The old transducer finally gave out, switched to side scan and I'm sold

My old single beam transducer died mid-job last Tuesday on the Kaskaskia River. I was about 40 feet from a sandbar I thought I knew like the back of my hand, and the bottom just disappeared from the screen. Took me 20 minutes of poking around blind to realize the unit was toast. I had a side scan unit sitting in my truck that I borrowed from a buddy, never used it because I figured it was just extra clutter. After hooking it up and running one pass, I saw the whole riverbed laid out like a map, even spotted a submerged log I would've hit for sure. Honestly, the old method worked fine for years, but now I get why the younger guys rave about side scan. Has anyone else made the switch and found it messes with how you read the bottom, or is it just me?

2 comments

2 Comments

jesse_smith102d ago

Doesn't that just mean you're running both tools for different jobs, like a tape measure and a map? The side scan shows you what's out there, but the single beam still tells you where you're sitting, so it's less about picking one and more about learning when to glance at which.

morganl713d ago

Going against the grain here, but that fancy picture is exactly why I almost ran aground last month. Side scan showed me everything except the depth directly under the boat, and I got so caught up staring at the pretty image that I forgot to watch the numbers. The old single beam forced you to pay attention to one thing at a time, which keeps you honest. Now I gotta split my eyes between two screens and I still miss stuff. Plus all that extra wiring and mounting gear is just more crap to break out in the field. Keep it simple, that's my take.