[talk-au] replacement bicylce mounted gps

[John Henderson]

edodd at billiau.net wrote:

> firm attachment to the handlebars is a necessity

I'll put in a plug for the Garmin GPSmap 76CSx.  It's widely regarded as 
the best handheld unit Garmin has made, in discussions on the 
alt.satellite.gps.garmin newsgroup.

The GPSmap 60CSx has the same internals, but a different profile and 
keypad layout (the 76CSx is designed to float).

But I find the genuine Garmin handlebar mount not up to the task.  The 
locking mechanism (locking the unit into to the mount) will no longer 
stay locked.  This allows the unit to slip forwards under braking if the 
unit is mounted near to horizontal.  Mine failed after only a couple of 
weeks on corrugated gravel roads.

The RAM brand mounts are far superior by all accounts - 
http://www.gpsoz.com.au/images/ram/ramb149zga14_big.jpg  A friend uses a 
76CSX with a RAM mount, and I'll be upgrading mine soon.

The 76CSx typically reports ±4m accuracy in the open from its internal 
antenna.  When I use it in-car to log .gpx tracks for OSM, I use an 
external antenna (magnetically roof-mounted), and this results in a 
reported ±2m accuracy.

I find the screen a little too small when used as an in-car GPS.  But 
all handhelds are going to have that problem.

John