Garmin Alpha warning

[roaniecowpony]

I searched this website and didn't find this information here, so I thought this community should know.

I have a Garmin Alpha that the collar unit shut off on twice in December while I was hunting mearns in AZ in unfamiliar country with my pointer who can run big.

I contacted GDS as well as searched the websites for information on the problem. On the Tritronics forum, I found some others that were posting about it. Garmin still didn't have a cause for the problem. GDS also inquired with Garmin on my behalf.

Here's the link to the Tritronics forum thread on the issue.
http://forums.tritronics.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=12522

In a short time, Garmin had identified the problem. They stated that the exposed data and charging contacts being short circuited by a collar with metal buckles, etc., were the cause of the shutdowns. They recommended not running additional collars with metal on the side of the collar unit which has the contacts or simply using electrical tape over the contacts.


Here's the actual reply to my email from Garmin.
Thank you for contacting Garmin International. If you have a TT 10 that is shutting down on you, this can be due to tags or other metal material coming into contact with the copper charging contacts on the TT 10. You will want to try changing the positions of any other collars you have, so they do not touch the charging contacts. If you can not do that, you can use a small piece of electrical tape to cover the contacts. If you have any other questions, please reply to this email.
With Best Regards, Scott___ Product Support SpecialistGarmin International

[buckshot1]

I've had the same problem with mine. I assumed it was getting tangled in brush, causing the power button to depress, but I'm sure now that its the same problem you describe. Thanks for the info.

[southwayno]

flip the collar around

[Rod W]

Yes, thanks for the info! I got mine in the mail, Fri. I would think they would have the charging contacts covered with a slide door. Like suggested, tape over the contacts is no problem. It sure looks like a quality unit!

[JIM K]

i have not had that issue with my garmin alpha.
sometimes its takes awhile to get collar/handheld to syn together before you hunt.
i put a rubber band around my pups licenses that hang from his neck.

i will put tape on also.

[roaniecowpony]

I don't run a restraint collar or tags when hunting. I have my ID & contact information right on the Alpha collar. You can rivet a GDS ID tag right on the antenna guide as shown below. The only reason I ever have another collar on with the Alpha is to run a check cord. Then you can simply flip the Alpha around with the contacts in the front and the restraint collar in the rear.

The antenna guide shown in this picture has been flipped inside out. The outside of the original installation of the antenna guide is triangular shaped. If you slide the antenna out and flip it inside out, the flap will be retangular and big enough for a metal tag as shown.

[JIM K]

i think putting black tape over charging post on collar is good idea.
those contacts can get very dirty and if your dog goes in swamps after bird, real dirty.
i started to tape mine today because of dirt.
jim k

[buckshot1]

i think putting black tape over charging post on collar is good idea.
those contacts can get very dirty and if your dog goes in swamps after bird, real dirty.
i started to tape mine today because of dirt.
jim k

That's also a good point. I have no idea why Tritronics/Garmin designed the Alpha with exposed metal contacts when it's a given that those contacts will get covered with water, mud, and dirt. As an owner of a Dogtra training collar and an Alpha, Dogtra clearly beats Tritronics on some design issues in my opinion. For example, unlike the Alpha, the Dogtra collar has an attached rubber plug that covers the charging contact. I also don't understand why you need to attach a small plastic piece that's easy to lose to the Alpha collar every time you need to charge it, which my Dogtra doesn't require. Also, the battery on my Alpha runs out in less than a day, even right out of the box. Now I understand why they give you a car charger. My Dogtra collar can go days without a charge. Also, I'm not sure if others have this problem with the Alpha, but I have issues switching between the map page and the page showing the dog's distance and direction on the compass. The back button to access the compass page is jammed in the lower left corner of the screen. Every time I try to switch screens with gloves on, the Alpha instead puts a waypoint pin on the map screen, then I have to put my gun down, take my gloves off, delete the waypoint, switch screens, and put my gloves back on, which is usually when birds start flushing. I wish that Tritronics would test the Alpha with gloves on. The Alpha is a good product overall, especially for a first generation product, but definitely needs some improvement. I hope that Tritronics reads this forum and others and makes some of these changes in the second gen Alpha.

[roaniecowpony]

buckshot1
I agree with some of your issues with the touch screen. I don't like a touch screen. My Astro 320 was more reliable on keeping the page and not getting changed inadvertently. I'd like to see more buttons and no touch screen stuff.

Regarding battery life, I think you have a defective battery or unit. My collars and handheld unit will run at least two average days of hunting maybe more.

[JIM K]

i think putting black tape over charging post on collar is good idea.
those contacts can get very dirty and if your dog goes in swamps after bird, real dirty.
i started to tape mine today because of dirt.
jim k

That's also a good point. I have no idea why Tritronics/Garmin designed the Alpha with exposed metal contacts when it's a given that those contacts will get covered with water, mud, and dirt. As an owner of a Dogtra training collar and an Alpha, Dogtra clearly beats Tritronics on some design issues in my opinion. For example, unlike the Alpha, the Dogtra collar has an attached rubber plug that covers the charging contact. I also don't understand why you need to attach a small plastic piece that's easy to lose to the Alpha collar every time you need to charge it, which my Dogtra doesn't require. Also, the battery on my Alpha runs out in less than a day, even right out of the box. Now I understand why they give you a car charger. My Dogtra collar can go days without a charge. Also, I'm not sure if others have this problem with the Alpha, but I have issues switching between the map page and the page showing the dog's distance and direction on the compass. The back button to access the compass page is jammed in the lower left corner of the screen. Every time I try to switch screens with gloves on, the Alpha instead puts a waypoint pin on the map screen, then I have to put my gun down, take my gloves off, delete the waypoint, switch screens, and put my gloves back on, which is usually when birds start flushing. I wish that Tritronics would test the Alpha with gloves on. The Alpha is a good product overall, especially for a first generation product, but definitely needs some improvement. I hope that Tritronics reads this forum and others and makes some of these changes in the second gen Alpha.

i believe your battery is defective or not fully charged.
try charging it too 100% .
i can a week on my alpha and still have charge.
i have not had issue with gloves on etc.
not saying you are not having problem.

[Scott Linden]

I'm going to try to duplicate this situation to see if it's causing one I have with my Upland G3 beeper. It simply "goes off" when my young dog is running. They are clueless at TriTronics but a metal tag hitting the charging contacts might be worth an experiment. Anyone else have this problem?

[chiendog]

I'm going to try to duplicate this situation to see if it's causing one I have with my Upland G3 beeper. It simply "goes off" when my young dog is running. They are clueless at TriTronics but a metal tag hitting the charging contacts might be worth an experiment. Anyone else have this problem?

Yup! I've had the same problem...as well as the shutting off problem. The Upland G3 beeper and the Astro don't seem to play well together. I think that somehow the Astro, as it send out its signal to the handheld unit, turns the G3 off or on. In other words, the G3 is picking up the signal from the Astro and interpreting it as an on/off command. It does not happen all the time, but when it does it is a pain in the a**. So when I run a dog with the Astro, I don't put the beeper on and vice versa. Someday I would like to see a tracking collar incorporate a beeper somehow (the Astro is great for tracking and locating a dog from far away, but a beeper would be great to get a precise fix on the dog from closer in without having to look at the screen.)

[JIM K]

I'm going to try to duplicate this situation to see if it's causing one I have with my Upland G3 beeper. It simply "goes off" when my young dog is running. They are clueless at TriTronics but a metal tag hitting the charging contacts might be worth an experiment. Anyone else have this problem?

Yup! I've had the same problem...as well as the shutting off problem. The Upland G3 beeper and the Astro don't seem to play well together. I think that somehow the Astro, as it send out its signal to the handheld unit, turns the G3 off or on. In other words, the G3 is picking up the signal from the Astro and interpreting it as an on/off command. It does not happen all the time, but when it does it is a pain in the a**. So when I run a dog with the Astro, I don't put the beeper on and vice versa. Someday I would like to see a tracking collar incorporate a beeper somehow (the Astro is great for tracking and locating a dog from far away, but a beeper would be great to get a precise fix on the dog from closer in without having to look at the screen.)

you are right on. i called garmin/steve snell about that. i would have liked to have beeper also just to locate dog but they said you can with screen.
they have tone beep already in alpha,all they would have to do is make it louder .
like you have 1/18 on stimulation setting,just make tone feature adjustable from 1/18 to locate your dog QUICK.

but i have whiskers trained to return on beep so i dont know how that would work out.

i think down the road the next alpha will have a camera in collar.
putting a go pro on your dog you see everything they are doing and its great at home to watch your pup pointing a grouse.
wives and kids really enjoy that .

[buckshot1]

i think putting black tape over charging post on collar is good idea.
those contacts can get very dirty and if your dog goes in swamps after bird, real dirty.
i started to tape mine today because of dirt.
jim k

That's also a good point. I have no idea why Tritronics/Garmin designed the Alpha with exposed metal contacts when it's a given that those contacts will get covered with water, mud, and dirt. As an owner of a Dogtra training collar and an Alpha, Dogtra clearly beats Tritronics on some design issues in my opinion. For example, unlike the Alpha, the Dogtra collar has an attached rubber plug that covers the charging contact. I also don't understand why you need to attach a small plastic piece that's easy to lose to the Alpha collar every time you need to charge it, which my Dogtra doesn't require. Also, the battery on my Alpha runs out in less than a day, even right out of the box. Now I understand why they give you a car charger. My Dogtra collar can go days without a charge. Also, I'm not sure if others have this problem with the Alpha, but I have issues switching between the map page and the page showing the dog's distance and direction on the compass. The back button to access the compass page is jammed in the lower left corner of the screen. Every time I try to switch screens with gloves on, the Alpha instead puts a waypoint pin on the map screen, then I have to put my gun down, take my gloves off, delete the waypoint, switch screens, and put my gloves back on, which is usually when birds start flushing. I wish that Tritronics would test the Alpha with gloves on. The Alpha is a good product overall, especially for a first generation product, but definitely needs some improvement. I hope that Tritronics reads this forum and others and makes some of these changes in the second gen Alpha.

i believe your battery is defective or not fully charged.
try charging it too 100% .
i can a week on my alpha and still have charge.
i have not had issue with gloves on etc.
not saying you are not having problem.

It sounds like I may need to exchange my battery then. I charge it to 100% every time. I have the update rate set at 2.5 secs instead of 5, but I have the screen brightness dialed way down to save juice. The update rate shouldn't make the difference between a week and a day of battery life. My battery must be defective.

Mine works with gloves on except when I try to hit the icon in the lower left corner of the map screen to switch between map and tracking compass. Seems like they could make that icon bigger in a software update.

[JIM K]

yes, it sounds like a BAD BATTERY .you can go days on charge.

[Nebraska]

I don't run a restraint collar or tags when hunting. I have my ID & contact information right on the Alpha collar. You can rivet a GDS ID tag right on the antenna guide as shown below. The only reason I ever have another collar on with the Alpha is to run a check cord. Then you can simply flip the Alpha around with the contacts in the front and the restraint collar in the rear.

The antenna guide shown in this picture has been flipped inside out. The outside of the original installation of the antenna guide is triangular shaped. If you slide the antenna out and flip it inside out, the flap will be retangular and big enough for a metal tag as shown.

I've had this issue several times and didn't know why it happened so thank you VERY much for the heads-up.

Also, thank you Roaniecowpony for the name plate idea.....I will definitely be doing that with my collars!

[Wyobio]

I'm going to try to duplicate this situation to see if it's causing one I have with my Upland G3 beeper. It simply "goes off" when my young dog is running. They are clueless at TriTronics but a metal tag hitting the charging contacts might be worth an experiment. Anyone else have this problem?

I use the G3 collar with the G3 training collars and have the same issue with the beeper turning on and off on its own. I contacted TT, and they told me the problem was with the battery cover loosening, which effectively powers off the unit. They sent me a new one--I have had the same problem. They told me to be sure the battery cover was tight, but there is only one screw, and I fear I will strip it out if I crank down any harder........