Frequently Asked Questions | Fishing Specialties

Frequently Asked Questions:

What material should I select for my baseplate?

If you hit something with the downrod, the boat will drive thru the obstacle and the downrod will twist a bit in the baseplate and then the thumbscrews will break to relieve all the pressure on the downrod and protect your scanning sonar transducer investment.

If you do that a lot (run into underwater stuff) then little cracks can form in the plastic baseplate due to the twisting.

They will ultimately fail. It wont happen in the short term but after a time, fatigue will cause the failure.

So fishermen in Lake Fork, Truman Res or those fishing rivers would see those stress failures.

We looked for something stronger in the aluminum baseplates.

They are ½ inch thick aluminum plates with welded cups. You can run them into anything and the thumbscrews holding the baseplate to the mounting will always break away. These baseplates are just super strong!

So, Baseplate material selection comes down to the water you fish. If heavily stumped, if trolling rivers, etc. go aluminum. It is, in the long run, potentially less expensive than replacing a plastic baseplate.

Where do I attach the tether cable?

For Marine board and magnetic baseplates, simply screw the tether into the baseplate wherever is preferable. Ensure that the cable and screw do not get in between the mounting plate and the baseplate. The tether can be looped through itself and that sliding loop can be draped around a rope cleat; another option is to screw the end of the tether to the deck of your boat.

Why do you recommend the ball bracket for Live scanning sonars?

The ball bracket ensures that the transducer is directly below the downrod, alleviating the “hockey stick” aspect that other mounting brackets create. With the transducer directly below the pole, there is less water pressure hitting the transducer and prevents the downrod from oscillating on its own. These brackets also allow the transducers to move into any position.

How quickly can I troll with each baseplate type? (Thumbscrews vs. Magnetic)

Marine board and aluminum baseplates can be used to comfortably troll up to 4mph, magnetic baseplates release at a slightly lower speed of 3.5mph.

Why can’t I use a telescoping downrod with live scanning sonar?

These transducers have a connector on the cable is larger than other side/down view transducers. As such, a larger diameter downrod is required for the connection cable to run through the center of the downrod and thus be protected.

How do I remove the remaining stub or a thumbscrew after it breaks away?

Thumbscrews that have been broken off can be easily removed by heating up the end of a screwdriver and pushing it into the remaining plastic. Once the screwdriver has cooled down, simply turn out the screw like you would any other.

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