Elecdtronics recommendations for a new boat

[stevemid]

Hi all,
I am in the process of building a 23' catamaran, and could use some advice WRT electronics. I have been a long term sailor with a 34' sailboat perfectly set up for long term cruising, electronics wise. I regularly sail up to QLD in the winters from Sydney and the thing I enjoy most about cruising is Fishing. Now the deliveries from NSW to SE QLD are getting a bit much, therefore, I'm building the powerboat which I can fish off of around Sydney (continental shelf, coastal and harbour) and can deliver by road to my favourite cruising grounds which would be coastal islands north of the Great Sandy Straights and south of McKay, QLD. I'd also intend to get out to the Swain Reefs for days at a time; something I have been reluctant to do in the sailboat.

Most of the serious fishermen on this forum seem to have heaps invested in electronics. But what I'm looking for is a way to do that on the cheap by possibly combining a fish finder, chartplotter and engine management system all in one to provide the basic electronics for deep sea and estuary fishing.

Just for background, on the sailboat, this is my setup: Completely separate electrics for start and house. This includes a 550 CCA start battery charged by a 60 amp alternator on the 23 hp Volvo donk. 2 X 80 amp hour AGM house batteries charged by a 90 amp alternator, also on the Volvo donk. I also have 2 X 80 watt solar panels feeding a 20A Morningstar regulator which also charge the house batteries and have the 12V eutectic fridge connected directly to the output of the regulator. (This cuts off the fridge if the house batteries fall below 50%.) So when I'm cruising,I mostly day hop up and down the coast; I run the donk only going out and coming in from anchorages, and the solar panels do most of the work unless we get a few days of cloudy, rainy weather. On the consumption side, I'm very frugal, a basic car stereo with an iphone which transmits music over FM and provides internet connectivity for the netbook. A Lowrance 5" chartplotter, AIS with a whip antenna feeding a 7 watt netbook computer, VHF with a mast head antenna, LED nav and house lights. My biggest consumer is the fridge but I wouldn't be without it. Life without cold beer is no life at all. AND If I catch a big Spainard, I can crank it up to near freezing and in most cases the solar panels keep the beer cold and the batteries at 100%. As far as fishing goes, if I move, I troll. If I anchor, I throw a line out or get in the dinghy and troll around the anchorage. Once I'm north of Fraser Island, I keep myself and lots of 'neighbors' in fish.

What I'd like now to do is to set up the power boat in a similar way but enhance my ability to chase fish. I'd really appreciate ideas as to how I might set up the electronics on my new powerboat to focus on fishing.

Stevemid

[Micadogs]

Hi Stevemid, PM Grand Marlin on this forum. He will be able to assist with selection for your purposes and can also install and chekc them for working properly.

Cheap isnt a word I would use for what you would want to do. If you are fishing great depths such as the shelf you will want some quality equipment, correct transducers etc.

Also, as it is a live aboard, you may want at least two units for redundancy. What if the unit you are using for navigation and engine management dies when you are out at sea or swains. What do you do then?

There are so many choices it is best to sit down with someone who knows and can ask questions and make recommendations to suit your requirements and budget.

Regards Adam

[Apollo]

Steve

I 100% agree with Adam in regards to contacting Pete (Grand Marlin) on this site. He is without peer in working through a solution to meet your needs and budget. He will be able to tell you where you can save $ and where you definately need to spend them. He is also a real cat lover.

All the best and post up about your build up on the new cat. We all love boat build ups.

Steve

[Smithy]

If you want a budget plotter BCF are letting the Lowrance Elite 5-Ms go for $799 including the Navonics chart. Mate got the last one as store stock off the shelf at one store and they knocked $100 off for it being a demo unit. New Lowrance Gen II HDSs are on the way so get in quick to grab a bargain and you might have to go to a few stores to get one.

[stevemid]

Hi Stevemid, PM Grand Marlin on this forum. He will be able to assist with selection for your purposes and can also install and chekc them for working properly....



Regards Adam

I can't find Grand Marlin in a member search or the pop-up for sending PM's. Help pls?

[sid_fishes]

mate , do a search for valet boat services.. that should get him

[Apollo]

Grand Marlin (Pete) details are:

Valet Boat Services

Marine Engineers - Cashmere, QLD

45 Tosca St, Cashmere QLD 4500, Australia
0419 263 264

[leelee]

Do yourself a favour and as other have mentioned have a chat with Pete. He is the only dealer I will deal with in regards to marine electronics.

He supplies multiple brands so he will have what you want and can also do the install which will be done better than anyone else could achieve.

Cheers

Lee

[Grand_Marlin]

Thanks Guys, appreciate that.

Steve called and we had a chat about his needs.
Lowrance and Garmin suit his needs perfectly, as he has the requirement for engine management gauges and fuel flow.
Steve currently has Lowrance and is happy with that, so Lowrance HDS might be the go.
The consideration now is whether to go one or two screens.
Also, he is looking at upspecing to the NSS Simrad touch screen units.
The broadband sounder capabilities in the Lowrance and Simrad will also give him more benefit for fishing deeper water.
These units will also fit nicely into his budget.

Cheers

Pete