Why do you need this? by Brad

[Slab]

Newbies and even anglers that have had forward facing sonar all have the same problem when they start fishing with this sonar technology. They can’t see their lure or live bait. “Where the heck is my lure; why can’t I see it?”


What mount you are using to attach your forward facing sonar transducer to the trolling motor shaft plays a major part in what you are seeing. Depending on the model most forward facing sonar transducers come with different mounts to attach the transducer. The most popular one for a trolling motor shaft is the Garmin perspective mount and for Lowrance the ActiveTarget trolling motor shaft mount both allowing an angler to adjust the transducer in to either the Garmin perspective mode or Lowrance scout mode. Both of these factory mounts have an offset so the beam of the sonar is not blocked by the trolling motor barrel housing.


For example the Garmin perspective mode has an 8 degree offset. While this gives the angler a better, non-blocked view it also tilts the beams away from directly under the center and directly center of the attached transducers from the transducer outwardly. This means there is an 8 degree gap not being shown where your lure may go in the sonar beam, but also moves out the sonar beam. There is only one way to fix that and that’s to mount the forward facing sonar on a zero degree mount.


The new Humminbird MEGA Live 2 live sonar transducer appears to have an offset, but no details are listed on their website. However, we’re confident that it does have an offset. Due to the MEGA Live 2 just being released I haven’t seen any products released yet for a zero degree mount.


Pole mounts can be used on a trolling motor shaft or a pole mount shaft; however, they can only be used in the forward or down mode. These mounts are zero degree transducer offset mounts which means if mounted on the trolling motor the trolling motor barrel housing will block some of the sonar. If mounted to a transducer pole and a zero degree transducer offset the angler will not have any blockage.


That takes us to why we decided to write this article. The demand for aftermarket zero degree mounts is insane. Not surprising as anglers with offset transducer mounts struggle to see their lures as their lure goes in and out of the sonar transducer beam; anglers with a zero degree can position their transducer towards fish, cover, structure or whatever target they want to cast to without having their lure disappearing in and out of the sonar beam. Keep in mind a zero degree beam can’t make up for inaccurate casts or the boat moving, but having a sonar beam coming straight down will center the sonar beam allowing an angler to understand where their lure is located. Think of it this way, you drop your jig straight down in front of the sonar beam and your jig will be in the center of the sonar image while an offset mount may not show the jig or lose it as it falls depending on the depth.


One company that’s been building transducer mounts for over 13 years is Fish Obsessed. “We started out with the first one being a zero degree ice fishing mount,” Owner of Fish Obsessed David Bayus continued, “Having a machine shop and the knowledge of design, construction and building products has helped a lot in the mounts we are making.”



Today Fish Obsessed has numerous products designed to assist with anglers being able to mount their forward facing sonar products. Fish Obsessed Dominator series has mounts for Lowrance ActiveTarget transducers and Garmin LiveScope transducer. Both of these mounts allow the angler to change from down, forward and scout or perspective mode depending on what brand in seconds. Plus adjust the angle of the beam in scout or perspective that will allow the angler to see the imaging better. The Dominator also has a quick release model that allows an angler to quickly adjust the transducer from one mount to another, remove to keep from being stolen or to put the boat cover on.


Anglers do have the option of using a trolling motor barrel mount to have a zero degree offset mount, however, the transducer can’t be adjusted to either the Lowrance scout mode or Garmin perspective mode. Trolling motor barrel mounts are not as popular due to the fact it exposes the forward facing sonar to underwater hazards that would damage the transducer.

[SuperDave336]

Good article.

[Brag]

Interesting. I'm a new(er) Active Target user and I've been mostly satisfied with the system, but the biggest drawback for me so far is that I'm not able to see my lure a fair percentage of the time. I use mine mounted on a Sportsmen's Specialty pole. Is there still a need for a zero-degree mount if mounted this way? I'd be happy to make that investment if I thought it would increase the percentage of the time when I could see my small Crappie lure on the electronics.

[BuckeyeCrappie]

I have a fish obsessed mount and it’s built like a TANK! Made here in Ohio as well.

[justinp61]

Interesting. I'm a new(er) Active Target user and I've been mostly satisfied with the system, but the biggest drawback for me so far is that I'm not able to see my lure a fair percentage of the time. I use mine mounted on a Sportsmen's Specialty pole. Is there still a need for a zero-degree mount if mounted this way? I'd be happy to make that investment if I thought it would increase the percentage of the time when I could see my small Crappie lure on the electronics.

Some of the factory mounts don't have the TD vertical in forward mode, imho it needs to be. Before you buy a mount, my advice would be to throw out a buoy, back off about 30' or so and find it with your AT, then make sure your indicator is pointing at the buoy. Another thing is that the pole your transducer is mounted on to needs to be or close to perpendicular to the water's surface.

[TerryD]

I too have their mount and love it. Solid as a rock!

[DWILL]

Thanks for posting. I'm trying to soak up all the FFS info I can.