Pre-2008 Garmin Bluechart SD cards?

Greetings!

Our new-to-us 1990 GB 32 has two Garmin model 2010 GPS Plotters--now totally obsolete.

Our new main chartplotting will all be done on an iPad running Navionics and maybe another plotting app as well. (Navimatics connects to Active Captain, which is nice.)

But, rather than just tossing those two Garmins, I'd like to use them as backups, as they have some functions that Navionics doesn't.

But I need charts! Garmin doesn't support them anymore, and the only site I could find that sells old Bluechart SD cards, TigerGPS, doesn't have any more.

I need, at least, a chart of the SF Bay and Delta region and the Pacific Northwest, hopefully from Olympia WA to Desolation Sound.

Would somebody like to sell me some pre-2008 Bluechart SD, or suggest how/where I can find some? I know they will be out of date, but hopefully still usable, with caution.

Thanks!
Oldersalt

"Everything on your boat is broken. You just don't know it yet."

I have those and more
Understand dilemma. I wonder if they can be copied to a blank chip.

Dear Darlin,
Wow, what a quick response. I talked to Garming support and they said that the old data cards cannot be copied onto a blank card, unfortunately. I think it's mostly a technical issue but maybe legal too.

But a card can be used in a different machine, as long as it is "unlocked."

So, would you be interested in selling me card that match at least some of the areas I am interested in? If so, how much?

Maybe better to PM me at mabennett44@gmail.com

Thanks,
Mike

I have seen some on Craigslist St. Augustine recently but I believe they were for south FL and the Bahamas. We had a GPSMAP 2010C on our old boat with Great Lakes charts and things on the Great Lakes don't change much. The story is a little different in the southeast. You would probably be better off spending a boat buck or so and getting a recent 7" Garmin device.

Edit - sorry, take that back. They were C-Maps for Bimini and the Bahamas.

Oldersalt said:

Greetings!
But I need charts! Garmin doesn't support them anymore, and the only site I could find that sells old Bluechart SD cards, TigerGPS, doesn't have any more.

I need, at least, a chart of the SF Bay and Delta region and the Pacific Northwest, hopefully from Olympia WA to Desolation Sound.

Would somebody like to sell me some pre-2008 Bluechart SD, or suggest how/where I can find some? I know they will be out of date, but hopefully still usable, with caution.

Click to expand...

FWIW, they are not "SD" cards - they're the older proprietary Garmin "Bluechart data card" format. If I recall correctly, you'll need the oldest version of them, not even the G2 version. I believe that's what is supported by my 2006C (identical to your 2010C except for screen size).

I have a set of them for the Inside Passage, MCA501L, MUS024R, and MUS026R, from 2006 and 2007. Up to date enough, with very minor exceptions (the rocks don't move around very much, but occasionally there's a new NAVAID). Sorry, they're not for sale (unless you want to buy my 26-footer....)

I have found them from time to time on eBay. Looked this morning, but did not see any for the geography you want. I'd check there.

I have a drawer full of little Garmin cards on my recently purchased trawler. Pacific Nw, not sure of exact coverage, but there's about a dozen of them in original boxes. The gps has failed and is no longer supported. I'm running Coastal Explorer.

I wont be visiting the boat again until end of January (its in Tacoma, I'm on s. Oregon), but if you can wait they're yours free. Where are you?

Bill

Old Garmin sd cards

Bill,
Thanks for the great offer!. Do you know what model garmin you have on the boat? I think there are at least 3 different versions of the cards, and they are NOT backwards compatible!

I have 2 garmin 2010 models, from the mid '90s. They use Garmin Bluechart SD "data cards."

If you know what model Garmin you have, let me know and I'll check the compatibility.

assuming they are compatible, I will be happy to wait to see which ones you have.

You can PM me at mbennett (at) astrosociety.org

Thanks
Mike (oldersalt) Bennett

Bill,
I am also running a Garmin 2010C, if you come up with an
extra MCA003R I would be interested in acquiring it,
Thanks

Ted

Ted said:

Bill,
I am also running a Garmin 2010C, if you come up with an
extra MCA003R I would be interested in acquiring it,
Thanks

Ted

Click to expand...

I scrapped the Garmin without paying much attention, but I'm sure I still have the manual; Model 20-somethin' sounds right. Let you both know about 2/1/17. I'll be staying aboard during the Seattle Show.

Bill
Seeadler
Tacoma & Ashland

Thanks Bill

Ted

Ted said:

Bill,
I am also running a Garmin 2010C, if you come up with an
extra MCA003R I would be interested in acquiring it,
Thanks

Ted

Click to expand...

Ted and O. Salt,

Finally got to the boat. What I have are some sort of proprietary Garmin card--box says "G chart.' Bigger than an SD; black plastic front, shiny metal back with four rivets. Is that what you use? All index codes are GCA or GUS.

Bill

Thanks for trying but I don't recognise that style or
introduction letters.

Ted

Ted said:

Thanks for trying but I don't recognise that style or
introduction letters.

Ted

Click to expand...

Im afraid they are superannuated junk.

I also found a c-map chip-2006, for US West coast w/Hawaii, free to a good home.

'Prof

RCook said:

FWIW, they are not "SD" cards - they're the older proprietary Garmin "Bluechart data card" format..

Click to expand...

Correct and important because you will never find what you're looking for if you call them "SD cards"

At one time I had a Garmin plotter that used these cards. I bought a CD from Garmin and some blank cards and a special Garmin card reader that plugged into the computer's serial port (yes, it was a while ago). I forget exactly how it worked but I had to copy regional maps from the CD to the card and then pay to unlock the maps before they could be used in the plotter.

Do a web search for the cards you are looking for or check eBay. Better yet, replace the plotters with current models. They are much faster and have additional features.

Any cards you find that are compatible with your plotter will have very old charts. As of right now there are several available on eBay.

Garmin "G-charts" were for chartplotters even older than the ~2002 vintage 2006 and 2010. They worked in the Garmin 210 we bought in ~1996. It was one of the first decent chartplotters.

The level of charting detail in G-charts was not very satisfying, though. Combine that with "selective availability" fuzzing of the GPS signal, and the result was knowing where you were only approximately. Better than nothing, however, especially when wandering between the zillions of islands on the Inside Passage. We always had paper charts out in those days, using both them and the 210 chartplotter.

Our set of G-charts for the Inside Passage cost upwards of $2,000, IIRC.

Ted said:

Bill,
I am also running a Garmin 2010C, if you come up with an
extra MCA003R I would be interested in acquiring it,
Thanks

Ted

Click to expand...

Hey Ted...I have some stuff left over from our Garmin 2010C; a chart chip and I think a manual. All on board and I'll be on board myself this Thurs-Fri if you're around.

Hi Conrad,
Hope to see you then

Ted