Zercom Clearwater Classic Transducer Problem?

[plot0015]

So i recently picked up a Zercom Clearwater Classic for 15 bucks off craigslist....     I fired the unit up and the LCD screen works, back light works, and when i plug the transducer in, i can hear the transducer "clickling" (i can see a slight change in the LCD lines when i plug the 'ducer in....so its almost like it recognizes that its there....) but as i'm messing with it i can't get it to see my hand or the floor...  (ie. the LCD lines never move off 2 ft)

 

I thought it might be the Transducer.... but this 'ducer has an old school RCA jack the reminds me of the old Red/White/Yellow cables from my Nintendo....(see image)  Obviously zercom isn't around anymore so getting a tranducer is brutal.   Marcum bought zercom, but they couldn't help when i reached out to them.  Called Fishlectronics, they didn't have anything.... 

 

See the pictures to see the LCD lines that never move and the 1990's tranducer plug.....   

 

Did i waste my 15 bucks?

 

 

[leech~~]

Welcome to the forum.

 

Go try it out in 5 feet of water before you write it off.  The older units need a pretty solid water column to send the echo back and forth.  Good luck.

Edited September 25, 2018 by leech~~

[plot0015]

thank you!   and thank you for the advice... i will try it out in my boat this week, and report back

[leech~~]

Instead of going through all the hassle of mounting it in your boat before you knows if it's good. You may try duct taping the ducer to a stick to hang over the side and run some power wires to it.  

You should know pretty fast if it works or not by making a few knob adjustments. Good Luck.  

[Wanderer]

If you have an aluminum boat and open access to bottom of the hull, you can just set the transducer in a little puddle of water inside the boat.  The signal of a working unit will read just fine through the hull.