The Level of Performance You Need!
With the Vexilar FLX-38 you’ve invested in the finest ice fishing flasher on the market because it:
Can change frequencies to give you the best diameter of coverage in all the depths ice fisherman fish in.
Can adjust depth ranges in increments of 1 foot.
Provides the best target ID and resolution of any flasher on the market.
Has an adjustable Zoom window size and a completely user-selectable Zoom window placement in the water column.
Provides 7 power settings so you can get the fish back to biting when they have been pounded by high power sonar pulses.
Has an advanced IR rejection system to always give you a clean display.
Mode and Range VariMax Switches
The new VariMax Switches on the Range and Mode knobs allow for expanded controls on the FLX-38. These replace the old seven and six position switches that limited the number of settings on each switch. Pushing the Mode Control button will cycle through the different modes as follows.
Mode Settings and Options
Power (P): Choose the output power in this mode. Push to cycle to Power, then rotate to cycle between (Low) L1P, L2P, L3P (Medium) M1P, M2P, M3P (High) HP.
Zoom (Z): This mode controls the Zoom window size from 6ft to 18ft in 1ft increments. Push the Mode Control to cycle to Zoom, then rotate the Mode Control after selecting Zoom to adjust zoom window size.
Manual Zoom (MZ): After selecting the Zoom window size, push the Mode Control to cycle to Manual Zoom, then rotate the Mode Control to position the Zoom window anywhere needed. Zoom window size and position will be shown by a solid green line on the flasher dial.
Frequency (F): This mode controls the FLX-38’s Broad Band settings. Push to cycle to Frequency, then rotate Mode Control to select different frequencies: 160, 170, 180, 190, 200, 210, 220, 230, 240, 250, 260, 270, 280, 290, and 300kHz.
Color Select (CS): Choose the color palette you like best while in this mode. Push Mode Control to cycle to Color Select, then rotate Mode Control to select from the 5 available color palettes.
Multi-Layer Display
The FLX-38 includes three separate display rings on its face. The outer display ring is the 525-segment fish finding flasher display like all Vexilar units have. However, with the FLX-38, we offer even more color palettes.
The second inner layer ring on the face displays green markers as depth indicators. As you change depth ranges, the green markers will correspond to the depth increments as shown in the table below. This makes it easy to position your bait one or two feet off the bottom without guessing.
The third and inner-most ring displays Alpha- numeric information including digital bottom depth, depth range, battery voltage level, IR setting levels, and your mode settings.
Setting the Frequency
The FLX-38 Broad Band sonar has the ability to operate on a frequency tailored to your specific fishing situation. The “F” on the Mode Control stands for “frequency.” Push the Mode Control until Frequency appears on the screen, then rotate the Mode Control to change the frequency.
The standard rule with frequency is this: the lower the frequency, the wider the beam angle, and the higher the frequency the narrower the beam angle. If you feel the display has too much clutter, interference, large signal sizes, or you start seeing strange things floating in the water column like freshwater shrimp, zoo plankton or even thermal stratification in the water column, cycle your unit through the fifteen frequency options to see if you can improve the view. You will see the current frequency selected located in the 11 o’clock position on the main dial.
FLX-38BB Zoom/Manual Zoom
The zoom window reads counterclockwise on the left half of the flasher face. The lowest depth in your Zoom setting will always appear at the 7 o’clock position. Objects and fish will appear in the zoom window in a higher resolution scale. If you see targets appear above the zoom window on the right-hand side of the dial, on the full-scale flasher, push the mode control to cycle to select Manual Zoom mode and rotate the Mode Control to move the zoom window up to where the targets are. The Zoom window size can be adjusted from 6ft to 18ft in 1ft increments in Zoom mode and the position can be adjusted anywhere on the screen in Manual Zoom.
FLX-38BB Depth Range Setting
Turning the Range Knob all the way counterclockwise will put the unit into Auto Range. The FLX-38 will automatically find the bottom and set the range at that depth. Turning the Range Knob clockwise will enter Manual Range and start the range at 5’ depth, increasing by 1’ increments as you continue to turn the knob clockwise up to 30’ depth. Turning further clockwise will go 35’, 40’, 45’, 50’, 60’, 80’, 100’, 125’, 150’, 175’, 200’, 225’, 250’, and 300’. These two features combine to give you the ultimate control of the depth range you display on the flasher.
Interference Rejection
To manually adjust IR settings, push in Gain Control to cycle between the available 1-20 manual IR settings. There are 20 IR settings for each frequency. With 15 frequencies available, the FLX-38 offers 300 total Interference Rejection options.
Once you have the modes set and the unit dialed in for the day, you can now “Lock-In” those modes, so they do not change. To activate the “Lock” feature, simply push and hold in the Mode Control for 2 seconds (2s). When the unit is in “Lock,” the only functions that you will be able to adjust are the Range Control and Gain Control Knobs. If you need to “Unlock” the unit to change settings on your Mode Control, push and hold the Mode Control for 2 seconds (2s) or power the unit off and on again and the unit will be “Unlocked.”
Night Mode
The sunlight-readable display on the FLX-38 may start to cause discomfort if left at full brightness for a long period of time in a dark environment. Night Mode is an option that dims the display to make it comfortable to watch for hours at night with less eye stress. To access this feature, push and hold Gain Control for 2 seconds. The brightness of the display lights will be cut by nearly 50%. Repeat the process to return to standard brightness or turn the unit off and then on again.
LP Mode & Open Water Use
In Low and Medium Power Modes, accurate digital depth readings cannot be maintained, so the Digital Depth display is disabled.
The Auto Range technology was designed specifically for an ice fishing environment. It is recommended to use Manual Range settings for open water use and when in Medium and Low Power Modes.
If you lose the digital depth reading of bottom, or the digital depth reading does not seem to match the flasher signal, these factors may come into play:
1. Very soft bottom
2. Too many fish (depth readings will jump to the fish and back to bottom as fish pass)
3. Too much vegetation
4. Actual depth may be deeper than the current range selected (shift to a deeper range)
Fishing Scenario Summary
1. Shallow barren bottom: Low Power, Low Frequency to see a larger viewing area.
2. Shallow weedy bottom: Low Power, High Frequency to shoot between the weeds.
3. Deep water flats: Medium Power to High Power (use depth chart for power level) Low Frequency when searching for the fish and then switching to High Frequency when on top of the fish to achieve better sizing of the fish.
4. Steep breaks: Use depth chart for power level, always use a High Frequency, this will give you the smallest amount of dead zone.
5. Soft bottom: Manual Depth range, Medium Power (depending on depth) and a Mid-level Frequency 200kHz–220kHz.
Note: When fishing in very shallow water, you will see that the FLX-38 will not register a digital depth readout when you are in waters shallower than 3 feet.
Note: If using a transducer built into a trolling motor or an external puck/high-speed, only use the 200kHz setting on your FLX-38.
