Fish Finder help!

[sparselytied]

I am a long time striper flyfisherman, but a new boat owner. I just bought a small 14ft boston whaler w/ a 40HP outboard. I have never used a fish finder before, and am looking for advice on getting the best bang for my hard to come by dollar. I would like to find a model say $175 or less, and plan to fish only in rivers, or small harbors say less than 60ft of water for striped bass in New England. Can anyone suggest a make/model that I should look at? Thanks for any advice... :confused:

[mdram]

i woulda said raymarine l265, but they dont make em anymore.
id look at garmin

[sparselytied]

I looked at Garmin, but wasn't impressed with the models in my price range. After a lot of research I'm thinking about going with a Humminbird Pirranahmax 20. Anybody have any experience with this model?

[mctrout]

hummingbird, in general, are not serious finders especially in SW. probably get flamed for saying so.. I have used Lowrance for 10 years. have an x85 on my skiff and a lms 240 on bigger boat. really have worked flawlessly for years and have incredible fish marking abilities. fish next to buddies with $3000 units, but we always mark fish at the same time. I would try ebay for new in box X85 or if you want a gps as well, which is incredibly helpful for many reasons, I bet you could get a lms 320 for $200. you do the same drift perfectly with a gps, and keep track of miles, gas, helps in fog or dark, etc.. these days thay are not much in price difference or quality then ones without gps. key thing is pixels per square inch. 240 is minimum L and W. here are a few that would be good
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=29723&item=7157852329&rd=1
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=4552247407&category=38630
good luck

[mdram]

i think furuno has 1 unit in the 200 range but no gps

[fishingdan]

Eagle (made by Lowrance) has nice low cost units.

[plumisland]

just ordered hummingbird matrix 97 gps/sonar will be on board next weekend.
anyone out there familiar with this model?

[SeaRay]

Hi Sparselytied,
Like "Fishingdan" mentioned to you Eagle
They have been around a long time.
You could do a search at Google.com key word Eagle Fishfinders and check different models and prices out.
If you are close to Kittery, ME check out the Kittery Trading Post, they have a great selection of fishing accessories.
Good luck with your search.
SeaRay

[msiler]

Eagle Fishmark 320
Eagle products are owned and made by Lowrance
This is an excellent shallow water unit with high reliabilty and accuracy in shallow waters. Great for inshore fishiing around the rocks and flats of the northeast. Cost is about $169