Montana GPS - Power Issues

[Bagstr 287]

On the Montana's inaugural voyage we developed a power down syndrome while riding rough and fast. You know ,,,30 seconds to power off message.

As an attempt to remedy the situation I have ordered a longer RAM arm in hope of dampening vibration. My guess is the amplified vibration is momentarily disconnecting the pins of the cradle. In addition, I will try adding a soft earplug at the bottom of the cradle.

Have you had a similar issue? What was your solution?

Thanks, B

[paulmbowers 236]

I have two cradles and two bikes, both of which have been over difficult terrain- not a single power glitch.

Are you confident in the power wire/ground connections? Do you have a "posi"-tap anywhere?

[Bagstr 287]

Yeah, need to double check source pwr connections.

[Covered in Dust 162]

I was having the same problem with mine on the ride. I think the lock down screw might have been the culprit. I had it screwed down pretty tight in the beginning and the power would cut out during hard hits. When I loosened it up to just the point of locking I didn't have the problem again.

CID

[paulmbowers 236]

Ah!

Never used the locking screw.

[Boston Mangler 0]

I have two cradles and two bikes, both of which have been over difficult terrain- not a single power glitch.

Ditto

[Bagstr 287]

Looked over the power cable supply,,,no apparent issues. Given the temps, I believe a "Shake-Down" run is required for Monday/Tuesday this coming week. Breakfast to Review "dangerous safety" issues. Borrego Mtn Slot Canyon to test theoretical problems / solutions. Re-Hydration and Review of Progress upon return.

[PbdBlue 46]

I am not using a ram mount but have logged a few hundred miles with the mount I fabricated. So far the only issue I've had is a "non-garmin battery detected" error. I believe that may be the result of the lion battery vibrating and losing contact momentarily. Goinf to put some foam in the battery compartment to see if that resolves it. More of an annoyance as it does not shut the gps down. I have rubber isolation posts between the amps mount and the bike. Here's a link:

Mount pics are at the bottom of the page.

http://dualsport-sd.com/forums/index.php?/topic/17218-who-has-a-garmin-montana-and/page-3

[Covered in Dust 162]

I could do Tuesday.

CiD

[PbdBlue 46]

On the Montana's inaugural voyage we developed a power down syndrome while riding rough and fast. You know ,,,30 seconds to power off message.

As an attempt to remedy the situation I have ordered a longer RAM arm in hope of dampening vibration. My guess is the amplified vibration is momentarily disconnecting the pins of the cradle. In addition, I will try adding a soft earplug at the bottom of the cradle.

Have you had a similar issue? What was your solution?

Thanks, B

Just an observation. I've always mounted mine with the contacts at the bottom and the locking screw at the top. Don't know if it makes any difference. Also I always have the lock screw tightened.

[Hayseed 0]

I also mounted mine with the pins at the bottom, locking screw at the top. Mine is hard mounted to the triple clamp caps using only the vibe dampeners in the Garmin mount. Never had a glitch.

[Bagstr 287]

Thanks for input gents,

My cradle started with the contacts at the bottom and the security screw tight. Loosened the screw and rotated contacts to 12:00.

It was good for awhile be deteriorated. Yesterday, reviewed supply wiring and don't think that is the issue. My power is sourced from the key switch so not many connectors.

Sometimes with electrical wiring you can fix things just by moving all the wiring around. Will try the longer arm and foam on the internal battery.

B