Gps??????

[TerryTat]

I have a small private boat that I am going to be using off of the coast of Southern California. I'm looking for any help in purchasing a GPS that will do the job without spending a fortune! Any advice?
Thanks

 

[The Kraken]

If you already know your GPS co-ordinates, you can get by with a small, hand held unit with a remote antenna. $135 or so.

 

[SwimJim]

I agree with the Kracken. I have a Magellen 300 which I have mounted to the dash on my boat with velcro. It works very well. Bear in mind that numbers taken from different machines aren't necessarily accurate. I know of transposition errors from books that are five hundred miles off. Usually though the numbers are close enough that you can find the target by running a grid search in the area.

Good luck

Jim

 

[matt_unique]

I have a small private boat that I am going to be using off of the coast of Southern California. I'm looking for any help in purchasing a GPS that will do the job without spending a fortune! Any advice?
Thanks

I use the Garmin GPS 48 that I purchased for $200 a few years ago. This unit has a marine database built into it but it is not the cartography type. The thing works like a champ. You don't need an external antenna on a boat but some people like to use them depending upon the cockpit space. I mount mine to my cockpit with velcro as well.

You will learn all this stuff when you read the owners manual but there are several different GPS coordinate formats. I have mine set to "decimal minutes". Sometimes this can be confusing when transferring coordinates so be aware of the format you are using.

--Matt

 

[The Kraken]

Like Matt says, the external antenna is not a necessity, but if it's raining cats and dogs, it sure does make it easier navigating via your GPS inside a nice, dry cabin, if there is one.

 

[Al Mialkovsky]

I am currently using a Magellen Meridian Gold and WalMart sells it for 200 bucks. You can upgrade it as you desire by adding a memory chip and add maps if you want. A very good unit with a built in antenna that is as good as anything on the market.

 

[The Kraken]

Terry,
You will be absolutely amazed at the accuracy of even the little hand held units.
I fly an ultralight airplane and I use a Garmin 12XL gps in all sorts of environments. The are accurate enough that one can, given experience, fly in IFR conditions with them. The one I have will put me within 20' left or right of the centerline of my little landing strip down at my farm.

You can setup your own way points and routes and follow them out and back in. You'll love it.

 

[TerryTat]

Thank you for all of your input.... It's nice to know that I don't have to spend a fortune to pick up one that will do the job!

 

[Chuck Tribolet]

Current GPSs, with WAAS enabled, are accurate to 9'.
No problem finding the dive site the second time, or the
first time if you have good numbers.

The most important thing about GPSs is to use it every
time you go out, even if it's a beutiful clear day. That
way you won't be trying to figure it out in the fog.

 

[matt_unique]

Current GPSs, with WAAS enabled, are accurate to 9'.
No problem finding the dive site the second time, or the
first time if you have good numbers.

The most important thing about GPSs is to use it every
time you go out, even if it's a beutiful clear day. That
way you won't be trying to figure it out in the fog.

Great advice - definitely use it on a nice day for practice as well as to setup your way points. I have used mine several times in fog with less then a quarter mile vis. I also use it to get to dive sites 23 miles from the mainland - beautiful thing to have your GPS indicate "arrival" and to see the mooring buoy!

--Matt