If it's not OS you're after (foreign areas), then you can download to your own SD for free, why pay?!

http://www.openfietsmap.nl/

my mate copied me full uk maps onto a micro sd works brill don,t know how he did it, think its ridiculous the price they charge and they must copy from a master card, garmin 800 only probs iv,e had is straight lines on trips where it turns itself off, i run it with external power pack for longer times now

Thanks for the comments. I'm leaning towards the eTrex 30.
I've got £280 to spend, at RRP. So the Oregon pushes that. eTrex comes in under, even with a bike mount.

mattpage wrote:Thanks for the comments. I'm leaning towards the eTrex 30.
I've got £280 to spend, at RRP. So the Oregon pushes that. eTrex comes in under, even with a bike mount.

Just received my Dakota 20 (thanks to this thread) from Handtec for £127 and the official bike mount http://www.handtec.co.uk/garmin-colorad ... mount.html
They fit perfectly together with no slippage.

Thanks all


Plus I've sold my old gps until for 25% of the cost of this one

Ended up going for the Etrex 30 & bike mount.

Any battery suggestions? Disposable I assume will be best?

I use NIMH batteries. Shop around a bit. Mine are normally from 7dayshop.com

mattpage wrote:Ended up going for the Etrex 30 & bike mount.

Any battery suggestions? Disposable I assume will be best?

If its for something like the BB200 then I'll use Lithium disposables so I definitely get 24hrs+ from a pair. If doing a normal ride then 7dayshop rechargeable batteries of whichever mAh is the highest they offer at the time.

HT550 is the main one.

Lithium's if disposable, Sanyo eneloops for rechargeables.

The in laws get Which? Magazine.

Review in December issue says Energizer Lithium (£7 for 4) narrowly sneak ahead of Maplin Extralonglife+ Lithium's(£6 for 4) for disposables and Aldi & Lidl Alkalines are the next best! (£2 for 4 and last 6 hours vs 8 hours for the Lithiums in their test).

Garmin Etrex 20 here. Bought as a recommendation. It's been great so far, about 3 months and 600+ miles. Definitely use lithium batteries. To give you an idea I did the BB200 with it and lithium batteries, took me just over 24 hours and the battery indicator was still showing full. I tried it with alkaline batteries and it got me from London to Koksijde, Belgium and back on a single set...

The handlebar mount isn't great, just mounts with zip ties.

Still I'd recommend it.

Also bought the Ioffer maps. Very good.

Giacomo

gsm7 wrote: The handlebar mount isn't great, just mounts with zip ties.

It's worth putting a wee bit of inner tube (or other soft rubber shim) between the zipties and the bars as this gives a much firmer mount.

I've just realised I've been sent the wrong bike mount for the eTrex. I think it is for the Dakota or Montana.

Can anyone recommend a bike mount for the etrex? They seem to be harder to find.

etrex 30 mounts

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/37121285 ... 0&ff14=108

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/garm ... lsrc=aw.ds

They can be a little rattly.

I packed the top bit of the central section with electrical tape to prevent it.

Also, worth a camera style hand loop to secure to the bars in case of ejection.

heres Aidans solution to a worn / loose mount for future ref.
http://www.aidanharding.com/2012/02/how ... ike-mount/

I've just realised I've been sent the wrong bike mount for the eTrex. I think it is for the Dakota or Montana.

I thought they were the same mount. The one in Daves link is certainly the same as I use with my Dakota.

FLV wrote: They can be a little rattly.

I packed the top bit of the central section with electrical tape to prevent it.
/

My Dakota went " a bit rattly" after some use but the Oregon (identical mount) is, if anything, too tight. The back of the Dakota is plastic, the mount on the Oregon is metal so I can only assume it's a wear-related thing.

So on my travels on the internet, I've come across a couple of other mounts for the etrex 10/20/30.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Garmin-Etrex- ... 1608831567

Is pricey, looks heavy, but looks pretty tough!



And then of course RAM Mount make one too

http://www.rammount.com/part/RAM-HOL-GA48U



Plus whatever handlebar bit you want.



I think I shall get the cheap is chips cable tied on std garmin one, modify it if required and put a safety loop on it.

Looking down a different line entirely here, has anyone sued something like a Suunto Ambit 3, or the older Ambit 2 model?

I normally wear a watch, but don't like wearing my decent watch out on the bike, backpacking, climbing, etc. As something for tracking on the bike, or getting a fast emergency grid reference otherwise, how would you'll rate them? Really not fussed about the navigation side of things… I'd rather use an OS map.

Is pricey, looks heavy, but looks pretty tough!

Bloody hell, it's almost cheaper to replace a broken / lost gps than buy the mount

Went down a rather unusual path for me and got a Edge 810 just recently. Got it for only a few quid more than eTrex 30.
Works quite different as it's set up as a training/racing gadget, but boy it's smart. And fast. And I can play around with it in places I actually should hold on to the bars. Even with thick gloves. That's a huge plus to the eTrex. Then it's only short of 100 g and nowadays I can load all my electronic toys (GPS, torch, mobile) from a power tank as many toys come with mini/micro USB ports. So I droped the AA-battery issue. For hiking it's a different story, but there my Foretrex is sufficient.

And the Edge looks good. And some functions make you laugh.
I'm really starting to like it. Did I say that the price a dropped?

Battery life is pretty much as stated, somewhere round about 17 h. But then if not in use it'll switch itself off after 15 min (if you select that function).