Transponder cable pull

[Jgedeon]

Just keep in mind it's not depth necessarily that you're looking for, it's clean water. That may or may not improve with depth and may require shifting side to side as well. If there is an anode on the bracket consider relocating as this will cause turbulence. Also something to consider is beaching the boat - there are times when I like to back in the stern to shore and the tducer will take the brunt of it. Make sure if it's mounted at or below the toon's bottom it can flex or slip in it's mounting knuckle so it doesn't break.

All very true. The other two Benningtons have not been wide beams with single motors and it was easy to get the transducer to work at cruising speed for depth. One was an I/O, still love my I/O's for water sports, the other was a single outboard.

Our new boat is a 30 QSBWAx2 wide beam and looking at what Bennington on other wide beam models has designed and where they have mounted the transducer IMHO is just a poor untested design. I looked at an earlier version and 27' QX model and the one mounting bracket welded to the center toon was a little lower than our but still had the same issue. Couldn't get in the water and clean water at speed.

The current set up of the ladder doesn't allow something at the lower section of the center toon for mounting of the transducer. Maybe if the Lilly-Pad ladder was default on these models there would be enough space for a mounting location and decent transducer but current design needs to be rethought out. I have attach an image of our current boat so that it's easy to see. You can see how quickly and easy it is to get the transducer either in dirty water or even out of the water. Don't get me wrong, we still love out new boat. Just have to work some bugs out of it. And hope the feedback makes it's back to Bennington.

 

[CherokeeBoater]

And in case you're wondering here is my mount location. The helm plastic is very brittle so take care when drilling holes and I would also highly, highly recommend a backer piece of marine grade wood or other material. Even if you use washers these Garmin units are heavy and that constant flexing while running could end up cracking the helm.

View attachment 34925

Nice set up. My helm is different so that wouldn’t work for me, but I sure like it!

 

[Julianna]

Just keep in mind it's not depth necessarily that you're looking for, it's clean water. That may or may not improve with depth and may require shifting side to side as well. If there is an anode on the bracket consider relocating as this will cause turbulence. Also something to consider is beaching the boat - there are times when I like to back in the stern to shore and the tducer will take the brunt of it. Make sure if it's mounted at or below the toon's bottom it can flex or slip in it's mounting knuckle so it doesn't break.

Constantly happens to us. Everytime I beach the transducers flip up. Have to use a pole to knock them down when we go back out into the ocean. Nothing major just a pain in the a$$

 

[DVW]

OK you got me sucked into your project because like yourself I like projects. You got the right idea when you tried fishing from the stern. You just need a better rod. How about a long tube pieced together from cheap small diameter PVC. The end of the PVC should have a slight dogleg bend to get around obstructions with push and twist action. Use heat to make the slight bend. Once you push the end below the console now you need to get to it. How about with your hand. Take a breath and dive in under the console with Phillips screwdriver in hand. Remove the boot attachment screws and slip the boot up and out of the way. With more contortion reach down into the hole and grab the bent end of the PVC. The rest is self explanatory. With regard to removing the side skirts for access. I found that difficult. Half the heavy tube mounting bolts need to be removed. Removal is hampered by the skirt itself. It will take both strength and dexterity. All at the same time. This skirt mounting method gives the boat a finished look when one walks up to it on the showroom floor. It will be the last time you see it from that perspective. I will digress no further.

 

[Potomacbassin’]

All very true. The other two Benningtons have not been wide beams with single motors and it was easy to get the transducer to work at cruising speed for depth. One was an I/O, still love my I/O's for water sports, the other was a single outboard.

Our new boat is a 30 QSBWAx2 wide beam and looking at what Bennington on other wide beam models has designed and where they have mounted the transducer IMHO is just a poor untested design. I looked at an earlier version and 27' QX model and the one mounting bracket welded to the center toon was a little lower than our but still had the same issue. Couldn't get in the water and clean water at speed.

The current set up of the ladder doesn't allow something at the lower section of the center toon for mounting of the transducer. Maybe if the Lilly-Pad ladder was default on these models there would be enough space for a mounting location and decent transducer but current design needs to be rethought out. I have attach an image of our current boat so that it's easy to see. You can see how quickly and easy it is to get the transducer either in dirty water or even out of the water. Don't get me wrong, we still love out new boat. Just have to work some bugs out of it. And hope the feedback makes it's back to Bennington.

Boy that is tough.

I've also thought all along that the higher end transducers like the GT54 and 56 that have the Chirp frequencies tend to hold bottom better at speed. The basic factory installed one doesn't seem to have either the wattage or beam cone to handle our hulls.

 

[Jgedeon]

Boy that is tough.

I've also thought all along that the higher end transducers like the GT54 and 56 that have the Chirp frequencies tend to hold bottom better at speed. The basic factory installed one doesn't seem to have either the wattage or beam cone to handle our hulls.

Yeah I don't mind a challenge to figure out. These boats are basically the do it all boats to me. And many times I have wondered what the bottom in an area looked like so why not go with side scan if I can is the way I see it. My end goal is to have it have a finished look when done but testing may look like something from the back woods in the hills of some quiet place with nothing around. LOL Also, why not use all the functions of the Garmin 1243xsv. If they made a smaller diameter radar I would even consider that too to put on the sport arch. Yes the addiction is real. LOL

 

[Potomacbassin’]

Yeah I don't mind a challenge to figure out. These boats are basically the do it all boats to me. And many times I have wondered what the bottom in an area looked like so why not go with side scan if I can is the way I see it. My end goal is to have it have a finished look when done but testing may look like something from the back woods in the hills of some quiet place with nothing around. LOL Also, why not use all the functions of the Garmin 1243xsv. If they made a smaller diameter radar I would even consider that too to put on the sport arch. Yes the addiction is real. LOL

Did you get the 1243 stock with the boat? If so did Bennington give you the option to select which transducer was installed?

Another great thing about the GPSmap line is the J1939 connection allows you to connect your engines and emulate the Yamaha CL7 display. Sadly my cheaper Echomap can get engine data but the gauge layout is pretty crappy, think Atari-level graphics. Should have gone big with the GPSmap.

Beautiful boat BTW!

 

[CherokeeBoater]

Update: Success!
I started to remove bolts, then realized they have nuts that are not captured. So I retightened them and abandoned that attack.
After some mulling and a haircut, I went back to the starboard side. There is about a 1/8 inch gap between the skirt and the bottom of the deck at the helm area. My flat electrician’s tape is metal and thin except for the end so I used two flat-head screwdrivers to open the gap enough to push the tape in. (It also has a mark each foot so it is easy to tell how far in I was) I had used duct tape to secure the pull rope. Then with a lot of fiddling, back-and-forth and my wife’s skinny arms on Port, we got the tape across and she pulled the rope through, and removed it from the pull tape. I then had her pull another 15 ft or so to be sure we had enough working length, while I kept the other end dangling on the starboard side. At this point we had a 1/4 rope running port to starboard.

I then moved to the stern. She was able to feed the rope aft, one section at a time, until encountering the square tubing. That left about 5 ft to the stern. We stayed on the port side of the toon (there are 3 access holes in the stern, two larger ones on either side and the smaller one top-center. The old transponder cable was fed through the smaller top hole. The other two provide better access, but they may have some water exposure (fresh water use, out of the water now through mid-May). Anyway we chose the easiest path. We kept rope hanging out on the starboard side and port side to help with the cable pulling.

Next, she got under the helm with a coat hanger (with the hook squeezed) and I again opened the gap with screwdrivers on the starboard side. She manipulated the hook while I lined up the rope, and she was able to hook it after a couple of tries. She pulled the rope through under the helm and tied it off.

Now we had rope running from the stern to the port side opposite the helm, and then across to the helm and out the starboard side. We left the bits dangling to help us pull the Garmin cable.

The Garmin cable is about 1/4 diameter but the connectors are 7/8, maybe an inch with the tape wrap. We needed the extension so it is connected under the deck. The connection has a rubber washer or o-ring and threaded male-female ends. To that we added several wraps of electrical tape to keep it tight and help with pulling (smoother so less snagging, extra strength so as not to break the connection). The cable is permanently attached to the transponder, so we started aft and pulled the cable to the port end of the rope. We pulled enough to that point to be able to complete the pull without needing any more from the stern - this would prevent snagging as we made the turn to starboard.

Next I had planned to pull to starboard but my wife, under the helm, pulled the rope through so we lost the starboard option. She pulled from the helm and I fed from port, keeping enough tension to avoid snagging. That was a pretty easy pull, and she got the cable into the helm.

That’s where it sits now. I’m going to play with the placement of the transponder and get it mounted, then return to the helm for final mounting and connections. But first, a cold, adult beverage.

Thanks to all who commented in this thread and in prior threads. The key to our success was that flat tape since it fit in and I could kind of turn it sideways to avoid snagging as it went across. But that was useless without the input from you all.

 

[CherokeeBoater]

Should have mentioned, from stern to midship I first tried a piece of 3/8 rebar (10ft long) I had available. But my wife couldn’t tie the rope on to it or tape it, so we decided to try the round electrician’s tape. That fed through easily and she was able to grab it and tape the rope to it, then we pulled the rope to the stern.

 

[Michiman]

CB, nice work getting the job done and thank you for taking the time to share your work with the rest of us. I keep thinking that an amplifier would be a nice addition to my sound system, and like a couple of other folks who’ve done it, your experience gives me hope that I could do it too.

 

[Jgedeon]

Did you get the 1243 stock with the boat? If so did Bennington give you the option to select which transducer was installed?

Another great thing about the GPSmap line is the J1939 connection allows you to connect your engines and emulate the Yamaha CL7 display. Sadly my cheaper Echomap can get engine data but the gauge layout is pretty crappy, think Atari-level graphics. Should have gone big with the GPSmap.

Beautiful boat BTW!

@Potomacbassin’

Yes the boat was ordered with the 1243 stock. No they did not let me choose the transducer.

While the GPSMap is connected to with the motors I use the CL5 display for most the engine information.

Thanks for the compliments on the boat. We do love the boat but just frustrated on the workmanship and what has passed QA.

 

[Potomacbassin’]

@Potomacbassin’

Yes the boat was ordered with the 1243 stock. No they did not let me choose the transducer.

While the GPSMap is connected to with the motors I use the CL5 display for most the engine information.

Thanks for the compliments on the boat. We do love the boat but just frustrated on the workmanship and what has passed QA.

I hear you - not making excuses but lots of things that were made during the pandemic when everyone was going spend-crazy on boats, cars, RVs, planes etc. ended up falling short on the QA/QC department. Shops sacrificed quality for volume as well as hired workers that were't seasoned vets, not to mention parts also fell short on quality - sometimes inferior substitutes were used. All the while buyers are fuming at production times and dealers looking for more inventory.

Bennington wasn't the only one that had to deal with the crap salad.