Why a rotary flasher?

The large majority of ice fishing sonars are rotary flashers. Either the old spinning whee/LED type or a solid state version. Is there some reason that these are better than linear LED displays or graphs? I have not had one since they were the only option for sonar, and am beginning to feel like I am missing something. My favorite is still the old Marcum Showdown- you can run it with 6 AA rechargeables and get 2-1/2 days of fishing out of it. They don’t even make that one any more.

Circular graphs pack a lot of real estate into a small area.

A graph with a 4-inch diameter, would be like having a showdown that’s a footlong.

Kind of like asking which came first, the chicken or the egg. My paper graph was the first electronic device I took with n the ice. Awesome but Marine battery , graph, and a tripod for the transducer sucked. Then came the Lowrance green box and the almighty suer 66. The sixty-six is still probably the best flasher ever made.

Then came the sitex with colors. Strange that didn’t catch on at first. They sold out to Vexilar.
Meanwhile guys were setting up the new hummingbird with blocks coming across the screen. Worked, but virtually no separation.

So back to the circle flasher and like it or not, velilar and then marcum were to tools to have.

The introduction of the 997, 1197….and so on brought quite the technology advancements, but costs were high and not many wanted to risk having them out on the ice.

N just the last years, I think manufacturers realized the market share to be had with making units more affordable and more ice friendly.

Which brings us to today where we have significant choices. Flashers dominated the market for so long, that many will have a hard time changing. Ironic that a flasher in a boat is non existent anymore….

Matter of preference anymore. Flasher, vs graph, vs camera. I believe each have their time and place. I also know some pretty good ice fishers that keep it simple, no electronics, and simple rods and Schooley Reels.

I have a Helix and a Lowrance HDS in my boat. I would not take either on the ice over my Vex. That’s not age talking, it’s experience.

It’s called a water column not a water circle.

I Like anything with a graph, and (and somebody can correct me if i’m wrong) I believe most of the graphs have the flasher option.

But it is personal preference.

Steve Johnson wrote:

Either the old spinning whee/LED type or a solid state version. Is there some reason that these are better than linear LED displays or graphs?

I’m pretty sure the quest is NOT about the technology. As I read it, the question is about how the information is displayed on the solid state screen.
Bman nailed it.

B-man wrote:

Circular graphs pack a lot of real estate into a small area.
A graph with a 4-inch diameter, would be like having a showdown that’s a footlong.

I like a display with both a round dial display along with a vertical column that is zoomed in on the “fish zone”.
Most of the time I am following my jig in the “fish zone” displayed in the zoom column. Yet, at the same time, I can see a fish move in above or below the zoom, by looking at the circular dial portion of the screen.

I run a Helix, and I like the 2D sonar display better than the circle graph. I like being able to see the feedback over a period of time (depending on the speed you’re set at) vs only real time.

There are some people these days that believe a rotary flasher belongs in a museum.

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Walleyestudent Andy Cox wrote:

There are some people these days that believe a rotary flasher belongs in a museum.

Ha, because they do.
My Cousin who is a life long, die hard Vex guy just turned his FLx-20 into a new boat anchor and picked up the Helix 7 ice.
Ya, he’s kicking himself for not doing it sooner. Last time I fished with him the vex sounded like a 747 taking off.

Old flasers are like watching standard over HD. Do you guys still watch TV at 480p? The tech has come a long way so why not use it?
Those FL8 vexes are built to last 100 years which is awesome but the technology is so much better every year. Interference is bad too. I have not had any problems with that using my Helix.

To each his own as far as what technology to use. Some people cant afford to keep up with technology even if they would like to. I could afford the “latest and greatest technology”. At least it would be until next year. However, my “Old Technology” still does everything I need it to do for ice fishing. It shows me depth, bottom composition, and fish location. Just fished with my grandson today with my “New” 12year old FL-18 right next to my “Old” 20 year old FL8-SLT without any interference and we had no problem seeing or catching fish. The bluegills, crappie, perch, and walleye don’t care about what technology I am using. Maybe they should t hough.

eyeguy507 wrote:

Old flasers are like watching standard over HD. Do you guys still watch TV at 480p? The tech has come a long way so why not use it?
Those FL8 vexes are built to last 100 years which is awesome but the technology is so much better every year. Interference is bad too. I have not had any problems with that using my Helix.

Sonar is ancient technology. I mean, bats have been using it for millions of years. What you’re talking about is computer processing and display capabilities. Your helix uses the same technology as every other fish finder. The difference is how it interprets and translates the information.

I own 3 4k tv’s, 2 ultrawide monitors, 2 way over-spec’d PC’s, 4 current iPads, 2 iPhone 11’s, thousands on musical equipment,……… and 2 Marcum VX-1i’s………. Sure, I could buy a livescope, but I don’t need a machine to show me the entire lake from one hole. It’s not about the technological advancements. I grew up when fishing was a challenge/reward kind of thing. Not using all of the latest most expensive electronics and gear helps keep that aspect alive for me.

Different strokes…

Vexilar s have come a long way since FL8’s. That’s crazy to even say they are the same as 28’s or 30’s. That means your Helix is the same as my first graph?

I prefer the rotary flasher because I stare at a screen all day for work (not to mention the time I spend looking at this stupid smartphone). Time on the ice is a break from screens for me. I love the “whirr” of a flasher as well.

Thanks for the perspective. I guess what started it for me is the fact that my showdown can run 2.5 days on 6 AA batteries, and people with flashers are either lugging big SLA batteries or spending $ on lithium. The amount of power that the actual sonar uses must be tiny. I know that a motor uses lots of power compared with a solid state screen, and wondered if there was any fishing benefit to using a rotating wheel as a display. I do get the geometry advantage of wrapping the display in a circle, and I also see how having color adds more information.

Steve Johnson wrote:

lugging big SLA batteries

I have yet to grasp the idea of carrying a flasher battery a few feet, and when feeling fatigued, blaming a 4# battery.

Gallon milk heavier lol

Ben K. wrote:

I prefer the rotary flasher because I stare at a screen all day for work (not to mention the time I spend looking at this stupid smartphone). Time on the ice is a break from screens for me. I love the “whirr” of a flasher as well.

God bless the “whirr” with all its comfort and nostalgia. Sue me!

When you are stationary, it doesn’t really matter how the data is displayed. You’re just dealing with the cone under you. When you are in a boat you can get a lot of information displayed on your graph. Unless you are talking about live scope, 360, etc. a flasher does everything you need.

When it comes to finding fish (gps/panoptix/live360/livescope etc) and when it comes to different views (historical graph/flasher mode/vertical), clearly mechanical flashers are ancient history. But when it comes to whats below the hole you are fishing in, they perform, dare i say, identically in sonar mode (i say sonar to exclude panoptix/livescope) I have a helix on the boat that i outfitted for ice (it now stays on the boat), i have a 73cv with panoptix that we use to find fish in forward view (rarely fish in down view) and to mark spots and using the mapping (navionics, meh).

but when it comes to what is in the hole below me, the lx5 transducer is what goes in the hole. because no other unit in sonar mode, gives me the confidence in what i’m seeing with the lx5. i can pick out fish, i can pick out structure, they are so fine tuned to show me what i’m looking at. panoptix it could be a fish it could be structure (livescope spells it out way more) and with my helix, with 2 marks i couldn’t tell if it was fish or structure. Perhaps thats just teh learning curve and my 8 years of LX5 use has done that.

Thats why the longevity of the mechanical flasher still exists and why vexilar still cranks them out and sells them like hotcakes. because when it comes to the hole in front of you they perform as well or even at times better than their LCD counterparts.

FishBlood&RiverMud wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Steve Johnson wrote:</div>
lugging big SLA batteries

I have yet to grasp the idea of carrying a flasher battery a few feet, and when feeling fatigued, blaming a 4# battery.

Gallon milk heavier lol

I guess if that were all, but I walk all day sometimes, carrying the auger and all the rest. I sure like having the 2# Marcum better than my 11# Garmin 73SV.
I also seem to sense everything getting heavier these days, so maybe it is the birthdays.

the problem i have with the showdown is the grey scale. i bought one and sold it to my brothers father in law. he likes the vertical aspect of it but wishes it was color like the other units we all fish with.

After five days of fishing with my helix, I would gladly go back to my 10 year old Marcum. If it weren’t for the mapping and the fact my wife won’t give it back, I would.

Feathers wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>hnd wrote:</div>
i have a 73cv with panoptix that we use to find fish in forward view (rarely fish in down view) and to mark spots and using the mapping (navionics, meh).

That seems crazy to me. The down view has a ton of advantages over a flasher and is way more fun to watch. I picked up a livescope and I don’t think I’ll ever use a flasher again.

if i’m stuck in a hut…maybe. but i’m rarely stuck in a hut. i’m not lugging that thing around. it get set up as base camp and moved here or there if we are scoping out a new location or chasing basin crappies, otherwise, its a search tool for us. Which may sound ridiculous, but i built it cheap, and with 5 children, my fishing time relies heavily on me finding fish fast. and when someone tells me hey this unmapped backwater pond has a few fish cribs on it, i don’t even need them to give me coordinates, i’ll find it in 5 minutes. and thats whats makes it worth its weight in gold.

tbruno wrote:

To each his own as far as what technology to use. Some people cant afford to keep up with technology even if they would like to. I could afford the “latest and greatest technology”. At least it would be until next year. However, my “Old Technology” still does everything I need it to do for ice fishing. It shows me depth, bottom composition, and fish location. Just fished with my grandson today with my “New” 12year old FL-18 right next to my “Old” 20 year old FL8-SLT without any interference and we had no problem seeing or catching fish. The bluegills, crappie, perch, and walleye don’t care about what technology I am using. Maybe they should t hough.

I loved my rotary HB ice55 but the dial is HD crisp on the Helix. I like it not for mapping but use it year round. It goes on my bow during open water and in my shuttle come winter. Lithium battery keeps it super light. I’ll keep it for hopefully 10 years?
As for interference, those old vex’s play well together but once a guy flips one on all the other brands get angry.
Hey I still use a gas auger, not ready to kick my gas. I thought I was but love the purr of a motor. We all like what we like. Sure I could buy a thousand of those Garmins but livescope won’t work for the way I like to fish. Fish move so I’ll sit patiently and wait for them to come to me!

Helix graph with the RTS window set to wide and on AScope is the best of both worlds I think.