Vexilar Question/help

[cnyiceboy]

  i am really intrested in buying one of these for icefish, but i need some help and i am turning to the shanty for it seeing how i can't get any at the local store. How does this actully work? Are they worth the price and if i buy one which one is a good starter model. Thanks for the help

[RLWagner]

Unless you never fish water deeper than 5', then they are most deffinately worth it.
You may want to spend just a few extra bucks and get the FL18 Pro Pack. I am a bit partial to it as it is the one I have.
I do not use it all the time, but when chasing nomadic fish like Crappie, Perch and Eyes, it is very valuable. It is also very helpful in reading water depth through the ice without drilling holes. This saves time and energy alike.
The Vex can reveal what is working, and not, as it pertains to the groove you put on your jigging.
The Vex can also help you distinguish what type of bottom you are fishing over.
The benefits are endless.
Get one.
Get it now.
And enjoy your increased catches!

[ice023]

i will put it to you this way, if i left the house at 6 in the morning and drove an hour to my spot and noticed i forgot it, i would drive home and get it before i fished without it.  i have the se8 propack, i am going to take a beating for this but i do not think the 18 is worth it.  to much going on, learn to read the se8 and you will be fine.  i would also say to get the genz pack, reed's has it for 258.00 free shipping.  but whatever one you choose, you will put more fish on the ice with one.

[kappydick]

i will put it to you this way, if i left the house at 6 in the morning and drove an hour to my spot and noticed i forgot it, i would drive home and get it before i fished without it.  i have the se8 propack, i am going to take a beating for this but i do not think the 18 is worth it.  to much going on, learn to read the se8 and you will be fine.  i would also say to get the genz pack, reed's has it for 258.00 free shipping.  but whatever one you choose, you will put more fish on the ice with one.

I agree..$120 more for the 18 and your just paying for a zoom and bottom lock. But I think the fl-18 is better if your going to fish in water over 20 feet alot...Then the zoom would be handy. But I also will probably upgrade next year to the 18.

[Norman Schrader]

Vexilars do work.  Actually any of the brands of this product will work.  They are all sonar devices.  They send sound down through the water.  When an object, such as the bottom, weeds, fish, your jiggin lure, etc, is hit by the sound wave, it returns an echo back to the transducer.  Because the speed of sound in water is a constant, distance can be accurately measured, calculated and displayed by the sonar unit.  In the case of the Vexilar or Marcum flashers, this is done on a circular display with depth markings in 1 ft increments and a flashing light to indicate the depths of targets.  Ok, enough of the science lesson, now for the fun part.
If you haven't used one before, see if anyone you know has one and go with them to see how they use it.  It takes a little bit of time to get to understand what you are seeing, so don't get discouraged.  Once you get the hang of it, you will be able to tell if you are over hard or soft bottom, what depth fish are suspended at, and even be able to see your lure and watch fish move to it.  Also, I think most manufacturers have pretty good videos included or available on how to use the unit properly.  These units can also be used on your boat in the summer with the addition of an extra transducer that is mounted to the boat.
I hope this helps.  I worked on repairing these devices for about 15 years for a number of manufacturers, including Vexilar and Lowrance.
Like the posts above said, the extra money probably isn't worth the value for the zoom feature.  The FL8will do just fine.
Good luck.
Norm

[cnyiceboy]

guy's this is all great info, thank's allot now i jsut ahve to pick between the 8-se or the 18.
thank's

[RLWagner]

guy's this is all great info, thank's allot now i jsut ahve to pick between the 8-se or the 18.
thank's

If cash is the issue, spring for the 8. I got a great deal onm the 18 pro pack, almost half price at Gander Mtn. due to a rookie clerk. Even got two extra depth cones free. Else wise I would have gotten the 8.

[cnyiceboy]

If cash is the issue, spring for the 8. I got a great deal onm the 18 pro pack, almost half price at Gander Mtn. due to a rookie clerk. Even got two extra depth cones free. Else wise I would have gotten the 8.

wow great deal

[spartaman12]

i have the fl-18 pro pack and havnt used the zoom once bc i have no idea how?

[kappydick]

Bass Pro in Auburn had last years model 8 for $199 but I opted for the 8 pro pack II for $279..Used ones on ebay lots of 8's on there with pretty decent prices.

[hrlevi1]

Bought the FL-20 with flat screen before ice fishing season this year.  Had never owned a vex before and can honestly say it has saved me "boat loads" of time.  What it has done for me is to identify areas that were the target fishing depth and while fishing it shows flashes wehre the fish are.  Not to mention the bottom structure as well.  The vex has made the sounder obsolete as I use this to set the depth for my tipups. 

I cannot understand why anyone with a little extra cash would not invest in one of these. 

Simply put I do not fish with out it.  You really don't know how cool it is to see the flashes attacking your jig prior to feeling the bump on your rod tip. 

Indeed the $'s are an issue however I squirrelled a few bucks away each day / week and before I knew it I had enough $$ to buy one.  On birthdays I asked people to contirbute to my VEX fund and they graciosly did.  Bottom line was that I wanted one of these and made the little sacrifices to save for it. 

You will not be disappointed and I'm sorry I cannot comment on comparing this model to the 8 or 18.  I have only owned this one.

Best regards -

David

[GAMBELL]

I have the FL8se.  I think it would be worth it if you were fishing a lot of lake trout deep (60' or more). Other than that, I'm totally impressed with this product.  This is my first season with one.  It was a very good investment.  I got a video from Vexilar that showed how each unit they sell works.  It was free when I ordered an extra rod holder for my Vex.

[tubby67]

I am only ten years old and my dad bought me a fl8se and it works pretty good I never cought as many fish in my life I cought about 50 fish in a week with this and it's really easy to use when there is a red light between two green lights.

[TheRo0sTer]

Man I tell you I just got one last week and used it 3 of the 4 days off I had this past week-end. I've seen the Vex in use before and said "Wow I need one of them!" Well 1st day out I pulled 10-20 trout out my hole, 2nd day my son and I got a double because of it, 3 day I found some perch and crappie with it. I wouldn't want to spend a day drilling holes without it.

Man you just missed the Vex-18 Ultra pack for $359 shipped too. Now it's back up to $459 + shipping direct from Vex.