Fixing Garmin Forerunner 305?

kinesin

My trusty Garmin FR305 bounced itself apart last weekend, so now not only am I lost but also without any journey/speed numbers - it's like missing a limb



It amazingly works when put back together except for USB syncing. It will charge from cradle and by investigation tracked the issue down to the contact between the battery and main PCB; a small flat surface mounted multi spring connector like this (photo of an Edge 305):

but the last spring contact has broken off and hence will not make a connection.

Is there anyway I can fix this? soldering a cable between the battery / spring isn't an option as it would probably stop the watch fitting back together. Any ideas?

ex-pat scot

Same with me.

Mine packed in on the start line of London marathon this year
Bit of a bummer, as I was planning to run to Heart Rate...

The problem was the weak connection on the spring connectors, as you show on the photo.

I bent them up a bit to increase contact pressure, then re-glued. It worked until last week when it packed in again.

I took the watch apart and there had been water ingress, leading to some corrosion.
The left-most spring connector (as you look from above, with the row of connectors at the top) was "floppy" and had almost snapped. This was the culprit and no longer connects through the watch to the battery. I think this one is the power connector, as the watch will not self-power when reassembled, but will power up fine when connected through the cable for recharging.

I've sent mine back to Garmin on Friday.

They do a "refurb" programme, whereby for £50 and a couple of pence they will provide a refurb unit and 12 month warranty. Unfortunately they won't allow any upgrade though - I have my eye on a fancy 405....

Good luck with your watch, but I'm not hopeful for your DIY repair. I rather expect you to end up like me in the refurb line.

kinesin

I expect I'll end up with a refurb as I've already emailed Garmin, but was just wondering what my options are while I wait for them to answer their mail.

If there was a simple £5/10 fix I would try this and upgrade to a 405 / 310XT in the future. Been a runner, cyclist (and currently ex triathlete) limits the upgrade choice, however much I'm tempted by the Edge 305 / 500 they are bike specific and for the cost a multi sport watch is far better value.

How did you do in the VLM without the numbers? Better then hoped? I was out running & riding over the weekend without even a watch - very strange

davidgermain

put a small blob of solder on the broken contact, slowly build the solder up until it fits nicely.

i know its an old post but i thought it would help.

davidgermain

http://alloytm.com/2011/01/23/repairing ... unner-305/