Fish-Hawk.Net

looking for a fishfinder for ice fishing. Do I need to buy special model or can just use a regular one?

a really newbie question, any comments?


thanks

Hey zick, welcome aboard!

Just scroll down to the "Vexilar" threads. There's been a few discussions on them!

The thing you have to remember about fishfinders on ice is that the darn things will freeze up and then they are useless. Even the most expensive units can freeze up in bad conditions. I personally think that fishfinders though the ice are there to keep the fishers entertained more than they are there to find fish.

Fishing under the ice has to be approached about the same way you fish anything. Find structure and drop-offs and you will probably find fish. In my opinion that is the only good use of a fishfinder while ice fishing. It is a tool that will allow you to find depth and structure.

Now I have seen some people do amazing things with Vexilars also... don`t get me wrong but for the money you are paying for those things they better work real well.

I personally think that the Eagle portables that are for sale in our classified section are equally good as a finder for ice fishing. They will show you depth and will show you active fish and might be even better because they will also show you structure.

Just my 2 cents.

You want to catch fish... just go where the huts are or where everyone is huddled... chances are they are on the fish. Problem solved.

Have to disagree with Seaweed on this one.

Apparently he has never used a Vexilar or Lowrance Ice unit on the ice.

A regular LCD unit is next to useless on ice, except for showing depth.

A Vexilar or Lowrance Ice Unit will show your jig- no matter how small, will show fish- no matter how small, and will allow you to even anticipate the strike as you watch the fish engulf your bait. Absolutely incredible.

I have never heard of one of these units freezing up.

"Now I have seen some people do amazing things with Vexilars also... don`t get me wrong but for the money you are paying for those things they better work real well."

They DO work real well, plain and simple.

CCB

CCB: I think i will be getting a Eagle Fish Easy 2 Fish finder for christmas. I asked for the portable and they say it works great for ice fishing too. Will it work well or is it just a gimic when it comes to ice fishing with it?

I think people are comparing apples to oranges here ...

Vexilar or Lowrance Ice models are flashers and can't really be compared with your average finder.

All finders will tell you depth but as for specific details the flashers are going to be FAR FAR superior to your average finder when on the ice.

Now are they worth the money. If you fish areas where patterns are predictable and you don't have to go hunting for fish then probably not. If you need to search for fish then they're worth every penny.

Now i just gotta keep saving my penny's to get one... something tells me it's not gonna be this year

Curtis-

That unit will show you depth, and if you are fishing very deep water, you might see fish- but I was never able to with the LCD units I used to use through the ice. I also could not see a jig, even when it was directly under the transducer.

The problem with LCD's is that they are not real-time- what you see is not what is happening when you read the screen.

Maybe others have had more success with them?

CCB

I use an Eagle 320 when ice fishing and I find its works well in deep water{lake trout fishing] Turn the sensitivity away up and you can see the jig.

finally, CCB said it "LCD's are not real time" und that is and makes a big different when searching for Fish.

fishchaser

Hey zick; I know you were interested in buying my unit, I would like to say, don't buy it for Icefishing although you could use it I would rather buy a cheap flasher then go into a LCD. I just bought a FL-18 vexilar, have yet to try it out. I know it's a lot of money but was able to get a real good deal last weekend at the Ice fishing show in TO.

fishchaser

I have used both flashers and LCD's. The flasher was an old Si-Tex and the LCD a slightly newer Humingbird. Although both worked fine I perffered the LCD for the following reasons. Longer battery life due to no moving parts & a fish alarm. Depth finders not only tell you depth but also if fish pass between you and bottom. Only way to know at what depth the fish are at if they are suspended. I use a 12 volt motorcycle battery for power instead of 2 - 6 volt batteries. A trickle charger or a solar charger will keep the battery charged.
Also I find that if you hang the transducer at the bottom of your hole instead of though the ice sensivtivity is far better.

Ps: I know the newer flashers now have fish alarms.

I have heard of LCD units freezing in extreme tempatures.
I used my FL 18 for three days from sun-up until after dark without charging it.
I wouldn't leave my house without 2 things: Vexilar and gas auger.
I would recommend buying a vexilar. I have seen a few used ones for sale on the net.

Not convinced what to buy but it's really interesting to read all the reply. think I might go for a flasher one.
There is also an Ice-Dapter™ accessory http://www.eaglegps.com/Products/Sonar/fisheasy2.htm that can be used with FishEasy® 2 for better ice fishing result.

thanks everybody for the comments.

hey zick;
I looked at the link you've provided. I didn't know that they had something to convert into a ice unit with. There you go. What I've been reading on this Board , It's about 50-50 , your choice Buddy
good Luck in whatever you're buying

fishchaser

The Ic-Dapter doesn't convert a portable unit to an ice unit.

All it does is make sure your transducer is positioned in a vertical position.

CCB