my initial thoughts on the garmin astro

HolyMoses

HolyMoses

New member
Just got home from a little hunt and was able to try out the astro for the first time. Thought I would post my feelings, and maybe ask a couple questions.

Upon opening the package I thought the following:

- a nice hard case that will come in handy
- the GPS unit is very lightweight! GPS tech has come along way since my old one.
- no tether of any sort was included? Thought it would have had something. It came with a belt hook, but that is pretty useless IMO.

I have been hearing how these things are the cure for the beeper, so I left the beeper at home. Actually, I put the gps receiver on the same collar as the e-collar, so I didn't have room for the beeper anyway. I decided instead of putting it on another collar, to leave it at home. I would end up regretting that.

I need to get a holster of some sort because I didn't like keeping it in my pocket. I ended up holding the thing most the time, which wasn't a huge deal, but had a rooster gotten up in front of me, I may have fumbled a bit.

It is super cool being able to look down and see where the dog is, if he is running, and which way he is going. The peace of mind, especially when we got close to the road was awesome. When he ran down into a heavily wooded area, it was awesome not needing to hit the beeper to know he was on the move and to where. It did exactly what I expected it to do and it did it well for the most part. I did find myself staring at the screen a lot, which was one of my concerns. I think a good holster, with it hanging around my neck or clipped to my vest will be nice.

What I really didn't like was it didn't alert me when on point. We had what I assume was a wounded bird take us on a wild chase. It was actually the perfect thing to test the collar. Numerous times the dog stopped, but the GPS showed "sitting", not "on point". I am 100% certain that I set it as a pointing dog, but never once, even when he stopped to mark some territory, or when he was waiting for me to open the truck door, did it show anything besides sitting. My dog rarely sits, so that aggravated me. I have since gone and entered in "pointing dog" again, so maybe the first time I did it, it wasn't linked to the collar? Will have to see what happens next time out. Hopefully it alerts me to "on point", or I just wasted a lot of money.

The other thing I didn't like was the 5 second refresh rate. A fast moving dog can cover a lot of ground in 5 seconds. Also, when chasing a crippled/running bird, or even a healthy one for that matter, a lot can happen in that amount of time. A 3 second would be better IMO. A couple times I found myself looking for the dog in one direction, and having it refresh and say the dog wasn't there anymore, then I would look there and the same thing would happen. With the beeper, I know exactly where he is when I hit that button. No ifs, ands, or buts, about it. I certainly did miss that.

So, while I did think it was neat, and think i will end up keeping it, I am not yet convinced to leave the beeper at home. I really hope it was a fluke and that my changing it to pointing dog again will fix it. If it doesn't, the beeper will go back on and the GPS will stay in my pocket and be used more for if the dog gets out of beeper range, or if the batteries go dead.

If anyone has any suggestions, or tips, or thoughts, please post up. I certainly am open to all commentary. I really want to make this work.
 
The system only knows if the dog has stopped moving. So if it is saying that he is sitting, the collar is not set as pointing dog.
 
SetterNut said:
The system only knows if the dog has stopped moving. So if it is saying that he is sitting, the collar is not set as pointing dog.
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Good to know. Thought maybe there was a gyro in it that knew when the dogs head was upright? Sort of had me confused.
 
I'm just figuring this puppy out but I had to set and reset the dog several times before it gave me the on point notifications. It kept telling me Brady has treed quarry, so I'd delete the dog and load again. 3rd time was the charm... not sure if it was a fluke or user error but you might try that. I was able to do it all inside during a mini obedience lesson so it wasn't a big deal.
 
PrairieBelle said:
I'm just figuring this puppy out but I had to set and reset the dog several times before it gave me the on point notifications. It kept telling me Brady has treed quarry, so I'd delete the dog and load again. 3rd time was the charm... not sure if it was a fluke or user error but you might try that. I was able to do it all inside during a mini obedience lesson so it wasn't a big deal.
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Do you recall if the collar was connected to satellites when the change took?

I am thinking that maybe that had something to do with it. When I set it to pointer, the collar was still searching for a signal, so maybe it didn't accept it for that reason?
 
HolyMoses said:
Do you recall if the collar was connected to satellites when the change took?

I am thinking that maybe that had something to do with it. When I set it to pointer, the collar was still searching for a signal, so maybe it didn't accept it for that reason?
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Can't tell you for sure, it was showing a track but I was in my basement so it is possible that the satellites weren't connected!
 
Fantastic tool for the pointing dog owner. Can find dogs in high grass, cattails, etc... wind is not an issue like a beeper.

Stealth. Wow.


Have to admit that I have missed (well did not even shoot) a bird or two cuz the Garmin was in one hand. :eek:
 
Just got home from a chilly walk in the woods.

I reset it as a pointing dog, so all is good there. Wish the beep would be a little louder, but it does the trick.

I think I have decided to still take the beeper along. My dogs neck is pretty skinny but I was actually able to fit the beeper, GPS, and e collar receiver all on the same collar. I had the beeper on, but muted, and never used it today. I think when hunting with other people and dogs though, I will use it. The other dogs I have hunted with pick up in the beep and I don't want to be constantly saying "he's on point over there".

I feel much better about the astro now then I did before. It really has to be nice for the guys out west in the wide open spaces.
 
Beeper and astro would be like carrying two guns to hunt pheasants...

Maybe I just don't understand the need to know exactly where your dog is at all times in heavy color.

As long as I can get to them on point when they are out of sight and I know what direction they are if I haven't saw them in a while I'm fine.
 
wisturkeyhunter said:
Beeper and astro would be like carrying two guns to hunt pheasants...

Maybe I just don't understand the need to know exactly where your dog is at all times in heavy color.

As long as I can get to them on point when they are out of sight and I know what direction they are if I haven't saw them in a while I'm fine.
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I'm confused. :confused: Don't you want to know where your dog is when it's on point? You may think you know what direction they were headed in but they can change direction in a heartbeat and be located totally opposite of where you think. After years of frustration so not being able to find my Brittanys when there were on point, and not wanting to call them off, I finally bought the Dogtra T&B 2502 and wouldn't be without it again. I'm considering a GPS system, Garmin or Sportdog, but I don't want to be walking around in the field looking at the unit in my hand.

I run my dogs in the "Point Only" mode. No one likes hearing that beeper all day. I don't need to know where my dogs are all the times but I do like being made aware when they go on point and being able to locate them.
 
Maybe you misread what I meant. I use an astro and like it. I just don't understand why are a person needs two ways of keeping track of a dog.

You don't need to have your unit in your hand the whole time. :eek:

I only look at it if it signals the dog(s) are pointing or if I haven't seen a dog recently.
 
It's an audible sound and there is a lot of different choices for what sound you want.

Basically when the dog stops the astro beeps (or whatever noise you have programmed) about like a text message on a cell phone.

The screen I keep it on has a compass with an arrow pointing in the directions the dog is and the distance to the dog. It has a little icon next to the dogs name that will show if the dog is pointing or running.
 
wisturkeyhunter said:
It's an audible sound and there is a lot of different choices for what sound you want.

Basically when the dog stops the astro beeps (or whatever noise you have programmed) about like a text message on a cell phone.

The screen I keep it on has a compass with an arrow pointing in the directions the dog is and the distance to the dog. It has a little icon next to the dogs name that will show if the dog is pointing or running.
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I have looked and do not see where the sound can be changed? The only option I see is tone, or tone and vibrate. Is it in a different menu than where you simply turn it on or off?

As mentioned, when I am with someone else, I don't want to be constantly having to relay the message that the dog is on point, so I will keep the beeper. Plus, when I hunt with other dogs, they are flushers, and they seem to like hearing the beep. I can mute it and only turn it on when I want to, so it really isn't like having two guns, if the beeper is off Lol!

The astro, in my opinion is not the end all be all....nice for sure, but unless everyone in your hunting party has one, a beeper or bell still has a place.
 
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Dakotazeb said:
Sorry! Is the audible or vibrate signal when the dog is on point ea xxx y do hear or feel.
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You can set it to do both.

I suggest trying one if possible. In all honesty, had I tried it, I would have spent the money on something else. As mentioned, it is a great tool, and a cool gadget, but depending on a few things, you may feel like I do.

My dog is small. In any cover taller than knee high, he is out of sight within seconds. Combine that with his speed and the 5 second refresh rate, it is simply a general area type of thing. And yes, you do have to take your eyes off the field. That is also driving me nuts. With my beeper, I have it on point only, but anytime I need to know where he is, I hit a button on my e-collar transmitter and the collar beeps, telling me where he is. No digging in my pocket, taking my eyes off the field, or fumbling with anything.

I hunt alone a lot, so I will probably end up keeping it just for the peace of mind if he ever gets lost. If I wouldn't hunt alone very often, I would return it or sell it. Unless every single person in the party has a receiver, they are going to he wondering where the heck he is, and the only way they will know if he is on point will be when I yell over to them. I cannot afford to buy extra receivers and hand them out at the beginning of a hunt so people know what the dog is doing. A couple weeks ago my dog was working a huge cattail slew. My hunting partner was probably 70 yards away. Neither of us could really see where the dog was, but I would hit the beeper button every once in a while. Thinking of that situation with just the astro makes me cringe.

Good luck in your decision.:cheers:
 
You seem to be making a bunch of issues up and making it all a lot harder than it needs to be but I guess everybody is different. I think you'll change your mind as you get more used to it but maybe not.

As far as changing the tones on my 220, hit the menu button twice, go down to advanced, down to settings, and then down to tones. Should be 19 choices.
 
There are some interesting takes here on the Astro.

Here is my take, with a pointing dog there is no need to know where the dog is at all times. A pointing dog is to go, find, and point birds, and hold that point until the gun gets there to flush the bird. What the Astro's strongest benefit for the pointing dog is it make it easier to find a dog that is on point. This could be due to tall cover, or long distances.

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I know not everyone hunts in places where there is a lot of ground to be covered by the dog. Some places are not big enough for a dog to be 300-600 yards off. But you don't need to have the pointing dog in gun range, if you do you could just as easily do that with a flushing dog.

When a dog is in tall grass at long distance on a windy day, and Astro / Alpha is about the only way you will find them. In those conditions I find a bell and a beeper to be of almost no use.
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As you use the unit, you will see that you will shoot more birds because you can get to your dog quickly without the racket of beepers.
 
wisturkeyhunter said:
You seem to be making a bunch of issues up and making it all a lot harder than it needs to be but I guess everybody is different. I think you'll change your mind as you get more used to it but maybe not.

As far as changing the tones on my 220, hit the menu button twice, go down to advanced, down to settings, and then down to tones. Should be 19 choices.
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Not making anything up really. My main issue is, when the dog is on point in cover, I am the only one that will know.
 
SetterNut said:
As you use the unit, you will see that you will shoot more birds because you can get to your dog quickly without the racket of beepers.
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I hope you are right. Not sure how much the beeper affects birds, but i am sure it has an effect on some. It is on the collar, so if I meet up with others or feel like I need it, I hit the button and turn out on.

It really isn't a big deal to me if I don't like it. I needed a new handheld GPS anyway, so the dog tracking part is a bonus. If I am able to save my dogs ears from the garbage truck beeping, it is a bigger bonus. I was honestly expecting after reading all the posts about how Jesus himself must have invented the astro, I was expecting to be blown away. I didn't realize how much ground can be covered and how many things can happen in 5 seconds.

Another factor i am sure is, this is my first pointing dog. Coming from close working, slower, flushing dogs, I am still not to the "let them do whatever they want" point. As I get better with that, and over the "where is he", the astro will probably grow on me.
 
one of the coolest features IMO is to be able at the end of a hunt, look up the statistics and see just how much distance the dog covered and what his average speed was. that is pretty darned neat.
 
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