yoderjac
Well-Known Member
I think I'm going to get rid of the YakAttack Switchblade. It works pretty well but there are a few issues. First, it is a bit of a pain for entry and exit of the boat. I can kind of fold it out of the way some, but not completely. At higher speeds, it has some movement. I did notice that one side of my SI is darker than the other. This could be caused by multiple issues, but one of them is that the transducer on the switchblade is not quite deep enough. It is intended for a kayak, not an inflatable.
So, I started working on a design for a transducer pole. While this pole won't need to rotate like the one I made for Megalive 2, it will need to slide vertically. I think the best place to attach it is to the oar locks. I started working on it today. I had some 1x1x1/8 square tube scraps. I plan to use them as back brackets to secure the same 1 1/4" pvc conduit I used for the outer pipe on the Megalive 2 pole. Putting the square tube inside the oarlocks and the pipe horizontally outside, I plan to simply bolt them together to hold the pipe in place. I'll then use an elbow and Tee fitting to get the Tee mounted vertically just outside the inflation chamber. I'll then use the same 1" PVC conduit I used for the inner pole of the Megalive 2 pole. My plan is to pin it so I can change the depth of the transducer and stow it by pinning it well out of the water.
I grabbed the fittings and bolts on the way home from church this morning. I got part of it done, but the bolts I got were a half inch too small. When I get back to lowes and get the right size bolts and start the first steps, I'll take a couple pictures.
If this is successful, the pole will be more stout than the switchblade and allow for greater depth while being out of my road for entry and exit.
So, I started working on a design for a transducer pole. While this pole won't need to rotate like the one I made for Megalive 2, it will need to slide vertically. I think the best place to attach it is to the oar locks. I started working on it today. I had some 1x1x1/8 square tube scraps. I plan to use them as back brackets to secure the same 1 1/4" pvc conduit I used for the outer pipe on the Megalive 2 pole. Putting the square tube inside the oarlocks and the pipe horizontally outside, I plan to simply bolt them together to hold the pipe in place. I'll then use an elbow and Tee fitting to get the Tee mounted vertically just outside the inflation chamber. I'll then use the same 1" PVC conduit I used for the inner pole of the Megalive 2 pole. My plan is to pin it so I can change the depth of the transducer and stow it by pinning it well out of the water.
I grabbed the fittings and bolts on the way home from church this morning. I got part of it done, but the bolts I got were a half inch too small. When I get back to lowes and get the right size bolts and start the first steps, I'll take a couple pictures.
If this is successful, the pole will be more stout than the switchblade and allow for greater depth while being out of my road for entry and exit.
