Down here in Mo. The use of electronics is limited….season is short….not enough knowledgeable people near me…..etc…I need information on different electronics….I have about 300 I can chunk into this…..I was looking at a Marcum showdown 2.0…I know this will probably start a war….but what do you look for in a set up….just askin
I say just go with what you like and could afford. Theres no war everyone who has bought more than one flasher has come to realize that you live and learn and ditch the brand that fails you
I have no complaints with my Marcum VX-1 Pro. It’s right in your price point. You could probably also look at the Vexilar FL-8 Genz pack also but I haven’t used it personally.
I’ve got a friend with one I’d prefer my more expensive one, fl-18 Vex his will put you on more fish. If thats what you can afford go for it as its the same principle as the others just in black and white.
Take a look at Lowrance elite 4 or 4x ice machine. Can get a skimmer ducer for your boat.
The Vexilar Fl8 is what I’d refer to as trusty rusty, it’s nothing fancy, but I’ve caught just as many fish with an Fl8 as I did with my Marcum LX 7. They are very durable and are the most affordable Vexilar they make. Also take a look at the Marcum VXP1 it’s Marcum’s version of the FL8. Hope you find what you’re looking for.
This is typically a Marcum heavy site, but I still use my old decrepit Vexilar FL-8 and love it. For the money you’ve got to spend, the Vex or the Marcum’s mentioned will both fall into it. My limited experience, I prefer the flasher over the showdown’s set up but as I said, my experience with them is limited and it’s just one man’s opinion…
Good luck, hope you get out on some ice!
i love marcum and think they have the best equipment out there… but this unit(showdown 2.0) is not one you want. i have a friend who has one and its been issue after issue and they have an issue of not being water proof and it shuts down the unit and wont work. go with the vx-1p or any of the steps up. personally i have a lx9 and a lx7 and i couldn’t imagine using anything else!!
I bought a Marcum VX-1 Pro for my son and it works just as well as my higher end Marcum at marking fish. Mill’s actually has them on sale right now and I bought another one to take when there are extra people on the ice.
I have a Vex FL8, Showdown and Showdown troller and the unit I use the most is the Showdown troller. It’s even cheaper than the Showdown and the others and does a great job. It’s easy to read if you’ve never used a flasher since it displays the water column vertically. The FL8 is noisy and the colors make my eyes bug out after looking at the display for hours.
Big advantages of the troller is it’s the lightest flasher on the market, can be hand held or used in a soft pack like it’s big brother, can run on AA’s or a gel cell so you’ll never have a battery problem if you bring extra AA’s with you (though one set of AAs lasts dozens of outings). Biggest advantage, I got mine for $160 brand new. They’ll likely be going on sale again soon if they haven’t already.
I fish right next to the boys with the pricy Marcums, etc and don’t feel I’m giving up a thing other than money in my pocket by using the Troller. I’d take a side-by-side LX7, LX9, FL18 challenge any day and bet I’ll have as many fish on the ice as the guys next to me but have money for beer left over.
You will see the fish that are willing to eat on the Troller. Do you really care if you can’t see a fish buried in the weeds that won’t come out to play? For me the trick is to keep on moving to find the biters and the Troller is made for just that. Why spend countless minutes trying to entice inactive fish?
That being said I’m a minimalist and always strive to get the job done with the least expense and fewest items possible. My ideal type of ice fishing is a hand auger over one shoulder, a rod or 2 in the other hand, the Troller around my neck and a grocery bag in my pocket for the fish. Jigs/spoons and bait in my pockets and MOVE! I don’t use a shack and only pull a sled if I go with my brother because he’s the other type of guy that brings his whole house and doesn’t have room for all his beer and buckets in his sled.
Wow…thanks for the replys….have a lot of stuff to think over…..it seems like most favor fl8…..will look it over…..and we do have ice down here….finally….but may loose some because of the 50 degree day today….
Marcum VX-1 pro are hard to beat.
Don’t overlook this unit.
http://www.iceshanty.com/ice_fishing/index.php?topic=302904.0
For the $ the VX-1 is hard to beat. It has bottom zoom and great seperation 3/4″ or 1″, I believe.
The FL-8 does not have zoom or as good of seperation.
The zoom is a great feature for bottom huggers. I had a FL-8 and sold it and bought 2 VX-1 units, one for myself and one for my GF.
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