DaveS
Well-Known Member
My Tracker 5500 lost its memory: all settings and way points disappeared when external power was switched off. The only thread I could find on replacing the battery was this: http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.php?134574-Navman-5500-chartplotter-Battery-change from 10 years ago but it seemed a bit inconclusive. I thought that it might be helpful to record how I got on.
The hardest part was undoing the case fixing screws. They have very small hex sockets, smaller than any of my allan keys or hex drivers. I eventually found a 1/16" hex driver which worked, but it was a slightly loose fit: I think the correct size might be 1.75mm. The two fixing nuts for the connection sockets also have to come off to open the case; I also disconnected the antenna socket, but that's perhaps not strictly necessary since it is connected by a flexible cable inside. Opening the case reveals two circuit boards held together with screws and a soldered tag. Separating them gives access to the mounting holes for the internal battery. It was a 25mm diameter lithium 3V cell marked CR245 which showed a healthy voltage, but two of its three mounting feet were separated from the circuit board. Gentle wiggling made the third fall out too. Re-soldering was fairly straightforward, as was reassembly. The fixing screws are tapped into plastic so, just as with toilet pump screws, the technique is to rotate them anti-clockwise until they drop into the thread, then tighten. 11 of the 12 went fully home while the twelfth's hex socket got rounded: a better fitting hex driver would probably have prevented this.
The plotter now works correctly, and I've re-entered more than half my way points - a very boring job. (I know that it's possible to buy a C-map gizmo that allows way points to be transferred between plotter and computer, but I don't have one.)
The hardest part was undoing the case fixing screws. They have very small hex sockets, smaller than any of my allan keys or hex drivers. I eventually found a 1/16" hex driver which worked, but it was a slightly loose fit: I think the correct size might be 1.75mm. The two fixing nuts for the connection sockets also have to come off to open the case; I also disconnected the antenna socket, but that's perhaps not strictly necessary since it is connected by a flexible cable inside. Opening the case reveals two circuit boards held together with screws and a soldered tag. Separating them gives access to the mounting holes for the internal battery. It was a 25mm diameter lithium 3V cell marked CR245 which showed a healthy voltage, but two of its three mounting feet were separated from the circuit board. Gentle wiggling made the third fall out too. Re-soldering was fairly straightforward, as was reassembly. The fixing screws are tapped into plastic so, just as with toilet pump screws, the technique is to rotate them anti-clockwise until they drop into the thread, then tighten. 11 of the 12 went fully home while the twelfth's hex socket got rounded: a better fitting hex driver would probably have prevented this.
The plotter now works correctly, and I've re-entered more than half my way points - a very boring job. (I know that it's possible to buy a C-map gizmo that allows way points to be transferred between plotter and computer, but I don't have one.)
