Humminbird ice?

[Skywagon]

How have the new Humminbird ice units been working? Anybody using or been around one? I am located in N-W Ontario (north of Mn) and have been thinking of buying a unit of some sort. I don't personally know anybody that is using any sort of electronics for ice fishing in my area and have never seen one work. If I buy one, would like to get a quality, easy to use unit. Thanks for any thoughts. Steve

[sdslim]

Hi! just in the process of purchasing a new ice fishing flasher myself. I never knew that ice fishing could be so much fun until I purchased my first flasher unit. I have had and used most all of the units now on the market, Lowrance Ice Machine, Marcum LX-3, LX-5 Vexilar FL-8s, and would reccoment that you start off with something simple. I myself still like the Vexilar fish finders. I know that your going to hear or read here and other places a preference for another brand or two, but a lot of these people on these forums are pushing products for a certain company. The Vexilar's are just plain bullet proof units. Simple to operate and no issues with quality and are long lasting units. I am looking to upgrade to a Fl-18 or Fl-20. A lot depends on where your fishing and how deep your fishing as far as picking a unit. If I may suggest, providing you have a computer, go onto the vexilar.com web site and pick up a lot of useful information as to what unit to get for your particular type of fishing. They have a great variety of programs that you can watch to help you decide which unit to go with, plus a full description of all their products. Ice fish a lot. Coudn't get me to live down south for the world! Hope that my post was helpful to you. Sincerely Wayne in SD.

[blueroof]

Reliability is certainly an issue. To me the most important issue with buying a flasher is target separation and display clarity. That is what the tool does in my opinion, so why not get the best performance possible out of your tool. It's akin to getting quality optics for binoculars and scopes. In my opinion both Humminbird and Marcum beat out the vex's anyday in regards to separation and clarity.

Vex's do have an outstanding history of durability and support. I know lots of guys with 10+ year old vex's that still catch lots of fish.

[Icemanjack]

I know this is going to ruffle some feathers but it is true; the chapest Humminbird (ICE-35) is a superior unit to any of the Vex line. I own a Vex FL20 and bought ICE-35 this year so I could fish two holes. I'm really impressed with the 35 and it is now the one I use most. Took a while to learn how to use it but a very good machine.

Vex needs to update their line. Marcum's LX-1P has the dual beam transducer and more than double the wattage of the Vex units for considerably less money. The Birds all have double or more wattage and are very user friendly, all have dual transducers.

[bogey]

I recently purchased a ICE-35, I am extreamly happy with it. My previous Vex did not survive my abuse (tailgates and concrete are rough on electronics). Very simple to use, and all the power I need for Erie. I would not hesitate to get another.

[Backwater Eddy]

I know this is going to ruffle some feathers but it is true; the chapest Humminbird (ICE-35) is a superior unit to any of the Vex line. I own a Vex FL20 and bought ICE-35 this year so I could fish two holes. I'm really impressed with the 35 and it is now the one I use most. Took a while to learn how to use it but a very good machine.

Vex needs to update their line. Marcum's LX-1P has the dual beam transducer and more than double the wattage of the Vex units for considerably less money. The Birds all have double or more wattage and are very user friendly, all have dual transducers.

More watts is not an update, it's just more watts and more power consumption, and often may reduce performance.

More watt's does not mean better performance, don't let that fool you. Very often more watts only means more clutter and interference.

The processors ability to delineate the information correctly is far more critical than boosting watts.

The Low Power (LP) mode is a feature I would not be without during any season, I use my Vexilar's all year around guiding as they are reliable in a wider range of conditions than a high wattage graph has proven to be. I have ran Vexilar flashers on my boats for well over 20 years, because they are reliable and perform well. I have never felt lackeing for watt's to get the job done properly.

I have tried others, many others in fact, the increased power just caused complications and suspended particulates forced me to turn the gain down to the point that I was missing out of vital target identification properties, and still found myself dealing with clutter issues, so I quickly returned to running the Vexilars. Because they do the job well, and do the job as I need it done in a reliable and dependable manner.

[blueroof]

Ed, are you sponsored by Vexilar? I've seen pictures of you wearing the jacket and hat? The whole watts, tool, fool talk is very misleading at best. Resolution, signal and return signal processing are ALL very important. Marcum smokes Vexilars for breakfast in all three categories. High power in conjunction with solid technology is better than just throwing up your arms saying you should only shine a little bit of light on the subject just so you can see better in the snow storm - that's what driving lights are for...

[Skywagon]

Thanks for all your input. After doing a lot of research and soul searching, I decided to stay away from the Humminbird, because it is a new product and may have some kinks the first year or two. With that said, I am strongly considering the Vexlar 20. Where have you guys found the best price?

[Icemanjack]

Well, I've used Marcums and own an FL 20 and Ice 35. I really like the large, flat display on the Birds and and the FL20 is close to that for ease of viewing. I fish in a two man flip over and the Bird is easy to view for two people so when we fish deep enough, I'll just run it. The Marcums I've used are very nice units as well. I like the fine line display on the LX5 and it probably is the best unit for target seperation and deep water jigging. I will say the LX5 does not play well with others, interference can be a problem.

[Backwater Eddy]

Ed, are you sponsored by Vexilar? I've seen pictures of you wearing the jacket and hat? The whole watts, tool, fool talk is very misleading at best. Resolution, signal and return signal processing are ALL very important. Marcum smokes Vexilars for breakfast in all three categories. High power in conjunction with solid technology is better than just throwing up your arms saying you should only shine a little bit of light on the subject just so you can see better in the snow storm - that's what driving lights are for...

I use what I use because it performers the best for my needs. Vexilar has done that for me for many years and I am certain many more. As a guide I try to pick the correct tools for the job, that is a greater concern to me than towing the line on a sponsorship contract...so I back what I use and use what I back.... or why use it at all.

If your trying to insinuate if somebody is sponsored by an company all info is immediately bogus, well that does put a kink in things now doesn't it.

I believe there is enough customer feedback to go around without completely basing one decisions on the suggestions of 1 man. Take what you need and evaluate on your own, this is the best policy I know of.

Use what you like and like what you use, or don't use it....it's preaty simple really.

[dewyg]

I have a older 6 yr old vex fl8, I have used it against all the other brands and it works as well or better than anyone else that I have tried. It is bullet proof, and takes the abuse and keeps performing.

[ttech]

I have a vex FL18 with the zoom. I have had it for about 4 years I believe. I am going to get the Ice 45 from hummingbird. My FL18 works fine and is for sale.

[Skywagon]

After it was all said and done I ended up buying an Ice 55 Humminbird from Reeds in Walker Mn. They had both the Vexilar 20 and Humminbird 55 models in stock. After talking to a very knowledgeable salesman I ended up leaning toward the bird. I had no previous experience with a flasher unit, until fishing with a guide who has a Humminbird. He showed me how the functions operate and so far it does seem easy to use and works as advertised, the 5 times I have had it out.

[no1son]

Hey guys, the question was about the new Hummers. We can have pistols at dawn over the Marcum/Vexilar question and not settle anything anyway. BTW I have both of them. I would be hard put to recommend one over the other in any general way.

I don't see any negatives on the new Hummingbird line. The new users seem to be quite satisfied after the better part of the first season of use. That is a very good report for a newly issued product. I am not in the market for another flasher, but if I were I would take a good long look at the new Hummingbirds this time around.

[sd slim]

Thanks for all your input. After doing a lot of research and soul searching, I decided to stay away from the Humminbird, because it is a new product and may have some kinks the first year or two. With that said, I am strongly considering the Vexlar 20. Where have you guys found the best price?

Just a little amen.
I bought a new Humminbird Ice-55, sent it back. Bought a new Humminbird Ice-45 and sent it back. What a pain! (And that was just putting the pieces together) First of all, the flasher wouldn't light up. The 19 degree on the duel transducer wouldn't work.. As soon as you flipped the switch from 9 degrees to 19 the whole unit would freeze up and the only way you could turn it off was to disconnect the wire to the battery. You couldn't get the battery life indicator to work because when you hit the button to get the reading, the unit froze up on you. The blue line setuup for the zoom never showed up when you went to zoom (the zoom did move all around on the display) And there was another thing that didn't work on them. Can't remember all of them. Anyway, was very lucky that where I bought them from backed up their sales and give me my money back. I did put in a nice detailed letter to Humminbird. On top of that, I had told my buddy that they looked like a nice unit and to get one. (He did!) Anyway, he still isn't talking to me, and I'm afraid to call him. Just know that he probably had the same problems. Have heard from others that had problems. Believe me! This is the truth and not somebody BS'n , I was really looking forward to one of these now birds. Have never been more disappointed with a product in my life. Heads should roll for sending out on the market an item that has apparently never been field tested. I do hope that Cabela's, Gander Mountain and other sporting goods stores who sold them are reimbursed for all the headache they have gone through with them. I started out with Vexilar's , went to Marcum's (tried them both) and went back to Vexilar's! Run a Vex Fl-18 w/duel transducer and couldn't be happier. SD Slim

[slipbob]

Here's my experience with the ICE-55's. We tried two brand new Bird 55's about a month ago while jigging lakers in 170FOW and both units failed miserably in picking up jigs and spoons past 100FOW. The units were able to read bottom and bait balls moving through at 150FOW but once the spoon or jig was past 100FOW it dissapeared all the way even with a 3/4oz buckshot. They worked fine in anything less than 100FOW but past that it was a big dissapointment. We also tried two brand new FL-20's and experienced the exact same problems. Our dual beam FL-18's easily pick up the jig and swivel all the way down to 170FOW with the gain on 6. I wouldn't hesitate to purchase a Bird flasher if you fish less than 100FOW but if you're going deeper the FL-18 is the only choice as the LX-5 maxes out at 160'.

[eye4aneye]

Here's my experience with the ICE-55's. We tried two brand new Bird 55's about a month ago while jigging lakers in 170FOW and both units failed miserably in picking up jigs and spoons past 100FOW. The units were able to read bottom and bait balls moving through at 150FOW but once the spoon or jig was past 100FOW it dissapeared all the way even with a 3/4oz buckshot. They worked fine in anything less than 100FOW but past that it was a big dissapointment. We also tried two brand new FL-20's and experienced the exact same problems. Our dual beam FL-18's easily pick up the jig and swivel all the way down to 170FOW with the gain on 6. I wouldn't hesitate to purchase a Bird flasher if you fish less than 100FOW but if you're going deeper the FL-18 is the only choice as the LX-5 maxes out at 160'.

Did you switch to narrow beam? I've not had any trouble with small jigs down to 90 ft.

[slipbob]

Did you switch to narrow beam? I've not had any trouble with small jigs down to 90 ft.

Tried it all as far as settings go and they just didn't do the job in the real deep water along with the FL-20's. Anything less than 100ft no problem.

[Skywagon]

I did some trout fishing today using my Ice 55 in deep water. Anything in excess of 100 ft you could not see the jig, less than 100 it works fine.

[Bigfishhunter]

My x67 does better than that. I can see my 3/8 ounce jig head down to 120ft. Sometimes I will fish Lakers with just a small jig and minnow, seems to work well. I do just fine with my 67 set on either the flasher page or the graph page. Would like to get a flasher, so that I can leave my unit attached to my boat, but from what I am reading it isn't going to be a bird.

[hageman.2]

My buddy who fishes with me all winter bought the Humminbird 45. It worked OK most of the time, but like the previous posts, it would freeze up and have to be re-started a couple of times on some days. Also, the last day that we had a slight current, he could not pick up his lure in 34 FOW due to the cone angle and/or inability to "point" the transducer signal.

I have been using the Nature Vision "Show Down" for the past 2 seasons and like it for the most part, but there are a couple of issues with this unit too. 1) No transducer aiming ability, as it hangs down off an attached arm-but the cone angle always allowed me to pick up my lure 2) The connector that is used both to plug in the transducer and charger is VERY convenient, but would sometimes lose its circuit if it came apart, even slightly 3) there doesn't seem to be anyway to tighten up the swivel on the head, and it is starting to become floppy from lifting it up by the top of the unit, when it isn't in its carrying case.

Its plusses-very fast response, good zoom ranges, adjustable sensitivity and noise reduction, very compact, extremely easy to re-charge by exchanging the transducer connection pin for the charger pin.

Put-in-Bay ice is OVER! Thursday March 5 was the last day of safe ice. Rained over an inch the past 24 hours and was over 60F Friday/Saturday.

primetimeicecharters@hotmail.com