Kayak Fishing Blog

Fishfinder Transducer Bracket

I just got a new kayak - the Wilderness Systems Tarpon 160I and I thought I would try a new set up for my fishfinder’s transducer.  The optimal position for any transducer is directly in the water.  Some of the newer fishing kayaks have the ability to mount a transducer  in a scupper hole that they have designed for this purpose.  There is a new product on the market “The Liberator” which you can mount your fishfinder onto and will hold your transducer on it’s “arm” down into the water.  Liberator information can be found here:  http://www.kayakfishinggear.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=207   I saw an idea (on a kayak fishing message board) about mounting your transducer onto a rudder, which gave me the idea to make a mounting bracket attached to the rudder assembly area to hold my transducer and still be able to mount and use a rudder.

First, I had a friend tell me where the waterline was at the rear of my boat while out fishing with all of my gear in the boat.  That gave me a very good idea of the location, as far as height, for the transducer.  I made it a little bit lower, by a couple of inches, of what he told me was the water line.  The transducer is still above the bottom of the kayak by about 3″.  This is important, because you don’t want your transducer scraping on the sand/ground while launching and landing.

I went to Lowes hardware store and bought 1/16″ width x 10″ length aluminum and cut out my design.  I had previously mapped out my design and drawn it up as a pattern before cutting.  I cut my design long to account for the bends in the kayak.  I used a jigsaw with a metal blade to cut out my mounting bracket.  I then used a grinder to soften up the edges and de-bur it.  I used the stainless steel screws that were already on the boat to attach the bracket.   Starting at the top and attaching the bracket, I started bending the bracket to conform to the shape of the boat. I marked the bracket where I wanted to mount the transducer’s mount and I left the aluminum about 4″ longer so I could bend and shape a little weed/kelp guard into the aluminum to protect the transducer.

After finishing the bracket I needed to think about where the wiring would run along my kayak.  I had the wiring run from the transducer into my kayak as you can see in the picture below.  I kept the exposed wiring short to keep it tight and clean.  It runs  through a cable holder (which comes with most fishfinders) and then into the kayak through a rubber grommet.  The grommet was made out of a rubber stopper found at Lowes or Home Depot.  Check out the instructions to make the grommet on our Fishfinder How-To page:  http://www.kayakfishinggear.com/index.asp?PageAction=Custom&ID=13 

I hope this gives you some ideas on a different way to mount your transducer.  Remember, you have to be very careful with the transducer exposed like this.  I took it out for a test run today and “WOW”.  Having your transducer in the water instead of shooting through a kayak hull, is the way to go.  If you have a design like this and would like to share, please e-mail pictures to mark@kayakfishinggear.com