Recommended Truck Route GPS?

Steven, you really want to have a policy of not trusting anything 100%. You'll have a ton of tools to help you get the job done out there but nothing is perfect. GPS systems are notoriously inaccurate at times and can certainly lead you down dirt roads and all kinds of places you don't want to be. So anytime you're trying to plan a route, make sure you use multiple sources to help you determine the best route - directions from the customer, directions in your Qualcomm , GPS, Atlas, Google Maps, directions over the CB, road signs - anything and everything you can find that might help give you clues as to where you're supposed to be going.

That's really what finding your way around the country in a big rig is like - a gigantic mystery. 98% of the time you'll be going places you've never been before so no matter what information you have about your route you'll never know the accuracy of it until you drive it. So you want to use as many sources of information as you can to piece together a route that has the best chance of getting you there successfully.

Steven, you really want to have a policy of not trusting anything 100%. You'll have a ton of tools to help you get the job done out there but nothing is perfect. GPS systems are notoriously inaccurate at times and can certainly lead you down dirt roads and all kinds of places you don't want to be. So anytime you're trying to plan a route, make sure you use multiple sources to help you determine the best route - directions from the customer, directions in your Qualcomm , GPS, Atlas, Google Maps, directions over the CB, road signs - anything and everything you can find that might help give you clues as to where you're supposed to be going.

That's really what finding your way around the country in a big rig is like - a gigantic mystery. 98% of the time you'll be going places you've never been before so no matter what information you have about your route you'll never know the accuracy of it until you drive it. So you want to use as many sources of information as you can to piece together a route that has the best chance of getting you there successfully.

That's some good advice, Brett. I didn't mean to imply that I would wholly trust the GPS. In time, I hope to have the Rand McNally GPS, my smart phone with Google maps on it, a laptop close by, a book atlas (like in the old days), and of course the Qualcomm going. You are right in mentioning the fact that travelling will be a Rubik's cube. It will take all the things you mentioned and a bit of luck (LOL) to get to where you want to go.

Thanks for all the input. Seems like Randy McNally is's going to be. Now to be able to talk them into spending 400 bucks. lol. I'll do my best to keep you all updated here.

And of course I don't plan on having only the GPS, I just feel that it could be very helpfull.

Not to put down the rand as it is one of the best out there but many if not most of the GPS' come with free lifetime maps. Harmon has the dezl and there is another that I'm drawing a blank on. Find a truck stop like a pilot or lives and go into compare. The rand is on sale through the end of year so that 399 model us 359 right now and I suspect the other brands will be on sale soon with holidays coming up

Garmin, Magellan, and Cobra offer truck models as well. I have owned Garmin and Magellan products before and they are total junk, at least mine were. Rand McNally TND series matches up to the motor carrier atlas that we all use. One other point is if you buy it at home from wherever, and it quits tomorrow after you go out your stuck. If you by it at a chain truck stop, take it to the next one with your receipt and they will replace it for you. And yes they are only another tool in the tool box. My trip up here 1600 miles total. Worked wonderfully for 1550 miles. Then wanted to route me through a corn field. The road I was on was only 6 months old and the maps didn't recognoize it. Common sense goes along way. No matter which brand you but all of the companies buy their maps from 1 of 3 companies that prepare them. Navtech seems do do the most updates, but that is only every 6 months. I worked with gps stuff a lot in my prior life. Just my opinion.....

Found the Randy McNally 720 for $289 on Amazon. That was cheaper than the 520. My Mom and Sister pooled their money together and ordered it. So I get an early Christmas present. I look now (to confirm the price I quote) and I see that the 520 is now on sale for $219.

Get a Rand McNally. No, get a Garmin. No, wait, get a Cobra. There is good, bad and ugly in all of them. If a GPS tells you to turn left, and on your left is an 11 foot bridge, you might want to rethink that turn.

Dave

Http://store.randmcnally.com/gps-electronics/truck-gps.html

I will prob be getting one of these. I plan on planning my own route then using the gps as kind of a guide.

I use the rand mcnally 720 and it has been a lifesaver in allowing me to make the most of my hours. I normally just use the directions from my dispatch and plug them into the GPS, but then I use the GPS to find the places I will stop along the way. It allows you to search for truck stops, rest areas, wal marts, and pretty much anything else along your route. Another driver doing the same load as me said I'd probably have to shut down early because there was about 150 miles of two lane roads with nowhere to stop along the way. I used the GPS to find a walmart that allows overnight truck parking that was about 15 minutes before where my hours would run out. I called ahead to confirm and got further that night, thus giving me more hours the next day after making my delivery.

I use the RM 520. It can give you up to two route selections. I always pick the one that is closest to the route I have already decided on based on the atlas and Google maps on my ipad. The GPS by itself is not reliable in my opinion. Too many times it has tried to route me to a street that is truck restricted. One time it put me on a LA highway and I find out just before crossing a bridge that there was a 15 ton weight restriction on it. So why did it even put me on that route to begin with? (And yes, all the truck parameters are set correctly). Sometimes it will try to route me around something that is not a restriction. A good example is the 285 around Atlanta. I haul a lot of hazmat and when I go around the eastern side of Atlanta the GPS says I have committed a hazmat violation and it shuts the routing off.

There is no replacement for a good ole paper atlas and directions from old timers. I also use Google maps to verify my routes, get in really close on small roads and check out my delivery or pick up points in satellite view. That's saved my butt a couple of times from getting into a stciky situation.

The thing I do like about the RM GPS is that once my route is programmed I can look up all rest areas, travel centers, or specific truck stops among other POIs on that route. That allows me to figure out a good stopping point based on what I want in real time. No more guessing what rest area or truck stop I will probably be near when it is time to start thinking about stopping for the night (or day depending on when you drive).