Transducer Mounting Options
Transom Mount
Transom mount transducers are affixed to the stern of your vessel, where smooth water flow is passing off the transom. This mounting style offers the simplest installation and maintenance, without requiring any holes to be drilled beneath the waterline. Installed on a bracket, the transducer can be easily adjusted to compensate for transom angle; many brackets also allow the transducer to be folded up and out of the way for safe trailering. Designed for smaller outboard and inboard/outboard boats, these transducers are well suited to planing hulls. Installed in the proper location, transom-mounted transducers can offer high reliability with minimal effect on vessel performance.
Thru-Hull Tilted Element
These transducers mount through a hole drilled in any fiberglass, metal or wooden hull, with the outside of the fitting flush against the exterior hull surface. Inside the fitting, the transducer’s active elements are permanently tilted to match your hull’s deadrise, ensuring the sonar beam is aimed straight down. The flush-mount design of these transducers allows for smooth water flow over the hull, meaning less drag and minimal effect on boating performance. However, tilted-element transducers may be susceptible to performance loss due to external factors.
Thru-Hull with Fairing
These common transducers are mounted on a stem that passes through a hole drilled in any fiberglass, metal or wooden hull. The transducer protrudes beyond the hull surface, secured inside a fairing block cut to adjust for hull deadrise while allowing the smoothest possible water flow. Thru-hull transducers with a fairing block tend to offer the most reliable and accurate sonar performance. However, drag caused by the protruding transducer can negatively affect boat speed and fuel effciency. Stainless steel transducers are recommended for metal hulls, and bronze transducers for wooden hulls; either type may be installed in a fiberglass hull.
In-Hull Tank Mount
Only suitable for solid fiberglass hulls, in-hull or "shoot-thru-hull" transducers don’t require a hole to be drilled for installation. The transducer is mounted in a liquid-filled tank inside your vessel, bonded to the inner surface of the hull, and transmits sonar signals through the hull without direct exposure to the water. Great for trailer boats, there’s no external hardware to be damaged during trailering, launch and retrieval. In-hull mounting means no added drag, and thus no impact to your boat’s speed or fuel effciency. Expect reliable sonar performance at high speed, as water isn’t constantly moving over the face of the transducer. However, transmitting and receiving through the hull limits maximum sonar depth and fish-finding capabilities compared to thru-hull, transom, or other in-water installations.
