Lowrance Elite 5 DSI Color with Chartplotter

[mike234]

Just purchased this unit and need to know which transducer mounting would be the best. Shoot thru the hull or on the outside of the hull and why the reccomended mounting would be the best. Todd I guess this question is really for you, Boat dealer(Norris Craft Boats in Tn) says to mount on the outside of the hull.

[bassboogieman]

In a 'glass boat, I like a shoot through whenever possible. No chance of knocking if off the boat. Only minor drawback is the temp sensor may be off a degree or two as it's not in direct contact with the water. But it's a surface temp anyway, no big deal in my mind.

[jdw174]

If you want it to work while running on plane you'll most likely want to use the shoot-thru.

[mike234]

Had a LCX-113CHD on a Blazer Pro 21 that had tranducer mounted outside and it would read at 30mph(GPS) though I imagine the processer was compressing the images and really behind on displaying the info on the screen.

[Todd Driscoll]

Originally Posted by bassboogieman

In a 'glass boat, I like a shoot through whenever possible. No chance of knocking if off the boat. Only minor drawback is the temp sensor may be off a degree or two as it's not in direct contact with the water. But it's a surface temp anyway, no big deal in my mind.

With 2D sonar, completely agree with above. I always mount 2D ducers as shoot-thru. You do lose 10% or so of your power/sensitivity compared to mounting on outside of boat, BUT units today are so powerful that this is a mute point. In other words, running the ducer on the transom, you might have the sens. at 80%, while shooting thru hull you would essentially see the same thing with sens. at 90%. Plus, high speed readings are much better with ducer inside of boat, and with proper install you can read bottom running 60+ MPH. Ducers on transom must be mounted perfectly to prevent turbulence from affecting high speed bottom readings.

Back to Mike's original question. The Elite 5 DSI is downscan only, no 2D sonar. With this technology, the ducer must be mounted on the outside of the boat.

[mike234]

Thanks Todd, I quess Mack knew what he was talking about.

[santacruzguy]

Originally Posted by Todd Driscoll

With 2D sonar, completely agree with above. I always mount 2D ducers as shoot-thru. You do lose 10% or so of your power/sensitivity compared to mounting on outside of boat, BUT units today are so powerful that this is a mute point. In other words, running the ducer on the transom, you might have the sens. at 80%, while shooting thru hull you would essentially see the same thing with sens. at 90%. Plus, high speed readings are much better with ducer inside of boat, and with proper install you can read bottom running 60+ MPH. Ducers on transom must be mounted perfectly to prevent turbulence from affecting high speed bottom readings.

Back to Mike's original question. The Elite 5 DSI is downscan only, no 2D sonar. With this technology, the ducer must be mounted on the outside of the boat.

I myself have purchased an Elite 5 DSI w/ GPS unit to install on a 27' sailboat... My problem is that the stern of the boat isn't in the water so a transom mount isn't possible. I was going to just epoxy to the inside of the hull and shoot through, but now I am worried. How badly will the Elite-5 actually perform shooting through a thin fiberglass/epoxy layer? I am not willing to put holes in the boat below the waterline... any other ideas? or is it okay to shoot through the hull if thats the only choice? -cheers.

[bassboogieman]

high speed readings are much better with ducer inside of boat, and with proper install you can read bottom running 60+ MPH.

Main reason I kept a Lowrance 510C in my console, when I went to the 'bird SI units. I use it for reading depth when running on plane. That unit reads bottom well at speed and I can use the big screen 'bird for GPS navigation.

[Todd Driscoll]

Originally Posted by santacruzguy

I myself have purchased an Elite 5 DSI w/ GPS unit to install on a 27' sailboat... My problem is that the stern of the boat isn't in the water so a transom mount isn't possible. I was going to just epoxy to the inside of the hull and shoot through, but now I am worried. How badly will the Elite-5 actually perform shooting through a thin fiberglass/epoxy layer? I am not willing to put holes in the boat below the waterline... any other ideas? or is it okay to shoot through the hull if thats the only choice? -cheers.

With the Elite 5 DSI unit (or any Lowrance downscan/sidescan technology), the ducer must be on the outside of the hull. You may be better off, if possible, to exchange that unit for the Elite 5 (2D sonar). With 2D sonar, you obviously can mount that ducer as a shoot-thru.

[santacruzguy]

Originally Posted by Todd Driscoll

With the Elite 5 DSI unit (or any Lowrance downscan/sidescan technology), the ducer must be on the outside of the hull. You may be better off, if possible, to exchange that unit for the Elite 5 (2D sonar). With 2D sonar, you obviously can mount that ducer as a shoot-thru.

I bought it off the internet, so no exchange possibility. Potentially I could sell it on ebay and buy the elite-5, or just try and strap the transducer mount onto the 2hp outboard. Additionally I am tempted to just epoxy it to the outside of the hull behind the keel when we the boat out of the water this month, but I am afraid it may not stay on...

Does the elite-5 come with a shoot-thru transducer or does that have to be gotten separately? Cheers

[Todd Driscoll]

Yes, Elite 5 does come with a 2D sonar ducer.

[santacruzguy]

Originally Posted by Todd Driscoll

With the Elite 5 DSI unit (or any Lowrance downscan/sidescan technology), the ducer must be on the outside of the hull. You may be better off, if possible, to exchange that unit for the Elite 5 (2D sonar). With 2D sonar, you obviously can mount that ducer as a shoot-thru.

Okay 100% correct, DSI doesn't work through hull, hell it barely worked in a plastic bag filled with water held in the ocean off the side of the boat.

So we have 2-3 different mounting options in mind.
1. Bend mounting bracket to fit outboard and strap it on. (not ideal)

* next week when we take the boat out of the water to repaint...
2. screw or attach with epoxy / fiberglass fabrication the mounting bracket to the outside/bottom of the sanded hull.

3. epoxy the top of the transducer to the bottom/outside of the hull and then add thin fiberglass strips that fit the contour of the transducer and attach to the hull... (imagine if you duct taping it onto the bottom, only with fiberglass..)

Do you think the transducer would still work through that thin of snug layer of fiberglass? maybe #2 is the best permanent'ish option?

[Todd Driscoll]

Hard for me to answer your specific questions without seeing first hand what you are dealing with. I've done tons of installs, but never on a sailboat. Bottom line, while you are moving at operational speeds, the DSI ducer must be completely in the water, and the ducer face must be parallel with the water surface for optimum returns.