Chart plotters

[Rusty]

I missed the bus on this one........It's not clear to me the feature of a chart plotter on a GPS . My question is, How does this work and application?

Actually, I am looking at a Garmin 421s GPS/sounder ( it does not have chart plotter capability ). Should I consider a chart plotter feature on a GPS? My budget is around

$500 +/-. I will not be off shore no more than about 15-20 miles max (weekend warrior).

Thanks

[saltshaker]

im not too familiar with the bigger units, but have you looked at handhelds? i have a garmin colorado 400c, i think it was on sale before Xmas for about $250-$300. I paid about $500(grrrr). the screen is small so laying out routes, panning can be a pain. but i took it on a trip down the east coast and it kept accuracy with the northstar's on the boat. also, with a handheld type, you can get streep maps, etc. i have a small boat and dont go too far, harbor cruises, etc., so i just put it in the suction cup mount on the dash and its perfect for what i do.

i missed the sounder part youre looking for (whoops) so may not help you out but might be worth a look.

Edited January 8, 2010 by saltshaker

[cjohnson]

I missed the bus on this one........It's not clear to me the feature of a chart plotter on a GPS . My question is, How does this work and application?

Actually, I am looking at a Garmin 421s GPS/sounder ( it does not have chart plotter capability ). Should I consider a chart plotter feature on a GPS? My budget is around

$500 +/-. I will not be off shore no more than about 15-20 miles max (weekend warrior).

Thanks

All GPS units that I know of have a track screen that shows you a "breadcrumb trail" tracking back to your starting point. Chart plotters essentially add a background graphic of the appropriate chart or map of the area behind the breadcrumb trail. Your location is shown in the center of the chart, updated automatically.

Chartplotter functionality is not really necessary, regardless of how far offshore you are, but is pretty useful. In reality, the more time you spend near shore the more useful the feature is, since when near shore you have more stuff to look out for that the chart will actually show. 20 miles offshore the ocean mostly looks the same on the chart.

A chartplotter is not a substitute for paper charts; you still need to carry those. A cheapie GPS will work fine in conjunction with paper charts.

[4/0]

I missed the bus on this one........It's not clear to me the feature of a chart plotter on a GPS . My question is, How does this work and application?

Actually, I am looking at a Garmin 421s GPS/sounder ( it does not have chart plotter capability ). Should I consider a chart plotter feature on a GPS? My budget is around

$500 +/-. I will not be off shore no more than about 15-20 miles max (weekend warrior).

Thanks

Rusty,

A chart plotter has a map and your gps gives lat & long. I say go for the plotter, I fish around OIB , Cape fear and coming in there if it nasty it nice to see where you are on the "map". A good radio is a must with a 8' antenna, that will give you a max range of maybe 12-13 miles.

My boat is 19' w/ a 150 and 15 is my max . I want to be able to get back in if it gets nasty and make it to the ditch and you know those summertime thunderstorms.

As said above carry "paper maps", I use the pro-finder charts and they are laminated, good for us in our small cc's, and they have compass points on them also

Butch

Forgot I would give Jim a shot at BOE Marine when you are ready to buy.

Edited January 9, 2010 by 4/0

[ElyseM]

you should check that again. the gpsmap 421s is listed as a chartplotter that takes g-2 chips. maybe there is no chart chip in what you are looking at. it indicates it comes with just the worldwide basemap. check out the garmin site for more info. ron

[Rusty]

you should check that again. the gpsmap 421s is listed as a chartplotter that takes g-2 chips. maybe there is no chart chip in what you are looking at. it indicates it comes with just the worldwide basemap. check out the garmin site for more info. ron

Thanks Ron

Now that I think about it, Yes, it did say it will accept a g2 chip. Just did not see it in the product name. However, it is in the features capibilities. Need to pay better attenion to what I'm reading. It's a ADHD thing.

Thanks Butch, I'll give Jim a call in a few weeks

Thanks everyone for your responces. As usual, Great information and members.