Pub. 988-0143-832 www.eaglesonar.
Copyright © 2007 LEI-Eagle All rights reserved. Eagle® is a registered trademark of LEI FishEasy® 245DS is a registered trademark of LEI Eagle Electronics may find it necessary to change or end our policies, regulations, and special offers at any time. We reserve the right to do so without notice. All features and specifications subject to change without notice. All screens in this manual are simulated.
Table of Contents Introduction.......................................................................................1 Specifications: FishEasy 245DS & SeaFinder 245DS .......................1 How Sonar Works.................................................................................3 Preparations .........................................................................................4 Installation ...........................................................................................
® Grayline .............................................................................................43 Chart Speed ........................................................................................45 Frequency ...........................................................................................46 Fish I.D.™ ...........................................................................................47 FishTrack™ .................................................................................
Introduction Thank you for buying an Eagle® sonar! Your unit is a high-quality sonar designed for both professional and novice fishermen. All Eagle sonars have an automatic mode that finds and displays the bottom, fish, underwater structure and more – right out of the box. All you have to do is press the on (PWR) key. To get started with your Eagle sonar, first read the installation section.
Back-up memory:...........Built-in memory stores sonar settings when unit is turned off. Sonar Frequency: ......................83/200 kHz. Transducers:...................A dual search Skimmer® transducer with built-in temperature sensor is packed with your unit. It has a wide fish detection area of up to 60º/120º with high sensitivity settings. Operates at boat speeds up to 70 mph (61 kts). Transmitter:....................1,500 watts peak-to-peak power (typical); 188 watts RMS power (typical).
storage in temperatures higher or lower than specified will damage the liquid crystal display in your unit. This type of damage is not covered by the warranty. For more information, contact the factory's Customer Service Department; phone numbers are inside the manual's back cover. How Sonar Works Sonar has been around since the 1940s, so if you already know how it works, skip ahead to the next segment on the typographical conventions used in this manual.
A new innovation, the 83 kHz frequency offers superior sonar performance at all depths from very shallow up to 1,000 ft and provides up to 120º of fishfinding coverage. Preparations The following shows the recommended sequence for installing the transducer: CAUTION: You should read over this entire installation section before drilling any holes in your vehicle or vessel! 1. Determine the approximate location for the sonar unit, so you can plan how and where to route the cables for the transducer and power.
3. Determine the location of your battery or other power connection, along with the power cable route. 4. Install the transducer and route the transducer cable to the sonar unit. 5. Route the power cable from the unit's location to an appropriate power source and connect it there. 6. Connect the transducer/power cable to the unit and mount the sonar unit on the bracket. Installation These instructions will help you install your Skimmer® transducer on a transom, on a trolling motor or inside a hull.
Recommended Tools and supplies If you prefer the option of routing the cable through the transom, you will need a 5/8" drill bit. Each transom mount requires use of a high quality, marine grade above- or below-waterline caulking compound. NOTE: The following installation types also call for these recommended tools and required supplies (supplies are not included): Single-frequency transom installations Tools include: two adjustable wrenches, drill, #29 (0.
at speeds faster than 35 mph. Typically, a good transom location on aluminum boats is between the ribs closest to the engine. 3. The transducer should be installed with its face pointing straight down, if possible. For shoot-thru applications: Many popular fishing boat hulls have a flat keel pad that offers a good mounting surface. On vee hulls, try to place the transducer where the deadrise is 10° or less. Deadrise less than 10° Strakes Pad Vee pad hull (left); Vee hull (right).
CAUTION: Clamp the transducer cable to transom near the transducer. This will help prevent the transducer from entering the boat if it is knocked off at high speed. Good location Poor location Good location Good location Poor angle Good and poor transducer locations. How low should you go? For most situations, you should install your Skimmer transducer so that its centerline is level with the bottom of the boat hull.
to loosen the screws and slide the transducer up or down.) If you frequently lose bottom signal lock while running at high speed, the transducer may be coming out of the water as you cross waves or wakes. Move the transducer a little lower to help prevent this. If you cruise or fish around lots of structure and cover, your transducer may be frequently kicking up from object strikes. If you wish, you may move the transducer a little higher for more protection. There are two extremes you should avoid.
Fourth, a Skimmer transducer with a built-in temp sensor will show only the temperature of the bilge, not the water surface temp. Follow the procedure listed in the shoot-thru-hull installation section at the end of this lesson to determine if you can satisfactorily shoot through the hull.
If the transducer's face isn't parallel with the ground, remove the transducer and ratchets from the bracket. Place the ratchets into the holes in the bracket with the letter "B" aligned with the dot stamped in the bracket. Reassemble the transducer and bracket and place them against the transom. Again, check to see if you can move the transducer so it's parallel with the ground. If you can, then go to step 3.
Nut Metal washer Rubber washers Metal washer Bolt Assemble transducer and bracket. 4. Drilling mounting holes. Hold the transducer and bracket assembly against the transom. The transducer should be roughly parallel to the ground. The transducer's centerline should be in line with the bottom of the hull. Don't let the bracket extend below the hull! Mark the center of each slot for the mounting screw pilot holes. You will drill one hole in the center of each slot. Drill the holes.
Transom Transom Position transducer mount on transom and mark mounting holes. Side view shown at left and seen from above at right. 5. Attaching transducer to transom. Remove the transducer from the bracket and re-assemble it with the cable passing through the bracket over the bolt as shown in the following figures. Route cable over bolt and through bracket. Side view shown (left) and seen from above (right).
Attach the transducer to the transom. Slide the transducer up or down until it's aligned properly with the bottom of the hull as shown in the preceding and following figures. Tighten the bracket's mounting screws, sealing them with the caulking compound. Adjust the transducer so that it's parallel to the ground and tighten the nut until it touches the outer washer, then add 1/4 turn. Don't over tighten the lock nut! If you do, the transducer won't "kick-up" if it strikes an object in the water.
If you need to drill a hole in the transom to pass the connector through, the required hole size is 5/8". (If you intend to route an additional speed or temp sensor cable through the same hole, you will need a 1" (25.4 mm) drill bit instead.) Caution: If you drill a hole in the transom for the cable, make sure it is located above the waterline. After installation, be sure to seal the hole with the same marine grade above- or below-waterline sealant used for the mounting screws. 7.
Position the transducer to aim straight down when the motor is in the water. Tighten the strap securely. 3. Route the transducer cable alongside the trolling motor shaft. Use plastic ties (not included) to attach the transducer cable to the trolling motor shaft. Make sure there is enough slack in the cable for the motor to turn freely. Route the cable to the sonar unit and the transducer is ready for use. Transducer mounted on trolling motor, side view.
Partial fish arches Transducer aimed too far forward Transducer aimed too far back Full fish arch Proper transducer angle Transducer angles and their effects on fish arches. If the arch slopes up – but not back down – then the front of the transducer is too high and needs to be lowered. If only the back half of the arch is printed, then the nose of the transducer is angled too far down and needs to be raised. NOTE: Periodically wash the transducer's face with soap and water to remove any oil film.
Shoot-Thru-Hull Preparation Hulls with Flotation Materials The transducer installation inside a fiberglass hull must be in an area that does not have air bubbles in the resin or separated fiberglass layers. The sonar signal must pass through solid fiberglass. A successful transducer installation can be made on hulls with flotation materials (such as plywood, balsa wood or foam) between layers of fiberglass if the material is removed from the chosen area. See the figure below.
sonar signal must pass through solid fiberglass. Any air bubbles in the fiberglass or the epoxy will reduce or eliminate the sonar signals. Transducer location (high speed) Transducer location (trolling speed) Shoot-thru-hull transducer locations for high speed or trolling speed operation. Testing Determines Best Location Ideally, the shoot-thru transducer should be installed as close to the transom as possible, close to the centerline. This will give you the best performance during high speed maneuvers.
True bottom Second bottom Manual range setting Example of a second bottom signal. Unit is in 30 feet of water, with range set at 80 feet and sensitivity set at 87 percent. 3. Now move the transducer around to find the best location with the strongest possible bottom signal. If you find a spot with an acceptable bottom signal, mark the location and move on to step 4.
Shoot-Thru-Hull Installation 1. Make sure the area is clean, dry and free of oil or grease, then sand both the inside surface of the hull and the face of the transducer with 100 grit sandpaper. The sanded hull area should be about 1-1/2 times the diameter of the transducer. The surface of the hull must be flat so the entire transducer face is in contact with the hull prior to bonding. After sanding, clean the hull and transducer with rubbing alcohol to remove any sanding debris.
2. The epoxy consists of the epoxy itself and a hardener. Remove the two compounds from the package and place them on the paper plate. Thoroughly stir the two compounds together until the mixture has a uniform color and consistency. Do not mix too fast or bubbles will form in the epoxy. After mixing, you have 20 minutes to complete the installation before the epoxy becomes unworkable. Spread a thin layer of epoxy (about 1/16" or 1.5 mm thick) on the face of the transducer as shown in the previous figure.
CAUTION: When using the unit in a saltwater environment, we strongly recommend that you shut off the power supply to the power cable when the unit is not in use. When the unit is turned off but still connected to a power supply, electrolysis can occur in the power cable plug. This may result in corrosion of the plug body along with the electrical contacts in the cable and the unit's power socket.
positive lead, black is negative or ground. Make sure to attach the inline fuse holder to the red lead as close to the power source as possible. For example, if you have to extend the power cable to the battery or power buss, attach one end of the fuse holder directly to the battery or power buss. This will protect both the unit and the power cable in the event of a short. It uses a 3-amp fuse.
Holes in the bracket’s base allow wood screw or through-bolt mounting. You may need to place a piece of plywood on the back side of thin panels to reinforce the panel and secure the mounting hardware. 82.7 [3.26] 107.5 [4.23] 156 [6.26] 12.09 [0.48] 76.9 [3.03] Millimeter [Inch] 70.3 [2.77] Front view (left) and side view (right) showing dimensions of the FishEasy 245DS and SeaFinder 245DS when mounted on quick release bracket. Drill a 1" (25.
a good marine caulking compound. (Some marine dealers stock cable hole covers to conceal the opening.) Using the Quick Release Mounting Bracket These units use a quick release mounting bracket. When you run the cables through the bracket's cable slots, make sure you allow enough slack for tilting the unit and attaching the connector. (The snug fit of the push-on waterproof connector requires some force to attach.
the front of the bracket as you lower it into position.) As you push down, the unit will lock into place with a distinct click. To adjust the viewing angle, pinch the ratchets with one hand, then tilt the unit with your other hand. Release the ratchets and the unit locks into the new position. To dismount the unit for storage, press the ratchets and lift the unit off the bracket. Bracket front Mount the sonar: slide the unit onto the bracket from above.
Depress ratchets to release Adjust viewing angle: use one hand to press and release the springloaded ratchets while you move the unit with the other hand. Portable Sonar Installation Like many Eagle products, the FishEasy 245DS and SeaFinder 245DS sonar units are capable of portable operation. They use the optional PPP-12 portable power pack. The power pack and portable transducers expand the uses for your sonar.
Installing the Batteries Open the case and lay it flat. (The latch is located below the handle.) Insert eight "AA" size batteries into the battery adapter and place it in the battery compartment. Slip the battery cover tabs into the slots in the case wall, then close the battery cover with the thumb screw. Route this cable through opening Cable slot in case wall Install batteries in battery compartment (left). Attach power cable, and route wires as shown (right).
Mounting the Unit A quick-release mount is built into the top of the portable power pack. To attach the unit, first plug in the cable connector. Then, hold the sonar unit vertically and slide it onto the bracket from above. (The back of the unit should be touching the front of the bracket as you lower it into position.) As you push down, the unit will lock into place with a distinct click. Ratchet To mount the sonar, slide the unit onto the bracket from above (left).
fresh ones. Always remove batteries from the compartment when storing the unit because dead batteries can leak and corrode the contacts. In cold weather the efficiency of dry cell batteries drops with the temperature. We find it a good idea to have the batteries and the sonar unit good and warm before we leave home. If the batteries do lose a charge, you can sometimes restore them by placing them in a warm room or car interior. A better way is to replace them with batteries that have been kept warm.
Tie nylon cord here Suction cup Screw Nut Bolt Washer Washer Transducer Moisten the suction cup, then press it onto the hull as firmly as possible. Tie the nylon cord to the boat and set the power pack and sonar unit in a location for easy viewing. Your portable sonar is now ready for use. Hull Portable transducer installed on boat transom.
Portable Transducer Storage There is room inside the power pack for the portable transducer. When you're finished fishing, tilt the sonar down to the storage position. Open the case and lay it flat. Unplug the power connector from the battery compartment socket. Wrap the transducer cable around the suction cup, then stow the transducer on top of the battery compartment cover. Close the case and your equipment is ready for transport. Stow transducer on top of battery cover.
Notes 34
Operation Keyboard Basics The unit sounds a tone when you press any key. This tells you the unit has accepted a command. Numbers in the figure correspond to key explanations below: 3 2 1 Eagle FishEasy 245 DS.
1. PWR/CLEAR In this manual, the Power/Clear key is referred to as PWR. Press this key to turn the unit on and off. It also clears menus and menu selections from the screen. To clear a menu from the screen, press PWR. NOTE: Hold the PWR key down for five seconds to turn off the unit. 2. MENU UP & MENU DOWN These keys appear in the manual text as MENU UP or MENU DOWN. Most of the time, you can press either of the menu keys, so in those cases, the text uses the word MENU.
The MENU keys access these features, allowing you to customize unit settings. To switch menus, press MENU repeatedly. Press PWR to clear menus from the screen. The Backlight menu with backlight turned on. Display The lights will flash for about 10 seconds when the unit is turned on. The backlight menu will appear on the screen. Use the ARROW keys to turn the backlight on or off. Press PWR to clear the menu from the screen. The unit will show the Full Chart Page or mode. The Fish I.D.
Digital depth Water Temp Bottom signal Depth range at bottom of depth scale Surface signal Fish symbols Structure or cover Grayline® Opening screen, Full Chart page, or mode. The factory default setting has the Fish I.D. (fish symbols) turned on. Full Chart The unit's default page, Full Chart shows all echoes scrolling across the full screen. The bottom signal scrolls across the screen from right to left. The line at the top of the screen represents the surface.
Digital depth Water Temp Bait fish Bottom signal Depth range at bottom of depth scale Surface clutter Structure or cover Fish arches Grayline® Full Chart page, showing digital depth (above) and temp (below). The Fish I.D. feature is turned off. This unit has the following depth ranges: 10, 20, 40, 80, 150, 300, 600, 1000 and 2000 feet. Depth Range menu with Manual setting selected (left). Range Size menu with 0-80 ft highlighted (right).
is 0 to 60 feet, Zoom will show an enlarged view of the water column from 30 feet to 60 feet, always keeping the bottom in view. To zoom in the display, repeatedly press MENU until the ZOOM menu appears. Press ↓ to select ON, then press PWR to clear the menu. Zoom feature turned off (left). Zoom turned on (right). You can tell when the display is in Zoom mode when the top of the depth scale on the left of the screen no longer shows zero.
ual Depth Range mode, you can select one of 17 pre-set Zoom Ranges. This lets you enlarge a segment of the water column. To do this, make sure Depth Range is set to manual mode. Next, repeatedly press MENU until the ZOOM menu appears. Press ↓ to select ON, then press MENU UP to display the ZOOM RANGE menu. Use the arrow keys to select a desired zoom size. When you are finished, press PWR to clear the menu from the display. Enlarged fish arches Zoom Range menu with the 40-80 foot zoom selected.
Sensitivity set to manual mode (left). Sensitivity scroll bar (right). You can change the sensitivity level whether you are in Auto Sensitivity mode or Manual Sensitivity mode. The adjustment method works the same in both modes, but gives you slightly different results. To adjust sensitivity in Auto Mode: Repeatedly press MENU until the SENSITIVITY menu appears. Make sure sensitivity is set to Auto, then press MENU UP to access the sensitivity scroll bar.
Bait school Fig. 1 Fig. 2 Fish arches Fig. 3 Fig. 4 These figures show results of different sensitivity levels on the same location. Fig. 1: Sensitivity at 98 percent, determined by Auto Sensitivity. Typical of full auto mode. Fig. 2: Sensitivity set at 71 percent. Fig. 3: Sensitivity set at 47 percent. Fig. 4: Sensitivity set at 100 percent. Grayline® Grayline® lets you distinguish between strong and weak echoes. It allows you to tell the difference between a hard and soft bottom.
Grayline scroll bar. If you have two signals of equal size, one with gray and the other without, then the target with gray is the stronger signal. This helps distinguish weeds from trees on the bottom or fish from structure. Grayline is adjustable. Since Grayline shows the difference between strong and weak signals, adjusting the sensitivity may also require a different Grayline level. The level chosen by the sonar unit at power on is usually adequate for most conditions.
Wider Grayline® Thin or no Grayline® A small amount of Grayline indicates a soft bottom (left), probably sand or mud. More Grayline indicates a harder, rocky bottom (right). Chart Speed The speed at which echoes scroll across the screen is called the chart speed. The default for this unit is "max" (100 percent). We recommend you leave the scroll speed setting there for most all fishing conditions. Chart Speed scroll bar.
Sometimes, you may achieve better images as you decrease the chart speed to match the speed of your boat. If you are at anchor, ice fishing or fishing from a dock, experiment with a chart speed of 25 percent. If you are drifting slowly, try a chart speed of 50 percent. When you are stationary and a fish swims through the sonar signal cone, the image appears on the screen as a long line instead of a fish arch.
fresh and salt water sport fishing applications. When you get into very deep salt water, up to 1,000 feet, the 83 kHz frequency will work best. The 200 kHz transducer will give you better detail and definition, but less depth penetration. You will not get as much detail or definition with the 83 kHz frequency, but it has greater depth penetration and up to 120° of wide fishing finding coverage. Remember, all sonar units typically read deeper in fresh water than in salt water.
Fish arches Fish I.D. symbols Underwater scene in normal fish arch mode (left). Fish I.D. menu with the feature turned on (right). To see what is under your boat in maximum detail, we recommend you turn off Fish I.D. and begin learning to interpret fish arches. You may see Fish I.D. symbols on the screen when actually, there are no fish. The reverse is also true — Fish I.D. can actually miss fish that are present. Does that mean Fish I.D.
To turn Fish I.D. off, repeatedly press MENU until the FISH ID menu appears. Press ↓ to select OFF, then press PWR. To turn it back on, repeat the above steps, but press ↑ to select ON. FishTrack™ The FishTrack™ feature shows the depth of a fish symbol when it appears on the display. To turn it on, repeatedly press MENU until the FISH ID menu appears. Press ↑ to select TRACK ON, then press PWR. To turn it off, repeat the steps above, but press ↓ to select OFF.
To turn on Fish I.D., repeatedly press MENU until the FISH ID menu appears. Press ↓ to select ON, then press PWR. Repeatedly press MENU until the FISH ALARM menu appears. Press ↑ to select ON, then press PWR. To turn on Fish I.D., repeatedly press MENU until the FISH ID menu appears. Press ↓ to select ON, then press PWR. Repeatedly press MENU until the FISH ALARM menu appears. Press ↑ to select ON, then press PWR. To turn off fish alarm repeatedly press MENU until the FISH ALARM menu appears.
Shallow Alarm menu (left). Shallow Alarm Value Dialog box (right). Press ↓ to SET VALUE. The Shallow Alarm Value dialog box will appear. Use ↑ ↓ to enter the first number in the dialog box, then press MENU DOWN to move to the next digit. Repeat those steps until the desired depth has been entered in the dialog box. To move the cursor back to any of the previously entered numbers, press MENU UP. Press PWR to return to the Shallow Alarm menu.
Deep Alarm menu (left). Deep Alarm dialog box (right). Press the ↓ to SET VALUE. The Deep Alarm Value dialog box will appear. Use ↓ to enter the first number in the dialog box, then press MENU DOWN to move to the next digit. Repeat those steps until the desired depth has been entered in the dialog box. To move the cursor back to any of the previously entered numbers, press MENU UP. Press PWR to return to the Deep Alarm menu.
Battery Alarm menu (left). Low Battery Alarm Value (right). To move the cursor back to any of the previously entered numbers, press MENU UP. Press PWR to return to the Battery Alarm menu. Use ↑ to select ON, which will turn on the alarm, then press PWR to clear the menu. If the voltage value falls below the alarm’s setting, the alarm will sound and a message will appear on the screen.
Noise Rejection menu. The ASP feature has three settings — Off, Low and High. When first turned on, noise rejection is set on low. If you have high noise levels, try using the high ASP setting. If, however, you are having trouble with noise, we suggest you take steps to find the interference source and fix it, rather than continually using the unit with the high ASP setting. There are times when you may want to turn off ASP.
Depth menu with Depth display turned off (left). Depth display set to Large (right). Temperature Display Temperature may be displayed on the screen in a small or medium size or can be turned off completely. Temperature menu (left). Temperature display set to small size (right).
To display Temperature: Repeatedly press MENU until the TEMPERATURE menu appears. Use ↑ ↓ to select the size of the temperature display. Press PWR to clear the menu. Voltage menu with the voltage display turned off (left) and with voltage set to a small display size (right). Voltage The Voltage menu allows you to display battery voltage on the screen in a small or medium size or can be turned off completely. To display battery voltage: Repeatedly press MENU until the VOLTAGE menu appears.
Backlight turned on (left). Contrast scroll bar (right). Contrast The unit’s display contrast is adjustable to suit different lighting conditions. It will help you see the screen from different angles or at various times of the day. To adjust the contrast, repeatedly press MENU until the CONTRAST scroll bar appears. To decrease screen contrast, press ↓ or press ↑ to increase the contrast. If you reach the maximum or minimum contrast level, a tone will sound. Press the PWR key to clear the menu.
Simulator menu (left). Languages menu (right). Set Language This unit supports 11 languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Danish, Swedish, Russian, Czech, Dutch and Finnish. To select a language: 1. Repeatedly press MENU until the Languages menu appears. 2. Use ↑ ↓ to select the desired language. All menus now appear in the language you selected. Press PWR to clear the menu from the screen.
Notes 59
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Troubleshooting If your unit is not working, or if you need technical help, please use the following troubleshooting section before contacting the factory customer service department. It may save you the trouble of returning your unit for repair. For contact information, refer to the last page, just inside the back cover of this manual. Unit won't turn on: 1. Check the power cable's connection at the unit. Also check the wiring. 2. Make certain the power cable is wired properly.
Weak bottom echo, digital readings erratic, or no fish signals: 1. Make certain the transducer is pointing straight down. Clean the face of the transducer. Oil, dirt and fuel can cause a film to form on the transducer, reducing its effectiveness. If the transducer is mounted inside the hull, be sure it is shooting through only one layer of fiberglass and that it is securely bonded to the hull. Do NOT use RTV silicone rubber adhesive or Marine-Tex™ epoxy. 2.
Try using resistor spark plugs or routing the sonar unit's power and transducer cables away from other electrical wiring on the boat. No fish arches when the Fish I.D. feature is off: 1. Make certain the transducer is pointing straight down. This is the most common problem if a partial arch is displayed. 2. The sensitivity may not be high enough. In order for the unit to display a fish arch, it has to be able to receive the fish's echo from the time it enters the cone until it leaves.
If no noise is present, turn the pump off, then turn on the VHF radio and transmit. Keep doing this until all electrical equipment has been turned on, their effect on the sonar display noted, then turned off. If you find noise interference from an electrical instrument, trolling motor, pump, or radio, try to isolate the problem. You can usually reroute the sonar unit's power cable and transducer cable away from the wiring that is causing the interference.
EAGLE ELECTRONICS FULL ONE-YEAR WARRANTY "We," "our," or "us" refers to EAGLE ELECTRONICS, a division of LEI, the manufacturer of this product. "You" or "your" refers to the first person who purchases this product as a consumer item for personal, family, or household use. We warrant this product against defects or malfunctions in materials and workmanship, and against failure to conform to this product's written specifications, all for one (1) year from the date of original purchase by you.
How to Obtain Service… …in the USA: We back your investment in quality products with quick, expert service and genuine Eagle replacement parts. If you're in the United States and you have technical, return or repair questions, please contact the Factory Customer Service Department. Before any product can be returned, you must call customer service to determine if a return is necessary. Many times, customer service can resolve your problem over the phone without sending your product to the factory.
Accessory Ordering Information for all countries To order Eagle accessories such as power cables or transducers, please contact: 1) Your local marine dealer or consumer electronics store. Most quality dealers that handle marine electronic equipment or other consumer electronics should be able to assist you with these items. To locate an Eagle dealer near you, visit our web site, and look for the Dealer Locator (www.eaglesonar.com/Products/HowToBuy/dealers.asp).
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