Northwest Fishing Reports

BentRod wrote:So, I received a used fish finder as a gift from my brother (he got it off craigslist) and have been trying to figure the thing out for the last couple of months. I'm not new to using depth finders, but am new to fish finders and using them correctly. I don't know anyone who can teach me or show me how to use mine (or evaluate it for that matter)
I've read about all the info out there on the use of these things and how they work and watched multiple videos on how to tweak it and make the most of it.
Anyhow, I'm not sure if it's working right. So, I'm hoping to get a little feedback from the community here if you will.

To start, it's an Eagle Optima.

SPECIFICATIONS
Dimensions................................................ 4.94"H x 6.10"W x 2.71"D
Transmitter Frequency.............................. 192 kHz
Transmitter Power..................................... 600 watts (p-p, typical)
75 watts (RMS, typical)
Display...................................................... Supertwist LCD
240 vertical x 240 horizontal
57,600 total pixels


I've got the transducer mounted to the end of a 1x2 that I C-clamp into place at the back of the boat, so that the transducer is parallel to the surface of the water and extends just below the bottom of the boat to give it a clear "view". It is mounted within a couple feet of the electric trolling motor, but does not pick up the prop or seem to function differently when the motor is running or off.

I fish primarily in Beaver or Pine lake (where there are plenty of trout and some large bass). I don't turn the unit on until the transducer is setup in the water.
With the fishmark feature on, I see the bottom contour and I see plenty of fish all over the place (some places more than others) with the occasional area where there are no fish showing up.
Now here is the questionable part. I've read that to really use the finder to it's full potential, then to turn the fishmark feature off and the fish will then show up as arcs on the screen. This is helpful because the unit cannot tell the difference between some debris/bubbles and fish, so it gives the user a better idea of what is there. With the fishmark feature off, then I really didn't see much of anything. Occasionally I'd paint an arc in deeper water, but not always on the bottom, so I figured it was actually a fish and not a stick or something. But, these were few and far between. I also read that to properly tune the unit, then to turn the auto feature off, set the depth to twice what the actual depth was, then increase the sensitivity until a "double bottom" shows up, then go back to the regular depth. Doing so, I could not get a double bottom to show up on the screen (even at max senstivity). I also thought I should see a thermocline, but was unable to do so anywhere.
Just to see if I could "blackout" the screen. I shut the fishmark feature off, shut off automatic signal processing (ASP), increased the greyline to 70%, then started maxing out the sensitivity. On Pine Lake at max, I still saw no fish arcs and no thermocline in 35" of water (where I knew there were trout). I also could not pick up anything but, apparently, clear empty space between the transducer and the bottom. It wasn't picking up fish or the thermocline or debris.
My battery had plenty of power coming from it and I'm directly hardwired to the battery (except for the inline 3A fuse I installed).
There area few scrapes on the bottom of the transducer, but no major visible damage. There are also a few blank vertical lines in the LCD, but not enough to prevent me from seeing what I want to see.

Any ideas or advice from the experienced?

DougShields.com wrote:I am certainly not an expert, but do have experiences. Transducers can and do go bad. The damage or corruption may not be visible from the outside. If it is an old fish finder, you will need to contact the manufacture to see what current transducer is compatible. Many times, the price for a new transducer is more or close to the the cost for a simple, brand new total package.

One of my transducers is put together and mounted in exactly the same way you describe. I am able to take my own finder along on friends boats when needed as well as use it on some of my other boats. Loony Toons has fish finders on both ends already, so not needed there.

Another thing we have had go bad with no visible damage]

You're right, a replacement transducer is about $60, with no guarantee that that is the problem (if there is one). I can get a whole new setup for $100 or $200 if I want something that I know should work, but my fishing budget is pretty much $50, which buys me my license. I'm still confused as to why I see so many fish on the finder with the fishmark feature on, but nothing with it off, so stampie might be right. I just don't have enough experience or knowledge on this subject to know what I'm supposed to be seeing.

stampie wrote:I believe your unit is probably working correctly. Remember, you are in a relative shallow pool when on Pine Lake. The cone diameter in shallow water may be as little as 3 feet by the time the signal hits the bottom. Sometimes a thermal cline will show up as fish if you have the “fish mark” on so don’t rely on it. Chances of seeing many fish at a shallow depth are poor at best. Your depth/fish finder will work well at locating and telling you the type of bottom you are over and locating underwater obstructions that will hold fish. There are dual cone depth/fish finders on the market that do a little better. In lakes I prefer to use my portable Fishing Buddy with a side finder. It seems to work well locating fish and telling me how far they are from the boat. I hope this info helps. Good Luck!