Any GPS junkies here?

[xTKx]

Originally Posted by Alex

Just about any GPS you can buy will show speed. You could likely pick up a used Garmin emap or etrex on ebay for well under $50.

Hey Alex, one more quick question: I've found several different emap and etrex units on EBay and I think I'll be getting one shortly, but I see that I can also get the "handlebar mount" for around $8 as well. Does that mount work on our ninjettes? I just figured you had a better idea than I did!
Thanks for the help and suggestions!

[Alex]

Originally Posted by headshrink

I have a Nuvi 265WT (recently bought it but haven't gotten it hooked up yet). The gps end of the power cord is a mini usb..... is it safe to assume the car charger (with mini usb) will work, or could they be different voltages?

The mini usb plug is putting out 5V; the car charger has a step-down transformer in it to take the 12V down to 5V. You need to use the car charger or an equivalent gadget to get things to work; you can't just use a bare wire connection from the motorcycle battery to the GPS.

Originally Posted by xTKx

Hey Alex, one more quick question: I've found several different emap and etrex units on EBay and I think I'll be getting one shortly, but I see that I can also get the "handlebar mount" for around $8 as well. Does that mount work on our ninjettes? I just figured you had a better idea than I did!
Thanks for the help and suggestions!

Depends; the handlebar mount could be the chintzy plastic one that Garmin sells that is intended to mount on a bicycle. If so, it will be useless as the vibration on the m/c will break it in short order. If you want to mount it on the ninjette, it really needs to have a motorcycle mount of some sort.

[xTKx]

Originally Posted by Alex

Depends; the handlebar mount could be the chintzy plastic one that Garmin sells that is intended to mount on a bicycle. If so, it will be useless as the vibration on the m/c will break it in short order. If you want to mount it on the ninjette, it really needs to have a motorcycle mount of some sort.

OK, cool, that's what I figured. So, take this EBay auction for example. The price is right and shipping is cheap. It claims to be for bike and/or motorcycle use, but I'm just not sure. What do you think man?

[Alex]

That's the bicycle mount. It's all plastic, and terribly insubstantial. Here are some motorcycle mounts for the emap:

http://www.cycoactive.com/ram/ramemap.shtml

[xTKx]

Wow, I'm glad I didn't listen to the description! I'll probably make up my mind and order one of the units today, then search for a nice handlebar mount (one I know which will be sturdy). Thanks again for all the help Alex!

[CZroe]

I got a charge-through A2DP adapter for my iPhone 3G, a Lobser Mount, and the Parrot SK4000 helmet kit. I installed a socket to charge the iPhone, but it's still nowhere near ideal. You can't operate it with a gloved hand, but at least the AVRCP handlebar remote works for music (it'll work better when the phone natively supports it this summer) and the GPS is nothing more than Google Maps with a location marker (no real-time calculations or voice prompts).

[xTKx]

Doing some research I came across this website: Moto Guide

I'd highly recommend this site for people just starting out with GPS (like myself). It has a lot of information and easily explains things for newbies to understand.

**EDIT
Alex, what do you think about this auction? I'd hate to keep bugging you about this, but I had a specific question about the Segway mount. It looks like this bundle comes with a RAM Segway mount and I was wondering if you knew whether or not I'd be able to connect this to the handlebars on the Ninja. I thought this particular auction was pretty good b/c it looks to be brand new and it comes with City Navigator. Whatcha think?

[Alex]

Originally Posted by xTKx

**EDIT
Alex, what do you think about this auction? I'd hate to keep bugging you about this, but I had a specific question about the Segway mount. It looks like this bundle comes with a RAM Segway mount and I was wondering if you knew whether or not I'd be able to connect this to the handlebars on the Ninja. I thought this particular auction was pretty good b/c it looks to be brand new and it comes with City Navigator. Whatcha think?

Sorry about that, I missed this edit (I must have come to this thread before it showed up). I'm not crazy about that unit. Only 24 MB of memory, so you need to keep reloading sections of the US as you travel, and 24 MB doesn't hold much. The price is pretty good, granted, but I think you'll grow out of this unit pretty quickly and want for something with a little more capability. I don't know anything about the Segway mount, and it's hard to tell if it will work from the pics in the auction.

[NJD022588]

Ok, so i need some advice...

I'm driving down to Hatteras, NC this weekend and next weekend and I dont particularly like the route my Garmin nuvi 760 will take me. How do I load a route onto it? For example, how do I make a route on Google maps and send it to my GPS?

[Alex]

Hi Nick -

Post #36 in this thread describes the method I use to create routes and get them to a GPS. I've found that it is easier and quicker to do it that way rather than manually adding waypoint after waypoint using mapsource alone.

[NJD022588]

Thanks Alex!

Do you have to buy MapSource? If so, are there any free programs that can do the job?

[Alex]

It should have come with your Nuvi. It's not free, but it comes with every Garmin. Mapsource isn't really the maps themselves, it's a shell program that all of the maps you buy from garmin are loaded into. If you don't have any additional mapsets, the base Mapsource with no maps is called Trip and Waypoint Manager. If you have no CD's/DVD's that came with the GPS, you can likely call Garmin to get a replacement disk for little or no cost. I'm not aware of any thirdparty software that can be used to push routes to a Garmin GPS. Actually, I take that back. I know that you can just mount the Zumo up to any PC as a drive, and drag the GPX file itself over to a specific folder on the Zumo that's labelled GPX. But none of my other Garmins have that capability, and I'm not sure if the Nuvi's do.

[mattzz]

In order to convert and send/receive data I recommend GPSbabel. It does basically all known format translations and file transfers.

(However, it is not a mapping tool)

[Alex]

Neat! I hadn't realized that those tools could be used to actually push things to the gadgets, I thought they were only conversion tools on the PC itself. Looks like G7ToWin (another free tool) can push things back and forth as well, though they do say that support is iffy with the USB-specific Garmin gadgets. Though it does appear to support the Nuvi 760. Here's a note on their site about it:

•USB, Partially Supported: Several of the more recent Garmin units provide a 'disk drive' when connected to the PC and many if not most of those units do not support the Garmin Interface Protocol. Communications with these units is often accomplished by the PC reading/writing a file on the 'disk drive' provided by the unit. G7ToWin may support those units. For example, the following nüvi units have been tested: nüvi 760 and nüvi 885T and G7ToWin will work with those units.
For Garmin units not falling into one of the above categories support is unknown. To my knowledge they have not been tested with G7ToWin.

Working with the Garmin nüvi series
The nüvi line of Garmin car units do not use the Garmin data transfer protocol. These units utilize .gpx files on the 'disk drive' mentioned above. These files can contain waypoints, tracks, and routes. G7ToWin can read the .gpx files found in X:\Garmin\GPX where X: is the drive created by the nüvi when a USB connection to a PC is established. The files which are of interest are Temp.GPX and Current.gpx.
The nüvi's current Waypoints, Tracks, and Routes are stored in the file Current.gpx which is created by the unit. G7ToWin should not be used to write to the file Current.gpx. After arranging your data in G7ToWin, save it as X:\Garmin\GPX\Temp.GPX and then disconnect the nüvi from the PC. Upon restarting the GPS the data in Temp.GPX will be read and merged into the file Current.gpx.

Please note that the nüvi will not automatically read the routes from the Temp.GPX file, you must go into the 'My Data' menu on the GPS and tell it to read the routes from the file. You also have to do this when MapSource writes routes to the unit.

[NJD022588]

As far as I know, no disks came with my GPS. I checked the box last night for them and there were none. Although, there is the chance that I took them out when I first bought it. If thats the case, they are 4 hrs away at my other home...

When I get home from work, I'll check to see what was supposed to come in the box.

[Alex]

Interesting. Looking online at Garmin's site (link), it appears that it doesn't come with any such disk:

What's in the Box:
◦nüvi 760
◦Preloaded City Navigator® NT for North America or Europe (full coverage) or other country (click versions tab to view all)
◦FM traffic receiver with vehicle power cable
◦Real-time traffic services*
◦Vehicle suction cup mount**
◦USB cable
◦Dashboard disc
◦Quick start manual

I didn't realize Garmin was shipping some of these with no software at all; I guess they feel that the Nuvi's really are just plug and play and most folks won't be hooking them up to computers. I'd still call Garmin support to see if they'd send a disk anyway.

[headshrink]

Is anyone else who is using a Nuvi (or any other device that connects via mini-USB), having problems with the power cord falling out or loosing contact while riding?

[NJD022588]

While riding, i dont use the mini USB. I use the other connection that clips on the back.

[headshrink]

Originally Posted by NJD022588

While riding, i dont use the mini USB. I use the other connection that clips on the back.

Which unit GPS are you using? My Nuvi 265W ONLY has the mini USB, so there are no other options.

I do have an update from last night on this issue. If interested, check out this post http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showp...1&postcount=11

[NJD022588]

Oh I didnt realize they were different. I'm using a Nuvi 760.

[camaroz1985]

Alex, When you do the Gmap2GPX and Wingdb method for converting Google maps, is there anyway to not get all the points to show up as waypoints. I tried to make them hidden. I just don't like how in the directions, every waypoint is called out.

The method worked pretty well, though there were some points that made my route go all over the place. I just deleted them and all is well.

[Alex]

I think that WinGDB3 has an option to make the points waypoints or hidden via points... EDIT: Yup, it's there at #10.



I'm not sure if choosing the via point option would do what you want, or if the via points are still announced as well.

[camaroz1985]

I'll have to try the via points out. The hidden points don't show up on the map, but are still announced.

[headshrink]

I spent ALL DAY trying to get this to work on my nuvi265. Conclusion = don't by it if you want routes. There is no work around, because even if you can make routes, it won't play them. It will ONLY load single destinations, period. The CLOSEST thing you can get to a route, is to load your destination, and then manually scroll and create via points.... but you can't save these. If you shut down, they are gone. The only other way is to create destinations for each and every way point (number them for ease of use), and manually select them once you get tho the previous wpt.

I would love to be proven wrong, but I don't think it will happen.

[NJD022588]

I think you are correct, Bob. One reason I bought my nuvi 760 is its ability to follow routes. But, as of now, i dont have a program that will create them...

[headshrink]

It isn't very often that an electronic device can't be hacked

[Alex]

Yup, most of the Nuvi's have very limited track and route capabilities. It's a shame that Garmin rips those features out, but it's how they differentiate via price when the hardware across the line has got to be almost identical. Only the Nuvi 750's and up seem to have some decent track & route capabilities, but even those are limited compared to what is offered on some of their other model lines (Zumo, GPS60/76/Colorado/etc).

[Alex]

Originally Posted by NJD022588

I think you are correct, Bob. One reason I bought my nuvi 760 is its ability to follow routes. But, as of now, i dont have a program that will create them...

There are a number of free programs you can use to push tracks and routes to your Nuvi, one of the most popular is GPSBabel. You can use the techniques described earlier in this thread to create a route from scratch using Google maps and GMap2GPX to get the route into a GPX format; the Mapsource part of that isn't strictly necessary. WinGDBv3 is also free and can do a bunch of tweaking of the routes/tracks as well. (but you may need to use GPSBabel to convert the GPX file to GDB first).

[NaughtyusMaximus]

Originally Posted by CZroe

I got a charge-through A2DP adapter for my iPhone 3G, a Lobser Mount, and the Parrot SK4000 helmet kit. I installed a socket to charge the iPhone, but it's still nowhere near ideal. You can't operate it with a gloved hand, but at least the AVRCP handlebar remote works for music (it'll work better when the phone natively supports it this summer) and the GPS is nothing more than Google Maps with a location marker (no real-time calculations or voice prompts).

Any chance you have pictures? I've got an HTC Dream on the way ( Google phone), which is similar in dimensions to the iphone, and I'm thinking of doing some kind of mount. Also, if you haven't seen it yet, pick up 'trapster' off of the itunes store. It is free, and very useful

[Momaru]

I'm seriously looking into a GPS for myself sometime in the near future.
Wondering what ya'll use and how satisfied you've been? Complaints, nice features, wish it had ___ feature, etc would be awesome.

Research has been focusing on Garmin just because I've been pleased with the one my father has, but their 'motorcycle-friendly' models are prohibitively expensive for my budget.

Edit: I've found the following threads. Alex, do you mind merging this onto t=11228 or t=15687?
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11228
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=3
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=19243
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=25469
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=15687

[bluepoof]

I use a Garmin 60CSx, mounted with a RAM mount U-bolt and ball to the handlebar.



I love it -- I have the standard North America map and it's never let me down. I've even ridden a little bit in Mexico with it and, while the map I have wasn't terribly detailed for Mexico, I was able to find my way around.

I have pretty much zero sense of direction, so I've used this GPS on almost every "meandering" ride since buying it in 2007. Rain, snow, wind -- no issues. I had a different Garmin from 2001-2007 and the only issue I had with that one was that the antenna popped off and I had to duct tape it back on. The antenna on the 60CSx is integrated into the GPS unit itself, so no chance of that failure.

I've wired a standard SAE pigtail to my battery and plug the GPS into that for long rides, but the GPS's internal batteries last a decent amount of time, too.

It doesn't have a touchscreen, but I prefer the tactile buttons for riding anyway -- they're easy to use even with gloves on.

Honestly, I've never found a downside to this particular GPS unit. Maybe if I had to come up with something, I'd wish the screen were just a little bigger? But otherwise, it's really a great motorcycling GPS.

[mikesova]

Garmin Nuvi 200 w/ RAM mount

[kkim]

Paul,

have you seen this thread?
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11228

[Momaru]

Originally Posted by kkim

Paul,

have you seen this thread?
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11228

Yep, found it as you were writing the reply and edited the OP accordingly. Kkim and the search function to the rescue once again

[kkim]

I know Alex is a tech weenie...er, I mean enthusiast, and has a lot to offer on the subject.

In fact, I was just thinking about a GPS yesterday and if I could use it with the dirt bikes to plot/draw trails on mountain/valley maps... wonder if it can do that???

gl...

[Alex]

Originally Posted by Momaru

Edit: I've found the following threads. Alex, do you mind merging this onto t=11228 or t=15687?

[M]

I learned from EMDSD on www.ninja250.org how to install a RAM ball mount in 2007, and have done it on my '05 250 and '07 650R. The day after buying my '08 250 (in between engine-loading break-in sessions) in 02/2008, I installed one.

The purpose of this mount is to have a permanent place to attach accessories (GPS, Sirius radio, cell phone, radar, etc) to the cycle.

Tools needed for this project:

* RAM ball RAM-B-236
* small flat head screwdriver
* 3/8-16 tap
* needle nose pliers
* blue thread lock

The first step is to pry off the plastic cover from the mirror thread hole:





Here is the RAM-B-236 ball:



Here is the 3/8-16 tap tool to re-thread the hole:



Tapping the hole:



The key to successfully tapping the threads correctly is to keep the tool angle in line with the hole, so that your threads are evenly created. Take your time here, and do it right the first time.



The next step is to put some thread lock on the RAM ball threads:



You then hand tighten the ball into the threads. Afterwards, I used some needle nose pliers to apply about 12 ft/lbs torque to the mount.





Here is how the RAM ball looks installed:



With the RAM short arm and Garmin 60CSx cradle in place:





With the 60CSx installed:



Total installation time, 10 minutes. Documentation time, 20 minutes.

[Alex]

Looks great!

[Momaru]

M, that's an excellent writeup. I found a metric-threaded RAM ball that just drops in to the same mount though. Also working on fabricating a mount across the triple clamp like Nick (NJD022588) did here

Looks like that's two votes for the Garmin 60CSx

Alex, perhaps a DIY link is in order?

[M]

RAM came out with a new thread/pitch ball, compatible with the 250 handlebars threads late summer 2008. It makes the installation a bit easier. I don't recall the part number off the top of my head.