Hi,
I'm hoping to get some very general recommendations/suggestions about upgrading electronics on my 1989 22' Revenge. I currently have an all-Furuno setup consisting of an older Furuno chart plotter (I don't know the exact model # - it's a black and white display, circa 2001), Furuno radar dome, and a furuno LS-6100 sounder. The GPS works great, but the radar and sounder don't seem to work all that well and they are quite hard to read. I was originally considering upgrading the electronics because I need charts for lower Puget Sound, but can't get the old Cmap cartridges for the chartplotter anymore (I've looked all over, but they are extremely hard to find now). Also Since I've recently gotten into saltwater fishing I'd like to make sure the sounder is operating at a high quality as well.
I'm hoping to get advice on what newer (used or new) units or combinations I should consider, and what brands you recommend. It would be great if I didn't have to update the furuno Radar dome and transducer, and could just replace the chart plotter and sounder display units with newer ones. However, I don't know if this is possible because of the age and type (analog vs digital?) of the Furuno Radar dome and the transducer. I don't think I really need two separate units like I currently have - I'm fine with splitting a screen with sonar/plotter. Also I don't need the latest equipment, just something newer than I currently have that I could obtain used. If I have to replace the entire setup, radar and all, I'm hoping to stay under $1500 for the entire package - not sure how feasible this is.
Let me know any suggestions you guys have, Thanks for all the help!
Just to give a bit more context, here is the exact setup I currently have:
Radar: Furuno RSB-0087
Plotter/Radar display: Furuno RDP-130
Sounder: Furuno LS-6100
Transducer: Airmar P66 (I think this is the model) paddle wheel type
I boat in the Pacific NW, mainly in San Juan Islands and Puget Sound - I am usually transporting to one of the outer islands, or fishing within the Sound. As for equipment use, I mainly use only the plotter for navigation, and I have only used the radar a handful of times in fog. The electronics were set up by the original owner of the Whaler (I am the 3rd) and the owner prior to me said he never used the radar. I have tried calibrating the radar several times, but there always seeed to be more clutter on the readout and I couldn’t make sense of it. It could be that I haven’t completely exhausted the settings or tuned it correctly. As I have started fishing much more recently, I use the sounder a lot - I would really like a color display for it, and as accurate a read of the bottom as I can get. In terms of priority, I definitely want to upgrade the plotter and fishfinder capabilities to something newer- a shared 7 or 9” unit would probably be great. The radar upgrade isnt critical provided I can sort out the issues with the current unit, and if it works I can remount the old radar/plotter display somewhere else at the helm. But I feel I should really have working radar, so if it is broken then I would need to upgrade.it. Hopefully that gives a better sense of my situation. thanks for any advice you might have, it’s much appreciated!.
You lost me at $1,500. The deciding factor is going to be your ability to use old radar. Have you tried reading a book like this one to better understand how your radar works and what the various tuning adjustments mean?
https://www.amazon.com/Radar-Mariners-Revised-David-Burch-ebook/dp/B00CV23CAA/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1517949332&sr=1-2&keywords=marine+radar+how+to#customerReviews
You lost me at $1,500. The deciding factor is going to be your ability to use old radar. Have you tried reading a book like this one to better understand how your radar works and what the various tuning adjustments mean?
https://www.amazon.com/Radar-Mariners-Revised-David-Burch-ebook/dp/B00CV23CAA/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1517949332&sr=1-2&keywords=marine+radar+how+to#customerReviews