lackdog

Exact same cable as the Garmin Quest, 60c, 60cs, etc use and its only $2.40 USB Cable

Hey all. I'm not all that knowledgable about compasses and I was wondering if someone with a bit more knowledge about them could help me decide what to get. I see a lot of them on eBay, but I don't know if they are any good. I'm basically looking for a decent compass to aid me when I geocache (cause my GPS V doesn't have a built in one (you have to be moving for it to point what way your going)). I'm looking for something strong and durable that won't break if dropped, etc, etc. Also I don't want to spend crazy money one one. I just need one that can show me north and is good. No more than lets say 20.00 dollars. Any insight on what one to buy is appreciated. Thanks

Some of you are analyzing my question a little bit to deep. I should stated my question like this. On your GPS display under "GPS Accuracy" (on garmin models), What is usually your normal "GPS accuracy". MIne for instance is usually about 16ft. Simple.

quote:Originally posted by fizzymagic:This is not a terribly useful subject since the so-called "accuracy" reading is not in fact a measurement of accuracy. If you are interested in the actual accuracy of your device, find a nearby triangulation marker and use it to calibrate your actual error. Otherwise, it's best to mostly ignore the accuracy reading of your GPS. Well the question I asked wasn't about how "on" your GPS is to a triangulation marker. I just simply was wondering what type of accuracy in feet other peoples GPS reported to them. The reason I say "GPS accuracy" is because thats the way my Garmin GPS V states it.

looks liek someone is putting out tonight

I'm curious to see what's the lowest accuracy you have seen with your GPS in feet. I'm not talking like one time it hit 4 foot of accuracy I'm talking more of the lines of sustained lowest accuracy. Like with my Garmin GPS V I usually get about 16 feet of accuracy steady.

better be carefull with that one. Someone who doesn't know much about computers might be working on something inmportant, take a break, read this post, click the button and not know how to close the next screen after you click the button and have to reboot and lose whatever they were working on.

You think a ammo can looks like a bomb? S#!T, I'll tell you what type of cache looks like a bomb is the 4" PVC kind with a big red expansion cap on the end. I only have been caching for a few weeks and so far I love ammo can's. If you find a ammo can cache and its too dirty or smelly for your delicate self you shouldn't be geocaching. You should be at your house having a girly tupperware party. And I don't know about the rest of you, but when I cache I wear boots. Not some sandals like mr girly baby, "oww i stubbed my toe" boy

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=23809&item=1983748879 or http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=4668&item=1946787166 or http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=23809&item=1983910105

Read this post a little bit. I posted alot of info on the Garmin GPS V. It might help you decide. http://opentopic.Groundspeak.com/0/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=1750973553&f=5740990093&m=8660938245

Go here: http://www.garmin.com/outdoor/compare.jsp and you can compare any Garmin GPS unit with another one. Very helpful. Just check 2 of the GPS's and click submit.

Yeah I see it's not recording the votes. I tried to delete the post, but it says it cannot cause it has replies.

quote:The money is not an issue as it will take little time to safe the extra $100 dollars or soand I am willing to wait so I have a happy wife. your going to have to save more than 100 dollars over your budget to get a color one. More like save 400+ dollars. Also don't forget with a color one you are going to eat batteries like a mad man. The Garmin GPS V has a 25 hour battery life on 4 AA batteries. (depending on how often the backlight is used). Then for a garmin color GPS you have 2 to choose from. The StreetPilot GPS ColorMap(890.00 dollars MSRP) and the StreetPilot III GPS (1272.00 dollars MSRP). The StreetPilot GPS ColorMap(890.00 dollars MSRP) only has a 2.5 hour battery life. Yes I said only 2.5! StreetPilot III GPS (1272.00 dollars MSRP) has a slightly better life from 2-20 hours, but its also 1200.00 dollars. Also, take into consideration that the GPS V, for example, is only 9 ounces where the other 2 color models by garmin each weigh 1.3 lbs. Just a little more info for ya.

Make a cache and put that unit in it. The first person to find the cache would love it. hehe

You can get a Garmin GPS V for 60.00 bucks more than you are willing to spend. You can get it brand new off eBay for 409.99 dollars and its got a warranty and everything. Its got autorouting and lots of memory and comes with the City Select map CD of the entire USA, car mount, data cable, 12v cable for cig plug in car and wrist strap and ofcourse all the manuals. I have this GPS and love it. I use to have a Garmin GPS III and returned it cause it had only 1.5 megs of mem and no autorouting. If you go with a color GPS you are going to pay WAY more than 350.00 dollars. The cheapest Garmin color GPS is almost 900.00 dollars. (the extra cost is NOT worth saving for IMO). I got my GPS from here http://www.tvnav.com/ When it first came out for 425.00 dollars. Email them and they will give you the current price for the Garmin GPS V which I bet is under 399.00 from them. About antennas. My GPS V has a external/removable antenna. My friend has a Garmin Etrex Vista with the built in antenna. When we stand near each other and compare sat connection readings they are about the same, but when we do this in a heavily wooded area I always seem to have better signal. Just a little FYI. If you want autorouting - it makes a GPS start to get costly. There arent to many GPS's that have autorouting and most of them are out of your price range. If you decide to get a Non autorouting GPS within your price range I would suggest one of these 3: eTrex Summit, eTrex Legend, eTrex Vista Mainly the Vista (very nice unit I have used one a lot before) for the sole purpose that Garmin has a 50.00 dollar rebate on each of those units. I bet that TVNAV place has the vista for under 300 dollars (ebay has it "buy it now" for 287.00 dollars) and then top that off with another 50 bucks back with the rebate. http://www.garmin.com/whatsNew/currentpromotions/ Anyway, I hope any info I gave can help ya decide. I personally would NOT pay the extra money for a color screen, but I certainly would pay the xtra cash for autorouting. [This message was edited by lackdog on December 23, 2002 at 12:09 AM.]

DON'T VOTE...! THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE POLL. IT's NOT RECORDING VOTES. [This message was edited by lackdog on December 23, 2002 at 09:02 AM.]

The subject of this is my question. I have cam across caches that require I follow a bearing and I;m not 100% clear on this. I know it means turn and walk a certain direction, but im still confused. for instance: "Get out of your car and go about 120 yards heading approximately 275 degrees." or "306 degree bearing - follow this about 36 paces to the cache." Any help on explaining this is appreciated

Well I dunno about the rest of you but I really use the crap out of my GPS. From caching to traveling to using when I got ATV'ing. Well ATV'ing with my GPS has taken its toll on my screen a bit with a few minor scratches. You can't even see the scratches when the backlight is on, but when it's off you can. Esp. the big one in the middle. Ohh by the way my GPS is a Garmin GPS V. I called Garmin to see if I could get a replacement screen and they said they don't just sell that they only sell the entire case for 150.00 bucks...!!!!! The garmin guy said try some sort of scratch remover, but I don't wanna try it and scratch it more. I was just wondering if any of you guys have ever used a scratch remover or know of a way to get scratches off the screen. Any help is appreciated.

I have read a lot about WAAS and heres a basic rundown: -Yes it "can" improve accuracy -It works better for marine applications or if your in wide open areas. If your in a forest or something with WAAS turned on or off you really won't see a differance in accuracy. -Processor intensive functions such as auto route calculations will run considerably slower when WAAS is turned on. ----------------------------------- WHAT IS WAAS You've heard the term WAAS, seen it on packaging and ads for GARMIN products, maybe even know it stands for Wide Area Augmentation System. Okay, so what the heck is it? Basically, it's a system of satellites and ground stations that provide GPS signal corrections, giving you even better position accuracy. How much better? Try an average of up to five times better. A WAAS-capable receiver can give you a position accuracy of better than three meters, 95 percent of the time. And you don't have to purchase additional receiving equipment or pay service fees to utilize WAAS. The origins of WAAS The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of Transportation are developing the WAAS program for use in precision flight approaches. Currently, GPS alone does not meet the FAA's navigation requirements for accuracy, integrity and availability. WAAS corrects for GPS signal errors caused by ionospheric disturbances, timing and satellite orbit errors and provides vital integrity information regarding the health of each GPS satellite. Although WAAS has not yet been approved for aviation, the system is available for civilian use, such as for boaters and recreational GPS users. How it Works WAAS consists of approximately 25 ground reference stations positioned across the United States that monitor GPS satellite data. Two master stations, located on either coast, collect data from the reference stations and create a GPS correction message. This correction accounts for GPS satellite orbit and clock drift plus signal delays caused by the atmosphere and ionosphere. The corrected differential message is then broadcast through one of two geostationary satellites, or satellites with a fixed position over the equator. The information is compatible with the basic GPS signal structure, which means any WAAS-enabled GPS receiver can read the signal. Who benefits from WAAS? Currently, WAAS satellite coverage is only available in North America. There are no ground reference stations in South America, so even though GPS users there can receive WAAS, the signal has not been corrected and thus would not improve the accuracy of their unit. For some users in the U.S., the position of the satellites over the equator makes it difficult to receive the signals when trees or mountains obstruct the view of the horizon. WAAS signal reception is ideal for open land and marine applications. WAAS provides extended coverage both inland and offshore compared to the land-based DGPS (differential GPS) system. Another benefit of WAAS is that it does not require additional receiving equipment while DGPS does. Other governments are developing similar satellite-based differential systems. In Asia, it's the Japanese Multi-Functional Satellite Augmentation System (MSAS), while Europe has the Euro Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS). Eventually, GPS users around the world will have access to precise position data using these and other compatible systems.

quote: Talked to a frind today who uses a Garmin Legend and he said it's almost impossible to follow the map manually because you are constantly zooming in and out. He said if you are zoomed in tight enough to see a detailed turn on a small road, you are zoomed in too far to get the big picture of the overall route. That makes good sence to me. I have a Garmin GPS V and you can turn that auto zoom off. I personally never have it on autozoom. Actually I have never had it on autozoom, now' I'm going to have to check it out. I had a GPS III plus and returned it cuze of memory being to small. After I got the GPS V I will NEVER buy a GPS without autorouting. It's just too cool...!

The vehicle I use to get near caches is a 1993 Chevy suburban 4x4 1500. Its got a 35 gallon tank and it's the full size (not a yukon). Its got my Garmin GPS V mounted on the dash with the mount that came with the unit. I also got a 5.5 inch color LCD with a DVD/MP3/CD player and a Galaxy 959 CB. It's got it all. Global positioning, communication and entertainment.

Basically my question is in the subject. I was curious about a link to a 5.0/5.0 difficulty single cache if anyone knows of any. Thanks

This is my first post ever to the forums and today is the first day I Geocached. I been using a Garmin GPS V for a long time now while ATV'ing in Michigan. I was wondering if anyone else in the forums ATV's and if they have some picks of how they got their GPS units mounted to their machines. Heres a pick of how I got mine mounted to my 2002 Kawasaki Prairie 650. I use a RAM mount made for the GPS III/GPS V. Want to see tons of our ATV trip picks goto LACKDOG.com "If your not ATV'ing with 589's your not ATV'ing" [This message was edited by lackdog on December 10, 2002 at 09:13 PM.] [This message was edited by lackdog on December 10, 2002 at 09:23 PM.]