Car topper fishfinder ..... what an education!

[Scoots]

I have only a small car topper for a boat (a 12' Porta-Bote), but I have since manufactured brackets to hold rod holders and the downriggers I made. I have room on the rear bracket to install a fishfinder ..... and my education has begun!!!

Studying fishfinders is like studying for semester finals ..... and I haven't done that in nearly 40 years. There is a LOT to learn!

Garmin, Humminbird, Lowrance, Raymarine, Furuno (out of the picture $$$$), down imaging, side imaging, chirp, transducers, pixels and power! Holy Smokes! stomper

The only clear decision, other than trying to keep the cost around the price of my boat & outboard, is GPS - so that I can find my way when a fog bank rolls in and No Touchscreen.
Here a few that I'm taking a look at:

http://www.humminbird.com/Freshwater.../HELIX-Series/

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/on-t...rod169414.html

http://www.raymarine.com/view/?id=6854

With all of the new technology on fishfinders are there any features not really required for fishing kokanee?

Your experience and input could really help me out.

 

[Ridgeratt]

If you are new to fish finders find the simplest one you can. You won't get over whelmed with all the buttons and whistles. There are several for the lack of a better word low cost unit's out there. Not built cheep but just not all the bells and whistles.

http://lr.factoryoutletstore.com/details/20488-88551/lowrance-elite-4-hdi.html

http://lr.factoryoutletstore.com/details/20488-88551/lowrance-elite-4-hdi.html

Both of those have GPS and WAAS.
One is Gray display and the other is color.

Way before all the Razzoo Cool stuff we used to catch Kokanees but just slow trolling. So if you are able to mark fish and see water speed it's just a matter of figuring out what they want in front of their faces.

My guess is there will be a ton of suggestions, If you follow the KISS logic and learn how to use one you will be money well spent. We started out with the old flasher units which to this day are a great ice fishing tool.

 

[Northman]

I don't think you need to break the bank to get a good fish finder to fish for kokanee. You wont need the side imaging because kokanee are not fish of the shallows. A unit that will read well down to 100ft should be fine. I use a hummingbird that has the dual beam tech (I think I paid $200 for it). That has been really helpful for me because most of the fish you troll over will be just outside of the primary 90 deg sonar cone, and your secondary 60 deg cones will pick them up. (especially if the kokes are shallower than 35ft). It is also nice to know the speed you are trolling at. Small diffrences in speed will trigger bites. I have a magnetic wheel that comes off my fish finder that runs in the water to tell me the speed. It is not as acurate as a GPS but it does the job. GPS can be nice if you working a school and troll figure 8s over them. But I like to toss a marking boey over the side to mark a spot I am working. It is easier for me to watch a boey than a monitor screen. Kokanee are fish of the open water and do not school around "structure" so in that respect every day is a new day to pinpoint where they are. So just because you GPS a spot one day does not mean they will be there the next.

 

[Scoots]

Thanks for the replies. Others are welcome to offer input.
Kokanee and trout is what the fishfinder will be used for and predominately it will be for kokanee.

The gps will be useful for kokanee fishing, but necessary for negotiating my way back to the dock on the coastal lakes I've fished for trout and a fog bank rolls in. Did that once on Siltcoos lake and the fog was so damn thick I could easily have gotten turned around and run out of gas before I made it back to the dock!

So, I'm ruling out touch screens (I usually have outboard oil, fish scent or some other touch screen dissolving fluid on my hands) and side imaging - that will help save some cash for dodgers and lures!

Again, Thanks for your replies. 101cheers101