[Ethelburt]

Hi folks,
I have got a garmin gpsmap 176c handheld chartplotter, it uses the bluechart cartridge which are no longer available. I have done a bit of searching and it seems that using something called mapsource and a card programmer its possible to download the charts onto blank cartridges, has anyone got any experience/knowledge of doing this.

Thanks Bert.

 

[satanssledge]

Yeah it can be done, I used to do all mine when I trailed around the country, I kept a couple of spare cards to load the maps onto for the region I was going into.

You will need map source bluechart on your pc (that's the difficult bit)
A card reader and a card.

When I sold my plotter I think I sold all my cards, probably still got the reader lying around somewhere though

 

[drewsephine]

Not had experience of Garmin BlueCharts, but I know a lot of them use proprietary cards where the serial no of the card is ingrained into the software so it is almost impossible to transfer charts from one card to another.
This is certainly the case for more recent chart cards such as the Navionics ones.
Not a bad thing I suppose, as it stops one person buying and then distributing to all their mates for free. They've gotta support the innovations and updates somehow I suppose.
Sorry I can't be of more help.

 

[satanssledge]

Not had experience of Garmin BlueCharts, but I know a lot of them use proprietary cards where the serial no of the card is ingrained into the software so it is almost impossible to transfer charts from one card to another.
This is certainly the case for more recent chart cards such as the Navionics ones.
Not a bad thing I suppose, as it stops one person buying and then distributing to all their mates for free. They've gotta support the innovations and updates somehow I suppose.
Sorry I can't be of more help.

Your bang on right, but the old garmin charts could be erased with the reader and map source and re-written.

 

[hopeful]

Or you can buy them secondhand on the auction site

 

[willybendit]

just the thing on my computer complete with card reader what area are you after as ive a few cards that i dont use

 

[Ethelburt]

Thanks for the replies, its the english channel I need.

 

[Ethelburt]

just the thing on my computer complete with card reader what area are you after as ive a few cards that i dont use

Hi, thanks for the reply please see pm.

Bert.

 

[willybendit]

Buy that card reader worth about £20 25 tops P+P £5 once you have the reader let me know as ive a spare laptop with map source on it shame the leads are not available now as you could of plugged your chartplotter into the lappy and down loaded the maps straight onto it what you`ll have to do now in rewite the card and put that into your plotter