What to know about mounting a sounder on the transom

[Paterson00]

Hi there,

my fantastic wife bought me a Lowrance Elite 5 for xmas and I am really keen to get it fitted to my boat and have a play with it. On my boat I already have a mounting bracket for another sounder which I would like to remove as I cant adapt it to suit my sounder. This will of course leave screw holes in my transom although not very deep I expect. What do I need to do to make good the holes and also what will I need to mount the new mount. The book reccomends marine grade epoxy and as yet I have not read the fitting instructions in depth as I have the in laws here and am busy so I thought I would take five to put the question up here.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: What to know about mounting a sounder on the transom

seal the old holes with a 3M product called 5200.

Use the sale stuff to seal your new holes.

Some people like to glue (also 5200) a small block of starboard to the transom and screw into that to avoid holes in the transom. I don;t think that's necessary especially with a trailer boat.

To drill holes in the gelcoat, drill a small pilot hole, then either run the correct size backwards, or use a countersink bit, to cut through the white coat. That's what cracks when drilled. Then put in your correct size hole for your screws.

 

[minuteman62-64]

Re: What to know about mounting a sounder on the transom

I'm not recommending this, but, I have the same unit and, IMO, way too many holes in my transom (aluminum) already. I made a mount for the bracket, of 1/8" aluminum, and fastened it to the transom with 3M 4000. Six months and still holding like new. One benefit is that if I need to change the location I will be able to remove it with a moderate effort.

Somewhere on here is my post with photos.