Wilsons Sandbox

Posted: **Fri Dec 08, 2006 2:23 pm**

OK, I've been holding out for a GPS for the KLR until Garmin released their new, made-for-motorcycles one, the Zumo. It's out now: http://www.garmin.com/products/zumo/ But I still don't know which one I want to get. Why? Well, no GPS made does everything I want it to - everything is a compromise. I'm hoping you may be able to help me make the best compromise. I used to own a Garmin GPSV and currently own a Garmin StreetPilot 2610, so I'm very familiar with their products. So what is it that I want? 1. A GPS that will survive on a motorcycle environment & be usable while riding one. 2. A GPS that will work well on a Dual-Sport bike AND a street bike 3. A GPS that will accept both Street Detail maps AND Topo maps (this is where my 2610 fails) 4. A GPS with enough memory that will allow me to load both street detail and topo maps for a whole trip - even if it's across the whole country 5. A GPS with a built-in Radio would be great, like the Garmin Rhino: http://www.garmin.com/products/rino530/ 6. Price isn't a huge deal (they're all expensive, just some more so than others) So - the Zumo has features 1 through 4 nailed, hands-down (has SD card expandable memory). The downside is that I need a separate device for bike to bike communication. The upside is that this leaves me flexibility to choose the radio & headset options that suit the bike best (i.e. one-up Dual-sport trips or two-up street trips on the street bike). The Rhino has 1, 2, 3, and 5. The downside is that I need to carry a danged PC to upload & download maps as I traverse very far (i.e. more than one state away). I refuse to carry a laptop on a KLR dual-sport trip (Different if I were on a Gold Wing). Even the James-Bond-Cool Sony VGN-UX280P is way more expensive than a Zumo (http://tinyurl.com/yn2az2) But it does give me remote email access (oh yeah, like I want to do that on a dual-sport trip!). The plus here, though, is pretty awesome - the Rhino GPS plots my location on my buddy's Rhino and vice versa. Handy to have, but how many people I ride with would have one? (One, maybe two if I can talk one friend into getting one also) I think I'm leaning toward the Zumo since having a radio on the bike isn't as disgusting or expensive as carrying a Tiny PC. What are your thoughts, my friends?? Jeff Layton A15 Austin, TX -------------------------------------------- My mailbox is spam-free with ChoiceMail, the leader in personal and corporate anti-spam solutions. Download your free copy of ChoiceMail from www.digiportal.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Posted: **Fri Dec 08, 2006 2:58 pm**

I used a Tom Tom Rider for a little while. Nice unit, but the display was very hard to see in the sunlight. I couldn't imagine trying to decipher it while riding. Unless the Garmin comes with a hood, I suspect it'll have the same problem, thereby failing criterion #1. __Arden

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Jeff Layton" wrote: > > OK, I've been holding out for a GPS for the KLR until Garmin released their new, made-for-motorcycles one, the Zumo. > > It's out now: http://www.garmin.com/products/zumo/ > > But I still don't know which one I want to get. Why? Well, no GPS made does everything I want it to - everything is a compromise. I'm hoping you may be able to help me make the best compromise. I used to own a Garmin GPSV and currently own a Garmin StreetPilot 2610, so I'm very familiar with their products. > > So what is it that I want? > 1. A GPS that will survive on a motorcycle environment & be usable while riding one. > 2. A GPS that will work well on a Dual-Sport bike AND a street bike > 3. A GPS that will accept both Street Detail maps AND Topo maps (this is where my 2610 fails) > 4. A GPS with enough memory that will allow me to load both street detail and topo maps for a whole trip - even if it's across the whole country > 5. A GPS with a built-in Radio would be great, like the Garmin Rhino: http://www.garmin.com/products/rino530/ > 6. Price isn't a huge deal (they're all expensive, just some more so than others) > > > So - the Zumo has features 1 through 4 nailed, hands-down (has SD card expandable memory). The downside is that I need a separate device for bike to bike communication. The upside is that this leaves me flexibility to choose the radio & headset options that suit the bike best (i.e. one-up Dual-sport trips or two-up street trips on the street bike). > > The Rhino has 1, 2, 3, and 5. The downside is that I need to carry a danged PC to upload & download maps as I traverse very far (i.e. more than one state away). I refuse to carry a laptop on a KLR dual- sport trip (Different if I were on a Gold Wing). Even the James-Bond- Cool Sony VGN-UX280P is way more expensive than a Zumo (http://tinyurl.com/yn2az2) > But it does give me remote email access (oh yeah, like I want to do that on a dual-sport trip!). The plus here, though, is pretty awesome - the Rhino GPS plots my location on my buddy's Rhino and vice versa. Handy to have, but how many people I ride with would have one? (One, maybe two if I can talk one friend into getting one also) > > I think I'm leaning toward the Zumo since having a radio on the bike isn't as disgusting or expensive as carrying a Tiny PC. > > What are your thoughts, my friends?? > > Jeff Layton > A15 > Austin, TX > -------------------------------------------- > My mailbox is spam-free with ChoiceMail, the leader in personal and corporate anti-spam solutions. Download your free copy of ChoiceMail from www.digiportal.com > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] >

Posted: **Fri Dec 08, 2006 4:20 pm**

i'm not real impressed by the potential for the zumo as an offroad-friendly unit. i just think the design looks more tailored to street bikes in terms of durability and mapping. i am strongly considering the garmin gpsman 76csx: http://gpsinformation.us/gps60c/g76Creview.html

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Arden Kysely" wrote: > > I used a Tom Tom Rider for a little while. Nice unit, but the display > was very hard to see in the sunlight. I couldn't imagine trying to > decipher it while riding. Unless the Garmin comes with a hood, I > suspect it'll have the same problem, thereby failing criterion #1. > > __Arden > > --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Jeff Layton" wrote: > > > > OK, I've been holding out for a GPS for the KLR until Garmin > released their new, made-for-motorcycles one, the Zumo. > > > > It's out now: http://www.garmin.com/products/zumo/ > > > > But I still don't know which one I want to get. Why? Well, no GPS > made does everything I want it to - everything is a compromise. I'm > hoping you may be able to help me make the best compromise. I used to > own a Garmin GPSV and currently own a Garmin StreetPilot 2610, so I'm > very familiar with their products. > > > > So what is it that I want? > > 1. A GPS that will survive on a motorcycle environment & be usable > while riding one. > > 2. A GPS that will work well on a Dual-Sport bike AND a street bike > > 3. A GPS that will accept both Street Detail maps AND Topo maps > (this is where my 2610 fails) > > 4. A GPS with enough memory that will allow me to load both street > detail and topo maps for a whole trip - even if it's across the whole > country > > 5. A GPS with a built-in Radio would be great, like the Garmin > Rhino: http://www.garmin.com/products/rino530/ > > 6. Price isn't a huge deal (they're all expensive, just some more > so than others) > > > > > > So - the Zumo has features 1 through 4 nailed, hands-down (has SD > card expandable memory). The downside is that I need a separate > device for bike to bike communication. The upside is that this leaves > me flexibility to choose the radio & headset options that suit the > bike best (i.e. one-up Dual-sport trips or two-up street trips on the > street bike). > > > > The Rhino has 1, 2, 3, and 5. The downside is that I need to carry > a danged PC to upload & download maps as I traverse very far (i.e. > more than one state away). I refuse to carry a laptop on a KLR dual- > sport trip (Different if I were on a Gold Wing). Even the James-Bond- > Cool Sony VGN-UX280P is way more expensive than a Zumo > (http://tinyurl.com/yn2az2) > > But it does give me remote email access (oh yeah, like I want to do > that on a dual-sport trip!). The plus here, though, is pretty > awesome - the Rhino GPS plots my location on my buddy's Rhino and > vice versa. Handy to have, but how many people I ride with would have > one? (One, maybe two if I can talk one friend into getting one also) > > > > I think I'm leaning toward the Zumo since having a radio on the > bike isn't as disgusting or expensive as carrying a Tiny PC. > > > > What are your thoughts, my friends?? > > > > Jeff Layton > > A15 > > Austin, TX > > -------------------------------------------- > > My mailbox is spam-free with ChoiceMail, the leader in personal and > corporate anti-spam solutions. Download your free copy of ChoiceMail > from www.digiportal.com > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > >

Posted: **Fri Dec 08, 2006 5:53 pm**

I have also been looking at the Zumo...it is reported to have many nice motorcycle-specific features, like the fuel gauge, waterproof/vibration-resistance, etc., and if they use the same type of screen that they have on their color eTrex line, sunlight viewability will not be an issue. It looks like they intend for the thing to be dual-sport-friendly as well, if this article is any indication: http://garmin.blogs.com/my_weblog/2006/10/cycleworld_trek.html#more As far as the built-in radio idea is concerned, I personally don't think I would want it included in my GPS unless I was using something like APRS, and then I have a dedicated radio/GPS set for that (Yeah, I'm a HAM). This also allows you to have a better GPS, as well as a better radio, rather than the compromise that units like the Rino tend to be. Don't get me wrong, the Rino has it's uses, and they are nice for small groups wanting to keep track of each other. I also noticed that Garmin lists Bluetooth connectivity with cell phones and headsets, so that's a possible option for bike-to-bike communications. I do like the SD Card expandability, I'd like to know how big a card it will accept. If it will take 2GB cards, that would be enough room for almost all the maps Garmin offers, or you could use smaller cards to store specific sections of your planned routes, with overlap, and swap cards as necessary. Heck, Garmin even includes RAM mount hardware with the things! Sounds like a winner to me.... Warren - Seward, NE :-- 2005 KLR650 1980 SR500

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Jeff Layton" wrote: > > OK, I've been holding out for a GPS for the KLR until Garmin released their new, made-for-motorcycles one, the Zumo. > > It's out now: http://www.garmin.com/products/zumo/ > > But I still don't know which one I want to get. Why? Well, no GPS made does everything I want it to - everything is a compromise. I'm hoping you may be able to help me make the best compromise. I used to own a Garmin GPSV and currently own a Garmin StreetPilot 2610, so I'm very familiar with their products. > > So what is it that I want? > 1. A GPS that will survive on a motorcycle environment & be usable while riding one. > 2. A GPS that will work well on a Dual-Sport bike AND a street bike > 3. A GPS that will accept both Street Detail maps AND Topo maps (this is where my 2610 fails) > 4. A GPS with enough memory that will allow me to load both street detail and topo maps for a whole trip - even if it's across the whole country > 5. A GPS with a built-in Radio would be great, like the Garmin Rhino: http://www.garmin.com/products/rino530/ > 6. Price isn't a huge deal (they're all expensive, just some more so than others) > > > So - the Zumo has features 1 through 4 nailed, hands-down (has SD card expandable memory). The downside is that I need a separate device for bike to bike communication. The upside is that this leaves me flexibility to choose the radio & headset options that suit the bike best (i.e. one-up Dual-sport trips or two-up street trips on the street bike). > > The Rhino has 1, 2, 3, and 5. The downside is that I need to carry a danged PC to upload & download maps as I traverse very far (i.e. more than one state away). I refuse to carry a laptop on a KLR dual-sport trip (Different if I were on a Gold Wing). Even the James-Bond-Cool Sony VGN-UX280P is way more expensive than a Zumo (http://tinyurl.com/yn2az2) > But it does give me remote email access (oh yeah, like I want to do that on a dual-sport trip!). The plus here, though, is pretty awesome - the Rhino GPS plots my location on my buddy's Rhino and vice versa. Handy to have, but how many people I ride with would have one? (One, maybe two if I can talk one friend into getting one also) > > I think I'm leaning toward the Zumo since having a radio on the bike isn't as disgusting or expensive as carrying a Tiny PC. > > What are your thoughts, my friends?? > > Jeff Layton > A15 > Austin, TX > -------------------------------------------- > My mailbox is spam-free with ChoiceMail, the leader in personal and corporate anti-spam solutions. Download your free copy of ChoiceMail from www.digiportal.com > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] >

Posted: **Fri Dec 08, 2006 7:56 pm**

You could check out the TouraTech stuff. They claim they "harden" the Garmin/Magellan GPS units they sell (and price them accordingly). Jeremy ----- Original Message ---- From: dahlheim To: DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com Sent: Friday, December 8, 2006 4:18:35 PM Subject: [DSN_KLR650] Re: New GPS available - good for the KLR?? decisions, decisions! i'm not real impressed by the potential for the zumo as an offroad-friendly unit. i just think the design looks more tailored to street bikes in terms of durability and mapping. i am strongly considering the garmin gpsman 76csx: http://gpsinformati on.us/gps60c/ g76Creview. html

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogro ups.com, "Arden Kysely" wrote: > > I used a Tom Tom Rider for a little while. Nice unit, but the display > was very hard to see in the sunlight. I couldn't imagine trying to > decipher it while riding. Unless the Garmin comes with a hood, I > suspect it'll have the same problem, thereby failing criterion #1. > > __Arden > > --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogro ups.com, "Jeff Layton" wrote: > > > > OK, I've been holding out for a GPS for the KLR until Garmin > released their new, made-for-motorcycle s one, the Zumo. > > > > It's out now: http://www.garmin. com/products/ zumo/ > > > > But I still don't know which one I want to get. Why? Well, no GPS > made does everything I want it to - everything is a compromise. I'm > hoping you may be able to help me make the best compromise. I used to > own a Garmin GPSV and currently own a Garmin StreetPilot 2610, so I'm > very familiar with their products. > > > > So what is it that I want? > > 1. A GPS that will survive on a motorcycle environment & be usable > while riding one. > > 2. A GPS that will work well on a Dual-Sport bike AND a street bike > > 3. A GPS that will accept both Street Detail maps AND Topo maps > (this is where my 2610 fails) > > 4. A GPS with enough memory that will allow me to load both street > detail and topo maps for a whole trip - even if it's across the whole > country > > 5. A GPS with a built-in Radio would be great, like the Garmin > Rhino: http://www.garmin. com/products/ rino530/ > > 6. Price isn't a huge deal (they're all expensive, just some more > so than others) > > > > > > So - the Zumo has features 1 through 4 nailed, hands-down (has SD > card expandable memory). The downside is that I need a separate > device for bike to bike communication. The upside is that this leaves > me flexibility to choose the radio & headset options that suit the > bike best (i.e. one-up Dual-sport trips or two-up street trips on the > street bike). > > > > The Rhino has 1, 2, 3, and 5. The downside is that I need to carry > a danged PC to upload & download maps as I traverse very far (i.e. > more than one state away). I refuse to carry a laptop on a KLR dual- > sport trip (Different if I were on a Gold Wing). Even the James-Bond- > Cool Sony VGN-UX280P is way more expensive than a Zumo > (http://tinyurl. com/yn2az2) > > But it does give me remote email access (oh yeah, like I want to do > that on a dual-sport trip!). The plus here, though, is pretty > awesome - the Rhino GPS plots my location on my buddy's Rhino and > vice versa. Handy to have, but how many people I ride with would have > one? (One, maybe two if I can talk one friend into getting one also) > > > > I think I'm leaning toward the Zumo since having a radio on the > bike isn't as disgusting or expensive as carrying a Tiny PC. > > > > What are your thoughts, my friends?? > > > > Jeff Layton > > A15 > > Austin, TX > > ------------ --------- --------- --------- ----- > > My mailbox is spam-free with ChoiceMail, the leader in personal and > corporate anti-spam solutions. Download your free copy of ChoiceMail > from www.digiportal. com > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Posted: **Sat Dec 09, 2006 9:42 am**

I haven't been following this thread (even though I'm tall) because I haven't ridden enough other bikes to offer much info... but now that it's about urban riding: Came across these two clips recently, short and worth watching. The second one if particularly amazing, stick with it. It's not 100% city riding, but it's cool. There's a shot near the end, of a bridge, that'll make your jaw drop. Don't know if it's faked. Oh, yes--the second clip has some profanity in the soundtrack (don't want to offen anyone) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyxrqhcKWeo http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7262092947102213983&q=supermoto&hl=en -Luke --- Mike Brodhead wrote:

> > On Dec 8, 2006, at 6:45 PM, revmaaatin wrote: > > At the very least, do a melodic spoke test during > each oil change, by > > tapping the spokes at the mid-point with a > metallic wrench or > > screwdriver. > > That's a great tip. Thanks, Rev. > > > In the SO-WHAT category for you wanna-be > hooligans: A gentle, slow > > approach to climb up or down a curb should be OK, > and your wheels > > will thank you for it. > > So far all my curb jumps have been fairly slow. I > have fantasies of > nonstop urban motocross, but realistically I'd be > better off learning > that on a smaller bike-- and at age 18 instead of > 38. Such a shame > that my late teens and early twenties were frittered > away studying > computer science and audio engineering rather than > hooliganism. > > > just be mindful that the shiny steel train track > is slick > > as snot, worse if the KLR wheel is wet or muddy. > > Yes, yes. Just across the Bay from me in San > Francisco, light rail > tracks ("Muni tracks" in the lingo) abound downtown. > Crossing those > in the wet, even on the sticky Michelin Pilot Power > tires of my > former ride, is always a little harrowing. I talked > to one guy who > told me that he'd been riding 35 years and had never > been down until > he encountered some wet Muni tracks. > > I try to take those suckers as close to 90 degrees > as possible, keep > a light throttle hand, and make sure my health > insurance premiums are > paid up. I crossed a few today on my Anakees. So > far, so good. > > --mkb > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been > removed] > >

92 CB750 nighthawk--naked simpleton 03 KLR650--fat girl with a dirty mind ____________________________________________________________________________________ Have a burning question? Go to www.Answers.yahoo.com and get answers from real people who know.

Wilsons Sandbox

nklr urban terrain (was [dsn_klr650]motorcycles for tall ri

new gps available - good for the klr?? decisions, decisions!

new gps available - good for the klr?? decisions, decisions!

new gps available - good for the klr?? decisions, decisions!

new gps available - good for the klr?? decisions, decisions!

new gps available - good for the klr?? decisions, decisions!

nklr urban terrain (was [dsn_klr650]motorcycles for tall ri