Vexilar 8 or 18

[Mogwhy]

I want to get a vexialr for lake trout fishing.  Which one is the best for this?   Any reply would be appreciated.  What is the main difference between the two? Thanks!

[Robb]

Have I got a deal for you!!!! Kidding.

I bought an FL-8 last season and it has a couple of drawbacks:

1. If the water is over 120' deep the Fl-8 won't work unless you buy the upgraded one.
2. The Fl-18 has a very nice zoom feature and it also has a low power mode for shallow water.

I will be selling my Fl-8 soon and upgrading to the 18. Don't get me wrong the 8 works awesome for lakers but for a little more $$ I would go with the Fl-18, I saw them on Cabela's with a pro pack for $359.00 plus shipping.
Good luck,


Robb

[Mogwhy]

That's for your input.  I thought that the 18 would be the way to go..
Thanks

[icejunky]

I agree go with the 18, there are a few more posts on here about this years VEX lineup and it looks great. I still wish I would have waited to buy mine this year. but hey no complaints with the FL18 propack

[goody]

I would have regretted the FL8 if I had gone with it for the deeper water fishing that I do.  With the low power option I can fish about any depth easily....and the autozoom is almost always on with my unit.....FL18 is the way to go if you can afford it!

goody

[patchadams17]

I was thinking the same and decided to pay the extra bucks and went with the Vex 18 and never been happier. The Zoom opinion makes it worth it. Also a nice little addition is the magnifying cover for it. Easier to see and Easier to keep it clean when its snowing or in the fish house

[JigAwhopper]

FL 18 is the way to go if you can afford it,   but even fl8 is better than nothing.   If I did not have my fl18 already I would save my money for that new Macum 5 that is about to come out this season.  I'm not sure if it's any better than the Vex,  but It would be cool to play with a new toy. That unit looked really nice from the picture.

[AugustWest]

FL-18-There is no substitute!

[BrianF]

I'm considering either an 8 or 18 myself soon.

Not sure that I will fish in 120 feet of water so what would you say regarding the zoom feature. Is that feature alone worth the extra $?

BTW for anyone that is interested in the 18 or other Vex models and don't mind a factory refurb, Vex sells them on their site for less than even the best Cabelas deals. I think the 18 genz is 340.

[goody]

Or buy a used FL8 now and save money all year...sell the fl8 next season and take the money you have saved to buy Vexilars upcoming FL28!  Yes, I said FL28....it will be vexilars answer to the marcums adjustable zoom.  They were going to have it out for this winter but didnt make it in time.....look forward to seeing how it stacks up when it comes out!!!

goody

[walleyeslayer]

I want to get a vexialr for lake trout fishing.  Which one is the best for this?   Any reply would be appreciated.  What is the main difference between the two? Thanks!

deep water, youre going to want to go with the 18 no doubt.  i rarely fish deeper than 20, and the 8 works awesome for me.  my buddy has the 18, very nice gadget

[Polar]

If you can afford to spend the extra money go with the fl-18 you won't be sorry.I have had mine for a few years,I won't fish without it.

[Phisherphil]

Go to the Vexilar site and compare for yourself...
The FL8 should work fine at any depth if you get the dual iceducer 9/19 and use the narrow setting for the deeper ranges. 
The FL18 has both shallow/full power built in and can be used in split screen to show zoomed bottom 6 feet and full depth on same screen.  The standard ducer is 12 degree, but you can buy the dual ducer and have a complete unit.