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I haven't taken delivery of my new boat yet. Wondering where a transducer might be mounted to avoid the water ballast jacket.

Bobglas wrote:I haven't taken delivery of my new boat yet. Wondering where a transducer might be mounted to avoid the water ballast jacket.

Login and search for such a mod on a 2005 26M posted by rwmiller56 on 2012-May27
Kittiwake

I Mounted Mine Under seat adjacent to The Head.. Works GREAT!

No need for shoot thru - I mounted a standard transducer to the bottom of the transom between the motor and the ladder. Also, a short run from the chartplotter mounted on the pedestal.

I mounted mine at the bottom of the stairs just in front of the batteries. Works fine but only when water ballast is in which is 100% of the time for me.

You can see from the bottom hull section (left) where the ballast tanks run. It appears to be 2 "tubes" on either side that meet in the bow around the daggerboard trunk. So I think you are safe to place it on either side of the "tubes".

I assume you know how to mount it inside the hull. I generally seat a transducer in a bed of silicone tub caulk. If it doesn't work, I can cut it free with a sharp knife. Some people test the location in the water by using some silly putty before a permanent mount. Never tried that but it should work.

With that said, mine is mounted on the transom which allows the chartplotter to measure water temp.

Pros and Cons to both mounting locations.. Inside eliminates water temp from that source.. on the other hand there are no issues with fouling or banging /knocking out of adjustment etc etc .. To each his own .... as we say...

Bobglas wrote:I haven't taken delivery of my new boat yet. Wondering where a transducer might be mounted to avoid the water ballast jacket.

I mounted mine on the port side, about 1 foot in front of the galley. This works well even when the boat is under power at high speed. See my mod:
http://www.macgregorsailors.com/modt/in ... ?view=1665

Roger

I " think " if for some reason I needed to replace mine? I would give serious thought to Rogers location.. That said unless your watching depth closely , when your moving that fast /on plane, you are seeing what you just passed over NOT what your heading into or what you are over at the moment..

rwmiller56 wrote: I mounted mine on the port side, about 1 foot in front of the galley. This works well even when the boat is under power at high speed. See my mod:
http://www.macgregorsailors.com/modt/in ... ?view=1665

Roger

Divecoz wrote:I " think " if for some reason I needed to replace mine? I would give serious thought to Rogers location.. That said unless your watching depth closely , when your moving that fast /on plane, you are seeing what you just passed over NOT what your heading into or what you are over at the moment..

rwmiller56 wrote: I mounted mine on the port side, about 1 foot in front of the galley. This works well even when the boat is under power at high speed. See my mod:
http://www.macgregorsailors.com/modt/in ... ?view=1665

Roger

Divecoz,
Point well taken. One nice feature of the in-hull transducer is its wide beamwidth, which allows it to "look ahead". This at least allows me to see how the bottom profile is changing ahead of the boat.
One thing I won't do is plane at full speed in shallow areas.

Roger

I just added a transducer to my boat about a month ago - I went back and forth over hull mounting inside the boat or aft end. Having hit at least one rock in the past - I know having the transducer even in the bow, would not have helped... Finally descided what was best for me was to have the transom mount, to the left of the engine (looking forward). All my engine controls / wiring go into the hull of the left side, and I don't want anything on the right side where the ladder is. The advantage on the transom mount is ease of installation and water temperature information.

And further, if anyone is contemplating an "in-water" stern mount, consider using a trolling motor style mounting that will place the transducer on the dump valve.
A big SS hose clamp is the basis for a store bought mount.
A little finesse and minor modding to the mount pieces may be needed for best results, it may not be simple plug and play right out of the box.
I fabricated a mount from scratch and drilled/screwed into the dump valve "nipple" short extension about four years ago and have had complete success.
(Well, except for heeling starboard above 30-35 degrees or so).

I liked the fact that no additional holes are drilled into the actual hull.

I wouldn't put much stock on the "forward looking" transducers. I'm not that familiar with them, but conventional wisdom states that by the time you see the depth drop it's too late to stop.

If water temp is not an issue, I would mount it inside. No worries and easy to run cables. Mine came dealer mounted on the transom and frankly I worry about knocking it off if I back onto the beach or something. But it's worked flawlessly at that location so I have no complaints.

Mine is and I am with you Russ.. Its better for finding dive sites than warning me of Danger Danger Will Robinson.. I am moving to fast under power and cannot bear off quickly enough under sail.. But unless your in a channel , say the ICWW your just keeping an eye on depth.. Maybe if your sneaking in for a Black Ops hahahaa

RussMT wrote:I wouldn't put much stock on the "forward looking" transducers. I'm not that familiar with them, but conventional wisdom states that by the time you see the depth drop it's too late to stop.

If water temp is not an issue, I would mount it inside. No worries and easy to run cables. Mine came dealer mounted on the transom and frankly I worry about knocking it off if I back onto the beach or something. But it's worked flawlessly at that location so I have no complaints.

Mine is transom mounted left side of the engine. Very simple and no worries about a through-hull leak.