Transducer question

[voyages]

Hello everyone and Season's Greatings!
I have just purchased a Lowrance HDS-8 fishfinder for my 2002 Albin 28 engine box. Not sure what I should use as a transducer. The airmar P79 in hull is probably the easiest to install but some say that with an in hull transducer will lose some of the signals. A through hull transducer means drilling a hole through the boat and then there is always the transom mount. Any thoughts from other owners on which way to go.
Denis from Montreal

[Halcyon]

I had a Lowrance on my last boat, a Uniflyte Salty Dog. I glued the transducer inside the hull. it worked fine. A trick to help pick the right spot is to flood the bilge and move the transducer around, under the bilge water until you get a good reading. Empty the bilge, dry the spot and stick it down with polyester resin. I make a duct tape dam on the down hill side. Use polyester instead of epoxy because it is brittle and the transducer can be removed with a sharp blow from a rubber hammer.

Maybe a 28 owner can comment on non cored areas of the hull that are appropriate.

[meridian]

I've had good luck just using silicone to hold it down.

[N4QC]

Halcyon:

Was your duct tape dam used to form a wedge so that the transducer was able to be mounted parallel to the water line? What is the source for the polyester material which was used? I am assuming that it is a quasi-liquid which requires time to harden. I’ve tried to make an epoxy wedge but ended up with bubbles as the epoxy did not harden in a uniform manner. Operator error??? Any suggestions for getting rid of a bad epoxy wedge stuck to the interior of the hull in the bilge?

Have fun,

[Tuxedo]

In hull won't work through a cored hull. If you can find solid glass, you will be ok.

Personally, I would drill a hole an use a flush mount B-60 tilted element.

[joe.baar]

I installed an Airmar P79 last winter and have lived happily ever after. I did need to cut through the interior layer of fiberglass and also the tropical hardwood plywood core but the unit works like a charm once bedded per the instructions that come in the box.