB said waterbath method will work fine for your transducer. 

Outfitting a tandem is a huge hassle. I have a Malibu Pro 2 Tandem so this probably won't help you as much, but here is what I have done:









Battery box & fish finder is all one unit which I attached to my deck with industrial "velcro" strips (interlocking teeth not hook & loop) and backed up with bungees. Transducer over the side on a ram mount with a ram-ball wedge in a rod holder. Works well in a tandem setup, but I haven't really worked out how to make the solo setup work yet.

BMB- I'm kind of confused about your transducer mounting. Are you actually cutting a hole in the bottom of your hull or just making a water holding vessel that the transducer sits in? Sorry to be so dumb.

And Dave, are you just trailing that transducer? Isn't it getting in the way of paddling or if fishing getting in the way of bring in a fish on that side. I most spear, but want also a bit of hook and line. Also why the battery up top? Are you just trying to reduce cable penetrations of the deck of your kayak?
thanks for all suggestions!

I think he probably means something like this (this is a newer Dragonfly transducer):


I'm in Concord if you have any questions or want to check out my setup.

so this is what I would do if I were you:

Measure your left (or right) side rail on the XL, to see if you have suitable space to mount a flushmount.  the scotty needs 4" in length and 2" in width.
Here's a link for reference but I think you can get them cheaper at fisherman's warehouse.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001M4HT34/

I'd buy two of them and place them where you need them in the center and rear position.

Then I would also buy a scotty universal fishfinder mount, which would plug into the flush mount.
(again link just for reference) http://www.amazon.com/Scotty-Universal-Sounder-Fishfinder-Mount/dp/B00FPQZ95K

Since these are to be used for fishfinders, you could get away with rivets instead of bolts if you don't have internal access.

Nice thing about these is that you could then use the other one as a rod holder if you're not using it.

As for the transducer, If you have a hatch for internal access, I'd do a water bath cutout.  if not, you'll need to find another way.  I would mount the battery inside the hull near that rear hatch in some sort of bag or box, either hanging from padeyes, or velcroed to the bottom of the hull.  since malibu 2 doesn't really have hatches, you don't have to worry about water intrusion. then i would run the cables up the left side of the kayak somewhere near the center, coming out of the hull with either a hobie or west marine wire cap.  Leave enough cable slack so that it could reach either FF position.

Fairly simple install and I think you could get it done for less than $50 total.

I'm copying this great information!


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seabird can I take you up on the offer to see your installation?  I actually work in concord .
Are you marine goop ing between transducer and hull and other materials are there to keep it from moving around? 
Is this better than hanging off transom?

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BMB- I'm kind of confused about your transducer mounting. Are you actually cutting a hole in the bottom of your hull or just making a water holding vessel that the transducer sits in? Sorry to be so dumb.

And Dave, are you just trailing that transducer? Isn't it getting in the way of paddling or if fishing getting in the way of bring in a fish on that side. I most spear, but want also a bit of hook and line. Also why the battery up top? Are you just trying to reduce cable penetrations of the deck of your kayak?
thanks for all suggestions!

I have only used the RAM transducer mount once so far, but it hasn't hung up on anything yet. I will probably cut the arm shorter after a few more outings. It's super easy to lift the arm up out of the water, so if I'm headed somewhere I just pack it in. If I had the option to mount to a recessed pocket in the hull (as many late model kayaks have now) I would, but I don't have that luxury.

Mounting to the battery box is something I only did because I wanted to be able to move from a solo-to-tandem position and vise-versa without putting a ton of holes in my yak. I figure at some point I'll get myself a single kayak and everything will be mounted in a more permanent fashion. At which point I'll want my tandem to be more or less stock for just screwing around with my kids.

seabird can I take you up on the offer to see your installation?  I actually work in concord .

Sure thing; I'm unsure about my availability this weekend but I should be around next week some time after work.

Are you marine goop ing between transducer and hull and other materials are there to keep it from moving around? 
Is this better than hanging off transom?

I used a marine goop equivalent between the foam and hull and laboriously cut the foam to be a tight fit to the transducer. It's tight enough to hold the transducer and the water around it in place. I didn't want to worry about bubbles in between the transducer and hull which is why I chose the water bath option over the 'direct adhesion to hull' option.

Have you guys considered using Duct Seal instead of Marine Goop? It tends to provide much better results from what I have been told.