to zoom or not to zoom

[76k20]

Im gonna pick up a vex here pretty soon and would like some opinions on the zoom of the fl-18 and if/why you think its worth it? is the interference reduction the same between the 8 and 18, and can you run a pair of vex's close together?

[andy j]

the zoom feature cant be very useful in some cases. when fish are agressive it doesn't really help much. It does help with fish that are not as agressive and don't want to come up off the bottom. It helps you see the bottom hugging fish and your lure close to the bottom. It also helps in getting your lure right at the level of the fish ( right in its face) with more percision. As far as I know the interfernce rejection is the same in both units. also if you are going to fish more deeper water the 12 degree tranducer on the FL-18 performs better then the 19 degree on the FL-8. AJ

[76k20]

Either package I pick up im planning to go with the dual freq. iceducer, Im leaning toward an fl-8 right now because of the extra cost (ya im a tightwad)

[Walleye Guy]

The difference between an FL-8 and FL-18 or MX-3 is huge in my opinion. You can debate forever FL-18 vs MX-3 however both are way superior to a FL8. The zoom feature has proven to be invaluable in my opinion. I wouldn't have a unit without a zoom and a always have my zoom on.

The increase in cost is worth it in my opinion.

[Surface Tension]

Zoom is one of those things you don't miss until you've experienced it.

I always use the zoom, even in shallow water when I'm after eyes.

The LX3's variable zoom lets me fine tune my presentation on suspended fish like crappies.

About the IR for the Vex, both units do a good job clearing up interference when theres 2 flashers, any more then 2 and theres a problem.

[EBass]

I love my zoom on the 18! Those dang walleyes think they're slick, but I can see them swim along hugging the bottom. For the 18 it zooms on the bottom 6 feet and takes the left side of the display and makes your tiny jig a huge mark. It makes little fish a big mark, well everything is "zoomed". And when a big fish comes in well... your blood gets going to say the least. And your like For walleye fishing it's really - really sweet! If you get it you'll be like

If you can afford it get it. You won't regret it.

Can you run two side by side - Yes. Three maybe an issue though.

Ok that's my .02

[berfish]

I agree with surface tension. Once you have zoom you don't look at the non-zoom window very much. I have the LX-3 and love the variable zoom. Sometimes the 5 foot zoom window isn't enough so I use the 10 foot window. Most of my ice fishing is on URL so one would believe that zoom wouldn't be necessary for me. Wrong. I can see those walleyes, and sometimes crappies, that look like they are hugging the bottom(actually they might be on the outside of the cone angle too) with zoom. I would definately go with the zoom feature.

bf

[goodyy7]

Another vote for the zoom....I have it on any time I am over 10-12ft of water since I mainly fish those bottom 6ft anyway. I cant add much to what these guys have said other than I am SO glad I went with the 18 over the 8.

goody

[Northlander]

Im with these guys, get the zoom feature if you can afford it. I like the LX3 because of the feature that allows you to zoom in on various water levels. This is great for laketrout or crappies. The Vex is a great unit as well and the zoom allows you to zoom in on the bottom 6' but you cant do the other water levels. Vex will allow you to fish deeper than 160' so if your a big lake trout guy thats one other thing to consider.

Either FL-18 or LX3 you cant go wrong. I just happen to prefer my LX3 because I only fish deeper than 160' a few times a year.

[Matt Johnson]

I use the zoom feature just about everytime I'm out on the ice. Everything is in more detail and you can "see" things more clearly and the subtle movements are more defined. I fish a lot of suspended crappies and the ability to zoom throughout the water column with the LX-3 is very nice, and not only that, but I can see the rest of the water column while I do it.

I say go with the zoom

Good Fishin,

Matt Johnson

[Deitz Dittrich]

I'm with everybody else on this, the zoom is with it.. .Something I didn't see mentioned yet.. (maybe becuase I havn't read most of the posts all that well is...) But when you put the zoom feature on these units it narrows the target seperation of the unit. In zoom mode I believe that the target seperation is quite a bit less than when the unit is in regular mode.

[CNY Tim]

The zoom on the LX-3 is outstanding and an extremely user friendly feature that helps to define your target area. The larger adjustable zoom window that the LX-3 provides is supreme. Another advantage with the LX-3 that I wanted to mention is the lack of adjusting in zoom mode. The FL-18 needs to be reprogrammed for each hole because it looses zoom contact when hole hopping. You don't have to worry about that with the MarCum once you locked it in it's set. Extremely beneficial for running and gunning flats. Less time tweaking and more time fishing. Looking forward to my 3rd season with my LX-3. Is zoom necessary in catching fish, probably not but now that I have it I never fish without it. I remember with my FL-8 I would be looking for that bottom roll for fish tight and now there plucked right off the bottom and shown well with both flashers. Zoom is an awesome feature because it cuts and captures the essence of your target area revealing in detail small to large signal returns which will help you decipher your sight picture in great detail.

[fishtank]

Zoom zoom! I agree, with the 18 - you can watch your bait dance on the bottom, or bring it up 6 feet and see all the fish swim up after it. I don't even look on the right side of my vex anymore.

[hanson]

Hard to argue with what has already been said.

I've traded up my Zercom Colorpoint for an LX-3 this winter because of the Zooooooommm!! Well...there are a few other reasons too that I won't go into, but my vote is for the Zoom.

My dad has an FL-18. I talked him into spending the extra $$$ for an 18 rather than an 8. His favorite feature is probably the zoom. Uses it all the time and is glad I convinced him to spend the extra money.