Ice Fish Ohio Forum
Ice Fishing => General Discussion => Topic started by: mitch131 on February 21, 2013, 06:09:49 PM
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i used a fl8 for four years and just bought a marcum lx7 this year
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I didnt know there was any other brand then Marcum. ;D I have a Marcum LX-9 and a Marcum LX-5. I like when im in my shanty and I dont have to listen to my flasher hum all day. All I hear is the drag on my reel from the fish taking line and the water splashing when I get the fish to the hole. ;D
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;D I have a Gander mtn (Marcum) and a showdown pre marcum . I prefer the Showdown ,it's so easy to use and understand . I do like and use the Marcum.
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Flashers are nice,but i also have a showdown and they are much easier to use,they are good down to a half inch of bottom seperation,so effective you can see the whiskers! ;D
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I have a FL18 but saw a Marcum in action last week boy those are nice.
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I have an FL-18. I love it. I also like the hum, some guys hate it and can understand why. I grew up with it, so the hum brings back good memories. The Marcum is a nice unit too, I demoed one a couple years back. Either way can't go wrong!!
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Thats what I like about the new Marcums (LX-7 and LX-9). You can chose between flasher dial, showdown vertical display or graph mode. You can run multiple displays at the same time as well. I like to have both the flasher dial on the right and graph mode on the left of the split screen. I dont know how many times Ive looked away for a few seconds and when I looked back there were no marks on the dial or showdown display but the graph showed a mark came through when I looked away. I also like to split the screen between the graph on the left and 2 showdown displays on the right. Ill have 1 of the vertical displays showing the full water column and the other being in zoom mode. Either being zoomed in on the bottom or zoomed in up in the column where schools of fish have been coming through. I didnt think I would like the graph mode because the only graphs I have used was open water. The graph on the 7 and 9 shows my real small panfish jigs very well. I have either used or been around all the different units on the ice at one time or another and I think the new Marcums are by far the best unit on the market right now. Having the choice between which style display at anytime you want is really nice. The only thing else I would like to see on the unit is GPS. I would never use it to get me to my spot but would be nice when Im at my spot to plan out where im moving to next. I would much rather use my delorme handheld gps hanging around my neck when moving from spot to spot then carry a heavy flasher in front of me when dragging my sled around. But no matter what brand flasher you have you are better off then not having any. It would be hard for me to go back to the old days of fishing without. I have had trips out when I was over a half hr. from home and realized I forgot my flasher and turned around to go and get it and just be late getting on the ice. I could leave my wallet or cell phone at home and not go back for it but no way am I going out with out my flasher. lol
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I have a marcum and its alright, its the cheap one but its pretty tough and does the job...
My Dad just got a brand new hummingbird ice-45 for 99 bucks!! It is pretty awesome and I'm a little jealous lol
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I have the vex fl-18. Have used it for 10 years or so. I like the zoom feature on it, wish it was adjustable like the marcum bt I deal with it. I leave the zoom on all the time.
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I like how the vex unit is, has anyone know or has expierence any probs with the humminbird units or the showdown units not sure which unit I want to buy
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I had an Eagle silent sixty for years, it was anything but silent. I still have the unit and it still works perfect. Then I moved on to an FL-8 for a year and had problems with the transducer and then gain selector. I was able to return both units @ Cabelas. I then purchased a Marcum VX-1 and I love it and still use it. I often take my young daughter Ice fishing and the flasher intrigues her, so I bought a showdown (first Gen.2009) for the ease of explanation of what’s going on under the water and she loved it I even took it while she was at school, and one cold day in 2010 the LCD exploded during transport. I called Marcum/Showdown they knew of the issue and were in the process of making the heated LCD screen. I really didn't want to deal with it freezing if the battery was dead or I didn't hook it up, so I took a refund. This year I bought the LX-3 and I really like it but, it's not really necessary for Ohio water. For the money the VX-1 is the best! and its made in the US!
But really the flasher debate between Vexilar and Marcum is a Ford vs. Chevy debate. take'em for a test drive before you buy.
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Ditto
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I have a showdown and love it,very easy to use,understand,and operate,also comes with nice full insulated case to protect it during transport! :)
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wow after seeing hardwater junkies new marcum i am in awe, ....i love toys , and that is PRIMO...... ;)
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I think the Marcum vs. vex debate is more like a Ford F-250 Super Duty 7.3 diesel, chrome stacks, trucker girl mud flaps with a 12 inch lift and 44 inch super swampers vs. puke green aqua Geo Metro. You will always have the few guys that would prefer the geo metro over the f-250 but everyone knows that those guys aren't quite right if you know what I mean. ;D
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When I fished Hamlin Lake this year I saw alot of electronics in action. The majority of folks were using Marcums followed closely by Vexilars. I did see a few Birds but not really common. I am very happy with my Vexilar. There is no doubt that a Marcum is a premium flasher. But I just can't see spending the money on one. They are extremely expensive and truely don't do anything more than what a Vex or Bird does. I am really interested in the Marcum LX-9. Just want to see it in action, not pay big bucks to have it in my arsenal. I did get to use a Vex DoubleVision. It was awesome. Very nice unit.
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If you want to play with an lx-9 you are more then welcome to use mine. If we can ever get good ice we should hook up and fish together sometime. The more the marrier.
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You got a deal HWJ. I would really like to see the LX-9. Just wished these conditions would stay cold enough.
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Take the Flasher price, divide it by how many times you ice fish in the last 2 years then decide if its worth the price! LX-9 would cost me $55 per day. :o
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Ouch!
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But wouldn't it be cool to watch the flasher and see what's not bitting? ; :D
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If your not going to catch fish you at least want to look good doing it. lol
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It's all about the image,if you surround yourself with cool stuff you look good and might truck people into thinking I know what IM doing :D
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That's what I did with my Ranger bass boat!! ;D
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ha ha you guys just need to study hypnosis like i did ..... :P
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Lets keep this thread about how each units work, there features and how you use them to catch more fish. They are all good units.
I can't speak for Marcums because I have never used one but I know that guy's like there's.
I have used the Humminbirds for a year and it seemed like it was hard to find a small jig when fishing deep with out putting the gain up high. They might have fixed that since it has been a few years.
The Vexilar 8 is a great unit for Ohio waters and is very durable. I have the 22 and I like the flat screen and the split zoom. The zoom on it has .25 inch separation so you can pick up the fish that hang on the bottom.
Since Vexilar was first in this technology and they are known for great customer service, you will see more Vexilars on the ice than Marcums or Humminbirds but it really is each ones choice. If you ever want to try a vex please feel free and pm me and i can demo it for you.
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By my research it seems to me that Vex, Marc, and Hum all deliver a quality product. What it comes down to is which bells and whistles are important to the buyer. I am currently looking to purchase a flasher myself. One thing that is important to me and have not seen discussed is unit noise. What I mean by this is how loud (humming) is each unit when operating on the ice? Quietness is important to me. Is one maker noticeably quieter than the other. Thanks for any opinions/recommendations.
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I know the VEX is louder then the Marcum but on the Lowrance I would PM Erierider or KPI. I think they just bought a new one and would give you a good review of it.
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I have an fl 8 think I have had it for 10 seasons. Went through 3 or 4 battery's one every 3-4 years. It works for what I need it for. Nice to see that eye follow the bait up off the bottom. Its loud sometimes and I have to tap on the screen every once in a while but I got my money out of it for the hours of use. May upgrade next season. Just got a new battery Saturday.
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Here is the quietest unit I used so far. I sold my vex and purchased this for one reason. Just to have my GPS integrated into an all in one unit. Loved my fl-18 and the thing is a workhorse. Noise never bothered me on the vex and it always worked flawless. I have not used my bird extensively yet but have seen others and am very impressed with the screens I have seen with the ice ducer. I can tell you the base map blows and you really need to purchase a card. Will be pulling the card from my summer unit to use in this. I can tell you this has zero noise. YouTube hummingbird 597 ci HD ice fishing and you will see some guys who have really dialed these in for ice use on flasher and sonar screens.
The elite 4 or 5 or bird 300 or 500 series really expands the use of your unit by becoming a year around unit and all have built in flasher screens or 2d sonar which all pick up smallest of jigs with ice ducer
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Well an update for you guys, like I said. Used the HB 597 ci HD up in Michigan. Pretty impressed with the unit overall. Picked up the smallest of jigs and fish. Was amazed at the image the screen was putting out. Zero lag and buket fished for a good two-three hours with zero issue. Ran the screen brightness on 6 of 10 and had over three quarters of the battery left at the end of the day.
Picked up fish in the weeds, out of the weeds and where ever I went. I am using the ice ducer sytem with ice pack and it was a pretty good set up.
I would suggest this unit to anyone especially someone looking to use one unit for year round use. (easily can convert to ice fishing and soft water by pulling it out of it's pack)