Electronics for kayaks

[Javarude]

After looking forever for a nice used kayak to test the waters so to speak , to see if it was something I would enjoy I found a 2013 Hobie Outback that had been sitting in the guy`s garage for 3 years and was only asking 800.00 for it . It only took a couple trips in this thing and I`m obsessed . Have done a few mods to it and I`m now too the point of what type of electronics to go with so I figured there was no better crowd to ask than those here on BBC . Thanks in advance !!!

[sgt93]

800 bucks is a nice deal if it's minty fresh, congrats. I love my Hobie as well. I personally am waiting for a transducer mount for the Raymarine Axiom RealVision 3D, but there are many good options out there. I suppose the first thing would be to post your budget for your electronics. Don't forget you also need a battery, and something like the Nocqua battery line of Lithium ion would be ideal due to weight savings and power.

[Javarude]

Looking to spend around 500.00 and have a friend works for a battery store that can get me batteries at cost so I'm lucky there.

[Ring King]

https://www.sportsmansguide.com/prod...FYYCaQod4PoOUA

That's the one I would get if I was in your shoes with that budget. The new G2 Chirp models are highly impressive. This unit would give you down imaging, traditional 2D sonar, and GPS chartplotting capabilities. You could either buy a transducer deployment arm to hold the transducer over the side or buy the Humminbird transducer adapter from Hobie if you wanted to utilize the Lowrance ready scupper.

[bksnaz]

Congrats, smoking deal on that outback. Quality yak. Search YouTube and internet in general for seat mods to add a Larry type chair for added comfort. Garmin, lowrance, HB and RayMarine all have decent units. If you want touch screen - probably have to go Lowrance at that budget(Elite 5Ti). If button / menu driven is fine then the world is your oyster per say. I don't think a 2013 Outback has the Lowrance ready mount cavity, so it means you will have to install ducer in the hull or buy / make some kind of arm to hang it over side or something else. If inside hull install - air is enemy to sonar so make sure whatever adhesive putty you use to secure ducer to inside the hull has no air bubbles trapped in there or do a wet seal type install. Sonar will shoot through hull with very minimal loss of clarity. If using regular 2d, you won't notice any issues if you avoid air. The water temp will be a little off to start your day but will adjust.

[bksnaz]

Your next question will be battery size. Try and get a quality lithium deep cycle battery. It costs more than AGM but way more efficient and very light. Figure a 5 to 7" screen will draw around 1amp, so if you want 8 hours on water - get 8-9ah, you want 10-12 hours - get a 12ah.

[fluke1987]

https://kayakbassblog.com/2017/02/28...ng-on-a-kayak/

Just a little bit I wrote above...some good points to take into account.

I use a 14 ah SLA battery and it works all day just fine. Have to figure your power draw is based on what your running. If I am mapping and running side imaging all day then the power draw will be much more significant.

[Javarude]

Thanks for the info so far. It already had a seat mod done with the Jackson elite seat.

[rds_nc]

I really like my Raymarine so far.

[Javarude]

I really like my Raymarine so far.

I`m looking hard at the Dragonfly 7 , any feedback on the Dragonfly series ?

[rds_nc]

I`m looking hard at the Dragonfly 7 , any feedback on the Dragonfly series ?

The GPS is fantastic! I like the split screen of DS and sonar on the waters I know. It's the first set up I've had that's less than 15 years old so in terms of the new technology I don't have a lot to compare it against. A bunch of features I haven't played around with much to fully appreciate all it can do.

[Javarude]

Thanks to all for the advice . Went to Bass Pro Shops today and checked them all out and went with the Garmin Striker 7 SV, $ 439.00 . Sometimes I hate living 10 miles from that place , it can get costly at times

[keng8554]

I feel like the Helix series is ideal for kayak fishing. I have a helix 5 SI GPS on mine. For the price and simplicity with 1 transducer I think its hard to beat.

[Royjulius]

I feel like the Helix series is ideal for kayak fishing. I have a helix 5 SI GPS on mine. For the price and simplicity with 1 transducer I think its hard to beat.

Cool. Another SD guy!

[keng8554]

Cool. Another SD guy!

Good to see others!

[Royjulius]

Good to see others!

Sweet videos dude!