In hull transducer

[Volador1]

To forum,
I have a 1962 Columbia 29 that has a thru hull transducer probably installed back when the boat was built or not long after. It has only two wires a black and white. Is it possible to use the old transducer on a newer depth sounder? I am only interested in depth. I tried a in hull mount (Hawkeye) that did not work, but after reading the instructions again it stated it was only good on hulls with a thickness much less than mine probably is. I would think that a 1962 hand lay up fiberglass hull is probably at least 3/8 inch thick. I will be cruising the Channel Islands in Southern California and would like to have a working depth sounder.
Thanks in advance for any comments on this subject.
Bob

[Cheechako]

I've used an in hull unit on up to 1.25 thick glass with good results.

[gettinthere]

Frequency of the transducer and the display MUST match

[David M]

Unfortunately the odds of getting a match are pretty remote. It is more than frequency that must match without getting into a bunch of technical details.

Older fiberglass hulls from the 1960's tend to be very thick because back then fiberglass was a relatively new hull material. Builders back then overbuilt by today's standards because they did not have as much experience with the material as we have now.

Probably the best thing to do is to wait for your next haul out, remove the old transducer and replace it with a new transducer. Thick hulls like yours will attenuate the signal and although it may work in shallow water, it may not work in deeper water. Newer transducers also have options you might want such as a paddle wheel (dubious accuracy in almost all cases), wider cone angles for boats that heel, dual frequency (200kHz/50kHz) or a temperature gauge. You can also choose between bronze or plastic, which is less expensive.

[Target9000]

I was in your situation as well. Had a transducer of unknown type and an old ST50 head that died. We tried connecting the transducer to the ST60+ we bought to replace it but no dice. Finally we bit the bullet and put a new transducer in.

We have a very thick hulled W32 and installed a p79 transducer made by Airmar. Have been very pleased with it.

Install was a snap.

[gettinthere]

david m

what else needs to match?

In my discussion with Airmar, that is all they told me needed to match. I had a standard horizon 80's vintage system. the Raymarine ST60+ display is an exact match to the SH display. The ONLY question was whether they had the same freq, and they do. Connectors were different but that was no big deal, just some simple spicing.

I suggest the OP ask Airmar, they know their systems better than...

[sdowney717]

I bought a used eagle 320C fish easy.
I simply shoot it's transducer thru the wood hull.

I made a contoured 4 inch PVC adapter ground to fit the inner hull.
I glued that to the hull using some Black permatex gasket maker.
I then used toilet bowl wax to fill the inner area and mashed the transducer into the wax. I screwed the bracket to one of the wooden floors.
It has worked well for the last 3 years.