Will down imaging work on a float tube?

Was at Bass Pro last night and was thinking about putting a depth finder on my 1st float tube. Cumberland float tube still in the box just got delivered yesterday!!!!! The guy at bass pro said down imaging would not work as you have to keep moving about 2 miles per hour or more for it to read? So i assume while moving it may read a lil bit. But I really don"t want to waste the money if i wont be able to use it. Thx for your help. Also let me know what you guys use if you really like your depth finder.

My Lowrance Hook 5 down scan works ok. Regular sonar also does not work well when still, even in a bass boat. While moving I like to be able to cross reference the sonar image with the sonar image to clarify what I am seeing. I am not a big believer in fish finders but am trying to get the most out of it.

Welcome to the forum FISH SLAYER.

I have a Humingbird Fishing Buddy 120 and it works fine. I will upgrade if I ever need to replace it.
I would not have thought to attach a fish finder to the tube till I found this forum.

I have a Hummingbird 140C. It works very well. I primarily use my finder for temp and depth. It helps me find holes and structure which are very useful. I only pay attention to fish movement in a general observation. It has side scan as well. I really like that feature when I'm fishing the edges.

So, yes I love mine and never tube without it.
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Hunt wrote:My Lowrance Hook 5 down scan works ok. Regular sonar also does not work well when still, even in a bass boat. While moving I like to be able to cross reference the sonar image with the sonar image to clarify what I am seeing. I am not a big believer in fish finders but am trying to get the most out of it.

It has been so hot and dry here, relying on my electronics is just about the only way I have been able to catch fish with any consistancy. I have a humminbird pmax197cdi, and I find that with the fish ID the sonar and DI work excellent even at a stand still. I can pinpoint fish and put a dropshot right on their head in 20 ft+ of water.

It works perfectly, I leave an image from tube, a part of a bridge, bait ball and pikes.
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See these are the things I want to bring to the forum a seminar on what the hell you are looking at on the fishfinder. Images from the $80 finder to the $500 finder, no more guessing I think I know what I am looking at real understanding. Thanks again for sharing this image.

It's been a while.
Float tube was too limiting for me. A kayak was not.

Anyways, the salesman may have been mistaken in telling you you had to be moving.
With side imaging, needing to be moving is true I believe but not with down imaging

This is split screen image showing a submerged tree with and without DI
Bottom screen is the DI
If you only saw the top image, you would think the structure is loaded with fish.
The DI image paints a different story

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Cool in2deep that for stopping by and adding your info. Good information as well.

Unfortunately you need to be moving to get any meaningful images on sonar, down scan or side scan. Drifting is still moving. Let me try to paint a picture of what is happening with these different beams underwater. Sonar is basically a cone which with lower frequencies has larger angles and more coverage. If you are sitting motionless you will not be able to see an accurate picture of the bottom but can still see fish swimming through the beam (more like lines), which is why you can use it for ice fishing. Down scan is like taking a funnel and squeezing two sides together to make a thin oval shape. It can paint a very accurate picture of the bottom as you move over it but not if sitting still. Think of a flatbed scanner trying to scan a picture but without the element moving. The element has to move across the page to pick up the image but is scanning a very narrow slice as it moves. Side scanning is just like down scan but with two ovals extending out at angles. Again, no movement equals no meaningful picture but any slow movement will start to 'scan' the bottom. Because the beams are very narrow front to back, the section of bottom, structure and fish are in the beam for a very short period of time. With sonar the fish are in the cone for more time and create an arch as the distance from the fish to the transducer changes from one side of the beam to the other. You will also notice that fish arches are much larger with wide cone angles such as 83 kHz as opposed to 200 kHz. Weeds and structure are not well defined with sonar too.
Hope that helps.

Since fish and structure will be in the wide 83 kHz sonar cone longer than the narrower 200 kHz cone, the arches will look longer and beefier. In down scan and side scan sliver width cones the structure and fish are more defined and in the cone for a fraction of the time. Again, 800 kHz will give a finer picture than 455 kHz. Here are two shots from a trip to the pond for (sonar) comparison.

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Here above, you see fish (bluegills or crappie) on the down and side scan while moving at only .7 MPH. At that speed the weeds on the right side of the down scan panel are not very well defined. In the sonar panel at 455 kHz and a wide cone, the weeds are just a blob and the fish are very large arches because of the slow speed and amount of travel inside the cone.

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The next image shows that at an even slower speed of .6 MPH the fish in the down and side scan seem to be a little longer which can be caused by:

• The slower speed
  
• Fish moving in the same direction and in the cone longer
  
• May be longer fish like bass
  

In the 200 kHz panel you can see the fish arches are cleaner and also bottom separation may be clearer.
Also not that if moving faster, structure will be clearer and fish will look smaller in the scan panels due to the thin beams.