Hi.
What GPS units are people using? I love to take long solo rides, off main highways, and don't mind too much getting "lost" ( although I prefer to think of it as finding alternate routes). I would be much more secure in taking interesting side roads that I often pass if I had a GPS unit that would tell me to make a left at the next road to avoid ending up on some single-lane loose-gravel dead-end road. Do I need to get one specifically for motorcycles, or is there enough protection on the S'wing ( ie vibration etc) for any type? Any advice will be much appreciated.

Janice,

I do not currently have a GPS on the bike and so use maps. I love them and they work great. I recognize the value of the GPS though and will go that route soon. I suggest you consider one of DennisB's mounts.

http://www.silverwing600.com/silver-wing-accessories-modifications-f5/dennisb-gps-mount-t129.htm

The made for motorcycle GPSs are the Garmin zumo 550 and 660.

A nice thing about the Garmins, is that you can add your own custom POI files.

http://silverwing.org/cgi-bin/topic_show.pl?tid=2433

Hi Janice,

I use DennisB's mount and per his advice, I bought a Lowrance XOG GPS. It is shock and water resistant. I bought mine new on ebay for $139. Between that, Dennis' mount and the RAM to hold the GPS, the powere adapter (optional), I finished up under $200. I mostly use mine for the exact reason you mentioned. I love taking side roads and I also like to know where I'll end up.

To see apicture of my GPS, click on the link below for my Silver Wing pictures...

Gene,
I just looked at your pictures.

Your Silverwing grew breasts! :ROTF:

Those are the biggest...ahem...speakers I've ever seen on Silverwing handlebars :Not Worthy:

I too use DennisB's mount. I looked and looked for several months at different brands and models of GPSs before I chose one that is not specifically for motorcycles. I only paid a little over $90 for it and have used it since Thanksgiving 08. I have had no problems so far. I really like it. Not only does it tell me how to find places, it bluetooths with my phone and I can use it with the scala helmet intercom as a really good speaker phone that I can use while riding. It plays mp3 files if I choose to listen. Really ads to the riding experience. The mount system created by Dennis is very sturdy. There has been no scientific tests run that I am aware of, but it seems to really make a sturdy place to park my GPS. I have added the power outlet for it and use it all the time.
Hope this helps.
Gary

My Blackberry does GPS navigation. I think the iPhone does that too. It might be cheaper to combine phone + GPS rather than having separate units. The Blackberry Storm comes with a simple nav program, and you can pay a monthly fee for a fancier one with voice promts.

What we REALLY need is a heads-up display for the inside of a visor for GPS. And engine management fuctions, and nighttime FLIR (to avoid hitting wildlife) and.......

By the way, I have the Garmin GPSMAP 60 cSX color handheld. It's something of a legend in the GPS community as it has the most accurate chipset in its class. Garmin has released some newer ones with touchscreens, but they're still not as accurate as the cSX

It's not designed specifically for on-road navigation, though it will certainly do that. Without voice, though, which may or may not matter to you if you're using it on a bike. It's considered a "hiking" tool, primarily, but like any GPS it will approximate the function of any of the other classes of receiver. It's also great for geocaching, if you're into that.

Not sure how I'd put it on the bike, but frankly I don't see why I'd need to. If I get lost I can dig it out from under the seat and figure out where I am. "Getting lost" is half the charm of a random road trip. I don't WANT to know where I am. The loster I get the more successful the drive, in my view.

We have a Garmin Zumo, but the mount's on hubby's bike since we nearly always do long trips together. Not sure how I'd mount one on this bike, but I'm leaning toward the Givi bag that's coming out shortly. It attaches to the bars but can be removed when off the bike. The reason we went with the Zumo is because it's bike-specific and is fairly waterproof. The downside is that even as good as it is, it's taken us on some really weird routes.

I looked at a GPS system this winter but decided not to get one. I'm pretty good at mapping out my day trips and I do wander a lot. As long as my compass can tell me the general direction I should be heading I am fine. Most of the time I find an interesting destination on the Internet, I mapquest it and off I go.
Plus after looking at the GPS systems I decided I would have to get out my glasses to see the screen anyway! So for me it's just as easy to stop and check my map.
A great suggestion I saw was to write route numbers on your windshield with a marker that comes off which sounded like a great idea to me. I usually do that with a peice of paper I keep in my jacket pocket.

Coralee, did you ever see the movie Deliverance? Here in Arkansas, you don't want to just ride in general direction. Some dead end roads can be very unfriendly to uninvited strangers.

(Just kiddin') but it IS very very easy to get lost and go in circles in rural areas like where I live. Cell phone service is spotty so, so you can't always depend on being able to use one to get help. Believe me you CAN get lost.

Thanks for all the assistance and advice.

OPALSBOY wrote

Quote:

Coralee, did you ever see the movie Deliverance? Here in Arkansas, you don't want to just ride in general direction. Some dead end roads can be very unfriendly to uninvited strangers. (Just kiddin') but it IS very very easy to get lost and go in circles in rural areas like where I live. Cell phone service is spotty so, so you can't always depend on being able to use one to get help. Believe me you CAN get lost.

It is very easy to get lost in the rural areas of Ontario as well. The terrain is basically rolling farmland, with few landmarks. I'm not so much worried about unfriendly natives as I am about having to try and manouver out of narrow soft gravel driveways. It's hard to get a good tire ( or boot ) grip when the ground gives way under pressure. I always make sure I have at least a half tank of gas when I head off a main road, and there are a lot of small towns around, but in some areas they still close down on Sundays.
I can generally tell what direction I'm heading , but it would be nice to know what I'm heading to. When I head out for long trips ( more than 3 hours) on my own, I usually have a destination in mind, but sometimes get distracted on my way there or back, and while I take a map with me, and google the route that I plan to take, it would be nice to be able to find out whether, if I take a side route to check out a small provincial park or point of interest , I can get back on my intended route without necessarily backtracking. I've also, in my research , seen some GPS units that let you put in favorites, so that if a side trip turns out to be worthwhile ( great twisty road, great destination, great ice cream stand, festival of some kind in a few weeks, etc) it can be entered so you can return without having to try and remember which spur of the moment detour led you there.

Oh I have gotten lost lots of times. The compass has really helped with that. I generally know about where I am. Last summer I went off some back road and did have quite a time finding my way back out of the area. A young couple who lived in the area were walking with a stroller so I stopped. They weren't sure how to get out???? I've never really worried since I know I can always back-track if I need to. I agree I sure hate it when I'm down some little back road and it turns to gravel... Gravel and I just don't get along!

I am sitting here grinning. I have a compass in my truck. I use my GPS. I have a state map. I have a county map. I am married to an Indian. But there are still places within 15 miles of my house that I have wound up in and had to call my brother to come get me. Unless you know where Bugger Hollar road meets the Charles Huntley Road... you can't get home from Smith Chapel going through Marks Mill. Excuse me... I gotta turn the light on in the room. I can't find the door.
Gary

Soooo true...LOL. I live on the OH/IN border and ride mostly in Southern IN. You get out in the country and there are no road signs. I used to get to an intersection, no signs and look up and it's noon. I would have no clue which way to turn. At least with the compass I know the general direction to turn.

Janice,
This is old dave in western Nebraska u.s.a.
I have a Garmin C330 and I use a Ram Mount on the left Brake cyl. I would post a picture but can not get this figured out. Did get lucky once and posted a couple of pictures of my Swing before I put the GPS on it. Yes it works well..

Hi,

I use my GPS all the time when I go on longer rides. It really helps and takes any worries of knowing where I am. A lot of times when I'm just riding, if I see a road that interests me, I just take it and see where it goes. That is what I like best of riding by myself. So the GPS, mounted to Dennis's GPS mount, works great and makes the ride more enjoyable.

I think the GPS is a great safety tool as it shows the turns etc. in the road before you get to them. You can sometimes come upon a tight turn in a hurry but if you are watching the GPS it will show in advance and give you fair warning on what to expect.
Old Dave

I would think that if you were watching the fence lines / power lines (or anything down the road) rather than a 5 inch tv screen on your handlebars, the turn would not sneak up on you.

DaveR,

You are right about the use of the GPS as a preview of the upcoming road. I think that is perhaps one of its best uses, even more than the route planning and guidance capability.

Jon, I've witnessed the use of a GPS for this very purpose while riding the Blue Ridge Parkway last May. The ability to know what is upcoming can not be overlooked as a help, just one more way to prepare for the route. There were no such road side indicators like fences or line poles, and the forewarning provided by the GPS was helpful. I did not ride mesmerized by the device with my eyes fixated on the screen, but would scan it like all the other instruments. Still watched (read) the road. Was it absolutely a must have item? NO, but it was helpful in a very different sort of way.

I have to have a giggle here. When we travel to Adelaide in the next state SA , we travel east for 700kms approx then turn right go for a further 500 kms south and then turn left east for 1200 kms.. GPS... nah dont thimk so for that part, but they are mighty helpful when getting to Adelaide. really helpful if you are going on to Melbourne or Sydney from there.

I like gadgets. That's the biggest reason I have a GPS on my SW. I have one in my car, my wife's car (she hardly uses it), my airplane (a very handy device up there). Not sure I could live without one anymore.

Our first gen. Garmin took me carefully to the beginning of a bridge that was no longer there on a pretty big river in rural Missouri. The "new" bridge was two blocks further south. Just another reason I travel in daylight