View Full Version : And so I gave up...



d’76
05-03-2006, 05:05 PM
Over the last couple of days I have been putting a little something together for an adventure and had to give up. I tried and tried to get good signals and I would waypoint and then try to walk back to that area and would be 300 ft away. I tried everything I canged batteries and even went and borrowed a new gps from a local gps store and nothing worth using. I through the unit in the truck and came home. I figured that the waypoints that i created where so bad that I will have to go back another day to see if it is any better.:mad:

I had lots of satellites and accuracy at time was +/- 18 ft. I think that is pretty good. I would go back after shutting my unit off and then bring it back up and go back to the location and it be 300 plus feet away.

I will try another day.:(

Hiram357
05-03-2006, 05:09 PM
what kind of area is it in? sometimes large rocks, foliage, and other obsticles that can refract radio signals will reek havoc on your GPS. Usually for best acuracy I will visit a waypoint at least twice at different times of the day, and at each visit i will mark 3 waypoints, then i'll take the average of those waypoints. I doubt it's the GPS or the user having problems, ya just need some patience :D

d’76
05-03-2006, 05:11 PM
what kind of area is it in? sometimes large rocks, foliage, and other obsticles that can refract radio signals will reek havoc on your GPS. Usually for best acuracy I will visit a waypoint at least twice at different times of the day, and at each visit i will mark 3 waypoints, then i'll take the average of those waypoints. I doubt it's the GPS or the user having problems, ya just need some patience :D

I was in the town square. clear shot of the sky and no trees. I would have had a better chance with TRF's magellan:D

Slate
05-03-2006, 05:14 PM
Do you have an external antenna? I am amazed what a difference it can make when you are struggling for a good signal. Defiantly 20 bucks well spent.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Remote-GPS-Antenna-for-Garmin-60-C320-C330-2720-2730-76_W0QQitemZ9721671720QQcategoryZ58044QQssPageName ZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem (http://cgi.ebay.com/Remote-GPS-Antenna-for-Garmin-60-C320-C330-2720-2730-76_W0QQitemZ9721671720QQcategoryZ58044QQssPageName ZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)

WhereRWe?
05-03-2006, 06:04 PM
[QUOTE=Slate]Do you have an external antenna? I am amazed what a difference it can make when you are struggling for a good signal. Defiantly 20 bucks well spent.

I recently got an external antenna and it does get better signals. :D :D
(But you look silly with it attached to the metal button on top on your hat.)

And I wear it defiantly! ;) ;)

WhereRWe?
05-03-2006, 06:06 PM
Over the last couple of days I have been putting a little something together for an adventure and had to give up. I tried and tried to get good signals and I would waypoint and then try to walk back to that area and would be 300 ft away. I tried everything I canged batteries and even went and borrowed a new gps from a local gps store and nothing worth using. I through the unit in the truck and came home. I figured that the waypoints that i created where so bad that I will have to go back another day to see if it is any better.:mad:

I had lots of satellites and accuracy at time was +/- 18 ft. I think that is pretty good. I would go back after shutting my unit off and then bring it back up and go back to the location and it be 300 plus feet away.
(

I've had a lot of trouble lately with my 60c as well. We even gave up on one cache recently because we could not get it to within 100 feet.

(I'll smack the first person who says to get a Magellan!!!) :p :p

Mainiac1957
05-03-2006, 06:11 PM
Remember all the trouble we all had down at MT Ag this past weekend. Yours, mine, and Johns were all acting up.

Hiram357
05-03-2006, 06:11 PM
I've had a lot of trouble lately with my 60c as well. We even gave up on one cache recently because we could not get it to within 100 feet.

(I'll smack the first person who says to get a Magellan!!!) :p :phey bruce, why dontya get a magellan???? :D:D:D:D

Hiram357
05-03-2006, 06:12 PM
I wonder if this has anything to do with the satelite house cleaning that the gov is doing up in space???????

becket
05-03-2006, 06:49 PM
[quote=Slate]

And I wear it defiantly! ;) ;)

and that's what i like about you! LOL

Beach Comber
05-03-2006, 07:33 PM
I recently got an external antenna and it does get better signals. :D :D
(But you look silly with it attached to the metal button on top on your hat.)

And I wear it defiantly! ;) ;)

Now Bruce - don't be so harsh on yourself. You didn't look out of place at all with that antennae on top of your head at the event!!:p

WhereRWe?
05-03-2006, 07:33 PM
[quote=WhereRWe?]

and that's what i like about you! LOL

LOL!

Before I ordered the external antenna, I asked BRDAD what he thought about it. He said to go for it, and suggested that I get an Army helmet liner to mount it on. I intended to have it ready for the Mt. Agammm?? event, so I got one, but the helmet liner turned out to be a cheap plastic kid's thing.

You will see me DEFIANTLY wearing my helmet liner with antenna in the future! LOL!

RubiconJW
05-03-2006, 10:33 PM
I've noticed the WAAS sat on & off for the pase few weeks & wondered the same thing.. Considering it's in a test mode then how accurate do ya suppose the data is?? Do the airlines rely on this?? can they over-ride the data link?? can we??
trudge..trudge..trudge..YAAAHHHHhhhhh..splat..
guess they moved that cliff a half mile or so...http://www.maineline.net/~jwatts/images/graemlins/smiley_abused.gif

..JW..

parmachenee
05-04-2006, 06:13 AM
We were out yesterday doing a couple of caches and I had the same problem...20ft from cache and then suddenly 100ft from cache. I know I can't move that fast!! :) But that's been a problem recently even without tree cover but much more exaggerated in tree cover. I have the 60cs and the garmin vista and they both do it so I think there is something else going on.

Trezurs*-R-*Fun
05-04-2006, 06:58 AM
I've had a lot of trouble lately with my 60c as well. We even gave up on one cache recently because we could not get it to within 100 feet.

(I'll smack the first person who says to get a Magellan!!!) :p :p

I have one I'll give ya:D !!!!

Beach Comber
05-04-2006, 03:48 PM
We were out yesterday doing a couple of caches and I had the same problem...20ft from cache and then suddenly 100ft from cache. I know I can't move that fast!! :) But that's been a problem recently even without tree cover but much more exaggerated in tree cover. I have the 60cs and the garmin vista and they both do it so I think there is something else going on.

It's a conspiracy, I tell ya!!! :eek:
OOPS - did I "say that out loud"? hehehehehe :D