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Mounting a Garmin Zumo on my Honda VFR

Monday, June 1, 2009 @ 17:21

 

Easy mount of GPS on motorcycle

To fully enjoy the Garmin GPS when riding my motorcycle, I got inspired by my friend of how to mount the GPS on on the handlebar. What is essential for me when mounting the GPS is to get a plug-and-play solution, so it is easy on a daily basis. I want it to be easy when I have to stop somewhere and want to hide the GPS while I am away.

Together with the GPS some standard mounting kit followed, but for me and the bike there was two thing wrong. First it did not fit so a mount was simply impossible and secondly is was far from elegant. No matter what, another solution was needed.

Home made mounting bracket

Also an obstacle - for me at least - is the small annoying screw Garmin invented to keep the GPS locked in the bracket. This screw needs some special tool to be unscrewed in order to get the GPS off. Still I need to use the screw, but now it is pretty easy to take the GPS on/off, and the special screw driver is not used that often.

The mounting is now done using a special mounting pin, exchanged with one of the handlebars bolts. See the pic of how it is done.

 
Special-mount-of-Garmin-Zumo-550-on-Honda-VFR-750

Special mount of my Garmin on my Honda VFR

 

Easy dismount of GPS 

I made the mounting pin of two stainlss tubes which fitted into each other, so the inner one was forced into each other in a vise. All made so the length of the pin just suit the mounting bracket from Garmin. With the two-pipe system, the wall thickness are no so thick, that it can withstand the pressure from the mounting bracket. With this the GPS are kept in place, even during harsh driving.

 
Mounting-pin-and-powerplug-for-Garmin-Zumo-on-Honda-vfr-750

Mounting pin and powerplug

 

Note that yellow ring around the power plug. In order to get the GPS off quickly, a power plug is needed. The power cable is squeezed between the handlebar and the clutch fluid container. Works fine. The only thing I needed to do upon completion was to make the bracket fit perfect around the pin. A file and a few strokes, and it is perfect to make the hole circular. The filing on the back side is not really needed.

 
Filing-just-a-few-strokes-on-bracket-for-Garmin-Zumo-550

Filing just a few strokes

 

I hope this is useful to you.

Have a fun ride,
Jan

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