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Author Topic:   Mounting a transducer to a Whaler Drive

AlexH posted 01-04-2006 09:36 PM ET (US)
I am looking to improve the performance of the transducer mounted to the Whaler Drive on my 1989 25' Outrage Cuddy. It is currently located between the motors on the "flat" section of the Whaler Drive and the sounder is unable to read the bottom much beyond 15mph because of a lack of "clean" water.
Ideally, I would like to mount the transducer to the actual hull but there is very little space due to how the Whaler Drive attaches. Can anyone please explain and/or post pictures of an installation that works at, or above, 40mph?
After a quick search, I was unable to turn up much detailed information on the placement for a 25' hull. One post by where2 in the following thread said that he had solved the problem, perhaps he could chime in. Thank you.
http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum4/HTML/003201.html
where2 posted 01-04-2006 09:51 PM ET (US)
There is just enough space at the transom just in front of the whaler drive to attach a transducer. You just have to be careful that the trailer bunk cannot hit the transducer in the event that the bunk extends beyond the transom.
I haven't tested the boat above 40mph because with a pair of 115Hp Yamahas it only hits about 38-40mph. However, I do not recall it losing lock on the bottom.
Will see if I can locate a digital camera at work and shoot a photo for you...
I would expect you to lose lock with the transducer on the whaler drive. Quite a bit of air is introduced as the hull comes on plane.
jimh posted 01-04-2006 10:30 PM ET (US)
I also have a Whaler Drive (on a 22-foot hull). I have a single engine. I infer you have twin engines. My SONAR performance was unsatisfactory, but I recently moved the transducer to a new location which improved it quite a bit. The transducer is now about 13-inches to starboard of the centerline of the Whaler Drive. (This may not be possible on your boat if you have twin engines.) Previously it was farther outboard, and in that location SONAR performance was poor. The bottom echo was lost at speed and was very sensitive to boat trim. (Sorry--I do not have a picture to show this location.)
I would have thought the flat center portion of the drive would have been a good location. Apparently it has not worked well for you. There does seem to be quite a bit of turbulent water coming off the hull center line in that area. It also makes the propeller run in quite airy water, too, but that is another story. Before giving up on the current location, be certain you have the transducer immersed into the water far enough. I have found that in some cases a change of vertical position of as little as 1/4-inch will make all the difference.
Before I moved the transducer to its current location, I was giving some thought to mounting my sonar transducer on the actual transom of the boat instead of on the Whaler Drive. It looks to me like you would have to mount it inboard of the sponson, which would put it more or less under the Whaler Drive (WD) . Because of the way the WD meets the hull, it looked to me like the best approach for mounting in that area would be to make a small fairing block (perhaps from wood to start and later maybe changing to King StarBoard if it worked out well). I would try mounting the fairing block so it extended the line of the hull bottom a few inches. The block would be in an L-shape so that it fit around the flange of the WD. In this way you could attach the fairing block using one of the existing larger screws--I think they are self tapping screws--that hold the WD to the transom. Or you could work around those screws--maybe a better idea to preserve their strength--and fasten the fairing block to the hull with some long screws through the lowest part of the block.
The idea of the fairing block would be to simplify the mounting of any SONAR transducer by making a nice flat surface a few inches behind the transom and carrying the line of the bottom of the hull. You could easily attach a transducer there using the stock bracket.
Running the cable from the transducer would required it to travel outward on the underside of the WD to the point where it could snake upward in the gap between the hull and the WD, and thence into the boat. If the connector is not too big, you could try to route it in via the scuppers.
I was going to try this approach, but after moving the transducer to its current location, the bottom sounding improved drastically, and I can [now] hold the bottom while on plane up to speeds of 35-MPH or so.
Another concern with twin engines: you do not want to mount the transducer directly upstream of either engine. The transducer may disrupt the flow of water into the engines. If you have twins, probably the best place is to mount it just off the keel centerline. Clamp the cable securing along the hull and bring it around the WD and into the boat.
RJG posted 01-05-2006 08:00 PM ET (US)
Jim
You can or cannot hold bottom up to 35 mph? I am having the same problem with poor perfomance of my sonar. My transducer is located PORT side of the motor.
jimh posted 01-05-2006 08:06 PM ET (US)
[Fixed my own typo.] Yes, I can get depth readings at speeds of 35-MPH. I probably can't find fish at that speed, but I can get a bottom echo.
NewportMe posted 01-09-2006 05:57 PM ET (US)
Hello,
I also have a whalerdrive on a 22' hull and my sonar performance is sub par. I was considering the option of moving the transducer to the transom as well, but now I may just move it down a little and re-check the performance. Unfortunatley I will have to wait for the ice to melt first.
RJG posted 01-16-2006 08:40 PM ET (US)
Just installed a new Garmin 320c Sonar this weekend and following jimh's advice, I placed the transducer 13in. off center of the keel line on the port side. Went offshore fishing today in seas running 1 to 2 feet and sonar performed flawlessly! Held bottom at 30 mph with no problem. Bottom of transducer was mounted +- 1/8in. below bottom of Whaler Drive. Also ran transducer cable over transom top rather than through drain holes. This allows me to use the WD transom well as a small, make shift live well that I can now plug when I want to move to a new location.

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Author	Topic: Mounting a transducer to a Whaler Drive
AlexH	posted 01-04-2006 09:36 PM ET (US) I am looking to improve the performance of the transducer mounted to the Whaler Drive on my 1989 25' Outrage Cuddy. It is currently located between the motors on the "flat" section of the Whaler Drive and the sounder is unable to read the bottom much beyond 15mph because of a lack of "clean" water. Ideally, I would like to mount the transducer to the actual hull but there is very little space due to how the Whaler Drive attaches. Can anyone please explain and/or post pictures of an installation that works at, or above, 40mph? After a quick search, I was unable to turn up much detailed information on the placement for a 25' hull. One post by where2 in the following thread said that he had solved the problem, perhaps he could chime in. Thank you. http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum4/HTML/003201.html
where2	posted 01-04-2006 09:51 PM ET (US) There is just enough space at the transom just in front of the whaler drive to attach a transducer. You just have to be careful that the trailer bunk cannot hit the transducer in the event that the bunk extends beyond the transom. I haven't tested the boat above 40mph because with a pair of 115Hp Yamahas it only hits about 38-40mph. However, I do not recall it losing lock on the bottom. Will see if I can locate a digital camera at work and shoot a photo for you... I would expect you to lose lock with the transducer on the whaler drive. Quite a bit of air is introduced as the hull comes on plane.
jimh	posted 01-04-2006 10:30 PM ET (US) I also have a Whaler Drive (on a 22-foot hull). I have a single engine. I infer you have twin engines. My SONAR performance was unsatisfactory, but I recently moved the transducer to a new location which improved it quite a bit. The transducer is now about 13-inches to starboard of the centerline of the Whaler Drive. (This may not be possible on your boat if you have twin engines.) Previously it was farther outboard, and in that location SONAR performance was poor. The bottom echo was lost at speed and was very sensitive to boat trim. (Sorry--I do not have a picture to show this location.) I would have thought the flat center portion of the drive would have been a good location. Apparently it has not worked well for you. There does seem to be quite a bit of turbulent water coming off the hull center line in that area. It also makes the propeller run in quite airy water, too, but that is another story. Before giving up on the current location, be certain you have the transducer immersed into the water far enough. I have found that in some cases a change of vertical position of as little as 1/4-inch will make all the difference. Before I moved the transducer to its current location, I was giving some thought to mounting my sonar transducer on the actual transom of the boat instead of on the Whaler Drive. It looks to me like you would have to mount it inboard of the sponson, which would put it more or less under the Whaler Drive (WD) . Because of the way the WD meets the hull, it looked to me like the best approach for mounting in that area would be to make a small fairing block (perhaps from wood to start and later maybe changing to King StarBoard if it worked out well). I would try mounting the fairing block so it extended the line of the hull bottom a few inches. The block would be in an L-shape so that it fit around the flange of the WD. In this way you could attach the fairing block using one of the existing larger screws--I think they are self tapping screws--that hold the WD to the transom. Or you could work around those screws--maybe a better idea to preserve their strength--and fasten the fairing block to the hull with some long screws through the lowest part of the block. The idea of the fairing block would be to simplify the mounting of any SONAR transducer by making a nice flat surface a few inches behind the transom and carrying the line of the bottom of the hull. You could easily attach a transducer there using the stock bracket. Running the cable from the transducer would required it to travel outward on the underside of the WD to the point where it could snake upward in the gap between the hull and the WD, and thence into the boat. If the connector is not too big, you could try to route it in via the scuppers. I was going to try this approach, but after moving the transducer to its current location, the bottom sounding improved drastically, and I can [now] hold the bottom while on plane up to speeds of 35-MPH or so. Another concern with twin engines: you do not want to mount the transducer directly upstream of either engine. The transducer may disrupt the flow of water into the engines. If you have twins, probably the best place is to mount it just off the keel centerline. Clamp the cable securing along the hull and bring it around the WD and into the boat.
RJG	posted 01-05-2006 08:00 PM ET (US) Jim You can or cannot hold bottom up to 35 mph? I am having the same problem with poor perfomance of my sonar. My transducer is located PORT side of the motor.
jimh	posted 01-05-2006 08:06 PM ET (US) [Fixed my own typo.] Yes, I can get depth readings at speeds of 35-MPH. I probably can't find fish at that speed, but I can get a bottom echo.
NewportMe	posted 01-09-2006 05:57 PM ET (US) Hello, I also have a whalerdrive on a 22' hull and my sonar performance is sub par. I was considering the option of moving the transducer to the transom as well, but now I may just move it down a little and re-check the performance. Unfortunatley I will have to wait for the ice to melt first.
RJG	posted 01-16-2006 08:40 PM ET (US) Just installed a new Garmin 320c Sonar this weekend and following jimh's advice, I placed the transducer 13in. off center of the keel line on the port side. Went offshore fishing today in seas running 1 to 2 feet and sonar performed flawlessly! Held bottom at 30 mph with no problem. Bottom of transducer was mounted +- 1/8in. below bottom of Whaler Drive. Also ran transducer cable over transom top rather than through drain holes. This allows me to use the WD transom well as a small, make shift live well that I can now plug when I want to move to a new location.