Author Topic: Flashers? (Read 16458 times)

T_and_D_Pike · « **on:** Feb 07, 2003, 10:04 AM »

What kind of flashers work the best? Are they easy to use and how much do they average in price?

Exudedude · « **Reply #1 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 10:36 AM »

Way to broad a question.. but the Vexlar FL-18 and the Marcum LX3 both run about $400.. you can get an FL-8 for about $300 in a propack. And you can sometimes find used units for $200 and less...

Yes they work, and yes they are easy to use.

I have the fl-18 and love it!

TROUTBOY · « **Reply #2 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 10:43 AM »

WHAT IS A FLASHER?

?? :-/

Hard_H2O · « **Reply #3 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 10:51 AM »

Flashers:
http://vexilar.com/products/flashers.html
https://ssl3.pwebtech.com/s075115/

After line, lure, and bait the most important tool to an ice-angler.

alpinehigh · « **Reply #4 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 10:57 AM »

I would put auger, sinker, depth map, common sense all in front of electronics.
Ive just seen too many people rely on them too much.

holeinhide · « **Reply #5 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 10:59 AM »

just got mine today fl-18 my first one after 20 years of ice fishing any tips for set up and use?

Hard_H2O · « **Reply #6 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:05 AM »

Keep your gain down to the minimum needed to see your jig.

I have seen people without a flasher fish all day in a spot because they caught them their yesterday or last year or because the time of year combined with the lake map tells them they should be in a certain depth.

A flasher lets you know if you have fish under you and it also keys you in to their mood. It lets you know if they are suspended. It can give you indication of schools of bait and bottom composition. I would say that is a pretty powerful tool.

TROUTBOY · « **Reply #7 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:07 AM »

HARD H2O THANKS FOR THE INFO. I OWE YOU ONE!!!

holeinhide · « **Reply #8 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:07 AM »

thank you for the tip i am going to watch the video i just finnished the book

Hard_H2O · « **Reply #9 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:13 AM »

I am not the most experienced angler but I get out on the ice some. After you read the book and watch the video the best thing you can do is get out and use the FL-18 and catch some fish. Things will make sense in short order.

holeinhide · « **Reply #10 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:24 AM »

it is a work weekend for me but sun up on monday i will be useing it out on the lake tring to nail some fat perch.

Fat Boy · « **Reply #11 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:30 AM »

Alpine, I agree with you on the things that you mention are very important. Common sense goes a long way. But...put someone with all the qualities that you mention and give that someone a flasher and they will drastically improve their numbers and the ability to find and catch fish faster. I used to catch fish when my buddy that I fished with used a flasher. And there were times that I fished as well as he did. But, more often than not he found and caught fish first, and caught more than I did. When the bite was tough, I'd watch and mimic him, always asking the depth the fish were at and what they were doing and it helped. But, when I bought my own flasher, the game changed for me.

One tip for people new to using them (like Holeinhide): It's easy to get caught up watching the "TV" and not paying attention to your rod tip when you should and you will miss a few bites until you get the hang of it. When you see that bar move to your lure, make sure your eyes get to that rod tip quickly and get ready to set the hook.

A blind squirrel finds an acorn, but an ice fisherman that sees catches more fish!

Hard_H2O · « **Reply #12 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:36 AM »

Fat Boy,

I agree with you 100%. I was fishing over a school of suspended gills on the first of this month. I had a light rod, no bobber, and a small jig. The bite was very light. I would watch the FL-8 and see them come up to the jig or swarm it then I would watch my rod tip and line for signs that one of them had taken the lure. The Vexilar can't tell you that you have a bite. You still have detect the bite and set the hook.

Exudedude · « **Reply #13 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:38 AM »

If I had one tip it would be stop your lure short of the fish!.. Make the fish come up to you.. I'm only talking about a foot or two, but dont just drop the lure right down to the fish!

Always try and take the top fish off a school. If you take a fish off the bottom you risk spooking the fish in the school, drastically reducing the numbers of fish you COULD catch!

Hard_H2O · « **Reply #14 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:42 AM »

I have always heard that fish (especially crappies) tend to feed up. Like Exudedude I like to keep the jig above the school or fish that I see on the Vexilar.

alpinehigh · « **Reply #15 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:43 AM »

Well my buddy got a F-18 flasher so next weekend we will be going for monster specks and I'll keep our results posted. Old school against the new school.
does anyone know if those flashers sink? cuz if he outfishes me too bad I may have to even the stakes.

oakorchardfishking · « **Reply #16 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:48 AM »

a way to practice use at home maybe, it might help you to understand what you would be looking for once your out there!.....set a 5 gal. bucket upsidedown on your kitchen table, right near the edge. set the vex ontop of the bucket. drop down the transducer so that its just below the edge of the table, this is just so that it is pointing straight down. turn it on, have your gain set down kinda low. now you should be able to see the bottom which is your kitchen floor. now put your foot under there just off the floor. this will resemble a fish. next, put a finger or another small object about a foot under the trans, this will resemble your bait or lure.... play with this set up, move it around (your feet and finger) so that you get an idea of how the movement works and so you know how you are fishing them. this little non time consuming lesson works well for first time users, i was shown by a famous pro from minnesota and it helped me tremendously. thanks for the lesson dave! check it out, it may work for you!

holeinhide · « **Reply #17 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:51 AM »

alpinehigh i like to think of it as old school with a new twist and if he does out fish ya just do like fay boy and look over his shoulder untill you catch up.

Jam_Jam · « **Reply #18 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:53 AM »

Hehehe yeah Alpine, and as much as you hate technology you and Rog will be asking me for info just the same!...just like when i got a watch and you said you hated being limited to time...How long was it before you asked me what time it was? hehehe

See ya next week...have your crow ready to eat!

To be honest the type of fishing Alpine is talking about...ie very shallow (<10') is probably the one time you don't need the flasher because you can just sight fish....but rest assured I'll still out fish him. Or at minimum I'll look more technologically advanced than him:o)

I get to try my unit on suspended rainbows in +100' of water this weekend! yeeehaawwww!

holeinhide · « **Reply #19 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 11:57 AM »

i have seen an fl-8 being used and got a good on the ice lesson (thank you jigerjim) and that is what convinced me to buy one but i did not get to adjust it as it was already set up.

Hard_H2O · « **Reply #20 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 12:01 PM »

alpinehigh,

Flashers are definately not new school. I believe that they have been in use for 20 years or so.

FL-8s were manufactured under several different names (Scitex, Hondex...)before Vexilar bought them.

http://www.vexilar.com/help/tips/tip001.html

alpinehigh · « **Reply #21 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 12:03 PM »

yeah yeah jam jam you caught fish everytime you went out this year and you went out twice with your fishing machine and got skunked both times.

oh and your machine is now only good for 20-40 feet of water -whatever -sounds like your already making excuses.
the proof is in the pudding.
My insider knowledge is that I caught a fish in there and know what they are eating..
I'll still put my money on me and rog.

Jam_Jam · « **Reply #22 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 12:37 PM »

Also keep in mind that a fish coming in directly from the side may look like its coming from beneath on a flasher. It is hard to explain without a diagram but I'll try. The unit calculates a distance to an object and assumes its directly below the transducer...this is true for your bait but not the fish which is really off to one side...regardless, the unit will assume that the fish too, is directly below the transducer, when giving the depth reading of the fish. If you think of a triangle between the transducer the bait and the fish, the distance from the transducer to the fish forms the longest side (the hypotenuse) of the triangle...so the distance from transducer to fish (which is parallel and off to the side) will always be longer than the distance from the transducer to the bait. The result...when a fish first enters the cone area it may appear to be 2' below the bait. As the fish gets closer and closer the effect I just explained lessens as the angle of the triangle is reduced, thus giving the appearance the the fish is rising to the bait. The depth of the objects and the spead of the transducer beam at that depth will determine how far the fish appear to be beneath the bait. Just something to think consider.

Jam_Jam · « **Reply #23 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 12:45 PM »

Just remember Spray...20 bites and no hookups hehehe...and 5 other guys caught fish right beside ya. I'd say thats the a true and equal measure of who's lacking skills...you are a **censored** though! I'll give ya that much

TGF · « **Reply #24 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 12:58 PM »

Any way to tell the size of fish on a vexilar guys.

frostedmuffin · « **Reply #25 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 02:15 PM »

green is small, orange medium, red large--

when crappies and other fish for that matter are schooling and feeding well--i always catch on the drop jig never hits bottom sometimes can't keep up with it--

orangebucket · « **Reply #26 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 02:50 PM »

I like to see the bundys ,and were the active feeding collum is. I also fish for lakers over 60' to 70' of water, and I don't like fishing 5' of water at a time. Thats were the sonar comes in handy it saves alot of time and scrathing your a$$. Once you find them u can use the unit to set your types. For the active feeding fish at the right depth. I own a Zercom whitch has never failed me and markes the sepperation better than my fl-8. Sometimes my 8 gives me head aches. But it is my real relyable machine. My freinds and family have zercoms and they just about all have problems maybee I got lucky and got a good one.

twodoggs · « **Reply #27 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 04:53 PM »

If you can see your jig in green all fish will be red. they will start out green when at the edge of the cone and when they turn red are usually right under it.

crappieloo · « **Reply #28 on:** Feb 07, 2003, 05:47 PM »

Started using my vex, woops, tex, woops, I mean hondex FL-8 since 88' when everybody was buying high tech lcd units and wondering why I would buy a low tech flasher

Angling in the 80's technoligy from infisherman mag got me inspired. I used all thier ideas and have been 100% Satisfied ever since

The FL-8 has been amazing, and I can pull a lot of tricks with it. Now you have the FL-18 which is supposed to be easy to read. I don't know much about it but it costs $200 to $250 more than I paid.

crappieloo
walworth ny

dennish · « **Reply #29 on:** Feb 08, 2003, 03:22 AM »

:(If your looking to purchase a flasher,I would not recommend a reconditioned one from vexilar.
I had purchased a reconditioned fl-8 pro pack from vexilars web site. What I received was a surprise since the price was close to that of a new unit. The housing had a crack on top covered with a piece of electrical tape. the battery dropped to 1/4 charge in10 min..the carry case was so filthy that I had to clean it with wd40 before my wife would see it. It was not the excellent condition as stated on the web site. When I returned it they did not even care. I now have a different opinion towards Vexilar.

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Author Topic: Flashers? (Read 16458 times)

T_and_D_Pike

Exudedude

TROUTBOY

TROUTBOY

Exudedude

oakorchardfishking

Jam_Jam

Jam_Jam

Jam_Jam

frostedmuffin

dennish