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Broken Garmin tabs preventing a secure mount? Dog Ears has your fix!

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Dog Ears GPS plate fixes broken Garmin cycling computer tabs

Perhaps you’ve been a little too aggressive twisting your Garmin onto the myriad machined alloy mounts available or it’s just been on and off so much that the little plastic tabs that secure it inside it’s home have worn to nubs.

Dog Ears has the fix, making it quick, cheap and easy to get your Garmin securely back in action. Called simply the “Plate”, the machined alloy piece wraps over the round part on the bottom of the cycling computer and provides new wings to slot into the mount.

Twist on in for install notes and detail shots…

Dog Ears GPS plate fixes broken Garmin cycling computer tabs

This Garmin had seen better days, and if yours looks anything like it, the Dog Ear Plate can come to the rescue. If just one tab’s missing or they’re just worn down too much to be effective, you’ll need to file them down all the way.

Dog Ears GPS plate fixes broken Garmin cycling computer tabs

Then, you place the Plate over the round base and use the included self-tapping screws to start the holes. Garmin’s warranty department probably won’t like it, but yes, you’ll be screwing two shallow screws directly into the plastic base. Once tapped lightly (so as to not strip the plastic causing you to cry, as they put it), pull the base back off, clean both parts and apply blue Loctite or glue on the base, then replace the Plate and secure it with the screws.

Dog Ears GPS plate fixes broken Garmin cycling computer tabs

As thick as it looks, it only adds a few millimeters stack height to the system.

Retail is just $19.99. Want one? Click the link below and just click directly on the Cart button in the top left. Anything else is an exercise in futility, but even they admit that they’re machinists and not web designers. Once there, just click “add to cart” and it should get you where you want to be.

DogEarsGPS.com

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37 Comments
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Josh
9 years ago

This also means I can mount other things to my garmin mount now…

Xris
Xris
9 years ago

Oh god, I can put a banana on a garmin mount for easy access.

Psi Squared
Psi Squared
9 years ago

Well done, Dog Ears.

dead
dead
9 years ago

Does anyone else not like the K Edge garmin mounts because they chew up the back of the garmins? I hear nothing but parse about them but the aluminum eats the garmins plastic back. Hence the dog ears. I solution to a problem that should not exist.

I use the plastic garmin mounts or a plastic sram one. {This might be my first endorsement for a SRAM product…}

MissedThePoint
MissedThePoint
9 years ago

I just ordered one. I busted the tabs on my Edge 200 when I lawn darted on my mtb using an original K-Edge out front mount. Been keeping my GPS in my pocket ever since then, but have seen a few hacks using epoxy like JB weld and some filing work.

Psi Squared
Psi Squared
9 years ago

Wishing we could edit our posts….

Maybe Dog Ears could do something similar to provide a ¼ turn mount for the Garmin 705.

Ck
Ck
9 years ago

Well, I know what product to show my friend who’s broken tabs on three Garmins. Been a while since i’ve seen a cycling product that wasn’t a solution looking for a problem.

Kevin
Kevin
9 years ago

blue loctite (242) will make many plastics extremely brittle and break easily. Loctite 425 is plastic safe.

Rob E
Rob E
9 years ago

SRAM makes an adaptor for the 705 that will allow use with the 1/4 mounts. Bar Fly Labs also makes a “backwards” out front type mount that sits above the stem rather than out front. It’s a good setup.

Spongey
Spongey
9 years ago

They are not the first to “invent” a repair like this. People in the UK and Australia have been doing it for two years and selling them worldwide.

Steve
Steve
9 years ago

Or you could just print one- I have seen these items on thingiverse..
http://thingiverse-production.s3.amazonaws.com/renders/7d/83/72/dc/2c/Mount_Plate_preview_featured.jpg

Sram Dude
Sram Dude
9 years ago

Will this work on a Magellan Cyclo 505 so I can use the better Garmin mounts.

greg
greg
9 years ago

Adding to Kevin’s note about Loctite, it will often not cure or adhere to plastic anyway, unless a primer is used.

KMC
KMC
9 years ago

Thanks for the heads up on the Loctite 425 , the website was updated

WG
WG
9 years ago

Now that is a neat idea! Not that I have a problem with my E800, it’s been rock solid so far, but the very idea is nice.

neil at Bowman Cycles
9 years ago

You all know about these, right?

http://www.racewaredirect.co/shop/garmin-tab-repair/

They make mounts too, that dont chew tabs. In lots of colours, for all sorts of bars.

Tyler – you should do something about them.

mateo
mateo
9 years ago

@dead – K-Edge has switched to plastic mounting points for all their mounts

Bob
Bob
9 years ago

Finally – what Garmin was too slack to do looooong ago when tabs started breaking on the 500s. They just to continue to ignore the issue. Just placed my order for one of these, hope these guys make a ton of money on their idea.

Andrew
Andrew
9 years ago

@Psi Squared – What you are seeking is here: http://www.amazon.com/SRAM-QuickView-Adaptor-Garmin-605/dp/B00DPUWXYI

scott
scott
9 years ago

I’m going to also say do not use loctite 242 blue on plastic. If you cant find any plastic safe loctite you are probably better off using some epoxy. I’ve seen blue loctite melt away plastic.

scott
scott
9 years ago

Garmin warrantied my 510 for the tabs breaking. Too bad the replacement they sent me would crash non stop.

Veganpotter
Veganpotter
9 years ago

Dead…while I’ve NEVER been interested in having a GPS computer on my bike. As a shop employee I’ve seen plenty of worn out Garmins that have ONLY been mounted to PLATIC brackets. The bracket is still harder than the plastic on the head unit. Granted, it takes a while to wear out but if you ride a lot and take off your computer every ride, its bound to happen.

***I think Garmin’s are TERRIBLY overpriced. As someone not even remotely interested in having one, I’m happy that this can extend the life of your computer and keep you from spending another $350(for at least a while) for something that should probably cost less than $200 or $250

***Scott, you’re not using TONS of loctite for this application. The “melting” is similar to welding it on…you’ll still be able to unthread it because the screw is metal and not plastic. I think this is a good thing, your computer will not melt/dissolve unless you empty a bottle of loctite on the back of your unit. That said, epoxy would also work, yet epoxy can also partially melt a small amount of plastic if its the right type of plastic…again…probably a good thing to keep them securely attached together

StEvO
StEvO
9 years ago

Both the Dog Ears and the Raceware options are a good fix for this persistent problem.

But a better fix is to buy Garmin dummy units and swap out the the broken casing for a fresh new one. I did this with my Edge 500. It took about a half hour to swap all the internals over. The best part is, for $20 you get an all new casing including a new back piece with mounting tab and a new front piece with new glass (if you should ever need to swap the glass out for scratches or damage).

http://hawleyusa.com/thcstore/Catalog/Items.aspx?catid=62&sub=Merchandising+%2F+Displays&manu=Garmin

Raceware
9 years ago

That looks very much like the one we have been selling for the past year
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=77dSs9Ycl08

DmC
DmC
9 years ago

The problem with the garmin replacement is that it’s the same problem all over again – the tabs are going to just break again. I hadn’t seen the raceware units, but aren’t they still plastic? which is the problem with the garmin tabs in first place.

This unit is aluminum, so the tabs are more durable.

Raceware
9 years ago

Problem with making the new tabs from aluminium is they are likely to cause wear on the plastic mounts which will then lead to a loose fitting garmin. In the same way that the early metal k-edge mounts caused wear to the garmin tabs. Hence the reason why all mounts are now plastic or have plastic inserts for the interface.

John
John
9 years ago

@Raceware: Personally I’d rather see the mounts wear out than the tabs on my Garmin. The Barfly 2.0 with a lifetime warranty runs about a jackson, shipped.

topcheese
topcheese
9 years ago

+1 StEvO, That’s a great idea… that is IF Hawley’s stock was more reliable
(they have a whopping 1 right now). Unfortunately, that seems to be their M.O.

Either way, cheap replacements through dummies or and essential “upgrade” to Aluminum
with Dog Ears… I’m in!

…As for the statement that “Garmin’s warranty department won’t like it…” Well, if they fixed the darn problem when all of this started, we wouldn’t need said department. Even so, if you are about to resort to putting the screws to your Garmin, it’s a fair guess it’s out of warranty anyway 😉

topcheese
topcheese
9 years ago

… to add to the mount debate; this is one reason why I steer folks away from the alloy ones. Too many broken tabs. Bar Fly and Garmin’s Out Front are steps in the right direction, but Personally, I use the cheap plastic ones that come with the Gamin. Mount them to the top of my stem… done. Not one problem thus far. So to add to what John said, I would much rather wear out the mount than have to warranty of modify my Garmin because of broken tabs.

topcheese
topcheese
9 years ago

*warranty or modify. (seriously, we need an edit feature!)

brianlescargot
brianlescargot
8 years ago

Don’t know of anyone complaining about a broken mount! Its the tabs on the Garmin that break and the main offender for this seems to be the out front mount that must cause too much vibration as the Garmin supplied mount has a rubber base and I never had this issue using the basic mount. This combined with the constant removal of the head unit from the mount eventually break the tabs. I have now had 2 broken Garmin 800 head units in the last 9 months (latest is a refurbished replacement) and personally I would rather have the alloy back and eventually wear out the mount rather than vice versa since you can replace that for a few £/$. I have ordered both the Raceware and Dogears fix but expect that I will be using the former as I really don’t want my head unit springing out from its mount at 40 mph, bouncing on the tarmac and into the undergrowth at the side of the road!

bcool
bcool
8 years ago

I’ve only used the mounts that came with the Garmin – never used an aftermarket mount. Today, BOTH tabs broke off my Garmin 500. I’m not rough with the unit. It still looks new except for the broken tabs. So the stupid things break even when used as intended.

Nate
8 years ago

I’ve had some teammates/friends who have used Dog Ears but their Garmin mounts still broke. That was a large part of the inspiration for my product, the G-SAVR. http://g-savr.com

jose luis
jose luis
8 years ago

necesito un repuesto para mi garmin edge 800, al que se le rompio la base.

james o
8 years ago

Garmin, this is a problem! I know from first hand experience because I have a broken Garmin because of the tab breaking. I’ve created a petition to have Garmin acknowledge and fix this issue for all of us.

Please consider signing and sharing with your friends that have experienced this problem.

https://goo.gl/uFZixn

NormanS
NormanS
5 years ago

Works great

John Wijenbergh
John Wijenbergh
2 years ago

you make advertisements for mountain sports. But do you know that when you place an order that they do not deliver and even worse when you try to contact them on several ways they do not respond at all ! really a shame. best John

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