side finder

[bushwacker]

Has anyone dropped a load of cash on a Hummingbird Side finder????

If you have does it work in saltwater????

[Slim to None]

i dont have one but i have seen them in use. it's kinda freaky how detailed the images are. it was hard to read where stuff was in relation to the boat, but i'm sure you would get good with enough experience on the unit. i only got to see it for a couple minutes on a demo boat. i'm not sure i could justify the cost, but it sure looked cool! i use a Garmin color bottom machine and it has served me well.

[NOTHING ELSE MATTERS]

Ditto Slim to None, never had one either but seen them on action and i was very impressed.

[boogieblues50]

Hey
I have an old humminingbird 3D with a sidefinder two transducer system I mounted the sidefinder transducer on the trolling motor on My old bass boat....It was actually way ahead of its time its over 10 years old...The main transducer showed the bottom in a 3D graph...which I realy liked...Now the sidefinder on the trolling motor shot from bank to bank with a split screen...was great when fishing shore lines and boat docks...I still have it and Iam thinking of putting the sidefinder transducer on my TM...I think it might work on Redfish and Trout in shallow water...And Yes I would like one of Their new ones but not at $1500...BoogieBlue

[fishin in georgia]

I just got one yesterday but it will be Memorial Day weekend before I get a chance to install it and try it out. I've looked at them a dozen times over the last few months and gone back and forth on whether to spend the $$ or go with a really good much less expensive model but I went ahead and pulled the trigger.

It will be used in saltwater so I'll report back after the holiday with results, if I can figure out how to operate it that is.

Fishin in Georgia

[bobreeves]

I didn't even realize side-scan was available for rigs like ours - I know researchers at A&M use them, but thought they were 'research instruments' and didn't realize that they made versions for us little guys. Let me restate that - little guys with big $$ ;D. Must be really neat to see out the side as well as straight down.

[NOTHING ELSE MATTERS]

I still think that the front facing sonar is the best aproach.You see everything in front of the boat and sides.

[fishin in georgia]

I installed the Humminbird 797 on the skiff on Saturday and got to run it a bit on Sunday. I would say the side imaging is very impressive and the screen is very small on the 797 but still very clear. I can't say it helped me catch any fish yet, but I can see possibilities with finding unknown structure. The GPS worked very well and I've got the Navionics Gold maps and for the most part they seemed quite accurate. The regular fish finder was OK as well, though I'm far from very knowledgable on these things. I mounted the transducer too low (yes, I was the guy with the 6 foot roostertail behind the skiff!) but depth readings were fairly consistant up to 28 mph or so (1765 DLX) with some skipped readings in rough water. Just FYI- I mounted the transducer on the extreme edge of the transom and was pleased that it worked as well as it did. Still have some adjustments to make on the transducer height, as well as the settings on the side imaging itself. I raised the transducer, still had good readings but still had the roostertail so I'll keep raising it until I find the right spot.

I took some screen shots but forgot to pull the memory card out, I'll post some in the future after the next trip out.

Fishin in Georgia