In advance of the diver coming over this weekend to assist with the installation of a new depth transducer in my boat, I thought it prudent to check out the current installation so see how difficult, if at all, it was going to be to remove the existing transducer. Glad I did. It is a Datamarine unit and instead of the typical lock-nut holding it in place it has a sort of handled nut that clearly states "Hand Tighten Only". So, I though it was going to be a piece of cake, right? Well, I discovered that I couldn't budge the nut, not even with several blows from a 5 lb hammer. There appears to be a white sealant around the base of the nut and even some evidence of it on the threads of the transducer. Uh-oh......I'm thinking 5200? There is not much maneuvering room with it's location in the bilge. Any ideas short of a sawz-all? I am already thinking I may just have to wait until immediately before the installation process, when the diver is already in the water, and use something, maybe a hammer and chisel, to break the locknut off but that is all I can think of at the moment. Jim Alexander M/V Emily Rose 43 Vista

jalexander127@comcast.net writes: >Well, I discovered that I couldn't budge the nut, not even with several >blows from a 5 lb hammer. FWIW: Why bother removing the old transducer? There was an extensive thread a while ago about installing a transducer inside the hull and just leaving the old one in place. If you can't find that info in the archives, I can send you a summary from memory. (I did exactly what I suggested above and it's been working fine for about 4 years now). George of Scaramouche1, Lake Ontario, Canada P.s: What material is your hull made of?