eTrex compass?

[Guest Guppy]

My "north" pointer doesn't always point north. Am I doing something wrong? I have a Garmin eTrex.

 

Feeling stoopid.

Guppy

[Guest madphishmonger]

Read your manual. The compass requires calibration every now and then. If that doesn't fix it, call garmin as they have free tech support.

[Guest c.mathis]

quote:

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Originally posted by Guppy:

My "north" pointer doesn't always point north.

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I think you have to recalibrate the compass after changing batteries.

[Guest topografix]

Are you talking about the compass screen on the basic eTrex, or the built-in electronic compass on the eTrex Summit? I think the two replies ahead of me were referring to the Summit model.

 

On a GPS without a built-in compass, the compass arrow's accuracy quickly degrades to useless if:

- you're not moving fast enough.

- the last fix was off.

- the current fix is off.

 

The solution: carry a real compass.

 

--

Dan Foster

TopoGrafix: GPS Waypoints, Software, and Maps

http://www.topografix.com

[Guest Paul Lamble]

I think your etrex compass will point to true north while a real compass will point to magnetic north. They're not the same thing. Maybe this is your problem.

 

And also calibrate.

 

Paul Lamble

[Guest Nemesis]

In addition to the suggestions made by Paul Lamble and Topografix...For the eTrex Summit, you can choose to display either true or magnetic north (look under the setup menus)...you will need to turn the compass on first (you can hold down the page key to do this)...you need to hold the GPS absolutly level for it to show a correct reading (it's only accurate to within 5 degrees anyway).

 

Good luck,

Donovan Govan.