Advice on Ice Fishing Flashers.

[Smiity]

Looking to purchase my first flasher. I'm looking to spend around the $400-$625 range. The water depth i'd be fishing in is approximately 15-40 feet. I've narrowed my choices down to 3 different units (i hope). And they are: Vexilar FLX-12 Propack II Combo with 12° Ice Ducer and DD-100, Humminbird ICE-45 Flasher, and the MarCum LX-3TCi True Color Sonar Flasher System. Advice/comments/reviews?

[dutch_m]

Originally Posted by Smiity

Looking to purchase my first flasher. I'm looking to spend around the $400-$625 range. The water depth i'd be fishing in is approximately 15-40 feet. I've narrowed my choices down to 3 different units (i hope). And they are: Vexilar FLX-12 Propack II Combo with 12° Ice Ducer and DD-100, Humminbird ICE-45 Flasher, and the MarCum LX-3TCi True Color Sonar Flasher System. Advice/comments/reviews?

Hello Smiity
I have and used the ice 55 , love it ,
I have used Marcus's and they were good ,

I just think for the best bang for the money , it's hard to beat the ice 55

[RavYak]

At 40 ft deep max you cant really go wrong with any of them. I like the larger screens on the humminbird units but marcum are good too. Higher end ones have the odd extra bell or whistle but not necessary except for specific situations. At 40 ft narrow beam could be advantageous uf fishing steep dropoffs etc.

[Dark Wing]

I'm a big fan of the Marcum flashers . I'd spend a few extra bucks and buy the LX-7 digital . I got lucky and found one on sale for a little over $700.00. Very easy to use and I've used mine all summer as well. Couldn't find the open water transducer in Canada so I just rigged up something using a chunk of pool noodle and a couple of plastic ties and sat it in a milk crate.

[ROA]

Vexilar -loud clunky, over priced for the features you get,no zoom only single beam transducer ....but the least likely to break or have problems. Built to last decades and if you do have problems there is one or two guys in the Vexilar shop that have been working there for years that will fix your unit and it won't cost much to repair either. Can get 3 beam transducer as all Vexilar transducers , cases etc are interchangeable. Very high quality transducers unit relies on sensitiveity not high power out put so battery's last days between charges.

Humminbird - most features for the money, zoom and duel beam transducer big screen. Quite likely to break or have problems and if it does you might as well throw it out. It's dealing with big company bs to get it fixed and it will cost an arm and a leg.

Marcum -middle of the road feaures to money. Zoom and a single wide beam transducer. uses a different style transducer support (no float) and unit is square so it doesn't slide into a bucket the same as the others but nicer to move from hole to hole. Quite likely to break but not as expensive or as much bs to fix as the Humminbird.


I have had all the brands. I only have a Vexilar fl18 now and it is what I should have got at the start. Would have saved me all kinds of money and frustration of sending Humminbirds and marcums in for repair. I would also say that all marked fish about the same and all helped me catch more fish. I would take any of them over having nothing so on that point you can't make a bad choice.

[TylerThomson]

Do you have a summer sonar? I'm got myself a humminbird helix this summer and they make an ice transducer for it. Lots of summer sonar come with an ice fishing mode now. Just another option.

[Smiity]

No, i don't have a summer sonar. gonna just have to decide which flasher to take a risk on and buy.

[LaHo]

Originally Posted by Dark Wing

I'm a big fan of the Marcum flashers . I'd spend a few extra bucks and buy the LX-7 digital . I got lucky and found one on sale for a little over $700.00. Very easy to use and I've used mine all summer as well. Couldn't find the open water transducer in Canada so I just rigged up something using a chunk of pool noodle and a couple of plastic ties and sat it in a milk crate.

Also, have Marcum and it works very well

[HowSwedeItIs]

I was in the same position as you and ended up going for the ICE 55, found a deal on amazon that wasn't very much more than the 45. The 45 is the only way a guy can get a digital depth display at that price point. Also I liked the big, bright display on the humminbirds. To be honest with you I don't think you can go wrong with any of those flashers. There's been a big move towards all digital flasher models and brushless motors, but for what we do those three will do fine.

[RavYak]

As far as digital vs mechanical I prefer the mechanical for a couple reasons.

The fish finder versions that have a flasher view don't work as good as a mechanical flasher and none of them have narrow beam(most have 2 beam but they are wide and super wide since meant for use on a boat not flasher). The benefits of gps and sonar graph view can be nice at times though which some people value.

The digital flashers like LX7 and LX9 are good units but are large and power hogs. I prefer the smaller lighter units with longer battery life especially considering the price difference.

The Humminbird units have a rebate going right now so the 55 would be $625 at the fishin hole after rebate right at the top end of your price range. I would sooner pay the extra bucks for the 55 to get the carry bag and couple other little features it has.

The only brand I haven't used is Vexilar but the only one I would want of them is the FLX-28(in large part because it isn't noisy like the other ones) and it is pricey.

[sns2]

I am convinced that for the kind of fishing we do, basic is just fine. The camera is lots of fun though.

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[HowSwedeItIs]

Originally Posted by RavYak

I used to just throw mine in a milk crate with a couple other odds and ends but if I was doing sled in trips regularly I would wrap it up in a blanket/foam/jacket and have it secured in a milk crate or something as well.

On our Lake Athabasca trip we wrecked my auger(cracked fuel tank and broke throttle off), flasher(gain knob), both our heaters(rattled apart multiple times), pot handle, lost my chair and I am sure I am forgetting a few other things lol... Lesson learned was that on long sled trips you need to put a lot of thought into properly securing items inside your sled...

Yikes, good to know!

Originally Posted by ROA

I keep a bucket ratchet strapped at the front foot well part of the running board of my snowmobile that I slide the flasher in. I don't put them in the toboggan if I can help it.

What a great idea, will have to look at doing that myself

[SamSteele]

For anyone interested, there is a Marcum VX-1i on sale for $299 at the South Edmonton Common CT. They also had a Lowrance 3x Ice on sale for $339.


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