Question on Lowrance FF's mapping capability (Hook2/Reveal)

The hook has push in connections that will stop working. I would recommend screw in connectors.

Humm, it doesn't' have the push in then slightly screw backing deal?  It seemed like all the connections and wires are twice as big/thick as the last generation, I'm surprised if it doesn't stay seated.


What level of Lowrance FF do you have to get to be a fully waterproof unit?  I'm still not buying anything bigger than a 5, but see so many 7+'s out there and cost so much, i'm hoping they are at least more waterproof?

BB had a post a while ago where someone mentioned glueing in the power cable with lexel and then splicing in an all weather connector below. This method has been awesome so far in keeping my fragile pins intact and keeping my Garmin alive so far. I was about to toss it after 2 years of use because those pins were so bad but with this method on a new power cable it's still going strong!

Humm, it doesn't' have the push in then slightly screw backing deal?  It seemed like all the connections and wires are twice as big/thick as the last generation, I'm surprised if it doesn't stay seated.


What level of Lowrance FF do you have to get to be a fully waterproof unit?  I'm still not buying anything bigger than a 5, but see so many 7+'s out there and cost so much, i'm hoping they are at least more waterproof?

I have the Hook2 Reveal 5.  I completely submerge it in fresh water after each trip.  Once in a while, I brush a tiny bit of dielectric grease on the pins in the holes (probably once or twice a year).  I haven't had any issues with connectors, water intrusion, etc.  I've had the female side of the connectors on the power cable that live inside my hull corrode before, but I think that's expected since the inside of my kayak has stayed rather damp.

So I have always gotten away without drilling holes in my Hobie's by just running the power/ducer cable through the front hatch, since that's where I mount it anyway (sail tube, or Pat R. mount) and so I never actually have to unplug the wiring from the head unit. I fill it with grease the first time I connect it, let ooze out and wipe off the excess, and then practically never un-plug it again.   I also put my battery in a waterproof tupperware container, so I never have any corrosion at the power wire either. 

I always suspected the card slot for the moisture, and tried to deal with it by filling the slot with grease and then wrapping the whole unit with electrical tape to try and seal the card slot from the elements.  The 4-DSI I had for like 9 years but it bit the dust from never giving it a chance to dry out living up in the woods. 

Now I bring the FF inside the house after trips and let it dry out.  Rinse the headunit each trip and also put a coating of Corrosion X on the while FF unit and wipe it off, like Bushy taught me 


Oh forgot about waypoints and card slots on the new units... Whats the best way to backup data?  I'm very determined to start compiling data from my trips so it's not lost again.

Oh forgot about waypoints and card slots on the new units... Whats the best way to backup data?  I'm very determined to start compiling data from my trips so it's not lost again.

From the unit's menus, I export waypoints and tracks to a GPX file on the card.  There are a few other options, but I already work with GPX fairly often for motorcycle trip planning.  Move the SD card to the computer, grab the file and import into Garmin BaseCamp (again, since I already use that for things).

Sweet that doesn't sound hard.  Going to look into automating this using a Raspberry Pi to offload waypoints easily. 

Going to try and open up the old unit and see if there is anything I can do to recover the old waypoints too.

The hook has push in connections that will stop working. I would recommend screw in connectors.

My friend's hook had the same problem(the plug kept coming out).  I Don't use hook because they skimped and cut out the bayonet locking plugs that better quality fishfinders have standard.  I find that generous amounts of dielectric grease on the bayonet-locking style plugs keep the wires protected and the FF operational.

Sweet that doesn't sound hard.  Going to look into automating this using a Raspberry Pi to offload waypoints easily. 

Going to try and open up the old unit and see if there is anything I can do to recover the old waypoints too.

That'd be easy enough.  The GPX file naming is standardized, so you could easily write an inotify routine to detect that file being present and do what ya need with it.

Ugh... Sorry to bring it up again...

Looking at Amazon you can get a Hook 5 Reveal for 150 without maps: https://www.amazon.com/Lowrance-Reveal-SplitShot-DownScan-Plotter/dp/B083PVQ356/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3DMLO508RM55W&keywords=lowrance%2Bhook%2Breveal%2B5&qid=1675201070&sprefix=lowrance%2Bhook%2Bre%2Caps%2C177&sr=8-3&th=1

And then you can get the one with maps for $389: https://www.amazon.com/Lowrance-Reveal-SplitShot-DownScan-Plotter/dp/B082XLK43P/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3DMLO508RM55W&keywords=lowrance%2Bhook%2Breveal%2B5&qid=1675201070&sprefix=lowrance%2Bhook%2Bre%2Caps%2C177&sr=8-3&th=1

Or this one with more maps for $499:  https://www.amazon.com/Lowrance-Reveal-SplitShot-DownScan-Plotter/dp/B08WPQLF8L/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3DMLO508RM55W&keywords=lowrance%2Bhook%2Breveal%2B5&qid=1675201070&sprefix=lowrance%2Bhook%2Bre%2Caps%2C177&sr=8-3&th=1



So is it really $240-350 for maps, is that the only difference in these units???  And are there cheaper alternatives to the map cost?  Like just Ocean maybe a cheaper option?  Maybe I should start using my phone instead? 

Hum... answered my own question it seems:

https://www.lowrance.com/lowrance/type/mapping/c-map/c-map-reveal/

So just a choice of preloading or buying later.  But if you buy later, maybe you can move it between units? 

So just a choice of preloading or buying later.

Be careful here.  The "no maps" versions not only lack the mapping card, they also lack the ability to show map data.  You cannot buy a card after the fact and get maps on the "no maps" versions.

Well, I couldn't pass up on the price so ordered the no maps on.  It does say in the description: Lowrance Hook Reveal 5 Inch Fish Finders with Transducer, Plus Optional Preloaded Maps  but it's hard to tell if that's referring to this unit or all of them but it, or what.  Either way it was a good price in comparison to the map version.  Figured if I hate it, I'll end up upgrading at some point later.

Sure looks like the 5x has no maps at all like said.  I'm also not impressed, the unit is very slow and I'm not sure that screen is much bigger than my Elite 4-Chirp.  They remove the screw on connectors for the cables and that power cable seems cheap.  One thing I liked was how the base mounted to the back, felt really solid. Guess I'm going to look for something else though.

So after a bit more research I have concluded that the companies making FF's no longer seem to make low end units that are good for kayaking, except the Garmin Echo.  Since I was looking for something with a bigger screen I kept looking but really am not finding anything except larger and expensive units.  The Hook5x Reveal with gps is the closest thing to an affordable unit, but they took away the maps, and it's so hard to swallow that the maps are going to cost more than the unit.

 Funny, the Raymarine Dragonfly 5 looked like it would have all that I could want and more on paper.  But no longer sold, and research shows they were not very reliable.  But they had coined the Wi-Fish technology, which boy that looks like it could be a good way to offload data from your FF.