GPS/Holders

Who's got GPS for their scoots? I have a Garmin eTrex I use for work, but need to get a decent mount that will work with the bike. Anyone know of any good ones?

touratech gps mounts are my fav. i use one for my garmin quest.

http://www.cycoactive.com/gps/gps_mounts.html

I use a Garmin Zümo and a Touratech mount.

The Touratech mounts is very high quality.

I want to get a Garmin 60csx and a ram mount.
Probably won't though as it is a little pricey.

I don't have one on my bike yet, only in the truck, but here are some mounts I've been looking at for the future...




Tech Mounts


Cycle Gadgets


Two Wheel Radio

f3joel wrote:

I want to get a Garmin 60csx and a ram mount.
Probably won't though as it is a little pricey.

I have both the Garmin 60C and a Garmin Zumo 450. I use the 60c mainly on my WR because it is smaller and fits better. The Zumo works better on my KLR.

BOTH of these units work very well if you use the RAM mounts they can be positioned in just about any way on the bars. I would also suggest that you wire in the DC connection to the battery so that you have no worries on long rides.

What did that eTrex set you back, Scott?

You can mount your Nintendo DS right next to that... Damn that thing is pretty big!

I am trying to keep handlbar clear. All those Ram mounts and Touratech holders seem too big to me. They may be of use for hard riding, Rallyes, whatever, but I will stick to standard bicycles holder for my Oregon. I do it this way. There is a thick and soft anti vibration rubber layer wound around bar stay (this is not my WR...) that should protect device from shaking and prevent it from popping out of cradle. Right now I cannot tell how much of offroad riding this installation can take. At least, when it gets really rough I may put Oregon unit into some pocket or whatever. I do not need any locking features, since I will take device with me when leaving bike. So, this is a cheap and minimal solution that probably is not so bad at all. Also the device is less exposed to crashing or certain impacts since it is mounted closely at center of handlebar.

SheWolf wrote:

You can mount your Nintendo DS right next to that... Damn that thing is pretty big!

I thought you liked 'em big

Anything big, and makes lots of noise. Crap...guess the stock can has got to go.

SheWolf wrote:

What did that eTrex set you back, Scott?

The 60Csx and Touratech mount ran just shy of $500

+1 on the RAM mounts. I have a Magellan Triton, Garmin Quest, and Garmin Nuvi and the best thing is I can switch them out depending on need and the same mount works. Just need a unit specific cradle. Did a lot of searching for the best mount and I came to the conclusion that the RAM products were less bulky and fit 7/8 and fatbars in almost any location. They also have so many different options for arm lengths so you can get the best fit for your bars.

Garmin 2720 from GPSonsale.com with Garmin mount. I use an bicycle toe clip as a "backup" connection.

scottmac wrote:

SheWolf wrote:

What did that eTrex set you back, Scott?

The 60Csx and Touratech mount ran just shy of $500

That's the setup I want!

I have a Magellan Crossover on my WRR with a ram mount, but the Crossover sucks IMHO.
I also have a micro tank bag on a ram mount as an experiment. So far, it has worked fairly well.
The nice part is that the stuff can come on and off easily depending on whether you are exploring or hardcore trail riding.

SheWolf wrote:

Who's got GPS for their scoots? I have a Garmin eTrex I use for work, but need to get a decent mount that will work with the bike. Anyone know of any good ones?

I have been using a Garmin Etrex Vista for years on my KLR650 and now on my WRR. The same setup works perfectly for both. I ordered the handlebar mount from Garmin's site. Just buy a foot (nah, buy two feet then cut as needed) of 7/8" heater hose at an auto parts store. Punch a couple of small holes through the ends of the hose so you can zip tie it to the base of your handle bars. The idea is that you will end up with an arch of heater hose that is loosely zip tied to the bike so the GPS doesn't get all the vibration from the bike. Attach your Etrex handlebar mount to the top of the arch of heater hose. It works great. No bolts or fancy over-priced crap. Just a few zip-ties, a foot of heater hose, and the handlebar mount for your Etrex. It reallly does a great job of keeping vibration from playing hell with your GPS. The longer and floppier the hose, the better it is at keeping vibration from the GPS.

Here's a blurry pic of the hose mount (as opposed to RAM mount):

And here's a pic of the GPS attached only seconds later:


It's cheap, indestructable, doesn't require precious handlebar space that you might not have, and does a great job of isolating the GPS from vibration.

MeefZah wrote:

Any waterproof, smaller GPS would serve nicely as they almost all have similar
features and I think all use Navteq mapping (which means the maps are
the same, although the format they are presented in may be
different between makers).

All Canadian topographic mapping will be derived from NRCan's digital mapping, presumably with royalties going to the government. Those of you who are in the GIS biz like myself will find the shapefiles and other data at NRCAN's website if you feel up to making your own high resolution Garmin files. I made exactly one. But, I can compare my uber high quality onboard mapping on a Trimble GeoXH to my Garmin, and frankly, having orthophotos, 5 meter hypsography, whatever, does not enhance the useability of the mapping in the slightest. If I'm doing a GPS survey in my profession, yes, but otherwise the Garmin topo maps are just fine.

Quote :

RAM mounts are absolutely the way to go - incredibly tough and versatile.

IF they fit your GPS and IF they allow you to hook up to 12VDC. In the case of my Garmin 530Hcx, it don't work.

So, I guess I'm going to have to search for a useful mount for my GPS, or see about kludging something together. I usually just have my GPS in my breast pocket, but I want to see if I will get more out of it if it is down by the instrument cluster.

Quote :

This picture also shows my 12VDC outlet to the left of the GPS. I normally power the GPS with that, but the cable is not pictured.

And I guess I have to find somebody like you who knows how to do a professional wiring job to provide me with an outlet as an alternative to battery power. Not so much for the Garmin, but for the Trimble units.

Use your bike for work... write the bike purchase off...

Delorme PN-40SE here. A fantastic unit...

I personally like Shewolf's current setup for GPS storage

You mean this?



Considering it didn't cost me anything and has held up to a lot of shit and abuse, I won't complain.

SheWolf wrote:

You mean this?



Considering it didn't cost me anything and has held up to a lot of shit and abuse, I won't complain.

Oh yeah! Thats what I'm talking about =3

Wahilde: Great mount!!! I also have the eTrex vista. I ordered a standard handlebar mount and the damn thing did not fit anywhere on my stock handlebars.

Now that's the solution I was looking for! Thanks for that!

THANK YOU WAHILDE!!

That mount is awesome. I used to mount my GPS to the mirror with zip ties and the damn thing just couldn't deal with the vibration. So I came up with this rig based on your intelligence...works great!! No more stalling on the GPS's part.



It's a little "jerry rigged," but it works great. Got an actual handlebar mount on the way. I found the plastic cradle in the garage and cut it to work and than zip tied the hell out of it. Finally I can navigate without problems and know how fast I'm going (12T sprocket).

Thanks Man!!

bman wrote:

........Garmin 60csx and a ram mount....... the RAM mounts they can be positioned in just about any way on the bars. I would also suggest that you wire in the DC connection to the battery so that you have no worries on long rides.

I've been using a 60CSx for years......if I were to start from scratch I'd get a 76CSx because the RAM cradle is better and the antenna wont snap off in a fall as it will on the 60CSx (ask me how I know )



You can order Ram mounts/hardwire kits from these folks: http://www.cycoactive.com/

In terms of software I use City Nav NT on road and generally switch to old/outdated Roads and Recs software when off-road because it'll show streams/trails that aren't present in City Nav NT

Crawdaddy... Were you able to find a place to fix the 60 ? Mine encountered the same demise. :)