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Hey guys--
I'm currently waiting for my first fish finder to arrive. I don't own a boat, so I went for a Deeper since it can be used on docks, ice, and even from shore.
My question is probably a bit noobish. I don't think I quite understand how what I'm seeing on the screen translates to real life. My understanding is the deeper has a cone underneath it of sonar. The screen will be a 2d representation of the ground, structure, and fish. My brain his having trouble wrapping around that. If I see a fish on the screen, how do I know where that fish is located in the cone of sonar underneath the Deeper?
Thanks in advance
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You don't. All it can you is that there's a fish somewhere within the cone, and how deep.
My fishfinder goes a wee bit better. It shows a solid fish if it is in the middle of the cone, and a fish outline if it's nearer the edge. But which edge is still a mystery.
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90% of the fish I catch don't show on my sonar screen anyway... The most important things a sonar will show you is depth, bottom structure and a general depth the majority fish of fish are at. A lot of people actually catch less fish when they first get a fish finder because they are abandoning their normal fishing techniques and trying to catch that little picture of a fish on their sonar screen. Use it as a reference, but don't depend on it to show you where the fish are!
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My fish finders lie almost as much as my lab dog, however they sure help me find structure. It's all magic.
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Well that makes a lot more sense to this sonar noob. Good to know that there may well be fish on a pretty regular basis even if they're not showing up on the screen.
I believe the Deeper does have a flash function that gives you color codes to help with determining the proximity of the fish to the center of the cone.
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All fish within the cone should show on the fish finder. The cone will only extend to the point that any portion of the cone touches the bottom. If the under-water terrain is steep there may be several feet under the cone that do not show on the screen. While ice fishing, I probably see 80 to 90% of the fish on my screen before they bite.
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Yes, I forgot to clarify... on a boat, most of the fish I catch are not directly below me so I do not see them on the sonar. I have not used them on the ice, but I have been told the flasher function is very helpful and you see everything that is below you.
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The way I use my finder in the summer somewhat differs to the way I use it for ice fishing in the winter.
Summer time is all about structure to me, I do a lot of bass fishing and structure, depth, and how hard the bottom is will relate to where the bass are at that time. When I am trout fishing with my flyrod off of my kickboat, I will look for overall depth to the bottom and depth of where the trout, crappie, bluegills, or any other fish are suspended.
WInter time or ice fishing is where the finder comes in handy, I will look for depth of the bottom to the ice, I will also look at my lure to where it is relative to the bottom and to see if the bottom type species are around when I jig, this is mostly for perch. I also use the finder for suspended fish and what depth they are at, I will then reel my lure up to that area ( if you have the sensitivity turned up, you can see the lure) if I see a blip come across above my lure. The suspended fish are usually crappie, trout, pike, or even muskie.
That cone you are asking about is the transducer, it will start out small at the top and depending on how deep you're finder goes and what the degree of the you're particular cone's angle is, will spread out across the bottom of the lake, hence, closer to the cone, less of a picture and angle, the farther away, the wider the angle of the cone is. There is no way to tell where that fish comes into the cone area. If a fish shows up in the cone, jig the lure (preferably above the fish where it can see the movement) and hopefully you have on what it wants to eat and you catch it.
The whole key to understanding the finder is getting out using and seeing it under different circumstances.
I am not familiar with the "deeper" model, I use Hummingbird finders on my bass boat, kickboat, and while ice fishing, they seem to do good enough for me, There is a wealth of information on youtube and the internet that will teach you more than what you are willing to put the time in for but you still have to get out and differentiate what the colors and symbols mean.
Good Luck
Scott
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I looked it up. The "Deeper" is one of those tossable/castable floating balls that transmit back to your electric leash - I mean smart phone. From what I saw, they cost more than a decent "real" fish finder but they do have the advantage of being portable and self-contained.
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Yeah, that's the one. It had solid reviews and honestly, the price seemed pretty fair. I've seen fish finders online and at places like Sportsman's warehouse for WAY more than the $230 I paid for the Deeper.
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I have been interested in this unit too. I went to their website after reading your question, and saw that you can download their app to your phone from your app store of choice, as long as you choose Itunes or Google Play. I did, and there is a demo mode under the settings menu. You could start playing with the app a little as far as what you expect to see and what the colors represent even before receiving your unit.
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I actually downloaded the app about a week ago on my iPhone. It's a good app even if you don't have the sonar unit to pair with it.
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Play with it and get know it. It will prepare you for when you do get out and use it. I use himminbirds myself. On my toon I do a lot of vertical jigging so knowing that there is something below me is critical. On the boat it tells me what I may find on my hook when trolling or other things such as depth, structure, temps, and speed.
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