Trim and sounder tips?...

[Mr FeLiX]

Hey guys and girls,

As most would know I took the Stessl out for it's maiden run at Cabbage Tree Pnt the other week, went well but wuth the trim set at the standard (middle of 5) pins, it seemed to really throw up the nose and dig the arse in. I've been advised to move it one notch towards the transom in order to keep the nose down a bit and optimise what power I have (6 horsies..Yay!)

Does this sound like it makes sense? Also, this was with two adults on board totalling 200 odd Kgs and a bit of gear.

Next question, the vessel came with a Garmin 300C colour sounder when I got it, but some idiot (Ie - ME!) has misplaced the instruction manual? Is there and way to adjust the sensitivity? And what's the difference between a blue fish and a yellow fish on the screen? Spaced me out. Great for reading the bottom, but just wanna tinker with it to pin-point targets with a bit less hassle.

Any hints and tips for both these queries, very appreciated

Felix

[Eug]

only way to find out is to give it a go (each boat is different). chop/swell conditions are also something to consider. first of all load up with full gear (fuel, ice, esky, etc.) try to move things around to balance out the boat. it can be a catch 22, to much trim in (towards the transom) can bury the bow and you'll find a hard time getting on the plane (pushing too much water).

i'd try to move the heavy gear up front to see if that solves the problem first... in failing that play with the trim.

best advice i can give you for the sounder is turn off the fish ID and try to get used to reading arches, etc. the fish ID on most sounders are quite optimistic.

[noname]

o0k firstly, i would put your pin right in, cos 6 hp aint gunna plane i wouldnt think, secondly, yeah different fish might come up different colors with color sounders, the beauty of a color sounder, eg on mine snapper come up as red and say pearl pearch come up as blue! even though similar sized fish, colors are different ! and for your sensativity, go through your menu there will be a setting there in manual or automatic, highlight manual and adjust it there as in auto mode, you will not be able to adjust your sensativity, as auto is just that, so important to get the unit into manual mode first before you can adjust any if not all your settings. good luck.

rob.

[Lost it]

http://www8.garmin.com/manuals/Fishfinder300C_QuickStartManual.pdf

See if that was the manual you wanted. If not just google the model...google is great.

Also if someone near you has a copy of the dvd "understanding depth sounders" watch that, it is a great basic dvd on the general operation of sounders, mind you there will be better versions on the net like utube etc for basic operational stuff. All the best.

[upwindoverdrive]

For the Trim question:

1) You say the boat nose goes up which could mean too much weight in the rear. Remebr you sit at the back when using a tiller steer outboard. Try to move a lot of weight forward if you are using the boat solo. Fuel tanks usually are placed at the rear which is not the best place for them. Add a battery and you have "half an elephant" in the back.

2) Check the planing plate on the outboard leg is level with the bottom of the hull with the pin in the middle position. My Savage 4.2m when I got it had the planing plate 20mm lower and the boat skied. Leveled it out and problem solved.

3) Since a sixhp is a clamp on you may need to add a peice of solid timber under the outboard bracket to lift the outboard up.

Check out: http://www.clubmarine.com.au/internet/clubmarine.nsf/docs/mg19-2+technical

[mick fillet]

blue fish and yellow fish

might have the screen display set on night mode if its an option in the sounder,the option provides less glare by displaying a darker bottoms and background eg:blue/black/yellow gives off less light from the display in your eyes.

what colour is the bottom displayed as on ya sounder?

i have noticed that with colour sounders the fish is nearly always the same colour as the bottom as its got to do with the strength of the return of the eco to the transducer.the strength of the eco retun depends on the colour. a strong return-normaly red depending on the density of the fish a good strong return can show as blue a feint return may come up as white or orange.

mick

[woody1]

Hey Mate, I have the same sounder as you. From what I can see there is no way to adjust the gain, but the auto seems to do a pretty good job for me.

I also recommend turning off the fish shapes, there a bit deceptive. I did set an alarm so it beeps every time it thinks it sees a fish, that way I can look over and see if it is worth checking out. I forget how to set that but if you cant work it out let me know and I will go have a look.

There are heaps of videos on youtube showing you how to read a sounder without the fish shapes on, this was a pretty good one, especially near the end where he talks about fish arches.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jcup7MjaXuw&feature=related

[Bluevien]

I don't know the size of your boat but with a 6hp on the back I wouldn't imagine you'd need it trimmed anywhere else than right down or there abouts. Like others have said, it will all come down to weight distribution.

And I second turning off the fish ID function on the sounder. The raw data (arches) are much more accurate.