Portable fish finder

[Big Cliff]

Looking for recommendation on a portable fish finder. Mostly I want to use it for ice fishing but it would be handy for fishing small backwoods lakes. I  can't afford to spend a lot on something with a lot of bells and whistles that I will never use. Gps might be nice and if it had a flasher mode that would be a bonus, but I  don't need charts and stuff. Anybody got a used one that is in good working condition I would consider that as an option. Any suggestions would be appreciated. 

[Chuck Enwinde]

Hey Cliff, if I were you I'd keep an eye out for a used hummingbird Helix 5.  With GPS can be found used for about $200. It's a great multi season unit. The ice ducer is about another $100.  Very handy but only really necessary if you want to use the flasher mode.  

[BillM]

Yup, Helix 5 for sure.  Super easy to use, doesn't eat a lot of battery, perfect for a fly-in or icefishing.

[Moosebunk]

I'll third the Helix 5 or 7 portable. Beauty units that pack alotta options.  Go with a Dakota lithium for power if choosing the 7 though.

[GBW]

Cliff, you can borrow my Helix5 if needed. I made it portable.  

[GBW]

Under water camera in the silver case too...  

Edited December 27, 2020 by GBW

[Big Cliff]

Very generous offer Geoff, thank you but won't you be needing it? That Helix 5 looks like it would be perfect for what I want. I figure I have about three weeks before Simco will have enough ice to get out to the perch grounds. 

[porkpie]

If you need any more help deciding on a helix 5, let me add to the reviews.  I’ve used the gen 1 and now 2 on the ice.  Excellent units.  I can’t find a single bad thing to say!

Edited December 28, 2020 by porkpie

[Big Cliff]

I really appreciate all these reviews, I am beginning to think I should just bite the bullet and invest in one. Knowing I would only be using it for ice fishing and small backwoods lakes, charts and GPS are not important to me, which modle would you suggest and why?  (there seems to be a lot of options) 

[GBW]

5 hours ago, Big Cliff said:

Very generous offer Geoff, thank you but won't you be needing it? That Helix 5 looks like it would be perfect for what I want. I figure I have about three weeks before Simco will have enough ice to get out to the perch grounds. 

If I am not out using it, you are free to.  

[porkpie]

23 hours ago, Big Cliff said:

I really appreciate all these reviews, I am beginning to think I should just bite the bullet and invest in one. Knowing I would only be using it for ice fishing and small backwoods lakes, charts and GPS are not important to me, which modle would you suggest and why?  (there seems to be a lot of options) 

I have a simple GPS/sonar model.  While I like side and down imaging on my big boat, for ice fishing it’s useless and I can live without it on my tin boat.  To me the GPS is priceless when in any kind of boat, and as I use the unit on the ice and in my tinner also, I bought a navionics combo.  If you where really not interested in GPS then I’d just by the standard sonar.  Down imaging is a sometimes useful setting that I can often live without.  the cost of side imaging units is high and they always have GPS.  I like the side imaging on my Starcraft but again I could live without it and I think a 7 inch screen is the minimum useful size with side imaging.

[akaShag]

Piggy-backing on this thread, and thanks Big Cliff for making me think about this!  I have an excellent ice unit (Marcum LX7) but my boat sure needs an upgrade, and it would be handy to have a portable unit sometimes in soft water season.

Is this the unit recommended for just the basics?  Doesn't seem to have GPS?

https://www.sail.ca/en/humminbird-helix-5-g2-sonar-449716?utm_campaign=6742646359&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=CjwKCAiA57D_BRAZEiwAZcfCxTmsEJPmVNmMs2VTfaPfAGdvrqrXSsZx27godwB5_Tt2unpkytRSPBoCNbUQAvD_BwE

Doug

[GBW]

Doug, the one beside it on there site for $419 has GPS

[akaShag]

12 minutes ago, GBW said:

Doug, the one beside it on there site for $419 has GPS

Thanks!  Looks like I would need an engineering degree to run the darn thing....................or are they actually suitable for use by <<<ahem>>> older anglers such as myself?

[GBW]

Lot`s if tips and tricks on youtube and even facebook groups.

[akaShag]

11 minutes ago, GBW said:

Lot`s if tips and tricks on youtube and even facebook groups.

Thanks!  I am not on FB but I DO know how to ring up YouTube.  Old Army saying:  "Time spent on reconnaissance is seldom wasted."

Doug

[porkpie]

4 hours ago, akaShag said:

Thanks!  Looks like I would need an engineering degree to run the darn thing....................or are they actually suitable for use by <<<ahem>>> older anglers such as myself?

I’m no tech genius and they are easy enough for me to use.  I wouldn’t be without GPS in the boat.

[Fisherman]

3 minutes ago, porkpie said:

I’m no tech genius and they are easy enough for me to use.  I wouldn’t be without GPS in the boat.

Have to agree about GPS in the boat for sure,  saved me a couple times out on G Bay, one minute it's sunny, the next your in a fog bank you can't see 20 feet.  About 15 years ago, out salmon fishing very early, still dark.  As the sun rose, the fog rolled in and then it was GPS navigating only, other than checking the depth on the F/F.  Remembered to "believe" what the GPS is showing you, took me directly back to the dock that I couldn't see until the last 20 feet.  A few others out there were hooting and hollering, rather funny but not.  One guy ended up around on the claybanks about 3 miles from camp.

[akaShag]

17 hours ago, Fisherman said:

Have to agree about GPS in the boat for sure,  saved me a couple times out on G Bay, one minute it's sunny, the next your in a fog bank you can't see 20 feet.  About 15 years ago, out salmon fishing very early, still dark.  As the sun rose, the fog rolled in and then it was GPS navigating only, other than checking the depth on the F/F.  Remembered to "believe" what the GPS is showing you, took me directly back to the dock that I couldn't see until the last 20 feet.  A few others out there were hooting and hollering, rather funny but not.  One guy ended up around on the claybanks about 3 miles from camp.

I recall trolling out from Vale's Point, same thing, but pre GPS days.  Trolled on a compass bearing back and forth, and got ashore by dead reckoning.  A GPS would be a better idea.  Anyways yes I agree that a GPS is very handy on a boat and I have a good hand-held unit (and carry spare batteries!)  But for sure GPS onboard in a "fish finder" would be a good thing.

Doug

[GBW]

Doug one advantage to the new units is the GPS and as you can see from my picture above, I take the bracket off and put it on a boat and now the head unit is on the boat and the transducer that comes with the unit is on the boat the hole time as I got the ice transducer too.  I got lost on the lake in a snow storm one time on the ice and the GPS was very handy to get back to where we were parked.  

[Big Cliff]

Really enjoying all the information being shared here, it's a big investment for me and I really don't want to end up with the wrong unit. 

[MJIG]

Is there a way to use the fish finder GPS to mark and return to the “glory hole” you found while roaming around out on the ice?

Or is a separate handheld GPS unit more useful for that?

 

Edited January 1, 2021 by MJIG

[Fisherman]

Should be able to save it as a waypoint  and then insert a "fish" symbol at that spot.

[AKRISONER]

The two helix 7’s from my boat are converted to ice mode every winter and are used a flasher and even better they show my personally made charts that I live charted during the summer to show those little humps and bumps that aren’t on the charts.

summer comes back and they go back into the boat at the console.

 

Cliff I actually might have a helix 7 si Gen 2 to sell you shortly

[GBW]

36 minutes ago, AKRISONER said:

Cliff I actually might have a helix 7 si Gen 2 to sell you shortly

Sounds like someone upgraded to a 10 or 12...