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PostPosted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 11:10 am 
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Location: Charlevoix, MI
Until recently, mounting a long transducer such as a Raymarine Dragonfly into a Lowrance Ready PA hull required doing some plastic surgery on the black plate that covers the transducer well. I have heard that this still results in a somewhat loose fit to the transducer, which can potentially slide a bit left or right or even longitudinally rotate slightly. BerleyPro is now selling an adapter specifically for the Raymarine, see https://www.berleypro.com/raymarine-ready-hobie/ . From what I see online, it looks very well-designed and I am sure it would hold the transducer stationary, but $59 USD for 2 pieces of plastic and a few screws! Very reluctant to go there unless those of you who have done the surgery on your stock Lowrance plate are having significant problems. I would think that after grinding off the posts, one could immobilize the transducer using just a couple small dabs of Goop where it contacts the hull, without interfering with the actual echo transceiver performance. I know it is a value judgement, but I would be interested in whether those of you with a Raymarine Dragonfly think the BerleyPro "solution" actually addresses a real-world " $59 problem".


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PostPosted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 6:11 pm 
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Location: Eureka mo
I only have a down payment on a 2017 pa14 so unfortunately I have no first hand evperience but I do plan on using my dragonfly on it when I get it. According to the video I saw it should hold even better than it does on my Coosa HD which was designed for the dragonfly.

If it ends up being loose I think I will just put a piece of rubber or something between the transducer and the hull to tighten things up.

I'm curious to see how yours works out so please give an update when you are done with the install.

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PostPosted: Tue Aug 30, 2016 6:17 pm 
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I order the Hobie Lowrance Ready Total Scan Transducer Plate Kit from Austin Kayay for $34,99 to $5 shipping. I ordered it on Sunday and was said to ship in 2 weeks, but just received an email that it shipped today. I cannot wait to ditch the transducer arm that I've been using.

http://www.austinkayak.com/products/21759/Hobie-Lowrance-Ready-Total-Scan-Transducer-Plate-Kit.html

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PostPosted: Wed Aug 31, 2016 2:44 am 
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Worth every dollar for me. if you sell/Upgrade you can return the original plate and not have to buy another Which for me means several weeks shipping to Australia :cry:
Less work to fit is a + for me 8) Leaving Lowrance and going to a Dragonfly 5 8) 8)


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PostPosted: Wed Aug 31, 2016 8:18 pm 
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Location: Charlevoix, MI
Well, I took the plastic surgery approach.

Step 1: Remove ratchet arm from Dragonfly transducer by lubricating the glide joint and sharply tapping it backward.

Image

Step 2: Cut the vertical struts from the Hobie plate as low as possible and set them aside.

Image

Step 3: Remove remaining strut base. I used a cheap soldering iron to cut through this PE base and smooth it out.

Image

Step 4: Fit transducer onto base and then position salvaged strut pieces alongside to make a tight fit which the transducer "clips" into. Either plastic weld or hot glue these in place.

Image

Step 5: Heat gun the modified base to clean up welds and tighten up the fit.

Image

Step 6: Invert plate with transducer in place to check fit.

Image

Step 7: Installed in transducer well.

Image

All Done! Fits well. I will not have it out on the water for a week or so, but will report back. My concern is that the fit may be too tight, leading to the base plate dampening the sonar ping. Hobie designed the struts to hold the Lowrance skimmer transducer 1/8" above the plate. Raymarine transducers extend far enough back that they necessarily contact the plate. I won't know if this is a real problem until I can get out and try Downvision mode.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk


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PostPosted: Sat Sep 03, 2016 6:28 pm 
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Location: Charlevoix, MI
I fished today with my Lowrance-Raymarine hybrid transducer mount. Downvision provides a detailed picture of bottom structure. I was disappointed in regular Sonar mode though. I had previously been using the Raymarine Dragonfly transducer on a Ram Transducer Arm, essentially hanging the transducer over the side rail. So I really was not expecting better or even comparable signal. But in the Hobie Lowrance transducer pocket I found that the fish arches were not symmetrical - longer on the upstroke than the downstroke, leading me to believe that the geometry of the hull and modified mount causes the Raymarine transducer to angle upward toward the front. Also, I lost my downrigger ball and 2 oz jig about 30 ft down when deployed over the starboard rail, but not port. So apparently there is still some issue with port-starboard alignment of the transducer in this DIY mount.

Can anybody using the BurleyPro mount comment on the symmetry of arches and angle of the sonar cone WRT centerline of the PA?


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PostPosted: Sat Oct 22, 2016 8:40 pm 
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Finding the right angle might be tricky. I might suggest buying some cheap kitchen cutting boards and make a few ready plates designs. Set the Hobie plate aside until you have it dialed in. I had a heck of a time getting the lowrance lss2 level with the water when I mounted it in place of the skew location. It wasn't until I disregarded cleaning the yak and had a water line on hull that I figured out the right angle. After that the DI and SI were way better.


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PostPosted: Sun Oct 23, 2016 4:21 pm 
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PA14naz - Good idea! I am pretty much getting used to the asymmetrical arches, but hadn't thought of using the "scum line" to determine what is actually level to the water. I would love to hear from anybody who installed the BerleyPro cover to see what the arches and resolution look like.


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PostPosted: Thu Oct 27, 2016 3:52 pm 
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Location: Eureka mo
Sorry to get a little off the original topic and not contribute to your question but I'm hoping you can help me out a little. I'm very inexperienced with a fish finder.

I don't think the Berley kit will work with my Dragonfly 7 since it comes with the cpt-60 transducer. Like I said I'm a rookie when it comes to using a fish finder so I thought everything was working great. When I see what I think are fish on sonar the arches are more flat than what I've seen on the YouTube videos I've watched. I figured the size of the fish determined how pronounced the arch would be.

I thought the tension of the modified Lorance ready cover would keep the transducer from moving but it doesn't. Looks like I need to try your modification so it doesn't move laterally but I think I would need to use spacers between the plate and hull to adjust the Front to rear angle since mine fits so tight.

I guess I could bring my digital angle finder out on the water the next time I go out. I should be able to hoist the yak up at the house and get it at the correct angle to see if the transducer is at the same angle. I guess like fishing I have a lot to learn about using a fish finder.

I have a Jackson Coosa HD that has 5 different seating positions. When you are in the far forward position it puts the bow in the water more to help improve tracking when paddling. When you put the seat as far back as possible it brings the bow out of the water to make it more maneuverable. On that boat I guess I should set it up with the seat in the forward position and shift forward any time I'm using the fish finder.

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PostPosted: Thu Oct 27, 2016 8:35 pm 
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Joeroe- Best to check with BerleyPro about the CPT-60 fitting. My transducer is long enough that the modified Lowrance plate does nor permit any significant front-to-rear angle adjustment. I think know that is why my arches are asymmetrical. But they are arches and not lines as you describe. There is lots of info on YouTube and elsewhere to help you interpret sonar signals. A flat line would only be expected if you are not moving relative to the suspended fish below. That could happen if you and the fish are stationary or if you and the fish are drifting with the current at the same speed. Alternatively, if you are fishing deep water and displaying the entire water column on your screen, then a fish arch may flatten out due to inadequate screen pixel resolution. In that case, just use your zoom feature to display that part of the water column where the fish are and the arches will be more evident.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk


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PostPosted: Fri Oct 28, 2016 5:50 pm 
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I am usually going pretty slow when looking at the screen so that explains it. I know what I'll be doing when the wife is watching her reality tv. Watching fish finder tutorials on YouTube. Thanks for the help.

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PostPosted: Sat Oct 29, 2016 3:44 am 
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Jim_MI wrote:
Until recently, mounting a long transducer such as a Raymarine Dragonfly into a Lowrance Ready PA hull required doing some plastic surgery on the black plate that covers the transducer well. I have heard that this still results in a somewhat loose fit to the transducer, which can potentially slide a bit left or right or even longitudinally rotate slightly. BerleyPro is now selling an adapter specifically for the Raymarine, see https://www.berleypro.com/raymarine-ready-hobie/ . From what I see online, it looks very well-designed and I am sure it would hold the transducer stationary, but $59 USD for 2 pieces of plastic and a few screws! Very reluctant to go there unless those of you who have done the surgery on your stock Lowrance plate are having significant problems. I would think that after grinding off the posts, one could immobilize the transducer using just a couple small dabs of Goop where it contacts the hull, without interfering with the actual echo transceiver performance. I know it is a value judgement, but I would be interested in whether those of you with a Raymarine Dragonfly think the BerleyPro "solution" actually addresses a real-world " $59 problem".



Was it worth the $$ Hell Yeah! :D :D

As a new PA12 and DragonFly 5 Pro owner, well a little over a year. I was looking for value and not having to Cut/Drill or butcher my Hobie in any way.

+ Supporting an Australian product Worth every dollar. Also the BerleyPro Sun Visor is awesome. 8) 8)


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PostPosted: Mon Oct 31, 2016 6:25 am 
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Location: Charlevoix, MI
BigDave wrote:
Was it worth the $$ Hell Yeah! :D :D

As a new PA12 and DragonFly 5 Pro owner, well a little over a year. I was looking for value and not having to Cut/Drill or butcher my Hobie in any way.

+ Supporting an Australian product Worth every dollar. Also the BerleyPro Sun Visor is awesome. 8) 8)


BD - That's an enthusiastic endorsement! Glad to hear it works well for you.
I do have a few questions about it:

1) Can you tell if there a water gap between the bottom of the transducer and the plastic plate below it? The original Hobie Lowrance transducer plate looks like it was engineered to prevent the transducer from "bottoming out" in contact with the plastic plate. This makes sense from an acoustical perspective, since the plastic plate would dampen the ping if it were to vibrate. Shooting through transducer->water->plastic->water produces a better signal than just transducer->plastic->water.

2) The length of the Dragonfly transducer puts its tail end tightly in contact with the hull. In my "plastic surgery" mod of the Lowrance plate, the front of the transducer is also fixed by being in contact with the plate. The net effect is that there is no way to "level" the transducer, and consequently the fish arches tend to be a little bit asymmetrical because the transducer is slightly forward-looking (forward up, aft down). Can you tell if the BerleyPro cover has managed to level that out by making the forward part of the plate lower than the hull? Are your arches symmetrical?

3) How is the downvision structure detail?

Thanks.


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PostPosted: Mon Oct 31, 2016 3:34 pm 
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyPQXeV ... ture=share

Here's a video of the installation. Looks like the angle would be the same and the transducer does sit on the plate.

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PostPosted: Mon Oct 31, 2016 3:47 pm 
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0W5PvJM ... ture=share

Fast forward to 9:30. This may be a good option if you are wanting to avoid contact with the transducer and have room to make it level but modifications would need to be made.

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