Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge  

Go Back   Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge > Kayak Fishing Forum - Message Board > General Kayak Fishing Discussion
Home Forum Online Store Information LJ Webcam Gallery Register FAQ Community Calendar Today's Posts Search

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 10-12-2016, 08:54 AM   #1
45user
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 576
Lowrance HDS 5 gen2 depth malfunction

Hello all,
So my ff has been acting weird lately. It would work (or seems to be working) correctly for the first 2-3hrs then it will give me false depth reading (usually very deep) Does anyone experience similar issue with HDS 5 gen 2? If so was there a remedy to fix the problem? I'm using factory 50/200mhz transducer.
Thank you for your help in advance!
45
45user is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 09:01 AM   #2
kirkdavis
Senior Member
 
kirkdavis's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: SD County
Posts: 360
I had the same problem at LJ. Headed back to the beach my FF was suddenly reading deep. tried reboot...nothing. Finally figured out I was going over LJ canyon!!
kirkdavis is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 09:18 AM   #3
ful-rac
Emperor
 
ful-rac's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Buena Park
Posts: 3,649
If everything else is good I'd suspect a bad transducer.... It happends
__________________
There's nothing colder than yesterday's hotdog.
ful-rac is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 09:32 AM   #4
45user
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 576
Quote:
Originally Posted by ful-rac View Post
If everything else is good I'd suspect a bad transducer.... It happends
Any specific brand you recommend that fits hobie outback transducer ready mold? It needs to work in LJ and freshwater.
Thank you!
45
45user is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 09:30 AM   #5
45user
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 576
Quote:
Originally Posted by kirkdavis View Post
I had the same problem at LJ. Headed back to the beach my FF was suddenly reading deep. tried reboot...nothing. Finally figured out I was going over LJ canyon!!
I suspected that and it happened to me before but unfortunately it wasn't the canyon this time.
Btw how deep is the canyon?
Thank you!
45
45user is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 10:12 AM   #6
YakDout
Brandon
 
YakDout's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: San Diego
Posts: 2,345
Quote:
Originally Posted by 45user View Post
I suspected that and it happened to me before but unfortunately it wasn't the canyon this time.

Btw how deep is the canyon?

Thank you!

45


Ive had depths over the canyon deeper than 1000 feet. Were you fishing over it when this was happening? If your gain isnt high enough, it wont mark bottom at the depth. Try turning up your gain til you get a depth.
YakDout is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 10:31 AM   #7
45user
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 576
Quote:
Originally Posted by YakDout View Post
Ive had depths over the canyon deeper than 1000 feet. Were you fishing over it when this was happening? If your gain isnt high enough, it wont mark bottom at the depth. Try turning up your gain til you get a depth.
Hmmmm
I just looked up La Jolla canyon and I may have went over that. Yes it gave me over 1000' reading but I was pretty close to the shore I thought my ff was going crazy..
45
45user is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 10:41 AM   #8
ful-rac
Emperor
 
ful-rac's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Buena Park
Posts: 3,649
Try it again in a known depth.
__________________
There's nothing colder than yesterday's hotdog.
ful-rac is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 11:03 AM   #9
rossman
Marginally Irrelevant
 
rossman's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Bahia Asuncion
Posts: 936
I had the exact same symptoms on a sonar unit many years ago and what threw me was it would only act up at La Jolla. Like you, I was amazed how close that deep water canyon was to shore and it was right on a line from the launch to the first waypoint that I headed to.

Quote:
Originally Posted by 45user View Post
Hmmmm
I just looked up La Jolla canyon and I may have went over that. Yes it gave me over 1000' reading but I was pretty close to the shore I thought my ff was going crazy..
45
__________________
"When beholding the tranquil beauty and brilliancy of the ocean’s skin, one forgets the tiger heart that pants beneath it; and would not willingly remember that this velvet paw but conceals a remorseless fang. "
— Herman Melville

Y'all come see me now, hear!
rossman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 10:13 AM   #10
YakDout
Brandon
 
YakDout's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: San Diego
Posts: 2,345
Call lowrance, they will send you a new transducer if its bad. I didnt even have to send my bad one in, and it started working again so now I have an extra.
YakDout is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 11:04 AM   #11
45user
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 576
Lowrance HDS 5 gen2 depth malfunction

Thank you all for your help!!!
I will try it again and see what happens.
45


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
45user is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 11:09 AM   #12
45user
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 576
Now on a different note, my stock transducer is 50/200, is this transducer adequate to use in freshwater?
Thanks again!
45
45user is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 11:13 AM   #13
YakDout
Brandon
 
YakDout's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: San Diego
Posts: 2,345
Quote:
Originally Posted by 45user View Post
Now on a different note, my stock transducer is 50/200, is this transducer adequate to use in freshwater?

Thanks again!

45


Yep it will work great.
YakDout is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2016, 11:15 AM   #14
45user
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 576
Quote:
Originally Posted by YakDout View Post
Yep it will work great.
Thank you!
45
45user is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2016, 04:55 AM   #15
45user
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 576
Thank you!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
45user is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2016, 01:24 PM   #16
Bruntoj
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: San Diego County
Posts: 168
I'm confused. Should I be lubing it up with dielectric grease or using this contact cleaner?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Bruntoj is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2016, 01:29 PM   #17
makobob
Baitless on Baja
 
makobob's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Vista California, Gonzaga, San Quintin, Asuncion, Mag Bay
Posts: 4,250
Cleaner THEN lube.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruntoj View Post
I'm confused. Should I be lubing it up with dielectric grease or using this contact cleaner?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
__________________
http://www.mako-ville.com

Home 760-630-4470
Cell 760-520-2514

YES YOU CAN
makobob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-15-2016, 09:04 AM   #18
Sheephead
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: San Diego
Posts: 115
I've had multiple problems with lowrance FF, specifically HDS models, and have figured out the primary trouble shootings. I've had the battery cutting out after 2-3 hours many times and depth inaccuracy once but never both at the same time. From my experience, depth inaccuracy can be caused by moving over water deeper than your current sonar setting (freshwater, deep water, shallow water, ect.) NOT 10ft, 30ft, 200ft, 1000ft, DISPLAYS for short durations. Also, spending longer than 30min in that zone and then coming over a ledge into shallow water might make it "stick" and keep reading inaccurately. 2nd reason for depth inaccuracy i've noticed is that sometimes it just goes wack. If it does just go wack change from sonar/ downscan to the full screen map display then change it back, it should reset it.

For the battery cutting out there's 1 of 2 possible reasons i've encountered. First reason, your battery is over 6-8 months old and you did not store it properly or you just use it a lot. Use an electric current reader to check your charging cable to see if that's the problem or its your battery. Second reason, and definitely the most dreaded, your sd card slot is starting to corrode. Even if you babied the sd card hatch to protect it, water WILL GET INSIDE! This has been my problem 3/4 times. The beginning stages are power shortages, 1-3hr battery life decreasing to 1-4 minutes over a week or two. Also, when your battery starts shortening to 1-4min your screen might look like a broken tv when you try to turn it on. Now lets say you put dialectric greaser inside your sd card slot? Remove all of it with a pin/ toothpick then brush out the rest. It's possible your grease might have crystalized. Then test FF? battery life again. If it still doesn't work, get a sd card of 2-8GB and put it inside your FF sd card reader. If your FF cannot read/ pick up your card you FF is shot! You'll have to send it in to get it replaced but before you do copy all your waypoints! Hope any of this helps! Let me know what problem it turns out to be, im curious!
Sheephead is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2016, 01:53 PM   #19
45user
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 576
Yes what makobob said
I clean with the cleaner then lube it with dielectric grease
I usually do that after couple of outings
I don't remember if I did that before my ff acted up
I should have given that a try before asking
A lot of good help and wealth of information on this forum!
45


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
45user is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2016, 08:06 PM   #20
kaya_one
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Encinitas
Posts: 257
I sent you a pm.
I have a transducer you can borrow to test.
kaya_one is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 06:01 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
© 2002 Big Water's Edge. All rights reserved.