Garmin mount - where is best

[GOSBTS]

If you're bored please post a pic of where you mount your Garmin / GPS. Needs to be readable, but out of the way...

Thanks!

 

[Gary]

Depends on lots of factors like your bike, it's setup and even how you ride it.
On a road bike 9 times out of 10 an out front mount works best. So if your riding is tame it may well work just as well on your mtb.
On an mtb an out front mount is slightly less stable as well as more in the firing line if things go wrong. The Garmin mtb bar mount faces the other direction from an out front mount and is a little sturdier so is better protected and more stable.
On my emtb I prefer a steerer spacer mount where the Garmin sits next to the top cap. But that's because my light mounts to a go pro stem top cap.
Stem top and top cap mounts are popular but they both leave the unit prone to damage from proper cartwheel OTB type crashes.
Lots of folk toptube mount their Garmin to keep it out the way but I twist them out the mount when trackstanding or whip/tabling the bike.
In summary. It's up to you what's best for you. Just use common sense.

 

[GrahamPaul]

On a road bike 9 times out of 10 an out front mount works best. So if your riding is tame it may well work just as well on your mtb.

Just don't do it!

I moved from a road bike to MTB. Just switched the out-front mount from the road bike without even thinking about it. A high speed crash on the flat (wire strung across a track) took me off and smashed the Garmin to pieces. It was painful to discover that Garmin's "replacement" scheme is dearer than waiting for a Black Friday deal on a new one!

 

[Gary]

Dafuq? I hope you reported the wire to the police.
Nevermind the Garmin. Were you OK?

 

[GrahamPaul]

Dafuq? I hope you reported the wire to the police.
Nevermind the Garmin. Were you OK?

Somehow I didn't OTB, but my thighs had big, deep bruises in them for weeks. The wire kinda got under the bars and stopped the whole lot becoming too much of a giant somersault.

I had a few minutes to try and get my breath back, pick up the pieces and think about what was going on. I don't think it was malicious. The wire was across the track at a gate. It looked like the farmer had moved (or was in the process of moving) his herd from one field to another and just plain forgot that he'd wired the track.

I wasn't sure whether he'd finished his work, either, so I put some bits of rag from my toolkit on the wire to make sure it was visible to anyone following. Licked my wounds. And paid Garmin a month's pension for a replacement...

No sign of anything similar in the past couple of years - nor have I heard of anything through the club - so I think it was just bad luck. Usually there's tape on the wire when the farmers block the tracks. It's really windy in this part of the world, so I'll give them benefit of the doubt that the tape just blew away. Or he just plain forgot. Shit happens and the farmers here are a friendly lot, so I'm not going to make trouble.

 

[Benson]

My vote goes for the top cap mount (even removed the tool storage gimmick on my Levo for it) but I cannot stress enough, use a lanyard to attach your Garmin to the bike as well. I’ve personally experienced near misses, most noticeable was at speed at Bike Park Wales. A week before lockdown a friend of mine, who didn’t use one, lost his Garmin never to be seen again.

 

[p3eps]

Here’s mine...

And with the Garmin in place.

I also have this one that I bought for the Trek Rail (couldn’t use my normal one due to the Knock Block) but I swapped the Rail for a Levo SL.

I’ve got a K-Edge one somewhere that’s much like the one on the bike just now, other than it’s got a hinge - but it doesn’t angle very well with my Enve stem. Worked fine with the standard Spesh one though.

 

[GOSBTS]

I have tried a top cap mount, but it is too exposed for my liking to being knocked off.

 

[StuR]

My vote goes for the top cap mount (even removed the tool storage gimmick on my Levo for it) but I cannot stress enough, use a lanyard to attach your Garmin to the bike as well. I’ve personally experienced near misses, most noticeable was at speed at Bike Park Wales. A week before lockdown a friend of mine, who didn’t use one, lost his Garmin never to be seen again.

+1 for this
Been using a lanyard as well , which is a must.
Saved my Garmin several times .
One slight issue ive come across a couple of times though . During an involuntary dismount my knee has clipped the Garmin and knocked it off , breaking the plastic mount insert .
Not a huge drama , just a bit annoying .
Easy to replace for about £3 - £5 each .

Might try a mount that sets it a bit further forward .

 

[StuR]

Currently like this

 

[StuR]

Thinking about trying one of these

 

[GOSBTS]

Thinking about trying one of these

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Same here. Thanks.

 

[Deleted member 7464]

Thinking about trying one of these

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That's exactly what I use on a few of my bikes and never had any problems, my only advice is get the one that pivots as some stems vary on rise so you do have to adjust it.

 

[Deleted member 7464]

The Mrs has a superstar topcap mount which is also very good, I used the same thing on my downhill bike in the alps and it was great. No good if you have the swat tool tho.

 

[billwarwick]

On the stem, but I also use one of those thin bands that you get with new inner tubes, diagonally across it on bumpy stuff. Still able to read it ok

 

[StuR]

One other slight minus point I've found direct mounting to the stem is the view of the TCU on a Levo is slightly obscured when peddling with seatpost fully extended .
I'm using a Garmin 810 which isn't huge but setting it slightly forward would solve the viewing issue and make it less likely to getting knocked off during involuntary dismounts

 

[p3eps]

Thinking about trying one of these

I have the pivoting one, but it sets the Garmin at a really odd angle if I use it with my Enve stem.
Maybe it depends on how many spacers you use?

Never had an issue with my Garmin falling off itself - it always needs a bit of force to get it to "click" into place.

 

[Gary]

Thinking about trying one of these

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Ebay/aliexpress for copies of the top one for around £9.
Using one on the E-sommet.
Topcap mounts £3

 

[Mabman]

When I originally set up my eMTB 3 yrs ago I didn't like the bar mount system for the display as I considered it to be to exposed. I made up a simple mount out of some 1/8" aluminum flat stock I had on hand. Just drilled a 1 1/8" hole and then cut out the desired shape with my band saw. Idea was to use the mount in place of a headset spacer below the bar level and it worked a treat.

A friend recently gifted me his old 805 and sent along a mount. I wanted to replicate the position of the display but after mounting the unit to the mount there was no way I could get it oriented on the right side of the stem so I took up the display mount, which is on top of the stem btw, flipped it over and re-positioned it on the right side and was able to get the attitude for the mount on the left side that allows me to install, see and remove at will. Took it out for a shake down cruise that involved a good amount of bush whacking trying to link some trails together and it didn't get lost.......

Took one of my simple mounts and drilled a hole, the stock ones were not in the right place, and tacked it down with a sheet metal screw. Kludgy but effective. That K mount above might be able to mount lower in the stack and to the side but it depends on the relation of the mount to the GPS fitting.

 

[Frenchy_Eric]

I’m using the standard Garmin bar mount, but in reverse position.

 

[mak]

I just use the generic bar mount rubber band option, I like the above idea though, off to dig out the stem from the packaging .

 

[mr wilson]

I have a stem top mount on mine but used the reversed bar mount idea on the bosses bike. Can't remember where I saw it done but it's one of those simple but " why didn't I think of that" solutions.

 

[Ickle_legs]

I have the pivoting one, but it sets the Garmin at a really odd angle if I use it with my Enve stem.
Maybe it depends on how many spacers you use?
.

Same issue here albeit with stock Spec.2020 Levo stem, and it looked too exposed; instead I turned the KEdge bracket 90° to the right so the computer (Garmin 830) sits to the side of the stem and behind the bars - al le Shimano ebike display.
Several (mostly singletrack) rides in and I've only caught the display once with my knee and that was during an ungainly dismount.