How to replace the battery in a Garmin Forerunner 305 Watch
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- Опубліковано 2 чер 2013
- Disclaimer: This video is presented without warranty or guarantee. Performing the actions shown in this video will most definitely void your warranty. Use these instructions at your own risk. I am not an expert at battery replacement or soldering.
Warning: These instructions are NOT intended to be performed by children. A soldering iron will reach temperatures high enough to burn human flesh on contact and will leave a scar.
Materials
Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS watch
3.7 Volt replacement battery - amzn.to/HgVWGJ
Pry tool - amzn.to/1bmHeXp or amzn.to/1dtnc2a
E6000 epoxy glue- amzn.to/1dtluxX
wire cutter / wire stripper - amzn.to/1bmHjKz
soldering iron with soldering wire - amzn.to/HgWJr2
electrical tape - amzn.to/HgWUT9
small pliers - amzn.to/HgX1y8
double sided poster tape - amzn.to/HlWzy8
cable ties - amzn.to/1bU6YPd
toothpick
disposable gloves
Grounded Wrist Strap - amzn.to/19Op3Ow
Disclosure: The links provided for purchase of the materials are via the Amazon.com Associates Program.
Here are links of websites I consulted prior to the production of my video.
Garmin 305 battery replacement specific websites:
reedercommons.blogspot.com/201...
www.talentohome.com/2013/01/ga...
This is NOT a how to solder video, please see this video for basic soldering techniques:
• How to Use a Soldering...
Produced by Caroline Dunn (@thecarolinedunn)
Music Credit: Brandenburg Concerto No4, Modern Jazz Samba Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) - Навчання та стиль
My my, you have beautiful hands. Thank you for this vid, my 305's mode button died and I threw out the unit. I got another used 305 for $30 and then saw your video. I went trash diving for my old unit so I will have a replacement battery if I ever need it. Thanks!
Great video. The most comprehensive and professionally presented. Nice to see Americans still save a buck and DYI. Great ingenuity. Ordering a battery today! $4 or $100++ Thanks for posting
So I posted my "I'll be trying this soon" comment six months ago ... and I finally did the job this weekend! Excellent, clear, easy to follow video. My trusty 305 is now charging and fully functional, once again. I found the wires/soldering a little fiddly; also packing the wires back inside the watch was a little fiddly too - I think I should have shortened the wires from my replacement battery a little before soldering, but I had already had the watch working and no way was I taking it apart again! Cheers :)
Congrats on extending the life of your Garmin! Glad you found this video useful.
GREAT video. Just put mine back together and this works exactly as described. I do have a couple of notes for anyone attempting this:
1 - Be careful about where you stick the wires. I was too conservative about trimming and had to squish in the extra wire.
2 - and this is IMPORTANT - for anyone following these instructions, get a light-duty spring clamp (I got 4 for $5 at Wmart. I also had a problem with the unit requiring pressure to dock & the clamp may have solved that.
As the owner of the actual watch shown in this video, I'm pleased to report that the watch is operating as normal. It ran for 6 hrs 23 min on Monday, June 3, before issuing a "Low Battery" warning. It was taken for a 5 mile walk on Tuesday, June 4 (1 hr 21 min) w/o the Low Battery warning. And, it was taken for a 5 mile run Wednesday, June 5 (43 min) again w/o the Low Battery warning. Also, charging and syncing operate as expected. Great work!
I checked your video and all the others. You are VERY GOOD. So much details, like the glue type that I can find locally. You take your time and you explain. The others can't even compete. Keep doing a nice job like that. I love QUALITY jobs. Tks again. Mike
Excellent video, just completed installing the new battery and it works. Have to say the hardest part is taking the case apart..
Nice video :-)
I have now fixed my old loved watch. Now it's just get out and exercise.
It's good for the environment to fix old stuff.
Thanks for this tutorial Caroline. We just fixed my father's Forerunner 205 using your video! :D
Good call. And for anyone reading this, this was literally my first time soldering anything (not counting a couple of bits of test wire to get the hang of it) and it's JUST AS EASY AS IT LOOKS. Also if you do need to crack the case open again, the E6000 cement is just a little stronger than what Garmin uses, but does allow for re-opening.
Awesome! I'm so glad it worked for you! Thanks for watching and posting your comments!
A very timely video as i need to perform this very operation on my 305. I've had mine just under 3 years and have gotten 5200 miles out of it. It has performed dutifully. I will attempt to perform the surgery and get back to you afterwards. Thanks!
This worked perfectly as described. Ordered the same battery on amazon for $5 (search garmin 305 battery and it comes up as an ipod battery but in the comments it says it works for 305) after trying radio shack and a battery store with no luck. Mine had stopped taking a charge so I figured this was worth the risk and the battery did prove to be the culprit. Thank you for posting! Works perfectly now.
Thanks for uploading this valuable information. I wound up cutting the original battery leads to short requiring me to extend the leads on a replacement battery ( for ipod mini) and then soldering them to the terminal board inside the watch. So far all is working well. Also wound up using liquid nails silicone adhesive that I had handy. Seems the old glue was some kind of rubber cement. For those contemplating this battery replacement, note that you will need time and patients to remove the old glue. I used an exacto knife and tooth picks. Rubbing alcohol helps remove the glue as well.
Thank You ! That was the best presentation that I have ever seen in a long time. Was l detailed, excellent audio and video, and most important of all, easy to understand,
Thanks for this vid. I had 3 dead 305's sitting in a drawer useless but now 1 is working thanks to your instructions on how to get inside. The red wire had come loose where soldered so I tried scratching the plate and re-soldering and the thing is working again! Not sure for how long but it has given me incentive to do open heart surgery on the other 2 units as well..
I thought it was s great video!
Very clear ,step by step instructions.
Thanks for making this video. It helped me rejuvenated my Garmin 305. FWIW, I used rubber paper cement to glue mine back together. I want to be able to get it apart again if necessary. So far, the glee seems fine.
OK, I just did mine last night, and this was one of the more helpful posts. My biggest piece of advice is get good wire strippers that go down to a very small gauge wire (I'm guessing 24g) and hold the other end of the wire (the part that's soldered to the board) with needlenose pliers so that you don't just pull the insulation down the wire. I ended up having to unsolder the circuit board which leads to great complications. If you can cleanly strip the insulation and do exactly what the post says, you'll be fine. I tried to use some double sided poster mounting tape, but it was too thick, and I ended up using just a bit of the contact cement. While I was in there I tried to solder the wire back onto the speaker (that's the disc), but no luck. So far it's powering fine and is charging right now. Also, while in there, pay attention to the contacts on the circuitry part of the watch and the pads on the battery side. Clean them, and bend up the contacts if necessary. I think even under ideal circumstances the contact is borderline, and is probably the cause of "watch turns itself off" issues.
Great tip on using the zip tie to hold the case together for the glue to dry. Thanks for making this video.
Excellent video & tutorial. Thank you. I shall be trying this myself soon.
Many thanks, Caroline, for an excellent description. I have just replaced the battery in my 305 and everything is fine. I had a minor scare when my first trip wouldn't upload to the PC, but it worked the second or third time. Maybe there's an intermittent poor contact inside.
Thanks for the video. It gave the confidence to give this replacement a go.
Excellent video! Thanks. One thing I found was the best place to start prying the watch apart is at the lower part of the case where the strap bracket is. This way I didn't mess any of the rubber trimming around the side. AND you are right; a butter knife does the trick. Cheers and thanks a heap.
Great video. I will be trying this tomorrow. I hope it works out. Me and my old 305 have been through a lot together.
You mean to say, "Me and my old 305 have Run through a lot together!" lol I'm resurrecting mine after a 8+ year break. Old battery endurance test is next.
Great video. Couple of tips to pass on to others:
-before gluing, i tested as shown in video. I needed to apply a lot of pressure to the top portion of the watch so that the internal contacts would connect and thus the battery would charge, and the watch sync. After gluing, and curing for 24 hours, I still had to apply a lot of pressure in order to get watch to sync. I how have a clamp on the watch to see if that seals the deal. perhaps i had too much electrical tape in there.
Thank you very much Caroline. With the battery, tools, tape and glue ready to go, the whole thing took about 15 minutes to complete!
The e6000 cleans up very easily. You simply wait for everything to dry completely then just rub the stuff off. It rolls up into nice little balls that brush away, sort of like rubber cement on metal. I am a little concerned that maybe this glue will be tougher to pry apart the next time I need to replace the battery.
An added bonus is that the satellites seem to lock up much faster with the new battery. About 5-10 seconds compared to minutes with the old battery.
Good video. I would like to make 3 suggestions: When taking the unit apart, a drop of alcohol into the seam helps to separate the two halves. On the new battery cut one wire at a time in order to prevent a momentary short. Also be aware of static charges. The devices inside the instrument (watch) are very static sensitive. The smallest discharge from your hand could cause damage either instantly or even later. If available, use a grounded wrist strap.
Thanks for watching. I agree with your suggestions, esp about the static and grounded wrist strap. I'll add the wrist strap to the materials list. I made my video during a warmer time, so static was not as much of an issue as it is now in the Northern Hemisphere.
Sehr hilfreich. Werde es Ende der Woche durchführen. Danke Caroline!
I didn't get that many miles out of my watch's first battery, but I had it about the same amount of time (3 years) before it started to diminish in staying life. I'm interested in hearing your results and experience. We both certainly hope you have a successful replacement!
Great bonus tips James. We probably share your observation about leaving too much wire, but that excess wire might come in handy if you end up needing to replace the battery again at a future date. Regardless, glad the video was useful for you.
Thank you, great job !! i just have to do it by myself now !!
The 305 and 310 are great gps running watches. Why did they stop making them. A great product no more
I was able to replace the battery thanks to this video. I couldn't get the pry tool to work though and I just ended up bending the unit to separate the two sides.
Fantastic video and thanks for sharing truly a life saver 👍👍👍
Thanks for this - worked like a charm. After reassembly, I noticed it wouldn't charge or connect via the dock. Disassembling and straightening out the little brass contacts (VERY carefully) did the trick. I noticed another use broke off one of the contacts, so be very gentle.
Well presented, thanks from Orlando
Followed these instructions. Got the same iPod Mini battery as in the vid. Had never soldered before. But it all worked with no complications. Not sure I sealed the edges well enough, so will have to put some silicon or something round. My fault, though. Cheers!
id pay you to replace my battery!
Great job!
Good work. I have this clock since 2013, but for the zize I use it only as a Ciclocomputer in my bike and soon maybe my battery would die. Thanks!!!
Perfect video, thanks so much.
you replaced the battery yourself?
Super, merci beaucoup
thank you so much!!!!
Thank you!
I haven't really used the watch enough since replacing the battery to make that assessment. If you've had your 305 for several years, then I can confidently say "yes" as the old 700 mAh battery will have certainly lost some of its staying power. We have read reports from others online that the 1300 mAh battery will last longer than the 700 mAh. If your current 700 mAh is only lasting an hour or two at this point before I dying, then I would recommend replacing it.
Very informative. I intend to try this as my battery has taken a complete dive. Looks like about 10-20 dollars in materials (if starting with zero) Much better than throwing down 2-500 for new. I saw on a different video that the man was getting 10.5 hours of battery life with is new battery from an ipod mini. I like that as I want longer life. I will let you know how it goes.
The silver disc I believe is the speaker for the beeping function.
thank you
Great Video! Thanks! What happens if I don't solder my wires? do I have to?
Heat shrink would also me nice to add instead of electrical tape. Thanks for the how-to...
I've been trying to separate the case for 10 minutes now. Its not budging. Tried using an exacto knife to cut the bond but there's zero gap or material there to allow prying the two halves apart. This a Garmin 205 Forerunner. Looks very similar but there's no lip to pry on.
I think you are going to need more leverage / torque (than an exacto knife) to get the Garmin open. I would recommend trying a butter knife or the pry tool that I show in the video.
Thanks Caroline for your video. I followed up all the steps and works great but I cannot charge the new battery. So I tried the old one and charges perfectly. I bought a second new battery but got the same problem. any idea? I tried a hard reset with no success
Wondering if sparks flew when you clipped both wires at the same time???? That aside, I appreciate the video as I need to change mine.
Great video! I'm confident I can replace my battery using your instructions. I was planning to use a box-cutter type blade to open the watch, but the pry tool looks like it would be safer and do a better job. Any tips on where I can find this tool?
Esslinger sells the tool, it's a caseback knife for watches.
Thanks for watching! The pry tool I am using in the video was part of a watch repair kit I purchased from eBay. Before you buy anything, I would suggest using a butter knife from your kitchen.
I noticed that the Ipod Mini battery is rated at a much higher mAh (1300) than the forerunner replacement (700). Is it lasting longer?
I noticed that the Ipod Mini battery is rated at a much higher mAh at 1300 than the Forerunner replacement at 700. Is it lasting longer?
How did you clean out the glue? It's very sticky and I didn't find a good way to remove it cleanly... any tips?
What is the physical dimensions of the battery, what area do you have to work with? Considering a Nokia battery but need to know width, height etc. Thanks!
great job !
... and nice hands ... by the way :)
Thanks! and Thanks for watching my video!
Thanks for asking. If you don't want to DIY, there are folks on eBay who will replace the battery in your Garmin Forerunner for a reasonable price. I haven't worked with any of them so, I can't recommend anyone specifically. Thanks for watching my video!
So how much do you charge a person like me with a dead battery to replace theirs?
awesome video!!
thanks cool lady!!!
btw, garmin is not as good as I was hoping.
my fenix 3 sapphire sensors died
garmin is asking way too much money for the repair.
I payed 750 for the watch.
dont make the same mistake.
buy used or half price
Thanks for watching!
Well, I thought I got everything done correctly, however, the unit only powers on when it is in the cradle. I don't have to squeeze it when it is on the cradle, so I think it is tight enough - but why will it not stay on? It says the battery is fully charged?
still works ? 2024 april . mine does
Nice video. However, the battery that you show in your parts list is for the original Forerunner 305, but in the video you suggest using the iPod Mini battery instead?
Thanks for watching my video. You are correct. I made the video in 2013 when iPod Minis were a little more common. I was concerned that they would stop making iPod Mini batteries, so I decided to put a link to the 305 battery. I didn't want to link to a discontinued product.
I’m having a hard time prying or opening the unit.
Thank, Caroline, for the nice, clear video! I was just given a retired 305, and I'm about to go at it. I purchased the iPod battery from eBay for half the price of the official battery. Is it crazy to think that it will be waterproof after re-gluing? Has anyone checked? I do some lake swimming, and a GPS is very handy to know when to turn around... Thanks.
I would not swim with the 305. It is hardly waterproof, despite any suggestions by Garmin that it is.
Paul Dunn
Thanks, Paul. I'll keep my Forerunner for swimming -- it works fine for that. I have my battery and glue, and even cut a pry tool from an old butter knife, but I don't have the watch yet!
Looks like a great video. Thanks. I will be trying this also. do you have any part number info for that battery replacment? Or from which ipod mini generation it is from?
Thanks for watching my video. I have updated the description under Materials with a direct link to a replacement battery.
Caroline Great video. But I can't find any description of anything that says Materials.
Hi, and I want to say great video! This was really thorough it gives me hope that I can change my battery once it goes dead. But I have a question, I was wondering if this can be re-soldered after taking it apart the first time? Like after doing this and it goes dead again can I do this again and re-change the battery if it goes dead a second time? Thanks!
+Dana Scully Thanks for watching my Garmin 305 Battery Replacement video! I did not re-solder after the first battery replacement. I think it is possible, but much more difficult as the wires would be a lot shorter.
+Caroline Okay thanks!
+Dana Scully I would strip less wire to allow a third battery in the future. Also you can remove the solder using a soldering iron if you are careful with how you mate the wires with the first replacement
By the time the second one goes, you probably won't need it anymore because the Apple watches will be down to 30 bucks. You can always pry the circuit board out and solder new batteries directly to the board.
LOL
Thank you for this video, but I have another problem. My Forerunner 305 suddenly turns off, while I am running. But also if I squeeze the watch between my thumb and forefinger. Do you know (or does anybody knows) which is the problem?
Thank you very much.
+Alessandro
Inside there are multiple gold-plated contacts on both the back of the watch face and the base (wrist strap). These can become corroded or weakened (they are spring-lever-action and can "lay down" thus breaking the contact points) over time and will lead to intermittent connections.
I found on another site that mentioned to pry from the bottom corner and that eventually worked.
However, I found the little copper spring fingers on the display half of the watch were not all the same shape and when I tried to bend a couple of them up to match the rest one broke off. The spring fingers are at the top of the display half of the watch.
I suspect that was the problem with this one all along. In any case, anyone performing this battery change-out, try to not even touch those little fingers. After it was broken I messed with the other spring fingers just to get a feel for how fragile they were. One little bend and they just broke right off.
Time for a new Garmin anyway :-)
Bummer! One would assume that the 205 and 305 would be designed similarly, and thus this video would apply to both with regards to a battery replacement. Your feedback however might be valuable for others out there with 205s to know that the fundamentals seen here apply more relevantly to the 305.
I used the watch you see in the video today on an 11 mile run, and it even performed admirably when I took it skiing last month despite getting snow, ice and water on it and being slammed into the ground multiple times with my reckless abandon on a pair of skis.
Sorry to hear that your 205 was not as cooperative in your efforts to replace the battery.
Paul, the 205 looks the same as the 305 inside. The video is fine. I'm pretty sure the problem with this 205 was in the spring finger contacts and not the battery so replacing the battery couldn't help.
It should be noted that the gold color spring fingers that connect one half to the other electrically are VERY fragile and if you bump them or bend them you will probably scrap your device. It would be easy to damage them and not even know you did it.
Tony, I understand now. Best of luck on finding an affordable replacement. The "mode" button on the side of mine has come apart and thanks to some electrical tape from my wife (gt2192c), it works again. I might have to start calling my watch "Rasputin".
Is anyone around so kind to tell me pinout polarity of the watch? I've lost the cradle .. many thanks in advance :)
1. Didn't you short circuit the battery when you cut the two wires at the same time from the new battery?
2. Why is it that you are using a different manufacturer's battery?
I guess because Garmin dont sell replacement battery for this watch. If they will wanted people replace the battery they must put a jack on the clock and not soldered directly to the circuit. Programated obsolesence.
Why did you solder the 2 wires together to the ones sticking out of the circuit board. It would have been easier to remove the ones on the circuit board and then not have a load of wire left with joins and tape.
I've done both...
I THINK (tentitive) it's easier with more distance between things that can get hurt with heat...I have a pretty clunky soldering iron...I wasn't very happy with it close to the case and board
But I used shrink tube not tape to insulate the splices...with a bit of cardboard so the heat gun didn't get anything too hot
Great video, very useful.
Can you send me any suggestion for battery replacement?(ebay link)
Thanks a lot
Nice hands :)
Was attempting to replace my battery, so got it open and when I started taking the battery off noticed it seems to be stuck to the little silver disc with two wires coming out of it and if I pull the battery off that's going to break off. Anybody know what the little silver disc is?
This is the little sounder that makes the audible bip's...
et pour Garmin 310 xt en France
Caroline- Great instructions here. I just purchased a lightly used Forerunner 305 from E-bay today. Not sure if I will need to replace the battery at this point. Do you know if the battery will have any life? The original owner claims that the unit sat in the box most of the time. I understand that a good battery gets approx 10 hrs on a full charge, if that is correct. Thanks in advance!
ugh.i was hoping that it was an "easy" process.I dont have the tools sadly to help replace battery. i might ship it off to get fixed. unless your willing to help at a decent price to fix add new battery
Garmin will not fix it, they'll just offer to sell you a refurb for a much worse price than you can get on Amazon, Buydig, or eBay.
my watch just died that i bought from ebay this time. garmin charges 80 bucks to replace. i wish i could do the battery changing myself. shit.
Is is possible to open the case again after you have used the E6000 glue?
The biggest job here is to open It without making a damage, and you didn't show that !
This didn't work for me. Now I have no garmin at all as opposed to a garmin with an "ok" battery life. Wouldn't recommend this unless your garmin is on it's last leg.
its not it's
+Patrick McAsey OMG, really? you're an idiot.
You can insult, but you can't punctuate.
+Patrick McAsey I feel sorry for you that you have nothing better to do. Hopefully you can get a life someday.
Can we please keep the conversation constructive? I would appreciate it if we can all refrain from personal insults.
Very nice video. I replaced the battery following your steps and couldn't be happier.
My Garmin 305 Forerunner is like new again.This was my first soldering job so I feel really good ;) Thank you for these instructions!
thank you
thank you