Compass questions...

Bee,

I called Cabelas CS line and according to them it is a Stockard and Yale.

I was checking out this site
http://155.217.58.58/cgi-bin/atdl.dll/fm/3-25.26/ch9.htm#par2

According to them:
"WARNING

Some older compasses will have a 1:25,000 scale. This scale can be used with a 1:50,000-scale map, but the values read must be halved. Check the scale."

I'm guessing they are referring to the S & Y as the older compass. I don't know much about the whole "scale" concept, which is better?

Does anyone else have any suggestions on which I should get??

Thanks again,
Brent...
:p
 
Interesting. For what it's worth, my Stockard & Yale is stamped "3 AUG 89" on the bottom and "93-06-01" in the lid (apparently I was wrong about when I bought it). It has a 1:50,000 scale. Its tritium vials are also still going strong - I can still take a good reading in total darkness.

The half-life of tritium is 12.5 years, so my compass is about 1/2 its original brightness. By 25 years after manufacture it will be 1/4 brightness, 1/8 at 37.5 years, etc.

I think you could return either brand if you were unhappy, but I doubt you would be. Maybe if you get a compass that was made a while ago and therefore has decayed tritium vials...

Scott

PS - Here's a link to REI's "Learn & Share" page. Check the links to Clinics (Navigation) and How to Choose (Compasses). These guys are of course biased to lightweight gear, probably a good balance for the military nav. page.

http://www.rei.com/rei/learn/index.jsp?ls=Camping
 
I'd get a Silva RANGER PRO 25TDCL/E (declination, inclinometer and illumination) or a Brunton ECLIPSE 8099 PRO. You can get both
HERE

There seems to be some overlap between the Brunton, Silva and Suunto lines. I've seen the same model marketed under one or more brands.
 
I've been salivating over that Eclipse 8099 Pro for a while. I like the magnified azimuth scale and the "center the circle" type reading - very easy to be accurate. Plus, I wouldn't have to carry a separate clinometer (if it is accurate enough).

Does anyone besides me carry a small field book for notes and calculations?

Scott
 
Originally posted by beezaur

Does anyone besides me carry a small field book for notes and calculations?

Scott
Click to expand...

I recently purchased the Rite In The Rain sampler with two small field notebooks and an all-weather pen for future outings.
 
Originally posted by beezaur
Does anyone besides me carry a small field book for notes and calculations?

Scott
Click to expand...

Always. It's hard to make a reverse-bearing map writing on your hand :)
 
Many thanks to everyone who replied. When I first started this post I ordered a Silva Polaris. For the money it seems like a nice compass .... but it has left me wanting for more.

I just ordered the Cammenga. :)

Brent...
:p
 
What do you consider the best wilderness navigation book(s)(non-GPS)?

This is a subject I never grow tired of and would be interested in adding to my library.

Here are the ones I own:

1. Finding Your Way In The Outdoors, Mooers

2. Be Expert With Map & Compass, Kjellstrom

3. Land Navigation Handbook, Kals

4. The Wilderness Route Finder, Rutstrum

Any "must have" titles would be appreciated.
 
Originally posted by JeffRandall
Blues, do you have The Tonto Guide to Bushwhacking

:D
Click to expand...

No Kemosabe. When I last used it to "Scout", I kept tripping over "Silver"'s reins. It was as if I had a damned mask over my eyes.

:p
 
Originally posted by Blues
No Kemosabe. When I last used it to "Scout", I kept tripping over "Silver"'s reins. It was as if I had a damned mask over my eyes. :p
Click to expand...

ahhh.... yo entiendo amigo ;)
 
Excellent question Blues. Let me build on it, what about books on using a lensatic compass to it's fullest?

And.......
Let me pose this to the panel:
Is my compass off by one degree ...... or is this an I-D-10-T error? ;)

I recently picked up a Silva Polaris and a topo map, all set to sharpen my VERY rusty skills. I was playing around earlier and I decided to test to see if my compass was accurate.

(Keep in mind that I used a magnifying glass to ensure that everything was perfectly aligned, also the first picture in this link may help you to visualize what I mean http://www.learn-orienteering.org/old/lesson1.html)

* I placed the "direction of travel arrow" over a line of latitude with the direction of travel arrow pointing East (aligned perfectly).
* I rotated the compass housing and adjusted the compass until one of the orienting lines inside the compass housing covered a line of longitude.
* At the point where the base of the direction of travel arrow meets the compass housing there is a white reference mark where the bearing is to be read.
* It seems to me that the bearing "should" have read exactly East 90 degrees.
Instead it read 89 degrees :confused:

Is my compass off or I missing something?

Is this normal / acceptable?

Many thanks!
Brent...
:p
 
I just did the same test with a cheap Suunto Partner baseplate compass and it came up dead nuts.
 
"s my compass off by one degree . . .
I recently picked up a Silva Polaris and a topo map . . ."

I don't think that's any big deal. If I'm remembering right, a Silva Polaris is a baseplate compass, so there is no real way to "sight" per se, just eyeballing the unit to within several degrees. I don't mean that you should have to live with the compass - if it is actually off a degree independent of sighting (and not the map, maybe those lines aren't perpendicular), then there is a manufacturing flaw. I just mean that a 1 degree error in a compass that can be sighted to 3-4 deg at best isn't going to cause you many problems.

It may mess you up if you are doing a long and winding traverse through featureless terrain, or doing a tricky triangulation, but in that case you would probably need a compass with better sighting capability anyway.

Hehe, listen to me! I'd still return it if it's crooked.

By the way, there's a lot to be said for a plain old baseplate compass. They are light and easy to use. Most real navigation is done by taking note of the terrain and thoughtful route planning, not high accuracy line following.

Scott
 
UPDATE:

I called Johnson Outdoors, the distributors of the Silva compasses. I explained my problem as best as I could and I was told that it is within the "2 degree of variation" allowed for these models. :grumpy:

I could understand if the needle were off a bit but this really seems like a defect :grumpy:

I'm trying decide whether to send it to Johnson along with a letter or just give to some kid to play with :yawn:

Brent...
:p
 
Originally posted by Classified00
I'm trying decide whether to send it to Johnson along with a letter or just give to some kid to play with :yawn:

Brent...
:p
Click to expand...

Unless the product is really expensive, or you have an agenda of principle, teach a kid how to use it and give it to him/her. That's the only way skills and traditions don't get lost.
 
Check out http://www.brunton.com/closeouts.php! The Model 25 TDCL is on sale for $29.00 and the Model 25 TDCLE (w/ battery illumination) is on sale for $39.00. These are Silva model numbers and the photos and features match those of the Silva Rangers with these model numbers. Compare http://www.silva.se/index.html (go to "products", "professional instruments" and "Ranger M25"). I already have a ranger, but the battery illuminated model is quite tempting at $39.
 
Originally posted by beezaur
I've been salivating over that Eclipse 8099 Pro for a while. I like the magnified azimuth scale and the "center the circle" type reading - very easy to be accurate. Plus, I wouldn't have to carry a separate clinometer (if it is accurate enough).

Does anyone besides me carry a small field book for notes and calculations?

Scott
Click to expand...

I always carry a Moleskine notebook (the pocket-sized one) and a chrome Fisher Space Pen (Bullet) as part of my EDC. I also have a wallet-size slim solar calculator for those complex calculations like errrr.....345-30 or 360+40 errrr.:D
 
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