[jet987]

I've found a way to keep my TomTom One GPS (mounted on a Ram Mount on the handlebar) powered after researching past posts. Many have tapped into the auxiliary plug in the headlight bucket but I already have a lightbar connection there and didn't want to risk tapping into that for fear of overloading the circuit, so I routed the power cord (6ft long) from the GPS under the tank, secured by duct tape there, then just under the seat along the frame rail with zip ties, and into the right saddlebag. In the saddlebag it plugs into my Walmart plug, which is plugged into my battery tender leads hooked to the battery, the Walmart plug cord is just long enough to plug into the tender leads under the seat and into the saddlebag to meet the power cord from the GPS. When I take the GPS off the bike, I just disconnect the plug from the GPS and stash the plug in my windshield bag, then disconnect the Walmart plug from the battery tender plug and put the rubber cap back on. From the right side of the bike you cannot see the cord unless you bend down and look under the seat or behind the right saddlebag. I turned on the bike and the GPS a few times, everything worked okay but haven't ridden it like this yet. Attached are pics. Any suggestions, comments, criticisms?

 

[mightydog]

nice! just be sure that slack leading up to the gps doesn't get caught in anything if it starts whipping around in the wind. that's basically what i did, except i went straight to the battery.

 

[jet987]

I found a way to conceal the mini-USB power cord connector when I'm NOT using the GPS: I wrapped velcro adhesive around the mini-USB connector, then put velcro adhesive under the tank just below the speedometer, wrapped the excess part of the cord with a twistie, well concealed now. The duct tape holding the rest of the cord under the tank has been holding up well. Here are pics:

 

[RevBill]

pretty slick man ... nicely done ...

... quick question ... is it the TomTom weatherproof??

... I use an old Magellan and have been thinking about upgrading to the TomTom One 3rd gen ... I see them on sale everywhere but the look like they are strictly for "fair weather" riding ...

 

[shooterrex]

pretty slick man ... nicely done ...

... quick question ... is it the TomTom weatherproof??

... I use an old Magellan and have been thinking about upgrading to the TomTom One 3rd gen ... I see them on sale everywhere but the look like they are strictly for "fair weather" riding ...

They are not waterproof but a zip lock baggie does a good job for a rain cover or remove it and put it somewhere dry.

Ride Safe,
Rex

 

[mightydog]

i use an old magellan meridian, too, and the ziploc baggie for a 'rain-fly'. works fine! see-thru, and can still press buttons. should work with anything! i know ram mount makes a waterproof mounting case see-thru in diff sizes, too.

 

[jet987]

yea, I have a Ram Mount Aquabox to mount my cell phone on the handlebar, it's waterproof and the bigger Aquaboxes can carry a GPS. As mentioned above I use a ziploc bag to protect the GPS in the rain. I didn't want to spend hundreds of dollars more for a waterproof GPS when the ziploc bag does the trick. paid $170 shipped for my Tomtom One 3rd Edition few months ago new on amazon.com, i'm sure it's cheaper now.

 

[RainmanX]

Re: GPS: wired to bike's battery by routing wire under the t

I've found a way to keep my TomTom One GPS (mounted on a Ram Mount on the handlebar) powered after researching past posts. Many have tapped into the auxiliary plug in the headlight bucket but I already have a lightbar connection there and didn't want to risk tapping into that for fear of overloading the circuit, so I routed the power cord (6ft long) from the GPS under the tank, secured by duct tape there, then just under the seat along the frame rail with zip ties, and into the right saddlebag. In the saddlebag it plugs into my Walmart plug, which is plugged into my battery tender leads hooked to the battery, the Walmart plug cord is just long enough to plug into the tender leads under the seat and into the saddlebag to meet the power cord from the GPS. When I take the GPS off the bike, I just disconnect the plug from the GPS and stash the plug in my windshield bag, then disconnect the Walmart plug from the battery tender plug and put the rubber cap back on. From the right side of the bike you cannot see the cord unless you bend down and look under the seat or behind the right saddlebag. I turned on the bike and the GPS a few times, everything worked okay but haven't ridden it like this yet. Attached are pics. Any suggestions, comments, criticisms?

The power draw from a GPS is very miniscule. The head-light aux connector works great from accidentally leaving it on (and attracting attention)

Just my $.02

 

[RevBill]

pretty slick man ... nicely done ...

... quick question ... is it the TomTom weatherproof??

... I use an old Magellan and have been thinking about upgrading to the TomTom One 3rd gen ... I see them on sale everywhere but the look like they are strictly for "fair weather" riding ...

They are not waterproof but a zip lock baggie does a good job for a rain cover or remove it and put it somewhere dry.

Ride Safe,
Rex

... sorry for the slow reply ... thanks ... I can do that ... my old Magellan Sportrak is getting a little "dated" ...

 

[the_snake1201]

Looks good.

I swear I'm the only person that can't find a pig-tail 12-volt outlet in any freakin' store I've gone to.

 

[cyberland]

Nice setup. The only suggestion I would make is to not use duct-tape, as it will dry out over time even come lose or undone. I would suggest using electrical tape, or plastic ties would even be better.

Just my 2 cents worth.

Jim

 

[Fstpicker]

...paid $170 shipped for my Tomtom One 3rd Edition few months ago new on amazon.com, i'm sure it's cheaper now.

They're as cheap as $133 new now, or $99 for refurbished ones after rebate, all on Amazon.

Jeff

 

[Jendesigner]

I have one that I haven't mounted to the bike yet. Thanks for the info an great photos.

 

[rodie1200]

Couple of questions about the GPS.
*Can you see the display ok on sunny days? Do you get alot of glare?
*Where did you get your mount.

Thanks
Rodie

Oh and by the way, I like your set up, nice job
:applause:

 

[jet987]

if the sun is directly shining on it, it can be hard to see. got my Ram Mount at gpscity.com

Couple of questions about the GPS.
*Can you see the display ok on sunny days? Do you get alot of glare?
*Where did you get your mount.

Thanks
Rodie

Oh and by the way, I like your set up, nice job
:applause:

 

[rodie1200]

if the sun is directly shining on it, it can be hard to see. got my Ram Mount at gpscity.com

Couple of questions about the GPS.
*Can you see the display ok on sunny days? Do you get alot of glare?
*Where did you get your mount.

Thanks
Rodie

Oh and by the way, I like your set up, nice job
:applause:

Thanks

 

[jet987]

I'm selling my Tomtom GPS with Ram Mounts and car mounts in this thread, I now have a smartphone with built-in GPS that fits my needs better:

http://www.volusiariders.com/viewtopic.php?t=83754&highlight=

 

[jpaige]

I recently picked up a Garmin Street Pilot 2720 specifically because they are waterproof, and pretty cheap too. They also have a screen that can be seen in direct light pretty well.

 

[barrynfla]

I recently picked up a Garmin Street Pilot 2720 specifically because they are waterproof, and pretty cheap too. They also have a screen that can be seen in direct light pretty well.

Jeff, what do you think of the 2720? Specifically, how is the speaker? Can you actually hear it pretty well? I'm thinking about the 2730 which has the mp3 player.

Thanks!

Barry

 

[jpaige]

The speaker would work well in the car, but it's pretty useless on the bike. I did just order the motorcycle power/audio cable, which I believe I'll be able to plug into my Chatterbox. It's pretty easy to follow the directions by vision only. I have mine mounted where I can see it easily.