+Uncle Alaska Posted September 25, 2002 Share Posted September 25, 2002 I just bought a GPS V and felt like I had reached a pinnacle of joy when I put it in my hand and began to use it. Being a user of a gps III since late 1997 I was not in the dark when it comes to all the capabilities. Here is the rub though, I think there is something wrong with my unit. Slight vibration seems to cause all the signals to cut out at once. I will have 8-9 solid bars of reception and then within seconds all signals are lost. Using it on my bike (with the Garmin handlebar kit) is impossible as there is no signal reception 97% of the time (due to the inevitable slight vibrations that happen while riding). Anyone else have the same problem? I have sent an e-mail to cust service at Garmin explaining the problem. (They had been excellent in helping me with a premature memory battery that went dead from my GPS III a few months after I bought it in `97)[bTW, I did not have a single problem with the III since that battery replacement] Any advice??? I hope I can resolve this quickly as I need the unit for a school project soon. -UA Quote Link to comment
umc Posted September 25, 2002 Share Posted September 25, 2002 This is not what I want to hear as I may buy a V soon. Where did you buy it from? If I do pick up one I will get it from REI and if there is a problem with it I will go back to them first and have them replace it and if the second one does the same I would also take that back and go with a different manufacturer. I hope its just the unit you got and not all V's because I plan on using mine on a handle bar mount Mt. biking so like you it will be getting rocked. On that note I haven't heard about this before so it is possible that it is just yours but lets sit back and wait to see if anyone posts further on this one. Quote Link to comment
+Centaur Posted September 25, 2002 Share Posted September 25, 2002 Just a guess, but that sounds like a bad connection in the antenna circuit somewhere. Either in the Antenna itself, or in the jack or internal solder joints. If you have access to a friends V or another antenna, i woudl try swaping and see what happens. Either way, its not normal. My V has been rock solid, even after I fell in a ditch with it. -Centaur Quote Link to comment
+Dawgies Posted September 25, 2002 Share Posted September 25, 2002 No problems with mine. The only thing that I had a quickly resolved issue with was battery size. Not all AA's are the same, as I found out. A slightly smaller battery caused my V to turn off with any vibration. I was fixing to contact Garmin when I finally figured it out. I should have know it wasn't my G-V. Been in heaven ever since! ~Honest Value Never Fails~ Quote Link to comment
+Uncle Alaska Posted September 25, 2002 Author Share Posted September 25, 2002 quote:Originally posted by umc:This is not what I want to hear as I may buy a V soon. Where did you buy it from? Bought it online at Adventure GPS...I have a feeling that I just got a bad apple...I'm not too angry yet as everything in life is not 100% foolproof. I just hope I can resolve it quickly. I wonder if I should have gone through the company I purchased from first? Regardless, I wanted to let Garmin know right away so they can make sure the newly manufactured ones don't have a similar problem. Wish I had kept my GPS III a little longer so I could have swapped antennas for a check...but, my friend was driving South and I wanted her to have a GPS to find caches with... I'll post the results of my customer service here in case anyone wants to know what goes down. Remembered that I have an external mag mount ant. so hooked that up and still was having some vibration problems...I think it may be at the bnc attached to the gps or internal. The V is supposed to be able to handle 6 G's...my shaking (by hand) is not even close to that. Thanks for the responses, -UA [This message was edited by Uncle Alaska on September 25, 2002 at 09:13 PM.] Quote Link to comment
+Criminal Posted September 27, 2002 Share Posted September 27, 2002 Try gently stretching the battery springs. Yesterday whilst hunting benchmarks I was frustrated because every so often my V would shut itself off. After the fifth time I checked the battery saver, it was off, and then I bumped it. Sure enough it shut off. I could hear/feel the batteries bouncing around inside. I stretched the springs slightly and no problems since. As for your problem, I'm wondering if the power interruption is so momentary that it's shutting down the receiver portion of the unit, breaking lock on the satellites. If the unit does not have this problem while plugged in to external power then loose batteries may be the problem. But, what the hell does an old Flight Engineer know? If your house catches afire, and there aint no water around, If your house catches afire, and there aint no water around, Throw your jelly out the window; let the dog-gone shack burn down. **Huddie Ledbetter** Quote Link to comment
pdumas Posted September 27, 2002 Share Posted September 27, 2002 A slightly smaller battery caused my V to turn off with any vibration. I was fixing to contact Garmin when I finally figured it out. This rally happens a lot when using it on my bike. The bike mount comes with a spring ajustment a V Quote Link to comment
+Uncle Alaska Posted September 27, 2002 Author Share Posted September 27, 2002 The external power idea was an option I had not thought to try yet. I did and it still was not operating properly. I am convinced that it is something to do with the antenna. The good news is that I have a replacement unit on it's way as I write this. Thank you to all those out there with advice and support...your thoughts and prayers on this matter have been appreciated....on to some caching this weekend -UA Quote Link to comment
+Criminal Posted September 27, 2002 Share Posted September 27, 2002 Ok, now we're troubleshooting. Look at the antenna connector on the unit itself. You should see a copper sleeve in the tiny hole at the center. If it's too far down in the hole it may not be making a proper contact with the pin in the antenna. Check that too but the unit end is more likely to be the problem. We call that a "pushed pin" on those mondo 55 pin canon plugs. If all that looks good, try another antenna. The best thing is to send it back to garmin and let them deal with it. If your house catches afire, and there aint no water around, If your house catches afire, and there aint no water around, Throw your jelly out the window; let the dog-gone shack burn down. **Huddie Ledbetter** Quote Link to comment
+worldtraveler Posted September 27, 2002 Share Posted September 27, 2002 You've apparently determined the problem is not battery related. One further way to isolate the problem source would be to put the unit in "indoor" mode and shake it. If the display stays on, you may well have an antenna problem; but if the display blinks off, you almost certainly have an electrical power problem. Worldtraveler Quote Link to comment
+Uncle Alaska Posted September 30, 2002 Author Share Posted September 30, 2002 Got my new exchanged unit in the mail today and all is well. Adventure GPS customer service has been excellent in dealing with the situation. On to some caching.....yes! -UA Quote Link to comment
+Criminal Posted September 30, 2002 Share Posted September 30, 2002 I think you shouldn't have given up so easily..... If your house catches afire, and there aint no water around, If your house catches afire, and there aint no water around, Throw your jelly out the window; let the dog-gone shack burn down. **Huddie Ledbetter** Quote Link to comment
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