Can I fix this or is it fatal?

[Tom7227]

The transducer on my HDS five just broke at the juncture where it connects to the boat. Right at the 90degree bend. Is there a snowball's chance of gluing it back together? What product might do the magic. The worst part is going to be running the wire back up to the console.

I just did the Google and found way to many options including a dual frequency one. Suggestions on what I need to keep things going in the Spring?

Thanks for your time.

Tom

[solbes]

Sounds fatal to me. Maybe someone knows how to splice it, but I would doubt you'd ever get back to stock performance.

You could rewire the stock Lowrance transducer, or you could benefit performance wise with an Airmar P66. I've thought about doing this myself, but haven't tried it yet. Others have had great success upgrading their 'ducer. Also try using a stiff piece of wire to help pull your transducer up to your console. Worked great for me.

[BoxMN]

Tom, I have both snapped the plastic housing on my lowrance xducer and glued it, and also successfully spliced the wire on another.

For the housing - their is a "putty" based expoxy, not sure of the name, but it comes in a stick like a thick piece of chalk. You knead it together to make it activate, and it is awesome. I just really wadded it up right at the break and really got it to hold well. Stayed on my pontoon (always in the water) for over a year, going on two. Then it finally got soft, and I fixed it one more time. You need to fix in dry, and this would be great time to do it. This summer it broke when hitting shore while we were parked, and I didn't fix it. But it has been working fine just dangling from the wire since my toon doesn't go that fast, ha!

For the splice, you need to do it carefully, water proof the solder, and just make sure you cut it so that you can get the shielding back around the whole shebang. Be sure to put on a couple different layers of diff sized heat shrink tube, and it can last and work ok. Prob is that it usually breaks right at a bend point (i.e. where it curves around motor housing on TM) so it is hard to actually have enough to make that curve again. If it is in straight area, I see no reason why it would not continue to work if you don't bend it again.

Good luck, but that putty expoxy is the real deal, and works on many things, lamps, lawnmower housings, porcelin (sp?) products, etc.

Good luck.

[TooTallTom]

I've used JB Waterweld with good results as far as surface adhesion and hardness, can't speak for its ability to glue things together though. Comes as a kind of putty stick, which you work with your fingers to mix and then mold in place. The directions are pretty good, and it hardens underwater. I keep some in my boat toolkit for minor repairs.

[Tom7227]

Clarification - the wire is not broken, just the solid angle that runs from the bracket to the body of the transducer. The boat went into storage today and so I will have to wait until spring.

As for the replacement or upgrade - the unit give me water temp and speed and I assumed it did the speed by calculation off the GPS. The LEi HSOforum listed choices for the transducer with one offering temp and another offering temp and speed. Then there's the dual frequency thing. I don't know if I need the temp and speed (I do want to know speed as the speedo on the console is not accurate enough.) I also don't know why I would want dual frequency since the boat is on Bald Eagle and never will measure any deeper than 34 feet. I will check the Armar product.

Thanks for your time.

Tom

[jentz]

I have one that broke,There was enough plastic where I just drilled a new hole through the ducer then modified the steel mount to accept the different shape.It works just fine.

[Sonicrunch]

I have one that broke,There was enough plastic where I just drilled a new hole through the ducer then modified the steel mount to accept the different shape.It works just fine.

I did the exact same thing. Works well.

[Bob/Mn]

If you plan to glue the parts together I would use JB Weld. JB is some tough stuff,if anything would work I am sure it would be JB Weld.

[Wish-I-Were-Fishn]

If you plan to glue the parts together I would use JB Weld. JB is some tough stuff,if anything would work I am sure it would be JB Weld.

+1 on JB Weld. The stuff is amazing!