gjockey

Any opinions on this unit? http://www.garmin.com/products/gpsmap176C/ . It's not considered a handheld but you can run it on bateries and cigarette lighter so it seems to me a perfect size. Thanks------ John

SHAKEN Not Stirred

Hey John,
Hope all is well. I have the Garmin GPS MAP 295, whih is the pilot version of the "Street Pilot". I have a permanant mount in the boat and one in the Excursion.

I installed the remote antenna under the dash of the boat and it works great thru the fiberglass. I installed the receiver/color screen just to the right of the throttle, under the side of the boat to keep it out of the direct sunlight.

It works great. I purchased this model primarlary for flying, but because I travel all over the USA, Canada & Mexico, I wanted something I gould use in the car as well. It also shows great detail while in the boat.

You can upload detailed maps to it with a PC using a 128K removable chip.

I have it mounted with a gimble attachment that lets me tuck it way under during sunny days and lets it swing way out for night use.

I'll send you a pix of it later. I am off to Mexico City tomorrow. Be back home on Friday.

Talk to you soon.......CJG.

gjockey

Sounds like fun, enjoy the flight --- John

DONZIMAN2

A friend of mine just bought a 176C. He thought it was awesome until he got out on the boat today. The colors they chose specifically the yellow in the NAV mode is impossible to see in the sunlight. He is going back to get the Grey Scale tomorrow. Good luck on your choice.

FWK

Hi John How is the new toy did you get some use out of it this weekend? Forrest

BryanTuvell

I am the guy Dman2 refers too, bought the 176C and added Blue Chip etc.
It is UNUSABLE in the sun!
tried slant mount, dash mount etc trying to hide the glare. I called West marine, mine goes back in exchange for the grayscale tomorrow. $100 bucks more for something that looks good in your car or living room, boat application is N/A. The colors in SEA MODE are terrible, land mode is great, the water is actually blue!
The grey screens for speed and menu functions are nice and clear, the BLUE compass is nice too. And yes the brightness was up all the way, double click the on and the last custom brightness/contract and color setting is applied.
my 2 cents.
Bryan

[ 01-27-2002: Message edited by: 2001 26ZX ]

gjockey

Thanks for the info aobut color being unreadable in the sun... I guess that's important . Seriously though, I never would have realized taht until it was too late... grey scale here I come.

Forrest, I only got 5 hours on it today Man, I hate that 3800 rpm breakin limit but just another 5 more hours then I'm home free. Got some nice pics and hopefully I'll be able to post them all tomorrow. --- John

BryanTuvell

Glad to help...
It is an awesome unit, very user friendly, WAAS etc. The Tide data alone cost justify's.
Remember, West marine matches any printed online price, I got mine at their 10% off sale.

AND if you buy a Blue Chip, the fine print says it cannot be returned or swapped just because you got the wrong coverage area, check, triple check etc, defective yes, replace, no refund...
In fact the blue chips come WITHOUT a manual, your 176 will give some info. If you search Google you can find the actual handbook for the blue chip in PDF format.

Hope all my giberish helped.
Bryan

Enticer Rick

So how did the grey scale unit work out? I have the color unit. My problem is I live in
MI and I won't be able to test the color unit until the spring. How bad is the glare?
Is it really impossible to see? I plan on using my unit for night cruising, that's why I really liked the color graphics.

BryanTuvell

Dude, I am being as honest as I can be, the color of the yellow sucks, which is the majority color, I have been in the Navy 20 years now, these are our standard issue charts, ie 12220, 12221 etc.... if you look at these chars they look the same on teh 176C in your house or car when in SEA mode.
In LAND mode the water is blue, which would be cool, BUT then the red and greens are hard to see, JUST A BAD COMBO....

I exchanged mine as stated when West marine opened Monday, NIGHT AND DAY DIFFERENCE, just like my last Garmin, clear, no glare etc... The lense is even different, a rougher texture, 1st thing I noticed when I shined it up...
IT LOOKS AWESOME, 2 feet away, direct sun, NO SWEAT! And trust me it has been VERY sunny this week.
Hope this helps.
Bryan

email me if you want to chat on the phone, I will call ya.