Topic: Mounting my side imaging transducer

[Pck]

Hello,
Getting ready to mount my side imaging transducer on the transom (helix 10 si). The boat is a crestliner Fishawk (aluminum) and no jack plate. Has anyone had issues with the side imaging beam being blocked by the motor? I know you can add another transducer and split the beam, but I'd rather not spend the money on another ducer. I thought maybe I could raise the motor a bit while scanning. Also, is it better to mount ithe ducer closer to the motor (closer to center line) or farther out on the transom? I have a have a dual beam ducer for high speed running, that will be mounted outboard of the si transducer. Thx for you help.

[fishreed]

Hello,
Getting ready to mount my side imaging transducer on the transom (helix 10 si). The boat is a crestliner Fishawk (aluminum) and no jack plate. Has anyone had issues with the side imaging beam being blocked by the motor? I know you can add another transducer and split the beam, but I'd rather not spend the money on another ducer. I thought maybe I could raise the motor a bit while scanning. Also, is it better to mount ithe ducer closer to the motor (closer to center line) or farther out on the transom? I have a have a dual beam ducer for high speed running, that will be mounted outboard of the si transducer. Thx for you help.

I have been mounting sonar transducers on aluminum boat transoms since the 1970s from all sorts of makes and models of sonars.  Here is what I did and it may help you out. I bought one of those aluminum portable clamp-on transducer brackets from Cabelas and mounted my HDSI  180 transducer on it. I then placed/clamped  it along various spots on the the transom AND ADJUSTED THE DEPTH OF THE Transducer bracket  TO SEE HOW the signal looked while running the boat on the water in real time.   I found the "sweet spot"  that gave me a good unblocked side view and I never once drilled a hole. I must ADD I  RUN A 6HP Merc FOUR STROKE KICKER motor on the port side as I thought it might block the side signal, which it did NOT.  I then marked the "good" spot with a felt pen and mounted an nice piece of 1/2 inch thick  "poly" white board on the transom and attached the transducer to it and it works works perfect. I guess that  "measure twice " cut and drill once does work! I then mounted the compact side transducer that came standard with my 899Si on the portable bracket as I take my 899Si  on other boats and use my 899Si as portable unit. Works great for me! 

Update:  Now,  since I got a new 1199SI  and another HDSI transducer, I am going use Humminbird's   AS SIDB Y cable for a dual  transducer set-up and use a dual beam 80/200 for high speed running on the 1199SI with the HDSI transducer at off plane speeds.   I will now use the 899SI as full screen GPS  plotter with a Navionics map chip with the sonar turned  off  and the 1199Si as a dedicated fishing locating side scanning unit.

[Pck]

Thx fishreed, i believe I have one of those clamp on arms somewhere in my garage among all my other fishing stuff. I will give it a try and let you know how it worked. Might be a week or two as I'm still waiting for my helix 10 to arrive. On back order from cabelas

[Landry]

I have a Fish Hawk.
Buy a transducer board for sure and use 3M underwater adhesive to mount it and fill screw holes. The bigger the better to allow u more room to adjust.
I mounted mine close to the center of the boat - being closer to the motor will not hurt or cause interference btw. It will ensure clearance/good image on both sides.
You may have to take off your livewell intake screen but not likely.
Follow the mounting guide in the manual and use the template cutout.
Once mounted, u can slide up or down or twist it by loosening the screws in the transducer board if need be. It is unlikely you will have to do more than that.
i laboured over mounting mine and took forever.
Mounted my friends a week later in 45 minutes. Lol. Both work perfectly and read depth on plane.
AND - I wrapped the bracket against the board with electrical tape and a zip tie to stop the dreaded rooster tail that HB ducers are known for.

[Landry]

I can get u a photo this weekend if u like.