Previously I had a Garmin 520 which had a pathetic amount of memory for storing maps so was constantly creating small map files (IMG file) and swapping them when I rode in a different area
Generally, I used this technique
as suggested by DC Rainmaker

I’ve now got a 530 which much more memory so haven’t needed to use this technique for several years.

Is Rainmakers technique still the best?
I want download some OS maps whereas previously I’ve been using OSM – so is Talky Toaster (?) still the best source for free OS maps in Garmin?

Have you tried the 530 maps yet? Like you I upgraded from the 520 a few months ago and find the osm maps of the Garmin to be great for routing.

I supplement them with bing is maps downloaded on my phone via backcountry navigator, but that’s Android only.

Haven’t tried installing os maps on the Garmin but would be concerned about level of detail on the small screen compared to a phone (or paper map)

Well, I’ve had OSM maps installed on my 530 for a couple of years but of my local area (Vancouver) but I’m wanting to install OSM maps for an upcoming UK trip.
I usually use the site recommended by DCRainmaker as above to download new maps for the 530 (IMG files) but the original website is no longer available and the alternative website didn’t seem to work – meaning when I installed the UK maps on my 530, there’s very little detail (just main roads and large bodies of water, which kinda implies I’ve somehow only installed a basemap).
I’ve disabled all other map types though, and just enabled the new/UK one.

I also tried the free sample Talkytoaster map (Isle of Wight) and that has much more detail…

Back to the drawing board I guess…

(I,too, have Back Country Navigator on my phone and have installed the Bing OS maps for the area, but the battery life isn’t great on my phone so I’d rather use the 530 for navigation)

Well, just an update if anyone is interested….
DC Rainmaker used to recommend garmin.openstreetmap.nl as the website to download detailed Garmin maps; that website is no longer maintained but re-directs you to garmin.bbbike.org where you can download maps in various formats. I tried Garmin BBBike format as recommended by Ray (Rainmaker) but when I installed the maps, it just seemed to be a basemap (even though the whole of the UK was ~800Mb…).

I tried a different format from same source (openfietslite) and that was no better (similar file size for entire UK).

I had a poke around Talkytoaster and that seemed to work for the small free sample of the IoW you can download and you can download the entire British Isles for £13. Seems excellent. However, I don’t live in the UK so wanted something temporary (i.e. free!).

I found http://www.openfietsmap.nl/downloads/Europe from where you can download a GB & Ireland file (1.0Gb) for free and I installed it and has sufficient detail for my needs (it doesn’t look as nice as TT maps though).

During this research, I discovered that Garmin 53O can have multiple IMG files and you can enable/disable the various maps on a “per profile” basis though I’m not certain what the advantage would be of disabling certain maps as the unit seems to be able to figure out what map to show based on the course you are following/have loaded…

Hopefully this is useful to someone!

I saw http://www.frikart.no/ recommended for Garmin maps on a different forum. Looks like a way of selecting different osm layers. I haven’t tried it yet, need to properly compare current maps with the different options

Well, just an update if anyone is interested….

Thanks, that is useful.

I got confused about why you wanted osm maps installed, when Garmin already use osm maps as their default on the 530.

Didn’t realise that you weren’t in the UK, so didn’t have the European map on your device.

The official Garmin maps are no longer anywhere near as expensive as they used to be. For £25 for the whole of Europe that’s probably the path I’d take.

Talkie Toaster maps are OK, but if you have any problems you can count on the guy that runs it to ignore you. Have a read through the terms and conditions first and pay with PayPal.

I also don’t understand how he gets away with infringing Ordnance Survey copyrights when they normally jump on people in an instant if they produce anything that looks vaguely similar to their maps. It’s possible that TT is actually an Ordnance Survey employee, which also explains the shite customer service.

I have an Edge Explore, purchased 2 years ago.

The Garmin map – based on OpenStreetMap – was 5 years or more out of date. Many of the local forestry roads were missing and the basemap was useless as a consequence.
I purchased a TalkyToaster map for £10 and use that now as my default map.

The free download works well if following a gpx but I paid the £10 to enable routing etc.