humminbird smartcast

R

Rodger Walker

Guest
im thinking of buying one of the above.
does anyoneuse them and are they any good??
 
C

Cakey

Guest
Yes we use one.
limited range is the only problem but ok on rivers for piking etc.
 
R

Rodger Walker

Guest
thats exactly the use i have in mind for them as well as some smallish lakes.
i might try them from a boat aswell....
 
B

Budgie Burgess

Guest
Thanks Rodger.Had a look but not much detail.Wont go down there as I cant bear the man! Cakey spill the beans mate!what sort of range can you use it at?I presume the transducer part floats? Any good? does it have a grey line facility?
 
W

Warren 'Hatrick' (Wol) Gaunt

Guest
Range is around a 100 feet but Whizzo Cakey has extended his. Dont think it has a Grayline facility. Good bit of kit for checking out the margins or perhaps connecting to your bait boat (if you use one). They now have it so you have it as a watch. 'smartbastard' i think they call it!
 
B

Budgie Burgess

Guest
LOL Wol! Thanks for that,like to keep abreast of things!
 
C

Cakey

Guest
They run on a cr2032 battery which will last for between 300-400 hours.
The one fitted in my cat is running off the cat batteries via a 3volt regulator
 
S

Steve Shaw 3

Guest
Have just got my Smartcast this week. Went down to the pond this afternoon to check out the sonar.

I was still getting a reading at 100 yards on the standard sonar. Thats yards not feet


It seemed to read depth fairly accuratly at around 5 to 7 feet but as sonar reached shallow water the readings would start to shallow to around 3 feet but then jump back to 5 or 6 feet in anything under 3 feet of water giving inacurate results.

In about 4 feet of water I pulled the sonar over a large object which could be seen rising to about 1 foot under the surface, could have been a shopping trolly. It didnt even show up on the read out.

The problem is you can cast the smartcast into 2 feet of water and it will misslead you into thinking the depth is 5 or 6 feet. Not too impressive, you could end up fishing in 1 foot of water thinking its 5 foot. If the water depth is 10 feet and you find a bar, there is no telling whether this bar is 1 foot or 5 foot deep.

Anyone else find this? or do I have a faulty sonar?
 
S

Steve Shaw 3

Guest
If ordering from the States the US Smartcast is not lienced for the UK and operates on a freq of 916.5mHz.
The legal european version operates at 433.92mHz.

You may also have to pay import duty at 21.5% +?13.50 collection charge.
 
B

Bill Cox

Guest
I am on the verge of buying one from the states but am now worried by steve,s comments,Cakey you seem to be the techhead around hear so has he got a dodgy sonar or is it really suspect at shallow depths ?I would hate to fork out for this expensive (for me)piece of kit and then find i can,t trust the readouts.
 
C

Cakey

Guest
Bill Ihave found it to be a bit suss at under 2ft but this suits my type of fishing in France .
Do yourself a favour and buy one here its cheaper in the long run.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top