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NDTRAX GPS Chips

291K views 50 replies 17 participants last post by  oldfireguy 
#1 ·
Has anybody bought one of these yet?

What's the detail like? I'm a bit concerned that it would be a pain to read in my old black and white Lowrance.

I went out with a friend of mine to chase elk last year (successful, BTW), and it was a huge pain to try to reconcile where we were on the Forest Service map. I was thinking how sweet a GPS map of PLOTS and the Grasslands would be... This year I bought a bow, and we're headin' out for mulies. I'm trying to determine if this chip is worth it.
 
#3 ·
Omegax,

The NDTRAX maps have the most lakes for ND of any GPS mapping option. The main one not included as Chris mentions is Sak. These are all surveyed lakes so not based off old paper maps as many other competitor maps are.

The detail from a contour standpoint is 1' for shallow lakes, 3' for mid-range lakes, and 5' for deeper lakes so contour lines don't merge together as happens with other maps.

How will it look on a monochrome GPS, good. You won't be able to quickly distinguish between PLOTS and State Land for instance as Blue and Green will all show as gray but they are outlined with different lines so this will help and you can hover your GPS pointer on the item and see what it is.

There is no other GPS option with all the hunting lands, plus it includes more lakes than other option, and includes roads, trails, cities, and much more and is less than most lake maps. I am trying not to SPAM but simply put there is nothing else like it. If you use a search engine and type in NDTRAX, you will find the website. If you PM me, I can provide more information as well. I hope this helps.
 
#8 ·
They will work in about Garmin or Lowrance that has a mapcard but I still recommend a color unit. There are subtle differences in the different land types that are much more evident on a color unit such as State Land being all blue, but still it works fine in a monochrome GPS as well.
 
#9 ·
I can see why color is recommended. I'm very pleased with it even in my monochrome unit, but things do get a little cluttered when they're all similar colors, unless you're zoomed in quite a ways to cut down on the amount of "stuff" on the screen at any one time.

Saying "cluttered" sounds more negative than I really to intend to be. There's a lot of information to display, and it would be easier to differentiate in color.

I'm glad I like the Lowrance family, so I'll be able to use the same chip once I upgrade. However, I wouldn't let the lack of a color unit stop me from buying. On the contrary, I'm going to use the chip as an excuse to upgrade my GPS. If a guy were buying a new unit, I'd pony up the cash for the color unit... I just can't justify replacing my current unit, yet.
 
#10 ·
There are advantages to having a color GPS but NDTRAX still does a very good of allowing differentiation of different elements even without color.

Attached is an example showing the differentiation between a WMA, WPA and PLOTS. I not only use different shading but different borders, labeling and much more.

. Let me know if you have any other questions.[/img]
 
#11 ·
I am not seeing different colored land for some state and all Plots land on mine. I beleive TRNP is on there, but Arrowwood is not, at least not in a different color. I picked up a chip and a Nuvi 500 on Friday, so I'm not all that familiar with it. Does it matter how zoomed in or out you are? Also, i can't get any Plots land to show up "labeled" at all unless you put the mouse on it.
Thanks
 
#12 ·
The built in topo map on the Nuvi 500 (which is a great GPS) is what is causing your display issue. The way to make NDTRAX appear as designed is to change the following setting on the 500.

Tools - Settings - System and choose Walking or Biking

On all the other NUVIs, it just appears by default. For anyone with an Oregon series, there is a land zoom setting that has to be adjusted because of topo as well. Sorry didn't mean to turn this into a support thread. It talks about this on the website under tips but for some reason the link isn't working from the forum right now. After changing this setting, PLOTS, Grasslands, WPAs, etc will COME ALIVE.

Arrowhead NWR is on the map as you mentioned and TRNP and much more.

Yes, it does matter how zoomed in you are but this isn't the issue currently. After this is done being set, there is an area for map detail settings and it can be set from LEAST to MOST. This will change how soon items begin to appear on the unit. The setting of "MORE" tends to be most people's favorite.

From memory I believe you set this at Tools - Settings - Map.

Once the map starts showing, you will be able notice PLOTS without putting your mouse on them as it will be much more evident. PM me or call me if you have any other questions but the change will be drastic after you change the settings.
 
#15 ·
Chuck, I know you were joking but ironically, it would actually be illegal to include it believe it or not. :eek: I had a suggestion to put prairie dog locations on the map and got a quick response from a state employee citing the ND century code saying this would not be legal as you cannot list a specific location of animal or something similar to this.

So bottom line is you are right, you need to find that big buck, fish, geese, coyotes, pheasants on your own. My maps will help you find places to hunt, fish, travel, hike, etc and the rest is up to you. It would be fun if I could set the hook, take the shot, but you get to enjoy that part. :D Try one and you won't be sorry.

Kirsch (Korey)
 
#16 ·
Omegax and others who purchased NDTRAX, I just wanted you to know it has been updated with the latest PLOTS data. Traditionally, updates to NDTRAX are $20 but until NDTRAX 2010 comes out, all updates will be for FREE.

Send your NDTRAX cards to Kirsch's Outdoor Products and they will update them and send them back for FREE until NDTRAX 2010 is released. For updates, put your NDTRAX 2009 card in a bubble mailer and send them to:

Kirsch's Outdoor Products
7915 Aquarius Drive
Fargo, ND 58104
 
#20 ·
For ND (NDTRAX), the typical timing for the next year update is usually early spring (typically around March) in time for the open water fishing season and there is usually one more update to the 2010 version prior to hunting season around August.

If you plan to hunt or fish before March, then I would highly recommend buying NDTRAX 2009 and then paying the nominal update fee of $20 and update sometime later in 2010. Thank you for checking.
 
#21 ·
kirsch, I used my son's chip in the Badlands. It's a wonderful product. I decided to keep my Garmin 60 CS and buy a chip for my nuvi and a cd for my hand held. I'll be getting in touch about March.
 
#23 ·
I used it this fall and it worked great. Well worth it! Almost everyone that rode in my truck this fall was amazed and wanted one also. Great product.

These are all surveyed lakes and not based off old paper maps as many other competitor maps are.
You would be amazed at the accuracy difference between survey data and the old maps that were digitized years ago.

With new GPS signals being developed we will all see great improvements with our hand held GPS units. We are now using the L2c signal in addition to the L1 and L2 with our survey grade GPS. As they continue to launch more and more satellites with this signal hopefully it won't be long that it will be available in the hand held units also. The belief is that this signal will eventually give the hand held unit 1 meter accuracy. Along with that a L5 signal is being developed and tested for release somewhere between 2015 and 2020 with the hope of achieving 1cm accuracy with a lone rover.
 
#24 ·
Longshot thanks for that look into our GPS technological future.

Kirsch, I think your product makes my GPS worth three times what it is without it. While in the Badlands instead of trying to calculate if I have blundered onto private land I need only look at my GPS. I leave a good margin of error, but I don't need to leave a half mile like I did in the past. Thanks. I can't wait to use it on Deviils Lake.
 
#25 ·
Just an FYI, as the question was asked when NDTRAX 2010 will be released, it is now available. Some of the new features include:

1) A number of new lakes added including Harmon Lake
2) Lands totally redone including PLOTS, State, and Federal land
3) Land Owner Names added for Cass, Morton, and Pembina county
4) Township, Range, and Section number data added for remaining counties
5) Main wetlands in ND added
6) Land elements appear sooner with less need to zoom for land elements to appear

To top it all off, for those of you who like to scout using Google Earth, an additional product has been released called NDTRAX PC. This allows a person to see the hunting lands, fishing contours, streams, etc in Google Earth allowing the features such as Transparency and 3-D(terrain) to be used to zoom in and see the TRAX features against aerial data. It is awesome. You can see this and other great products from Kirsch's Outdoor Products at our website http://www.koutdoorproducts.com
 
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