Fish Finder Installation – Part I

The Big Rig HDFD provides several new challenges to the installation of a fish finder for the kayak angler. The main one is the transducer scupper hole; as it is incorporated part with the HDFD module and with the Big Rig. Another challenge is the routing of the transducer wire harness and the power harness. So installation for a fish finder will be a challenge for the Big Rig owner that opts for this kayak that will be swapping out the paddling module to the pedaling module. If you are planning on changing out the modules I would encourage you to consider mounting your fish finder using one of several transducer deployable arms on the market. However for if you will not be swapping out the two modules for the Big Rig HDFD; this blog will be how I installed the Raymarine Dragonfly on my Big Rig FD.

The first thing that I do is imagine the installation process; the first thing that I noticed is that the location of the transducer scupper challenge provides the challenge of routing and securing the transducer wire harness a good distance when compared to other kayaks where I have installed a fish finder. The other challenge is the shape of the scupper for the transducer; in my opinion the shape of the scupper is more in line with the shape of a transducer that is used for a fish finder that has the capability of SideVision. The scupper is also a different shape than the previous Jackson kayaks that have a transducer scupper that made the installation very easy for the CPT60 transducer that the previous Dragonfly models came with. My new Dragonfly came with the CPT100 transducer that the mounting bracket arm is not incorporated with the transducer itself.

So after fitting the transducer into the scupper hole several times; I used a jig saw to actually cut and trim the plastic part that the transducer unit slides onto. Eventually by cutting away part of the plastic piece the unit will fit just right into the transducer scupper. To secure the transducer I used a circular piece of plastic from a cutting board and a piece of bungee cord to secure the transducer in place.

The next process is to secure the wire harness. To accomplish this I used rivets and some cable loop clips. I drilled several holes at the high points of the deck to secure the harness with the loop clips with rivets with small rubber O-Rings between the loop clip and the kayak wall. The routing of the harness continues to the gunnel of the kayak where a one inch hole is drilled for the power portion of the wire harness will be routed to the battery.

I decided to mount the Dragonfly using the YakAttack’s new fish finder mounting system that originally had been designed for the Omega Rod Holder versus the Ram ball with the T-Bolt on the gear track. The 7” Dragonfly unit works out great in this location. Next is the issue of connecting power to the unit.

In the past I have used wire connectors and heat shrink tubing but my experience using this approach to connect the Nocqua wire harness and an inline fuse holder that either I did not do a great job or the saltwater managed to get into the connections and corrode the wiring. So I have been soldering the wire connections and using heat shrink tubing for roughly a year and have not experience any corrosion yet. In the past I have just thrown the Nocqua battery into the front storage tray of the Coosa FD. One of the Jackson Fishing Team members shared that they installed a bungee cord for the Nocqua battery on the outside of the tray insert so I opted to use this method for the Big Rig FD.

This completes the installation of the Raymarine Dragonfly for me. I do plan on upgrading this fish finder to the new Raymarine Element so that I can start learning about HyperVision, SideVision and RealVision .