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Custom Accessory Mount for 2010+ RT's with Dash Bar GPS Mount

4K views 16 replies 7 participants last post by  jsrich69 
#1 ·
Well, I simply couldn't find what I wanted for my 2012 RT to leave the Nav IV GPS bar-mounted on the dash, but also cleanly mount my V1 radar and SPOT. So like any sane person would do, I decided I needed to design something and have it fabricated. I purchased a pancake mount for the bar from BMW, the same one they use to mount the Nav IV GPS, and then had the following mount built. It provides ample room for full mobility of the windshield, provides some weather protection for the radar while keeping it in a suitable position to perform properly and provide good visibility to the rider, and provides a mount point for the SPOT with the necessary line-of-sight to satellites.

Below are a couple pictures of the completed mount after I painted and installed it as well as the "blueprints" if anyone wants to use them. This does require sliding the Nav IV as far to the left of the dash bar as possible. I had a local custom motorcycle shop do the fabrication for me and they charged $50 including material, which is a light gauge steel.
 

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#3 ·
150flyer said:
Looks like you still have room for a lap top. :)
I know, right!!?? Of course I haven't mounted my Contour camera yet, but it goes right next to the SPOT.

I thought about a laptop, but it's too hard to type while you're riding, so I'll be mounting an iPad instead!! I'm thinking a custom iPad pouch for the tankbag to replace the map pouch...hey, don't steal my next invention!! :histerica

And with such a big windshield I'm thinking some heads-up display are in order...don't steal that one either! :think:
 
#5 ·
thehueg said:
Why both a Garmin and a BMW GPS?
Yeah why? I mean I'm over-the-top obsessive compulsive, but not at this level.
 
#6 ·
LeftCoastMan said:
Yeah why? I mean I'm over-the-top obsessive compulsive, but not at this level.
LOL!! My usual sarcastic response to this question is either "because I can" or "one to show me where I'm going, the other to show me where I've been!" :rotf:

But seriously, there are a couple reasons. I do a lot of long multi-day rides usually trying to hit specific roads and avoid certain others. I am a sport bike rider at heart, so I love the twisties and hate the straights which makes the journey far more important than the destination on almost all of my trips.

I find the best approach for me is to build the route for the trip ahead of time and have one GPS running that route only, with auto re-calculate disabled so I have my predefined route at all times. I then use the second one for off-route excursions, whether it be simply for lunch, gas, bio break, etc. or a 100 mile detour to go ride a road or see something of interest. I use the Zumo 550 as my off-route planner as I find it, in Large Button mode, much easier to use with gloves on than the Nav IV.

Another reason is simply backup/failover. I have had a GPS fail before in the middle of a trip and it's a pain in the butt! When I do a long trip, like the 10-day trip I'm about to leave on, I have the entire route and individual day routes all loaded on both GPS units. I also have every hotel and place we want to see stored as Favorites on both. I have my phone and ScalaRider headset synced with both GPS units as well, but have Bluetooth on the Zumo disabled. This way I have complete and immediate failover with no downtime (can you tell I'm in IT?) :)

For me, it's not about being OCD, though I'm sure people that know me would say I have a touch of that. It's about having the feeling that I've covered all the bases, removed as many risks of things going wrong as possible, planned to the point where I won't waste time on my trip trying to figure out what to do or where to stay, etc, etc. I don't plan restaurants for lunch or anything like that, but I have driven around a town in the middle of the night going from hotel to hotel only to continually be met with "No Vacancy" signs and having to continue riding to the next town when I was dog tired. That takes some of the fun out of it for me, I find it annoying.

It's similar to the discussion in another thread about securing the BMW tankbag on the bike and whether it's necessary or not in what appears to be a safe or highly visible area. If you can leave your tank bag and its contents on the bike and not worry about it, great! For me, knowing that it is locked allows me to relax where otherwise I would stress about it...and I'd stress even more if it wasn't there when I came back!

That's my story and I'm sticking to it...it's gotten me this far. :bike:
 
#8 ·
Jason, this is only my humble opinion, but all that stuff in your view seems to be a bit distracting. Like distracting you from the road. I'm the first one to expound on the virtues of a GPS. In fact I have mine installed on the Wunderlich Dash mount. But any more than that would distract me probably.
 
#9 ·
jsrich69 said:
LOL!! My usual sarcastic response to this question is either "because I can" or "one to show me where I'm going, the other to show me where I've been!" :rotf:

But seriously, there are a couple reasons. I do a lot of long multi-day rides usually trying to hit specific roads and avoid certain others. I am a sport bike rider at heart, so I love the twisties and hate the straights which makes the journey far more important than the destination on almost all of my trips.

I find the best approach for me is to build the route for the trip ahead of time and have one GPS running that route only, with auto re-calculate disabled so I have my predefined route at all times. I then use the second one for off-route excursions, whether it be simply for lunch, gas, bio break, etc. or a 100 mile detour to go ride a road or see something of interest. I use the Zumo 550 as my off-route planner as I find it, in Large Button mode, much easier to use with gloves on than the Nav IV.

Another reason is simply backup/failover. I have had a GPS fail before in the middle of a trip and it's a pain in the butt! When I do a long trip, like the 10-day trip I'm about to leave on, I have the entire route and individual day routes all loaded on both GPS units. I also have every hotel and place we want to see stored as Favorites on both. I have my phone and ScalaRider headset synced with both GPS units as well, but have Bluetooth on the Zumo disabled. This way I have complete and immediate failover with no downtime (can you tell I'm in IT?) :)

For me, it's not about being OCD, though I'm sure people that know me would say I have a touch of that. It's about having the feeling that I've covered all the bases, removed as many risks of things going wrong as possible, planned to the point where I won't waste time on my trip trying to figure out what to do or where to stay, etc, etc. I don't plan restaurants for lunch or anything like that, but I have driven around a town in the middle of the night going from hotel to hotel only to continually be met with "No Vacancy" signs and having to continue riding to the next town when I was dog tired. That takes some of the fun out of it for me, I find it annoying.

It's similar to the discussion in another thread about securing the BMW tankbag on the bike and whether it's necessary or not in what appears to be a safe or highly visible area. If you can leave your tank bag and its contents on the bike and not worry about it, great! For me, knowing that it is locked allows me to relax where otherwise I would stress about it...and I'd stress even more if it wasn't there when I came back!

That's my story and I'm sticking to it...it's gotten me this far. :bike:
Still unimpressed. When I see an iPad (and not one of those lame mini's, I want the full size thing) up on that bar, then you deserve praise. And it can be a Navigation backup to the backup. And you can record HD video with it.

That would be impressive. Otherwise, poser. :cool: :D
 
#10 ·
MyEleanor said:
Jason, this is only my humble opinion, but all that stuff in your view seems to be a bit distracting. Like distracting you from the road. I'm the first one to expound on the virtues of a GPS. In fact I have mine installed on the Wunderlich Dash mount. But any more than that would distract me probably.
Eric, it's actually not distracting at all and well below my line of site. When I'm doing day rides or just running around in the mountains I take the Zumo off entirely. The Nav IV, V1 and SPOT stay all the time though, but still no distraction. I even play the radio sometimes! :yeah:
I find some of the things I see passing through small towns or riding out in the country far more distracting than anything I have mounted on my bike. I ride my sport bike with no gadgets, not even an iPhone mount. Tank bag and map is it, so I think I can make an unbiased statement that I'm no more distracted on the RT with the gadgets than on my RC51 with nothing.
 
#11 ·
LeftCoastMan said:
Still unimpressed. When I see an iPad (and not one of those lame mini's, I want the full size thing) up on that bar, then you deserve praise. And it can be a Navigation backup to the backup. And you can record HD video with it.

That would be impressive. Otherwise, poser. :cool: :D
LeftCoast, I'm working on it, but the damn windshield won't go up and down with the iPad in the way! That's why I need heads-up display or projected image from the iPad onto the windshield!! :rolleyes:
 
#12 ·
:b2topic:

Hopefully the accessory shelf helps somebody in need of a solution. It's definitely making my life easier by providing some weather protection for my V1 and satellite line of sight for the SPOT.
 
#13 ·
jsrich69 said:
Eric, it's actually not distracting at all and well below my line of site. When I'm doing day rides or just running around in the mountains I take the Zumo off entirely. The Nav IV, V1 and SPOT stay all the time though, but still no distraction. I even play the radio sometimes! :yeah:
I find some of the things I see passing through small towns or riding out in the country far more distracting than anything I have mounted on my bike. I ride my sport bike with no gadgets, not even an iPhone mount. Tank bag and map is it, so I think I can make an unbiased statement that I'm no more distracted on the RT with the gadgets than on my RC51 with nothing.
Jason, that's good to know. We have enough distractions out there with people not paying attention and texting while driving, etc. Have a safe trip.
 
#15 ·
Re: Two GPS's, please share your opinion

Since everyone is so focused on my two GPS's instead of the accessory mount I've changed the title subject.
 
#16 ·
Jason, does the V1 have a clean line of sight for readings from behind you in that position? I like the protection element of placing it there, but put mine out on the right bar mirror mount location out of concern over effectiveness.
 
#17 ·
CWRoady said:
Jason, does the V1 have a clean line of sight for readings from behind you in that position? I like the protection element of placing it there, but put mine out on the right bar mirror mount location out of concern over effectiveness.
CW, thank God you're here and not posting about my 2 GPS's!! :toast:

The V1 has a decent, but not perfect line of sight from behind. To my knowledge, there has never been a radar behind me that I didn't pick up. I ride a lot with a guy who has his V1 mounted on the clutch reservoir, so similar line of sight as yours and we've never noticed any difference in effectiveness. That said, based on V1's installation instructions I have no doubt that your mount location is optimal.

In all the years I've used my V1 on my bikes and in my cars I've never had a new detection from behind (unless an Audi comes up!! What do they put in their cars that sets V1's off constantly??), it always starts in front or to the side and then move to the rear as I pass by, so I figured I'm fairly safe with it up on the dash. The radar is a little more protected with the mount and the windshield.
 
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