Was your flasher worth purchasing ??

[jdmls]

Hi guys

 

I have a friend who's been contemplating a flasher purchase for a few years now. I run an ice55 and rave about how great it is and how it was worth every penny, but it's still not enough to convince my buddy to justify spending that kind of money on a flasher.. We fish a lot of water in the 90+fow range so anything less than 2400w output will not suffice.

 

If u own a flasher do me a favor and reflect how much u like it or don't and most of all "was it worth every penny?"

[mike rousseau]

Other then my ice rod my sonar is the most important thing in my opinion for ice fishing..,,

 

I fish without a hut and heater sometimes..... But NEVER go ice fishing without my ice sonar...

[Joeytier]

I fish without a hut and heater sometimes..... But NEVER go ice fishing without my ice sonar...

Absolutely. Worth it's weight in gold, especially for lake trout.

[bare foot wader]

worth every penny and then some....learn to use it and you WILL hook more fish through the ice

[sleepjigging]

Prices come down every year, with more features included. Just like a computer.

 

I have just a plain Humminbird® PiranhaMAX™ 170 adapted for ice. Would not go ice fishing without it, because without it, I would be fishing blind.

 

 

[Fisherman]

We fish a lot of water in the 90+fow range so anything less than 2400w output will not suffice.

 

If u own a flasher do me a favor and reflect how much u like it or don't and most of all "was it worth every penny?"

 

I don't think you need anywhere near 2400W output. I use an X67C and it has 800W and I have no trouble picking up my 1/4 oz jig in 90+ feet of water. I paid just over $200 for mine. Matter of fact it does quite well in way over 100 feet for salmon.

[Acountdeleted]

I just purchased mine this fall, haven't even used it yet and I can say yes. Last year fishing without it I found I was often fishing blind. A co-worker talked me into buying one and then went on to explain all the merits of it. Needless to say I can't wait to see the number of fish I will ice this year with it.

[Christopheraaron]

Prices come down every year, with more features included. Just like a computer.

 

I have just a plain Humminbird® PiranhaMAX™ 170 adapted for ice. Would not go ice fishing without it, because without it, I would be fishing blind.

 

 

 

Care to explain how you adapted it? I have a pirahnamax but don't have the cash for a flasher...

[MJL]

I don’t run a flasher, but a graph - Humminbird 345c with an ice ducer. I’ve fished down to 134ft on Simcoe with no problems seeing my lure to that depth. Since I started ice fishing 3 seasons ago, I can only remember 3 fish I hooked on Simcoe that I didn’t get on the chase. I can figure out if I’m fishing dead water, what depth they’re holding at, how aggressive the fish are, what lures they’re responding to best, etc. I tried fishing for lakers without a sonar unit when I first started and I won’t go back to fishing blind now.

 

It’s to the point now that I’m contemplating leaving a 2nd sonar unit in the car for backup (just in case the one I bring out onto the ice goes mental - which my old one did). Hands down one of the best ever investments I’ve ever made.

[Rich]

Depends how you fish. I run deadbait for pike most the day, my sonar is enough. If i was crappie/perch/laker/walleye fishing, you bet i'd drop the bucks.

[jedimaster]

Honestly it depends on what you want to do on the ice. Do you like to go ice fishing and shoot the crap with the boys while you watch your tip ups, or you do want to drill hole after hole and jig aggresively. I tend to be happy sneaking a wobbly pop on the ice and getting out with the boys. I used to have a vexilar but I didn't use it that much, although it did work really well. I bought a 5x dsi portable this year and plan to take it out with me this year. I am not so serious about ice fishing though. Just out for the fresh air and fun. If I was as serious into ice fishing as bass fishing I would have a vex or a marcum as well as an aqua view for the clear lakes.

[BillM]

I never hit the ice without my Humminbird 747c.

[jdmls]

I'm just looking for input from flasher owners. . Thanks

[DRIFTER_016]

I can't fish without my flasher.

I can fish with a stick and string but without my LX-5 I'm lost!!!!

[Oryx]

Care to explain how you adapted it? I have a pirahnamax but don't have the cash for a flasher...

 

X 2

[crappieperchhunter]

I was a hold out on getting into the electronics for ice fishing. Even when I got a good deal on a used Vex SE8 it sat in my basement for 2 years before I dusted it off and gave it a go. I always figured I mostly fish perch through the ice and am usually in shallow water so what do I really need one for? Well after one outing I can honestly say I will never fish blind again. It helps in so many ways. I have learned 2 or 3 new methods of triggering no so aggressive fish to hit that I NEVER would have learned without watching how the fish react on the Vex. It also keeps you from sitting on dead water wasting your time. It helps me catch way more fish...no doubt about it. But besides the advantages it gives you...I just plain enjoy it more watching "fish tv".

 

The first season I used it I was testing it to see how long it would hold a charge and a couple of times the battery died half way through a day on the ice It was unbelievable how much I absolutely HATED fishing blind after doing it for 25 + years.

 

I hope your buddy gets one. I know he will enjoy it.

[BucktownAngler]

X 2

 

buy the portable kit

 

http://www.lebaron.ca/pdf_files_sp13/hum_transducers.pdf

[adempsey]

I love my flasher. Definitely shines in many situations. I can say that my catch rate improved dramatically with one. There are plenty of situations I can recall that without it, I wouldn't have hooked the fish - let alone found any fish. Any sonar suitable for ice fishing would be worth getting IMO.

[Woodsman]

Care to explain how you adapted it? I have a pirahnamax but don't have the cash for a flasher...

Here's how I did mine.

[Christopheraaron]

Thanks woodsman! Does it pick up your jig?

[Christopheraaron]

Thanks woodsman! Does it pick up your jig?

[Vanselena]

Thanks woodsman! Does it pick up your jig?

 

If you go on ebay there are a bunch of iceducers for sale. Check the KHZ of your current model and if you have a spare transducer plug the you can rewire it to an iceducer.

[Billy Bob]

I built my own box which holds a older Lowrance X-50 unit...works great and can always track my jig.....

 

BTW...you can purchase older graphs or flashers for penny's on the dollar using Ebay....

[Raf]

graph works fine, personally, i wouldn't specifically buy a flasher for ice fishing use. my eagle 320 picks up my jig and any lakers coming up just fine.

 

if he has an lcd graph, i'd just tell him to retrofit it to work on the ice, if he doesn't, i'd tell him to buy a graph first.

 

my 0.02.

[Jds63]

worth every penny