Rechargeable 12V Battery

[rockfisherman]

I found a rechargeable 12V battery at Cabelas. $30 with the charger. Go to Cabelas and put UC-015675 in the search field and you'll find it...the link url is too long to post. I've got one on order...will review it when I've had a chance to use it.

[FLYRODER]

The Cabelas 12V 7amp battery is great. I used mine all last year with no problem. When fully charged the battery will run your FF for 4-5 full 24hour days straight. I wanted to see how long it lasted so I had my FF running constantly till I got a low battery reading. Just 1 thing. Make sure you attach a 1amp fuse to the battery also either put some type of no-rust on the terminals or like I do coat the terminals with grease so it doesn't corrode from the saltwater.

[joev]

Paul & Flyrodder Thats what I am getting seemed like the best bet for me .
Flyrodder How did you mount or store the battery in the yak ?

JoeV

[FLYRODER]

Joe I bought a thick piece of foam and cut it into a box so the battery could fit in nice and tight. I used 3M spray adhesive to get it to stick inside the hatch. Then I hooked up 2 clips so it would not come loose if I ever flipped over. Heres a picture:

[joev]

Flyrodder That was a good idea.Thanks
I was thinking about using a soft sided cooler .So when I am done fishing I can take off the FishFinder and put it in the cooler also.Plan on just running cables under front hatch.Also using the Johnny Ray swivel mount with one button release.Supposed to be all nylon and SS steel.I will let ya know how it all works out.If it dont just doing what you did.
JoeV

[Wes]

I was thinking I'd put foam like Flyrodder inside a tupperware box and strap the box down. Sili seal the wires in/out of the box.

[RJ]

Paul,

Thanks for the tip. I'm now the proud owner of a Eagle Cuda 128 FF, a micro RAM mount and the battery and charger.

Joe V - great idea on the foam block! I'm locating my battery package behind the Pungo Seat and my go to yak fishing bag directly under the rear hull access port.

Where's the best spot to mount the transducer? I assume it will work thru the hull on my Pungo!

Does anyone know if RAM sells extra ball mounts to switch out the FF mount or GPS mount from yak to boat or yak to car?

30 days to ST. Pat's Day and 32 days to the Spring Equinox. Less than 60 days to schoolie time! :cool:

Weather perdiction for this weekend in upstate NY is the temp will not exceed 10 degrees in daylight and will go as low as -15 degrees below 0.

Ice fishermen - BEWARE Frostbite is a reality at this temperatures.

:-% Hot Toddy's are recommended!

[Wes]

RJ,
Cabelas sells a big line of RAM stuff, I think micro bases are 10 or 12 dlrs, they even make one with a suction cup base. Tranny should shoot thru any plastic hull as long as you have no voids or air bubbles between tranny and hull.

[notime]

Wes,

I put my battery in a tupperware container and put self adhesive weather stripping along the edge where the two wires leave the container. It's not 100% waterproof, but its splash proof. It also makes it very portable for those times when I'm not going to use it.

I like the idea of putting it behind your seat as it doesn't take up a lot of space at my feet.

RJ:

I don't think the transducer will work through the hull. You'll need to attach it to the outside of the hull below the water line. See a previous post about different ideas. Someone has a suction cup (Cabella's?) and that seemed to make the most sense.

[FLYRODER]

You can mount the transducer to shoot thru the hull of any plastic kayak. If you look at the picture I posted above with the battery. Just behind the battery theres my FF transducer. I used 100% clear silicone caulking and the unit worked great all year with a clean signal.

[Wes]

I just bought this battery and charger. The package didn't contain any instructions. Does it matter if you don't fully discharge the battery before recharging? Or if you do? Is there any problem if you leave it to charge for a long time? I am fairly ignorant about marine batteries.

It looks like the ticket, though. I intend to spend some serious time getting a new view into a lot of favorite old spots.

[FLYRODER]

When the charge on the battery becomes very low I usually then plug mine in for the whole night and is fuly charged in the AM.
How do you know the battery is starting to get very low? Mostly all FF have a battery meter. When you notice after a few days of fishing that the battery level is starting to get low then charge it over night.

[joev]

Jim
Mine should be here anyday now.

JoeV

[Wes]

Thanks Flyrodder,
Hadn't thought of a battery indicator on the FF, haven't hooked it up yet. Might be doing a quick installation this weekend if weather gives us a break.

[SamRiley]

Jim-
I don't think that there is a memory issue with the rechargeable lead acid batteries. The charger should be a trickle charger which is designed for continuous charging. These are the types of batteries that you would find as back up power sources in emergency lighting and fire control panels.

[Wes]

I guess it basicly a car battery, which cycle all the time.

[mdrew9]

Sorry for being such a noobie on this. But is this all I need to be able to run a FF?