Reply by: Bullyhunter      Posted: 11/3/2009 8:12:57 PM     Points: 1449    

Uh-oh..........those fish are in trouble now.Marks going hi-tech! I have been trying to talk this guy from craigslist down on his Vex. He posted it last year and wouldnt budge now its there again, maybe he will give a little.I am curious to see the responses because I need a flasher too! Im willing to trade my underwater camera as part of the deal!

 Reply by: nano      Posted: 11/3/2009 9:09:39 PM     Points: 2    

Mark, I bought an ICE 45 this summer and I am trying hard to patiently wait for ice to go out and use it. I'm hoping that it will tell me the amazing things I had no idea about before. I have read a lot about these units and the reviews are a little mixed, some guys seem to love them while others swear by the Vex and Marcum units. I have a feeling that I'll be very happy with mine at least until I have something else to compare it to. I'll try to remember to post my impressions of it when I get some time with it in the hole.

 Reply by: brookieflyfisher      Posted: 11/3/2009 9:51:51 PM     Points: 1832    

I'm telling you guys, if you want a all-season sonar that will work through the ice and on the boat, buy a Lowrance X67C Ice machine package from Cabelas. It is essentially the FL8 in a liquid-crystal package, along with open-water features, like color screen, high brightness, temperature, and speed.

But if I had to choose between the two, I would buy a Humminbird. Same features, lower price. Since I'm cheap, I would also buy the ICE35 rather than the 45, but that's just me.

 Reply by: WYO      Posted: 11/4/2009 7:34:04 AM     Points: 222    

I've always wondered: Is there any advantage to having a flasher if you fish primarily in less than 20' of water where you can visually observe your jig the whole time? Am I right in thinking that flashers are more advantageous for fishing in deeper water where you can see niether jig nor fish? This is coming from a guy who has never had a flasher, nor who has even been around one at all.

 Reply by: ducati      Posted: 11/4/2009 7:52:32 AM     Points: 112    

I have a vexilar fl8 that I brought 4 years ago and love it. If I were to buy another one it would have to be the humminbird ice 35, $299.00 with a case, zoom and dual beam transducer, thats hard to beat.

 Reply by: Covidiencowboy      Posted: 11/4/2009 8:12:34 AM     Points: 959    

I've used a lot of units here and in Minnesota and I agree with Nat that the Marcum has too much power and fish sense it. It is an excellent unit tho and it does exactly what you want it to do. My choice tho is my Vexilar FL-18. I love it and have caught 1000's of fish thru the ice with it. Before I bought it, I didn't do very well. All the guys I fished with had Vex's and did great. In open water I held my own with them catching as many fish as they did. I then bought a Vex FL-18 and all of a sudden I was kicking butt ice fishing. I've used it in minus 40 degree weather and it still worked great. My choice even today would still be a VEX FL-18. It was money well spent!!!!!!!

 Reply by: BCIII      Posted: 11/4/2009 8:17:52 AM     Points: 657    

All right guys........ Help me understand this since I have never used a vex. This unit actually produces flashes of light?

 Reply by: FishermanFrank      Posted: 11/4/2009 8:22:40 AM     Points: 135    

I bought the Vexilar FL12 last year, and I LOVE it.
Even in shallow water, unless you have the self control to sit right over the hole and stare at your jig every minute, all day long, it's a great tool.
I'd say that I tripled my catch rate last year.
It's really handy when the fish are just picking at the lure, you can tell when they are getting ready to slurp it in.
It also lets you know if you are in an area with fish, so you can move on to find them.
It also helps quickly find the right bottom depth. You can read right through the ice without drilling a hole.
I haven't seen the other ice sonars in action yet.
I decided not to pay the extra money for the FL20, it's advantage would be for really deep water. (over 100')

 Reply by: Covidiencowboy      Posted: 11/4/2009 8:26:36 AM     Points: 959    

BC go to the Vex web site, I'm sure they still have Video's showing you how it works and how to use it. Basically you can watch your lure drop down to the bottom or wherever you want it in the water column. You can see the bottom and when a fish moves towards your bait the color will change to red. The bigger the fish the redder it gets. You can see fish come off the bottom towards your lure. It's very simple really once you do it a couple of times.

 Reply by: fyraxe      Posted: 11/4/2009 9:49:50 AM     Points: 8    

Not to change the subject but has anyone used the showdown finder, it seems easier to use and is quite a bit cheaper.

 Reply by: FishForAll      Posted: 11/4/2009 9:58:49 AM     Points: 1823    

I've had my Vex FL-8 for over 10 + years now and has never failed me. Very good unit, love the product. I would go with the Vex unit.

Jeff

 Reply by: Ankrum      Posted: 11/4/2009 10:41:06 AM     Points: 313    

I have a Vex Fl-18 and Fl-20 and love them both. I like the 20 because of the flat screen display, it is easy to ready and don't have to worry about snow getting in it when the weather gets bad. Both the 18 and 20 have bottom zooms, the 20 just has both a 6 and 12' bottom zoom which isn't really relevent, the 6' foot zoom is the only one I really ever use. To be honest, I would spend the extra money to get the 20 just because of the display and the added options, but if not, the 18 is awesome too. You can go to ebay and usually get pretty good deals on them, I picked up my 20 last year brand new for $450 free shipping!

 Reply by: Mark403      Posted: 11/4/2009 12:38:08 PM     Points: 3057    

Thanks for the replies!

I have a feeling the Humminbirds are too new for too many people to have actually used them.

 Reply by: kevtater      Posted: 11/4/2009 8:41:25 PM     Points: 162    

Mark,
I'm also in the market for a flasher. I've used friends' vexilars for years and I love them. I would have a hard time buying anything other than a Vex because it's so tried and true.

kt

 Reply by: Fishinbud      Posted: 11/4/2009 9:03:27 PM     Points: 509    

Imo, they are both decent units but I favor the Vex FL-18, the gold standard in sonar, especially for ice fishing.

 Reply by: kevtater      Posted: 11/5/2009 1:30:09 AM     Points: 162    

Here is a good article on Vexlar vs Marcum. The conclusion was more power does not equal more fish. More power actually seemed to affect the fishing negatively. Stick with the 400 watt vexilar.

LINK

 Reply by: Mark403      Posted: 11/5/2009 7:50:12 AM     Points: 3057    

Yeah, I saw that article. Thanks for all the advice!

 Reply by: Good Sam      Posted: 11/5/2009 7:50:36 PM     Points: 458    

I second the Lowrance x67c. The ability to use the unit year-round became very important to me when I got my boat this spring. I know that you already have a fish finder in your boat, but next spring you could set up another one on the bow.
Call me.

Steve

 Reply by: Covidiencowboy      Posted: 11/5/2009 7:53:51 PM     Points: 959    

You can use a Vex in open water also, works great!

 Reply by: jigger      Posted: 11/6/2009 3:58:11 PM     Points: 2    

I have the vex fl-20 and would not buy anything else as mentioned before the flat screen seds the snow which is very nice and the dual beam transducer works great in either shallow or deep water my favorite thing to do is if Im fishing two rods close together I drill my holes in a triangle shape with the two rods in the lower holes then i put my vex down the top hole then you can see both of your jigs on the screen at the same time using different lures like a kasty and then a trout magnet tiped with a mealy