GPS - Garmin Forerunner 305

[bdrake529 0]

A friend, who is interested in wing suiting and GPS logging, has asked me to evaluate whether his Garmin Forerunner 305 will be suitable for jump analysis in Paralog and Google Earth.

I tested the unit this weekend and was impressed that it seemingly had a more robust antenna system than the Foretrex 201 I use (which is basically useless in a Twin Otter unless you can put it on the co-pilot's seat, or have a re-radiating antenna system). I was able to maintain a signal sitting in the main cabin, a few seats back from the cockpit.

So recording looks good. Unfortunately, I didn't have my laptop with me, so I wasn't able to see if there are any issues with downloading the data into Paralog (either directly, or through GPS Babel/GPX) or Google Earth.

Does anyone here use the Forerunner 305 for skydiving? Does it log and download data like every other GPS recorder, or are there unique issues with it?

I'm hesitant to give my friend thumbs up since it's designed primarily for running/biking and I don't know if it's limited in any way since it was designed for such a specific application.

Thanks,

Brian

Brian Drake

[LouDiamond 1]

Kris was jumping a 305 a while back and has since sold it, I am sure he can chime in on it. Long story short, you can use it but it's made for runners and is not ideal for what we do. I think you know which unit is currently the bomb and it's price tag is more than acceptable. The only real advantage it has over the 201 is its ability to maintain a signal in challenging locations. If you compare it spec for spec against the 201, the 201 is actually the more desireable receiver to have.

"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

[bdrake529 0]

Actually, I'm currently without confirmation that the Wintec is truly "the bomb". Any updates on that front?

My friend already sunk $260 into the Forerunner so I'm not really looking to tell him what he should have bought, rather, I'm hoping to give him good news on using it for skydiving. Any first hand knowledge on this is appreciated.

From fiddling with the Forerunner and reading the manual, I could tell it wasn't "ideal" for what we do. But does "not ideal" mean "no go"? Or just there are a few nuances to making it work?

Thanks,

Brian

Brian Drake

[LouDiamond 1]

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Any updates on that front?

Here are some thought that Vidiot recently shared with me on the 305 and the Wintec 201(not to be confused with the Garmin 201)

two things with the 305: First, it seems to smoothen the speed very strongly. This can be seen very well directly after exit (the wide arc) and opening (the dip). It takes a while after exit/open that the speeds/trajectory merge to the path recorded by the 201. Second - and that is hard to see as the data is chopped is that the sensitivity of the 305 is not as good as the 201's in the aircraft - both units where side by side all the time inside a Caravan and a Skyvan. What really impresses me is that the 201 does not loose the fix just before exit on the second jump which actually means it kept the fix while walking from the front of the Skyvan to the back and waiting for exit. I'd say standing at the ramp is the worst case for signal reception.


http://klaus.rheinwald.info/logbook.

"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

[bdrake529 0]

Scott, thanks for posting that. I looked at one of Klaus' Google Earth files and the data looks good. I suppose that settles it. Wintec 201 is the new king. Long live the king!

I'll pick one up in a few weeks and will start recommending others interested in GPS logging do the same.

As for my friend with a 305, looks like it is usable to an extent (otherwise, Klaus couldn't have compared the data), but the speed smoothing leaves something to be desired. Perhaps he won't mind dropping $95 to get a fully functional logger. Or he may not care about the reduced accuracy and be fine with it.

Thanks!

Brian

Brian Drake

[stratman05 0]

I had the forerunner 201 (older model) and it was crap. I sold it and got a fortrex 201 which was Much better. PM me if you are interested in it (said I can't PM you).

[AveE 0]

had a frunner 205. sold it to get the trex...

[KrisFlyZ 0]

Never owned a Forerunner. Was looking into it but got the edge units instead. I own an Edge 205, 305, ForeTrex 201 and a GPSMAP 76CSX (external antenna for jumping).

There are many new generation bluetooth GPS recievers that are better from a size perspective.

Kris.

[ffp1974 0]

I recently lost my foretrex in freefall. My wife got me the forerunner by mistake. Has anyone checked out the latest forerunners? is it still a poor choice when compared with the foretrex?

My foretrex always lost sat reception in the twin otter.

thanks FF

[cpoxon 0]

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I recently lost my foretrex in freefall. My wife got me the forerunner by mistake. Has anyone checked out the latest forerunners? is it still a poor choice when compared with the foretrex?

BOught the missus a Forerunner 405 for her birthday. Will have to give it a try in the air, but it records a trackpoint every four seconds which isn't really frequent enough.

Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live

[fmmobley 0]

I have a 305 and have jumped with it from the King Air. I never lost the signal and it seemed to do a good job. I don't use paralog and can't comment on that, but I did upload the data to www.trackingderby.com and the results looked right.

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...BOught the missus a Forerunner 405 for her birthday. Will have to give it a try in the air, but it records a trackpoint every four seconds which isn't really frequent enough....

On the 305 (and probably the 405) you can change the settings from the "smart recording" option to the "every second" option.

... Marion

[ffp1974 0]

What do you have to set on the forerunner to start capturing dives? I know on my foretrex I had to remember to tell it to record tracks.

What special things will I have to do on the forerunner?

thanks for the help.

[fmmobley 0]

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What do you have to set on the forerunner to start capturing dives? ...What special things will I have to do on the forerunner? ...

1) Change the Data Recording from "Smart Recording" to the "Every Second" option (Settings...General... Data Recording). It will use up your batter a LOT faster when it is in that mode, so don't power it on until a few minutes before boarding the plane.

2) Press Start right before exiting the plane. When you land press the Stop button and then hold the Lap button down for 3 seconds to save to history.

That is all you need to do. Information from that and other timed events are saved separately. When you upload somewhere, you can upload everything that is in your Forerunner history and delete the ones you don't want, or clear your history of all except the skydiving event and then upload.

... Marion

[KrisFlyZ 0]

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On the 305 (and probably the 405) you can change the settings from the "smart recording" option to the "every second" option.

Yeah, all the Garmin GPSes I have used have the smart recording feature. I preferred turning on 'every second' option.

I used to have the setup shown in the pics.

[ffp1974 0]

I assume you mean the start and stop buttons on top of the unit? Thanks for all of the help

[fmmobley 0]

yep.. it is the same button "Start/Stop"

... Marion