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Hope its ok if I jump into the thread. I mounted a 5 on my tundra before last season. Worked well. I didn't want to drill holes either so I went with the Ram Ball Mount. Not inexpensive but works slick. Ordered mine from OC Mounts and the pn's are below. I used a home made ammo can powerbox that I already have for lights and usb charging in the flip over to power the Helix. Happy with the setup but I don't run a ducer. I only use the GPS and LM Chip. RAM® Torque™ 3/4" - 1" Diameter Handlebar/Rail Basewith 1" Ball - RAM-B-408-75-1URAM 1" Ball Mount with Track Ball™ Base & 1.5" x 3" Platefor the Humminbird Helix 5 ONLY - RAP-B-202-153-354-TRA1U
I highly recommend going with a unit that allows you to sound through the ice. I don’t know how thick your ice gets where your from but not having to drill through 4 feet of ice just to figure out how deep you are is huge. I also don’t drill into the bottom any more. I’ve been running the same blades on my auger since 2015 and it still cuts like a hot knife through butter. I can find the exact spot I want to fish without ever drilling a hole. I thought about mounting to the handle bars but the unit would get in the way when I have to do any kind of technical riding we’re I have to grab the handle bars in odd positions. The garmin echo maps come with an in line fuse so I just direct wire it to my snow machine battery and it works wether the sled is running or not. This makes it really nice if I’m being lazy and just want to drop the transducer down the hole and use this unit instead of my livescope. At the end of the day it all comes down to what your needs are and what you need to do to achieve them. I built a setup that works perfectly for how I operate but it might not work for other people.
Im not sure what specs are needed...but my regular old humminbird 688 sounds through the ice. I suspect most units do. It just needs to be bare ice...and usually a little water helps, but be careful you dont freeze your ducer to the ice. It will work at any ice depths...2" to 2', doesnt matter. Just put your ducer on the clear ice and itll show you whats going on down there.
I have an older helix 5 and it shoots through the ice
I use the Garmin EchoMap. It's my backup fishfinding unit, so I purchased a second mounting cradle for it - use one on the sled and the other is mounted in the Garmin ice fishing carrier. Very simple to move the head unit from one to the other.
Been researching ever since the last discussion on here....almost kind of leaning towards the Garmin EchoMap Plus 43CV. Its a huge upgrade from my handheld but isnt too big of a unit. Seems like it would be easier to mount on my sled versus the Helix 5. Theyre within about $50 of each other. Great reviews everywhere I look and comes preloaded with all the maps of the bodies of water I'd be fishing with all the depths. Anyone have an opinion on whether I should go with the Garmin or the Helix 5?Thanks again guys.
I have one ..it will do what you want and more ...you can map your lake using Garmin Quickdraw ...then uploaded it to the Active Captain app to have/use on your phone via Garmin connect ... its a little complecated as you have to use the SD card into your computer ...unlike the other units (believe the 7 series) do it via WiFi...
Thats some good info, thank you! Depressing to talk ice fishing then wake up and realize its only August...
Well you could purchase the unit and float/boat around your usual fishing spots and build your maps ...then pull the card right before hardwater season and upload ...you will be passing the time but building intellegence . Mark the weed edges close to shore as these will be prime spots early ice . May be easy for some folks as most waters are a little lower then normal ...easier to spot them edges and/or weed transistions .
I'd go opt for "locator" with GPS and loaded maps for your area. The included maps can help you navigate very closely to new areas.
And from what I understand, this unit is compatible with Panoptix if I want to buy the transducer later. Not sure if I’m going the right direction or not, but this is what I think i might pull the trigger on soon.
You might be disappointed with the small size screen if you go with Panoptix, bigger is better for that.