We tested the system again yesterday and we're still having issues. I ride a 2009 Ultra and using a Garmin Zumo 550. I created the route on Basecamp and shared the route to a friend who rides a 2014 Ultra Limited. He imported the route and had issues the entire day. He doesn't have any avoidances set and his GPS is set for fastest route, just like mine. We pulled out of the parking lot about 200' east of the actual starting point and his GPS was wanting him to make a U-turn to start at that exact point. I've never had that issue with my Zumo. He quickly stopped his route and started over with another waypoint. The map showed him on the route and even though the route was still going straight the GPS was wanting him to turn left. Needless to say, he is not impressed with his system. I think the GPS does a great job getting you from point A to point B, but I'm seeing to many issues with creating a route and sharing it. I've put together hundreds of routes and never have issues with my Zumo. We are going on a week long trip to PA and NY with 15 other bikes and I wouldn't feel comfortable leading a group with created routes and using the current GPS system. I think he is going to purchase a Zumo and have it installed on his 2014 Ultra limited. Has anyone had great success with creating a route and riding it without problems. I just don't know what else we can do....

 

I've been able to create & import routes with very few issues. Regardless of creation source, I use a program called Route Converter to review/edit/fine tune my routes & then save them in GPX format 1.1 before importing into my 6.5 system. I also share those files with others.

Generally, they share & work pretty much the same (within GPS units' accuracy). My key has been to zoom in on each waypoint to ensure it's located on the road system, not even slightly off the road, which will generate false instructions. I also place my waypoints either slightly before or after intersections, never in the intersections.

For clarity, I rename all my waypoints with both a number (in order, beginning to end) & a brief location description. This assures I must review each waypoint to make sure none are out of order, causing loopbacks. Finally, I set GPS calculation method to shortest route, not shortest time. When using this method, additional waypoints (placed in order along the route) help.

I am using Version 1.18.3 of the 6.5GT software. Finally, when starting a route, sometimes the GPS location vs. start point can be off slightly, give a "false loop" instruction to get to the start point before going to the 1st waypoint. When this happens, I just tell the unit to go to the next waypoint, which puts it back on the route.

Many have, through trial & error, established different methodologies that also work. The more you play with the system, the more you figure out its' quirks, the better your results will become.

Good Luck!

 

I have been using Basecamp to plan routes and transfer them to the Boom GPS ever since I bought the bike. I dont have any problems with the Boom GPS getting along with Basecamp. There is a learning curve with Basecamp but it works well for me.

 

I did mount my Zumo 590LM on my 2015 Ultra and consistently find it better than the Boom. Not the least of which is the Zumo has a more current map. So far I've done hundreds of miles on roads that the Zumo knew about but the Boom showed me floating in space.

The Zumo and the Boom treat the starting point differently. One will ask where to you want to go and the other where you are starting from. That sounds like where your friend got off on the wrong foot. Did he try just skipping the way point and letting the system adjust?

Another oddity of the Boom is it treats a planned route in sort of a "circular" fashion. If you have 10 way points and when you start you skip the first 3 the end of route calculation will reflect circling back after way point 10 and visiting points 1, 2, & 3. Found that on a ride where I had multiple way points and multiple rest stops. After each restart I chose to start in the route where I was. Didn't understand why my end of route calculation kept getting further away even though I was making progress. My plan for this particular ride was to use the Zumo for the segments and the Boom to estimate the final end. Didn't work out so well.

My Zumo is mounted on the handlebars. When T and T Fabrications releases a console mount for the Rushmore fairing I will be moving the Zumo above the fairing vent. Even when not using it for navigation it provides a lot of useful information. Plus the directions feed directly into my Bluetooth Sena headset.

IMHO, the Boom is an example of the "80/20 rule". 80% of the owners will be fine with it's functionality. The other 20% will constantly compare it to Garmin, Tom Tom, etc and will consider it a lesser solution. Almost any time you buy an integrated anything - Hi-Fi stereos, home theater boxes, etc - you have compromises.

 

I've created routes without problem, but you are attempting to share routes across different platforms. I would think that unless you have waypoints located after just about every intersection in your route, there is a chance the HD GPS will run a different route than the Garmin.

HD is fairly clear about it in the manual too:

Ride Planner exports locations and waypoints into the GPX file. It does not export the highlighted route.(Emphasis added) The exact routing between destinations may be calculated differently within the radio than shown in Ride Planner.To plot a particular path, you may need to add waypoints along the desired route. Also, the route calculation can be affected by system settings such as route preferences (scenic, fastest, shortest or twisty) and avoidances (such as toll roads, unpaved roads and so on).

I thought the beauty of using Basecamp with a Garmin is you connect the GPS unit to your computer & use the maps within the GPS itself to plan the route, which is impossible to do with an on-board system.

I would guess that if all but 1 of the bikes in your group were running the new HD system, & the 1 bike was running a Garmin, that 1 bike would have a different route planned too.

About the only thing you could do is print out the turn-by-turn directions as generated by the Garmin, & give them along with the file to the rider with the new HD system & have him try to edit in waypoints to guide him along the same route once loaded into the system. That might be painstaking, depending on how many he/she would have to edit in.

Or - just mount a Garmin as you have indicated is being considered.

 

That's interesting... I have had no issues like that when importing and riding routes from Basecamp to the Boom Nav system. Works as expected for me. Sounds like there might still be something being missed.

 

I appreciate everyone's feedback. The route we set up was less than 80 miles and I used many more waypoints than normal to keep him on the route, but he was still having problems with recalculations. I've been using Basecamp for quite some time and have traveled all over the U.S. with no problems using my Garmin Zumo. He decided to have a Zumo installed on his 2014.