Tragically, the battery compartment door on our fish finder fell into the waters of Basswood today. By chance, does anyone have one of these lying around? We are a little desperate. Thank you!

I’d contact vexilar directly. They are located I believe in Prior Lake, MN. They might have some old stuff lying around.

I’ve got a unit too, that won’t die. When it does…I’ll try to keep ya in mind :)

T

If Vexilar does not have a replacement, your next best bet would be to find some with a 3D printer and try to print a replacement. It looks to be a simply shaped battery door with just a couple screws to secure.

I know people really like these units, but personally I find the B&W units such as the Lowrance x-4 or Humminbird Piranamax have much better resolution. Either option will give you depth, which is the most important as once you find the structure, you often find the fish. The Lowrance and Humminbirds Pmax units pop up on Fbook Marketplace quite often for cheap, if you are looking for a replacement.

Looks to me that you could just trace out a template on paper, transfer it (e.g. tape the template) to a piece of sheet metal, and cut it out. Probably a good idea to get some adhesive backed plastic to laminate on the battery side of the new cover. Drill a couple of holes and find two sheet metal screws to fit the fittings molded into the case. Boom, done. For sheet metal, you could possibly use a piece of galvanized steel that is used for ductwork. It would be better to find a piece of aluminum sheet metal. Maybe stop by a metal shop or body shop to see if they have a scrap you could use.

From your photo, it looks like the main housing still has the gasket, and having that gasket would be really important.

Tom

If Vexlar won’t help you, I can get one 3D printed for you if there is a file for it. Just need the model number of your unit.
Tom

Keep us posted on the repair. It is probably coming on 20 years that Vexilar stopped making these.

Great, light little unit although primitive compared to more modern stuff. I still use it to locate walleye.

tumblehome: "If Vexlar won’t help you, I can get one 3D printed for you if there is a file for it. Just need the model number of your unit.
Tom"

I don't believe anyone has made a file for it yet, so you would need to model one from scratch. Tinkercad is great for simple geometric shape modeling such as this. If I was closer and had access to the unit I would take a crack at it, as it looks pretty straightforward but would likely take a few prints/tweeks to get it right.

I bet those units are more than 20 years old by now. Vexilar still has the manual available on their website.

Manuals

Interestingly the manual states that the battery compartment is not sealed, and may allow water in.

Thank you everyone for your help and advice! I contacted Vexilar and they are shipping us the part today!

That is some good customer service right there!

I am surprised, but glad they had the part for you.

ebert97: "Thank you everyone for your help and advice! I contacted Vexilar and they are shipping us the part today!"

Steve Baumann and Vexilar are the best! Glad they could help ya.

T