NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
Re: Hand bearing compass
From: Jared Sherman
Date: 2003 Mar 25, 20:03 -0500
From: Jared Sherman
Date: 2003 Mar 25, 20:03 -0500
George-Those that I have seen are indeed nice compasses, and the luminous night markings are unmatched. However, I chose a Suunto orienterring compass (with dual/reciprocal scales) some years ago. It is small, about the size of a Zippo lighter. I think Suunto sold the one in a nice aluminum case for about $45 back then, I chose the plastic case for half that price--which makes it about 1/4 the price of the "good" hockey pucks. This type of compass is held directly in front of one eye, and you "sight" through a small lens to the compass ring while your other eye looks at your target. You get the illusion of the compass numbers being superimposed over the target and the simple optics ensure an accurate alignment. The result is a fast accurate bearing at 1/4 the price and the assurance that it can be around my neck and in my chest pocket. It is "Genuine Nautical" and it does need a night light (I tapped in an LED internally) but those hockey pucks never fit in my chest pocket anyway.