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Navionics Platinum Chip VS Florida Marine Tracks


Squanto10

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Anyone on here run the Florida Marine Tracks? I mostly fish on the west coast(Chokoloskee, Marco, captiva and sanibel and occasionally biscayne bay). Currently I’m running the navionics platinum chip on a lowrance HDS 9.  I like the detail on it but would like to learn new routs to areas that I’ve previously written off.  From what I’ve seen the detail looks really good on the Florida marine tracks.  I just don’t want to invest $400 for something that just if at all is only a little better than what I already have.  Any input would greatly be appreciated. Thanks and tight lines!

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Absolute game changer! Routs that took me 30 years to compile all over Florida are ALL on there, plus about a million routs I never knew about. I fish Choko(inside and outside), Charlotte Harbor, Homosassa, over to the Mosquito Lagoon.  Buy with complete confidence! I am also running an HDS 9 Carbon

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No comparison.  It's the best marine product I've experienced in a long, long time.  Worth every dollar IMO.  Listen to Tom Rowland's pod cast/interview with Glen Housman who developed the product--great information about what prompted him to bring this to market and what was involved.  

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I've been fishing Choko for 15years now....and I think I know the routes pretty well....but, the chip is worth every penny for me, especially when I'm running the back....worth every penny...but, I will say, if you decide to take the plunge, upgrade to the Simrad...the zoom knob makes all the difference in the world....when you are running tight quarters as you don't have to worry about touching the +/- buttons on the screen...

 

dc

 

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5 hours ago, Wanaflatsfish said:

I've been fishing Choko for 15years now....and I think I know the routes pretty well....but, the chip is worth every penny for me, especially when I'm running the back....worth every penny...but, I will say, if you decide to take the plunge, upgrade to the Simrad...the zoom knob makes all the difference in the world....when you are running tight quarters as you don't have to worry about touching the +/- buttons on the screen...

 

dc

 

Simrad is the top of the line no doubt, but I have never had any issues using the +/- on my Lowrance. I rarely if ever touch my screen, I use the buttons on the right 99% of the time. 

F77FE7C5-1A89-455C-906E-5332006B832A.jpeg

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On 12/6/2018 at 8:24 AM, D-linesider said:

I rarely if ever touch my screen

When I was running the Lopez the other day and in a few other spots way down south, I was zooming in a out to hit the tracks....I not familiar where you fish...but, for those of us who run Choko....if you are off by 10-15 feet on a low tide, you can be on an oyster bar for the night on the way back.....

I guess for me, I just like gadgets and the zoom knob makes it easier....if it works for you on the Lowrance and others...great....

When I bought the Chip I spoke with the owner and he highly recommended the simrad knob....he said the 12" is best and EVO3, but, no way I was paying $2500...I found my EVO2 at WM on a price match for $1K...I was disappointed with the Garmin and sold it to fund a portion of the cost...but, I guess if I had a Lowrance I'd probably not changed, unless I really needed to do so.

 

DC

 

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4 hours ago, Wanaflatsfish said:

When I was running the Lopez the other day and in a few other spots way down south, I was zooming in a out to hit the tracks....I not familiar where you fish...but, for those of us who run Choko....if you are off by 10-15 feet on a low tide, you can be on an oyster bar for the night on the way back.....

I guess for me, I just like gadgets and the zoom knob makes it easier....if it works for you on the Lowrance and others...great....

When I bought the Chip I spoke with the owner and he highly recommended the simrad knob....he said the 12" is best and EVO3, but, no way I was paying $2500...I found my EVO2 at WM on a price match for $1K...I was disappointed with the Garmin and sold it to fund a portion of the cost...but, I guess if I had a Lowrance I'd probably not changed, unless I really needed to do so.

 

DC

 

I think you are missing my point. I don’t disagree that the simrad is surely a superior unit and the knob would be nice. What I was trying to clarify is that I also zoom in and out constantly but I do it with the buttons on the right. The buttons on the Lowrance HDS allow you to do any and everything possible without touching the screen with your fingers if you don’t want to. I run pretty much every inch of Choko inside and outside from Marco to Flamingo, been fishing down there for over 30 years. Tight lines. 👍🏻

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One does not VS. the other. Glenn has a product that has revolutionized the way people fish in the florida region. I fish with a guy that has been fishing out of chokoloskee since the 80's. I wont say his name, but alot of his lines are on the FMT chip in the choko region. These aren't one of those arguments where you win if you've  fished a region longer than me, I dont care if you think you know how to read water or you think you know where a sandbar or oyster bar is, or if you say you've been fishing here since ive been sucking on my thumb. If you run this chip it will change the way you fish the everglades, no debate.....

When you plug in that 400 dollar chip and see what it is, if your not 100% impressed please message me and I'll buy your chip back at full price and re sell it. It's saved the bottom of my boat and has put me on prized fish time and time again. I'm baffled its not a standard feature on every MBG produced boat, and I am no way affiliated with glenn, I own a brand x boat, i get nothing of expressing my opinion on his product.   

Theres nothing like running into lostmans south entrance, seeing a few beached boats on a -0.5. You just run right by them, and at that moment you know you made the right choice running FMT. 

Glenn, if you read this, make it a testimonial on your website. 

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14 hours ago, D-linesider said:

What I was trying to clarify is that I also zoom in and out constantly but I do it with the buttons on the right. The buttons on the Lowrance HDS allow you to do any and everything possible without touching the screen with your fingers if you don’t want to. I

Linesider.....I'm with you.....read what I said below.....

14 hours ago, D-linesider said:

but, I guess if I had a Lowrance I'd probably not changed, unless I really needed to do so.

what I said above....I torched the Garmin because it didn't do what I wanted just in terms of navigation, even though I had years of tracks...and when I had a choice, Lowrance or Simrad....I liked the gadgets...for the same money at the time, I could have gone with a 12" Lowrance, but, again, I liked the knob concept and went 9" Simrad...personal choice.

Note: in the Simrad family, the Go line will run the FMT and does a great job; however, on that system, I believe you don't have a choice but to use the touch screen.

 

9 hours ago, heweymagoos said:

Theres nothing like running into lostmans south entrance, seeing a few beached boats on a -0.5. You just run right by them, and at that moment you know you made the right choice running FMT. 

X2.....or, even worse.....Rodgers or Broad on the same tide :)

 

9 hours ago, Squanto10 said:

Well said heweymagoos. After all of the positive and encouraging feedback I will be purchasing shortly! Thanks guys!

'You won't be sorry......have fun and enjoy...

 

dc

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8 hours ago, bernieNC said:

Glad it is not. One size does not fit all. For some customers it would be a wasted expense. I am sure it is a good product but again it's not for everyone.

I was emailed by a mod sometime today of my offensive remarks I made with regards of FMT and child nursing. I respectfully apologize if i offended anyone on this forum. Last time I checked we are all grown men here, but obviously not. Hopefully the mods aren't Jim Acosta/CNN fans here censor this informative post. @bernieNC , I should of been more clear on what I said. Any florida sold boat and some parts of alabama should have a FMT chip. With the post you made its obvious you've never fished the everglades, and if you have you may of been 10ft from the dock. I tried making it clear in my last post, "this isn't a deal of whose fished longer than the other, one size fits all, or you like simrad better than lowrance or garmin or whatever. Unless you've seen the content of FMT, you haven't seen anything. I'd like to see you in a 140k TRS, launching from outdoor resorts with a nice Garmin screen. You said "Glad its not" LOL, 10 feet and a new bottom job, you'd be saying "Dont get mad, get FMT!" 

 

 

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13 hours ago, heweymagoos said:

I respectfully apologize if i offended anyone on this forum. Last time I checked we are all grown men here, but obviously not.

Hewey,

I've been on the forum over 15 years...and while most of the members are probably old geeezers or middle aged males....many of the forum members have their kids or grandkids reading reading the forum...now, most 12-15 y/o have heard much worse in the class rooms or seen "stuff" on the net, the Mod's have tried to keep a pretty high standard for language or "colorful" examples....

DC

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Guys,

Merry Christmas to me! My wife says I can replace my 10 year old Garmin 3210. I have selected an Evo3, mainly for the FMT. We fish Homosassa and CR. I’ve talked to the FMT owner and asked him how the coverage is for our area.......”Outstanding” he said.

I've never seen any images of our area, or ridden a boat using the chip. Has anyone on these forums used the FMT (real life) at Homosassa and surrounding area? I really would like your opinions of the effectiveness on finding safer routes with FMT around the islands, St Martin’s river, The Chassahowitzka WMA, etc.

Thanks in advance!

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3 hours ago, FROZEN said:

Guys,

Merry Christmas to me! My wife says I can replace my 10 year old Garmin 3210. I have selected an Evo3, mainly for the FMT. We fish Homosassa and CR. I’ve talked to the FMT owner and asked him how the coverage is for our area.......”Outstanding” he said.

I've never seen any images of our area, or ridden a boat using the chip. Has anyone on these forums used the FMT (real life) at Homosassa and surrounding area? I really would like your opinions of the effectiveness on finding safer routes with FMT around the islands, St Martin’s river, The Chassahowitzka WMA, etc.

Thanks in advance!

I fish out of Homosassa a lot and what Glen says is correct. The coverage  for that area is outstanding.  There is a couple YouTube videos of him reviewing his product. Watch the videos he pans around the state and shows just how extensive the coverage is. You will see as he talks about Homosassa, Crystal River, Ceder Key just how good the chip is. As you already know that whole area is extremely unforgiving. Solid limestone is a lot worse than  oyster and sand bars. I run his tracks around the area and have never had any issues or worries. I virtually have the identical boat as you.

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2 hours ago, D-linesider said:

I fish out of Homosassa a lot and what Glen says is correct. The coverage  for that area is outstanding.  There is a couple YouTube videos of him reviewing his product. Watch the videos he pans around the state and shows just how extensive the coverage is. You will see as he talks about Homosassa, Crystal River, Ceder Key just how good the chip is. As you already know that whole area is extremely unforgiving. Solid limestone is a lot worse than  oyster and sand bars. I run his tracks around the area and have never had any issues or worries. I virtually have the identical boat as you.

Just as I hoped and wanted to hear!!!! Now I can’t wait to pull trigger. Glen told me if I bought the Evo from him, he would discount the chip. I can’t find any deals this year, so I will support him and his business.

Thanks for the info, I hope to see you around the St Martin keys soon!

M

 

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I look at the FMT chip as a safety item, and essential gear for the hard-bottomed areas around the State. Plus, you can see different tracks to get the chop on the right part of your bow.

Hewey, Sorry for that public flogging. I had not used the warning shortcut in this new software.. Didn't know that box would show over your post.  I won't use that anymore..  Just holler in a PM..

ModM

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On 12/9/2018 at 7:20 AM, FROZEN said:

Guys,

Merry Christmas to me! My wife says I can replace my 10 year old Garmin 3210. I have selected an Evo3, mainly for the FMT. We fish Homosassa and CR. I’ve talked to the FMT owner and asked him how the coverage is for our area.......”Outstanding” he said.

I've never seen any images of our area, or ridden a boat using the chip. Has anyone on these forums used the FMT (real life) at Homosassa and surrounding area? I really would like your opinions of the effectiveness on finding safer routes with FMT around the islands, St Martin’s river, The Chassahowitzka WMA, etc.

Thanks in advance!

Frozen,

I live in Crystal River and have been using Glenn's product for a long time and I can promise you it will save your lower unit in this area!

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Thanks all!

Now I find the rebates on EVOs ended 12/1........my costly mistake. I’ve already had a severe bottom burn and a L/U rebuild this year. Oh well, a lower unit saved is a penny earned.

Unless someone has a better suggestion in the Homosassa/CR area, I’m going to have George Matt install it.

Thanks for all the positive FMT references.

Merry Christmas to everyone and your families!!!

M

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