Dan S

The forerunner and Foretrex series are all compliant to IPX7 which is 1 meter underwater for 30 minutes.

Dan.

mowerman88

My Feedback: (11)

i use an etrex i got it new used it three times crash my boat into the boat ramp (spektrum)gps flew out sat in 1 foot of water for two days til i found it(went back four times to find it to) still works perfectly and i have fliped my boat four or five times now no problems with the gps yet

crispyspa

I have had trouble with the eTrex shutting off all by itself because of vibration. I bought 2 of 'em and both had the same problem. I took them apart and found that springs meant to keep the connection between the battery holder and the circuit board must have been vibrating just enough to lose contact.

This was the fix. (see pic) I removed the springs and replaced them with wire...no more problem.

DaveMarles

Geko and Etrex are also IPX7 standard but they are not waterproof. Just a warning to other users. Hitting the water at 50 mph is not the same as sitting in 1 metre of water. [8D]

JakeDW

This is true.

Jake

dannyual777

I called Garmin and spoke with a tech before I bought my Foretrex 201over a year ago. I told him that I planned on using my wrist mounted Foretrex on my Yamaha Waverunners as well as my RC boats. He told me that the GPS will not stand up to hitting the water at speed; it will force water into the unit.

I wrap mine in either a ziplok bag or, easier still, in Saran wrap. I'm not trying to waterproof the GPS. Its already water resistant. I'm just trying to give it a layer of protection from a potential 50mph slam into the water.

By the way, mine has never hit the water at speed so I don't know how effective the Saran wrap will be. However, common sense tells me that it is a first layer of protection from the slam at 50mph (that could potentially force water into the Foretrex's seams.)

dannyual777

I agree with you 100%, Mart.

mowerman88

My Feedback: (11)

all i'm saying is for a gps that is not waterproof mine sat in a foot of water for two days with no harm

gdavis9999

I was reading the replies and I may have missed it, but the Garmin Foretrex 201 is indeed water proof, but does NOT float. After I took off the wrist strap, I attached a lanyard under the 'watch pins' that held the strap on. Attach the lanyard to something in the boat.

One more thought: put the GPS in WAAS mode. The accuracy improves significantly.

I get over 50MPG with my boat, and over 11 miles on each tank. I know top-speed is what more folks focus on, but I was fasinated by the distance a model boat can cover in a pond!

MistralK

I also use a Garmin 4runner 201..I use it under the canopy and i fix it on a floater..so what ever happens the garmin it's save!
I recently updated my 201..If yours it's a 2y old model it's better to do it..there are many things that works well after the upgrade!

Dreamin Hemi

Good idea on the lanyard, think I'll add one when I get back from work. And gdavis, I agree that it is quite amazing the distance these things travel. I like to look at the plotter screen and see that "bowl of spaghetti" that outlines each place the boat has been. (gps owners will know what I'm talking about)

MistralK

Yes..i know! And if you open it with Google Earth you will see the movement on the map!