Earlier this spring I wrote about Garmin’s bike mount for the Colorado handheld. I wasn’t too pleased with the zip tie mounting system, though once I moved it to the handlebar stem it was much more stable. But a stem mount means the angle isn’t adjustable, and visibility was quite poor.
Fortunately, a RAM mount has finally been released for the Colorado, and I couldn’t wait to try it out. What I ended up with is pictured above. But don’t go ordering one till you read the rest of the story.
The closest thing RAM offers to a packaged Colorado bike mount is the monstrosity pictured at left. You sure don’t want to flip your bike with that on it!
But it appeared to me that the RAM Colorado cradle would work with the same rail mount I had used for other handlebar mounts. Those last two links are for the components you will need to replicate my mount. ( EDIT: That last link doesn’t work; not sure why. The part you want is RAP-274 or RAP-274U. Either will work.) Please note that the rail mount is designed for 1.0 to 1.1" diameter handlebars and will not work with 31.8 mm handlebars.
The rail mount is actually two pieces, shown on the right below. These two pieces are bolted to each other first, allowing you to cock the mount and GPS right or left. I always leave mine straight.
Sharp-eyed observers may notice that the diamond on the rail mount and the diamond on the Colorado cradle are not the exact same width. No need to worry; the bolt holes line up perfectly.
As I expected, the RAM mount performed admirably for me on the trail, which included bruising singletrack with lots of drop offs.
Pictured below are more shots of the end result, which can be adjusted to give you the best viewing angle possible.
About Rich Owings
Could you use this mount to put the GPSr on the top tube? From the picture and your dimensions, this wouldn’t be possible. I currently have a 60CSx and usually carry it in my CamelBak unless I “know” I’m not going to crash.
Are there options for approx. 1.8-in. diameter tubes and mounted perpendicular to the tube? (I downloaded the RAM catalogs, but it might take me a week to sort out their options.)
Yeah, good luck with the RAM catalog! 🙁
If your top tube is 1.0 to 1.1″ in diameter, and round, then yes, I think you could make it work. Whether it would get in your way or not is another question.
I know of no options for 1.8″ diameter tubes, but I haven’t looked into it either.
If the RAM Colorado cradle is like their 60-series cradle, with enough use that piece at the top of the cradle that flexes will break over time. I went through *three* RAM cradles for the 60C because each developed a crack and then broke along that section.
The third time was with their improved version, where they attempted to rectify the problem by reinforcing that section with more plastic. That didn’t really help, unfortunately.
RAM offered to replace the cradle for free every time it broke, which was great customer service, but I got tired of having a broken cradle every six months from daily use. Eventually I mounted one of Garmin’s cradles to the RAM mount, because the Garmin version tends to crack at the top of the hoop, which is bad on mountain bikes but not really an issue in a vehicle. Problem (finally) solved.
Hopefully their Colorado cradles won’t suffer the same fate if you use them regularly.
Yeah, I’ve broken a 60 series mount at the same point. The Colorado cradle seems much more sturdy, but if you’re out that much (you lucky dog!), many plastics will ultimately breakdown due to exposure to sunlight.
BTW, the Colorado mount seems much easier on the unit than the 60 series. It sure is easy to, over time, damage the rubber seal at the base of the 60 series with the RAM mount.
Look nice. But I have a question.
Do you need screws for this combination? And how much.
Are it special RAM screws?
Are they supplied with railmount or the cradle?
I forget what they are called, but they basically have a nylon (?) bushing on the nut. They’re standard and can be found in larger hardware stores. The RAM components come with them. You’ll probably get two with the cradle and one with the rail mount.
I am searching for a shop in germany or switzerland to order the RAM Colorado cradle and the rail mount.
thanks for the feedback
nzuoodncrzklrstewell, hi admin adn people nice forum indeed. how’s life? hope it’s introduce branch 😉
http://www.themountdepot.com ships RAM Mount international at reasonable rates. They have the RAP-274U and Colorado mounts too.
Thanks for writing about this. I had been looking for a good way to mount my GPS and this was the best! I added the ‘quick release’ piece so that we could easily switch the GPS between bikes without having to have another cradle.
Glad it helped. Hey, do you have a RAM part number for the quick release? I’d like to check it out.