My ( ) GPS take a linkin'......

[+Woodstramp]

......and keeps on tickin'!

 

As a newbie to GPS's (and as an owner of a Magellan Explorist product ) I've checked this forum and read horror stories galore, like: "....My Garmin bit the dust today.....My Magellan can's get WASS......Help! my (fill in the blank) won't load (fill in the blank)",etc. Luckily, my Explorist 400 (save for no WASS) and my ancient Magellan 2000 both work as billed.

 

Thought I'd give y'all a chance to accentuate the positive. If you've got a GPS unit that has been through the wringer and performed nicely (brand or age matters not) I'd like to hear about it. Maybe others would too. Thanks. -Woodstramp

[+letmein]

I bought an eXplorist 600 when they were brand new. The original firmware had a few minor bugs, but worked pretty good. I upgraded the firmware and the unit was much faster and better. I upgraded to the European version a year ago, and now have all the WAAS I need.

 

I've dropped it. I've worn out the rubber boot over the joy stick. I've let it rattle around in a snowmobile compartment until the screen got scratched. I've had it on a four wheeler out in the dust.

 

Its been a great, solid unit. I just bought my kids each an eXplorist 500. I upgraded the firmware the the European version so they can get WAAS. The kids love the new, but discontinued, units.

[+Miragee]

Well, one day a couple of years ago, while standing on a ledge near the top of a local peak, I heard a "thud." While getting my camera out of my pack, my Garmin Vista C got caught on the camera strap and dropped from the pack, bounced once, and went over the edge from the area at the tip of the arrow.

 

 

When we found it at the bottom, some 200' down, the neoprene case had come off, but the GPS was still on.

[+marcjboudreau]

I've had my Magellan Meridian Gold for quite a few years now. The first day I ever had it out of the house, I was snowmobiling with it just sitting in my pocket. It dropped out at somepoint and I didn't notice it, by the time I noticed it was missing, I had no idea where I'd dropped it at.

I organized a search party, I was at a Scout Camp at the time with 4 Troops in attendance and even with all of us looking for it, we couldn't find it. I figured it was a write off. The temperatures that night went down to about -25oC. While having breakfast this lady walks up to me with my gps asking if I knew what it was, and if I knew who lost it. By the amount of "scuff marks" on it, I had run it over with the snowmobile at least 3 times. I turned it on, worked perfectly, took all 4 Scout Troops geocaching with it for the day and have no problems with it at all.

And then there was the time I dropped it in the lake while canoeing.....

[+T F T C]

What's a "linkin"? Is it like "lickin"?

[+Woodstramp]

What's a "linkin"? Is it like "lickin"?

 

You got a lot of time on your hands, don't you.

 

--- Woodstramp (Tiping tipoes won typo at a tyme!)

[+stfoulks]

A good friend of mine had the misfortune of missing a detour sign while riding his snowmobile on a (mostly) frozen lake. He made it 100' across a 200' stretch of open water and his sled went down (he's ok), with his Garmin 60CSx in the mount on the sled. After 2 weeks under 25' of water, when the sled was finally retrieved, he took the 60CSx, opened it up and set in front of a heater fan set on low. A day later, he put in fresh batteries and turned it on - it worked! Go Garmin!

Edited March 12, 2008 by stfoulks

[+JustinHEMI]

Wow thats pretty impressive and encouraging. Just this past weekend when I was out riding my ATV, my 60CSx was knocked out of its mount by a large tree branch. It hit the dirt and I watched it go under my tire and then the tires of the two guys behind me. Picked it up, dusted it off, and it was still tracking. Barely a scuff mark on the back. I am VERY happy I bought this thing.

 

Justin

[bigbill25]

A few years ago, I was motorcycle riding outside of Redding, CA on a brutally hot day. My Garmin GPS 12 was in the tank bag tracking and keeping other good stats (max speed....). We were in some nice twisties in the hills when my front tire decided it didn't want to hold anymore. My bike, the GPS, and I went over the edge and down the embankment several hundred feet.

 

The bike: Totaled

The GPS: Split along the seem

Me: Shaken, but not stirred (protective gear works...)

 

The GPS still worked, even though is was split along the "sonic weld" seam. I glued it up with some RTV silicone and it still works to this day...

 

--Bill