Garmin Striker 4dv & Scotty Orca mount on Outback

As a first time owner of a kayak I've got a lot to learn but thought I would share my rigging for my fish finder and rod mount that I went with after much deliberation.

The Garmin Striker 4dv transducer mounts to the "Lowrance ready" hull plate with only a slight modification and makes for a perfect fit. In the first photo you can see the mounting tabs on the transducer are exactly the same width as the mounting posts on the hull plate.


And because the transducer body extends forward of the tabs it was not going to fit anyway. I used a block of oak 1 1/16" wide and 3/4" tall and long enough to allow for the two mounting bolts.




The fit was perfect using this method and there was no binding or pressure points on the hull plate when it was installed.



For the FF Display unit I went with a Scotty surface mounting base and their Universal fish finder plate and post to attach the Garmin to the boat. Because the Hobie supplied thru hull rubber grommets do not match up well with the diameters of the two different size Garmin cables (power is the fat one) I had to use two grommets and an ample amount of silicone sealant. The smaller cable from the transducer had to use a double hole grommet so I plugged the second hole with a piece of bamboo barbecue skewer which was the perfect diameter. Again with plenty of sealant.  The larger power cable also was a misfit and needed sealant in the gap created from a not so perfect match of hole and cable diameters. The plug connections into the FF unit are very tight and I'm sure they are totally waterproof.



I went with the Scotty Orca rod mount and a surface mount base and added the extension rod for leg clearance at the suggestion of Kardinal_84. He made a very good point about how tight a rod can bind up in a holder when you have a large salmon or halibut taking line and the quick release feature on this Orca rod holder works great in those situations.   Both the FF and Rod mounting bases used the Scotty backing plate on the under side of the hull for strengthening the mount and reducing stress on the hull.  The rod mount backing plate needed just a little trimming with the Dremel on the side edges of the forward two corners where the plate rubbed just a bit against the curve of the molding underneath.



A downrigger mount is in the future but I need to do a lot of mental engineering as well as read up on posts presented by others on this board before I jump into anything.

Oh I will add this Garmin Striker 4dv has GPS too. No marine charts (I run those on my tablet) but all the goodies for setting routes and waypoints, backtracking over your course and gives you boat speed and water temp for $179. I really love having GPS on the water as it provides me an instant check on how far I am from my launch point waypoint.  I almost went with the Raymarine Dragonfly Pro but it did not appear the transducer on that unit would fit properly in the Lowrance ready hull compartment. Its a BIG torpedo of a transducer.

Great choice of accessories with a very clean looking install.

Nice install, I like it. I've been using mine just floating loose in the recess as it cant fall out. I was concerned about it rattling around in there during transport. Your post inspired me to go the next step. I did a similar install but used some scraps from previous projects using a cutting board. I used shake proof serrated washers between the cutting board and the brackets to prevent any slippage once tightened.

I did a similar install but used some scraps from previous projects using a cutting board. I used shake proof serrated washers between the cutting board and the brackets to prevent any slippage once tightened.

That turned out very well.  The nylon cutting board is the cat's meow for a 100% waterproof and corrosion proof mount. I may switch to that material in the future if this oak shows any signs of swelling. I just haven't had the courage to sacrifice one of my cutting boards yet for important projects.

Right that. Its a small piece to cut up a whole board but I used some on a down-rigger install as well as a base for a Scotty rod holder to mount it on my Gear Track + my sail furling fairlead so it was well used. If you pm an address I'll mail you a piece if you like.

A trip to Goodwill or similar outlet should provide some cutting board options for a few $$, usually less than the cost of mailing...just a thought.

And a good one. I have got one from goodwill before. I got a new one for $8 from Albertsons as I had a few projects waiting for it. But goodwill is the best option for sure.

Nice!
I made a similar mod a while back, but found that sand and mud could build up in there. (I actually thought I had an intermittent issue with my finder)

It looks like KK has an updated plate with more drainage, so hopefully that won't happen. However, I blamed the transducer making contact with the hull and the plate.

My fix was to trim off one of the posts on the plate completely to move the transducer further forward into the pocket, drill some holes in the plate, strategically and scientifically ziptied the shiz out of everything, and then I even went as far as slightly molding the hull with a heat gun so that the transducer is completely free floating inside the cavity. It was a PITA, but I've done it on two boats and haven't had any issues since. (I also make sure to run water through the transducer scupper each time I rinse as well.)

I love the Garmins though and think it was well worth it.

Im agree. When I took the cover off it had a layer of sand in there. It didn't interfere with the signal though. That may be because when I wash off the kayak I usually stick the hose down the scupper to flush it out. I too love that Garmin.

Looks nice. I installed a Scotty Depthmaster on my Outback using Geartraks. Works great. A quick search should turn up my install thread if you're interested.

I have my rod holder near my right knee/shin, and the rod crosses over my legs so I actually troll off the port side. The downrigger mounts on the port side. I like it.


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Nice!
I made a similar mod a while back, but found that sand and mud could build up in there. (I actually thought I had an intermittent issue with my finder)

It looks like KK has an updated plate with more drainage, so hopefully that won't happen. However, I blamed the transducer making contact with the hull and the plate.

My fix was to trim off one of the posts on the plate completely to move the transducer further forward into the pocket, drill some holes in the plate, strategically and scientifically ziptied the shiz out of everything, and then I even went as far as slightly molding the hull with a heat gun so that the transducer is completely free floating inside the cavity. It was a PITA, but I've done it on two boats and haven't had any issues since. (I also make sure to run water through the transducer scupper each time I rinse as well.)

I love the Garmins though and think it was well worth it.

"KK has an updated plate with more drainage" Skidplate, who is KK?

Looks nice. I installed a Scotty Depthmaster on my Outback using Geartraks. Works great. A quick search should turn up my install thread if you're interested.

I have my rod holder near my right knee/shin, and the rod crosses over my legs so I actually troll off the port side. The downrigger mounts on the port side. I like it.

I'll have to track down your install thread - The Scotty Depthmaster was the most recent downrigger I was researching. Very compact but has nice features especially the braking system compared to Lake Trolls and Mini Trolls.  You must be a southpaw AlexB. My rod is on the starboard pointing left as the left side is the easiest to land a fish for me. And I can see it will be the easiest for my left hand to work the downrigger on the port side too. I have the Outback Ama system yet to install. Plan to use it while crabbing next summer and thought perhaps I can come up with a downrigger mount that uses the amas center cross bar in some fashion which is good for stout. In fact I just noticed the other day on the Adventure Island that its amas system is attached to the hull with the same wellnut and U bolt system and they sail those rigs at high speed. So that must be a testament to how strong the wellnut attachment method is for resisting stress and not pulling loose.

Idaho Brit - Thanks for the offer. But I have more cutting boards than I can keep track of so I really should turn one into a sacrificial lamb so its available for using on other projects that require that high density strong material too. Its just that first cut...ooo....then its OK. ~KK~

Thanks for the hint on muck accumulation in the sonar well. I'll have to make sure that is cleaned out before anything freezes solid when pulling out in the winter temps.

The Garmin DownVu (DV) is an interesting display. I noticed on my local lake it was very accurate at displaying the long strands of vegetation in weed beds but seemed to not mark fish as well in that mode as the normal display. I'll probably be doing a lot of flipping between the two displays.

"KK has an updated plate with more drainage" Skidplate, who is KK?

KK= Klondike Kid. If you look at this pic, I noticed there are vents molded into it that aren't on mine:

The Garmin DownVu (DV) is an interesting display. I noticed on my local lake it was very accurate at displaying the long strands of vegetation in weed beds but seemed to not mark fish as well in that mode as the normal display. I'll probably be doing a lot of flipping between the two displays.

I've found the DownVu to be more of a novelty than extremely helpful at marking fish. I also use traditional sonar for the most part. But compared to my old system, the settings layout, the resolution, the GPS, and the pre-loaded maps are all amazing. Mine (44dv) has a feature where you can create your own bathymetric maps and I've found that to be a lot of fun to play with.

I did a similar install but used some scraps from previous projects using a cutting board. I used shake proof serrated washers between the cutting board and the brackets to prevent any slippage once tightened.

That turned out very well.  The nylon cutting board is the cat's meow for a 100% waterproof and corrosion proof mount. I may switch to that material in the future if this oak shows any signs of swelling. I just haven't had the courage to sacrifice one of my cutting boards yet for important projects.

I didn't notice the holes in your cover plate till skidplate pointed it out. Thats why I don't use my downscan. My eyes arent good enough to see the fish returns, which in 100ft of water are like minute grains of rice. Haha. Did the plate come that way or did you mod' it? Is it effective in flushing out any debris that may get in there?

I didn't notice the holes in your cover plate till skidplate pointed it out. Thats why I don't use my downscan. My eyes aren't good enough to see the fish returns, which in 100ft of water are like minute grains of rice. Haha. Did the plate come that way or did you mod' it? Is it effective in flushing out any debris that may get in there?

My Outback has a registration number ending in 616 which I suspect was June 2016 mfg date. And yes, the vent slots were part of the plate manufacture. I think someone must have realized the potential problem with muck and sand accumulation in the sonar well and added the holes as a way to hopefully purge any accumulating gunk. The holes are irregular in shape giving indication that their function is to "scoop" water while moving rather than just drain holes when pulling the boat out of the water. It also might purge any air bubbles to prevent irregular signal transmission and reception but the drain scupper to the surface should prevent air from accumulating.   As far as effectiveness I can't say from the short time I've had it. But they sure can't hurt.

I would guess that Hobie can provide the "new & improved" plate for a modest upgrade fee for those with the Lowrance ready configuration. I applaud Hobie for incorporating that thru-hull transducer feature. Never gets in the way to tangle fishing line, or get whacked by under water objectives or the beach when launching and landing, or require one more piece of gear on the hull surface to congest the operator's area.

Agree the DownVu feature does seem to have limitations unless you are running a $50,000 side scanning, treasure-hunting sonar looking for sunken ships. But it does make weed beds and sunken trees look like their true identity which could help in at least locating fish holding structure, then switch to std sonar. My Lowrance X-15B paper graph on my Bayliner has such high resolution (1.5 inch target separation at 1500 feet) that I used it for spotting Dungeness crab on the flat muddy bottom of Kbay in the 80's to drop my rings in the best spots. Can't expect this $180 Garmin to produce like that but I'll find out over time. Too bad our dungies are wiped out and have never recovered for harvesting.