Fish finder sale?

[brianisoutside]

Is there a time of year that fish finders routinely go on sale? Like an end of season clearance type sale.


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[mi327]

I would say most likely late winter or early spring will be when the older models go on clearance. I bought my Elite 5 HDI in Feb 2015 on clearance. I would keep an eye on the retailers websites (Bass Pro Cabelas BOE Marine etc) all the time though since someone is always running some sort of sale so there are deals to be had. Or you may be able to score a good deal on a used model from some one upgrading in the early spring.

[jsnyd86]

Also black friday. There are generally online deals across the board

[kevinfry]

some good deals on amazon right now.....free shipping if you have prime

[jhov02]

Does any have suggestions on what to look for (or avoid) when buying a FF. Looking at searches, I'm seeing Lowrance be the preferred brand and GPS be a must feature. What's the least expensive model with GPS?


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[Mark]

Because I usually fish in shallow water, very rarely do I see fish before catching them. For me the term fish-finder is a misnomer.

Having trails and waypoints is a nice feature. That will allow you to retrace productive routes.

I have down-scan and never use it. I do use the regular screen that shows depth and bottom contours a lot.

Generally I keep it on a split screen that shows the map with trails and the sonar picture of what's underneath. So a feature that allows you to look at multiple screens at once is good.

However, the vast majority of my Lowrance's capabilities I never use. It would be nice if the FF makers offered a less-expensive kayak version that only included basic operations.

[jsnyd86]

Ive owned a couple different brands and like Lowrance the best. For whatever reason I just trust it more (maybe because I actually didn't know what I was doing with previous FF's). Either way, marking fish is nice, but the chartplotter brings your game to a whole new level when trolling for striper. So whichever FF you go with I would highly recommend it comes with navigation.

The Mark 4 HDI is excellent, but I think they've stopped making it. The updated model is the Mark 4 CHIRP, I believe. This takes your 80hz/200hz signals and combines them for a more accurate picture.

http://www.academy.com/webapp/wcs/st...0-adType%5EPLA

Then the Elite 4 CHIRP gets you a colored screen. For me it's not necessary, but Im sure its nice to have. I would love to have a big fat screen with the Mark 5 or 7, but for kayak fishing and my skinny Revo, the 4 is the perfect size and its packed full of features.

[Yak67]

+1 on Mark. I use about 10% of the capabilities. I did need a new unit for a new second Yak.

I picked up the Lowrance Elite HDI-5 ( I have the same one now) at Gander Mountain for $269.00 yesterday, with a $50 dollar rebate , gets it to $219. Not bad and that includes the sun cover, which is another $30.00 bucks.

Yak67
2016 Hobie Outback LE#217

[mchottie]

I talked to a Hobie user and BassPro the other day, as well as the Rep at West Marine, both said late 3rd Quarter / Early 4th Quarter is typically when the new generations come out, and best price to pickup an end of year model.

I'm also in the market, and will be picking one up this "offseason" - Sharing the point of view as above, I fish a lot of 3-4' deep water, and the downscan + sidescan has me very intrigued. You know what the say, buy the most expensive one your budget will allow, and of course you get what you pay for...

[reel-em-in]

http://www.cabelas.com/product/GARMI...rid=10&irgwc=1

[brianisoutside]

http://www.cabelas.com/product/GARMI...rid=10&irgwc=1

Good price, but it only has lake maps and not tidal. Would have to purchase that chip too


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