If you only want one mostly on the dash I would go as big as you can. You will never wish you bought a smaller one. I would still run the gt56 transducer. Another thought could be getting two 9” units. Then you could run both ducers if you wanted plus have more screen. No clue if that would make sense for your use though.
That’s certainly something to consider, I might like that idea. Thanks all for the comments.
I guess asked another way, if you were updating graphs and going with Garmin and only looking at a larger unit on the dash what unit and transducer(s) would you go with? Not looking to connect with trolling motor or anything at this time but could see upgrading the trolling motor down the road and would go with a Garmin for that purpose. I suppose keep the option of adding an additional unit down the road as well.
Yes, I believe the reasoning was around the gt56 not reading at higher speeds. Sounding like I’d be all good with just the gt56.
I have gone out twice with Fairwater II Charters on their 6-pack boats, once one the WaterDog and once on the Bollweevil and have no complaints. Both trips were 6 hour trips with family trips with kids and a good time was had.
Found a different message on their FAQ page stating that 2 blinking red lights could be a sign of battery problem. I’ll start there for now.
I’ll piggyback on this thread. I recently bought a new (to me) boat that came with a Pro Charging Systems 3 bank charger. A few minutes after plugging in, 2 of the banks light up green but the 3rd flashes red. Per the manual “This indicates that the internal temperature of the charger reached a level that was beyond the acceptable operating temperature and the charger shut itself down for protection purposes. This will reset when the a/c power is removed.”
Questions/comments:
1. It does not reset when the power is removed.
2. If the internal temp of the charger is beyond acceptable range, why am I getting this on just one of the banks.
3. Could it be an issue with the battery or connection?
4. How should I go about troubleshooting?
I appreciate your feedback. It came on a 2014 Lund and is branded Lund so assuming it’s 10 years old too.
Thanks
Appreciate the comments, thank you. I think I recall reading something about warranty issues that someone mentioned.
We’ve been going there for years but has generally been in March for spring break. Weather in March can be hit or miss, but overall I’d say it’s been good. I think March is the turning point and April should be pretty nice. The gulf will still be chilly, but we always swim, the locals not so much. If you have a warm week, the water feels that much better. It is generally breezy in the spring.
Cool activities: The National Naval Aviation Museum is awesome (www.navalaviationmuseum.org/) located between Perdido Key and Pensacola. The base where the museum is located is also home to the Blue Angels and you can get out onto the airfield and watch them practice which is really cool. Their schedule isn’t released yet, but I think they generally return to FL from CA in April, will have to check back (www.navalaviationmuseum.org/blueangels/). Although I see both those are restricted to individuals with valid DoD ID cards. Maybe that will change by April. Alligator Alley is always a hit with the kids (gatoralleyfarm.com/). As mentioned, Joe Patti’s seafood market in Pensacola is cool, load up and take back to the condo. Or Billy’s Seafood in Bon Secour (www.billys-seafood.com/). Nice trips to burn a couple hours if the weather isn’t great. Have to hit up the Flora-Bama (www.florabama.com/). The Pensacola Blue Wahoo baseball games are a good time if you enjoy baseball. I guess we did a dolphin cruise once as well, I think the kids enjoyed more than I did but wasn’t bad. I don’t remember who that was with other then we boarded near Cobalt’s restaurant.
Alagnake1 provided some good restaurant recommendations to check out. I would add Sea N Suds, The Gulf (right at the pass) and LuLu’s as other good options with kids. Also, Lillian’s Pizza and Fisherman’s Corner in Perdido Key.
We have only done offshore fishing while down there. Once we went on a big party boat out of SanRoc Cay Marina, I think it was Reel Surprise Charters; it was cheap but on a boat with 50+ people and a lot of tangled lines. The second time we went on a private charter with Fairwater II Charters (https://www.orangebeachfish.com/) out of Zeke’s landing which was a much better experience since it was just our family of 4 (2 young boys). Our boat was the Water Dog for a 6-hour trip. I know both SanRoc Cay and Zeke’s have multiple charters running out of them including inshore options.
I would also agree with staying in Orange Beach or even Perdido Key over Gulf Shores, they seem less busy or more spread out. Also, the sun reflection off the beautiful white sand creates pretty bad sun burns without you feeling it happen due to the breezes. Coming from experience, don’t forget the sunscreen or be afraid to lather it on good.
I have a fairly lengthy write up that I’m trying to paste in but I’m not able to submit. I hope it doesn’t finally post many times.
Have been there several times and always a great time. We would generally bounce around the bars on Broadway or 2nd Ave. We have never made it to the Bluebird Café but have gone to 3rd and Lindsley and to watch the Song Writer’s shows, very relaxed and interesting hearing the stories behind the songs. Very good musicians and many of there songs are performed by the “stars”. Very short Uber ride, possibly walkable and tickets needed.
Tour the Ryman if there isn’t a show going on.
Always have been a big fan of Zatarain’s Crispy Southern Fish Fri; just wet filets with water or milk, the breading stays on and fish comes out crispy. Also had a guide in Canada that used Aunt Jemima pancake mix which was interesting and quite good. Not loaded with seasoning to take away from the fish.
I bought a new Simms Challenger suit ($400 total) for a Lake Erie trip I was on last week. Only had one day of rain/wind that I needed it and was happy with how it performed; comfortable and kept me dry. My experience is that they run true to size.
My H/H PVC suit would have kept me just as dry but I probably wouldn’t have looked as good I’m guessing. 
I put the High Back Folding boat seats from bassboatseats.com on last year and have been happy so far. Comfortable and a thicker material.
I replaced my seats with the High Back Folding boat seats from bassboatseats.com last year and have been happy so far. Comfortable and a thicker material.
