Decent reasonably priced compass

[BeerHunter]

As per the title, can anyone suggest a decent and reliable compass, at a reasonable price?

Blacks and Millets want 15-20 quid for one, which seems quite expensive - is this a fair price?

I don;t want a cr*p one - the needle on cheaper ones seem relectant to swing to North, and I don;t want to end up going in the wrong direction.

Your experiance and guidance would be most welcome!

Thanks

[Perrari]

I have a Silva type 4 which I have used for years. £15-20 is a fair price in a shop (you get what you pay for), but have a look on ebay,there are a few of them on there for much less. I prefer a longer compass as it makes it easier to take a bearing over a longer distance on a map.

[Shewie]

+1 to what Perrari said

[lostplanet]

Silva Type 4 here too, never had any problems with it, worth every penny.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silva-35692-...3054760&sr=8-1

[santaman2000]

I havve an older (early 1980s) Silva Explorer. IIRC it cost about $20 back then so allowing for inflation, over a 30 year period, 15-20 GBP sounds more than reasonable.

[tartanferret]

Mines a Silva type 7 NL,

I don't know if the amber coloured face was luminous once upon a time? It was given to me.
silva.jpg

[sandbender]

I have a Silva type 4 which I have used for years. £15-20 is a fair price in a shop (you get what you pay for), but have a look on ebay,there are a few of them on there for much less. I prefer a longer compass as it makes it easier to take a bearing over a longer distance on a map.

I have several Silva models, can't go wrong with a type 4 I reckon.

There are a few on ebay, I've never thought about picking one up from there before, this one looks ok.

[BeerHunter]

Thanks all, sounds like it's gonna be a Silva!

[rik_uk3]

Can't really go wrong with a Silva, Expedtion is fine. There is the little Silva Field compass but I've no experience of it.

http://www.rockrun.com/products/Silva-Field-7.html

[tiger stacker]

Are you purchasing a Degrees '' compass or mills "

[Elines]

I don't know how to use the 'normal' scales on a compass and would prefer one that showed distance at scales of 1:25,000/1:50000 (the maps I generallly use). In the absence of a distance scale I made my own eg see Paul Kirtley article and comments:

http://frontierbushcraft.com/2012/05...rt-navigation/

by adding a distance scale to the speed timing chart

[maddave]

Anything by silva, suunto or recta is a good bet. I've used all of them and they're all accurate and well put together

[widu13]

Don't muck around with a compass if your doing nav with it. Buy a branded one. I got a Silva Type 4 Mils compass 19 yrs ago and paid £25 (Still going strong). The same compass today is about £32! They are cheaper now than ever.

[Wook]

I was on a tight budget last time I was buying a compass, but I wanted to go with a proven brand.

In the end I bought a Silva Ranger SL sighting compass, for around £15 as I recall. It is one of the cheaper Silva's, but that still makes it a quality compass:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silva-Ranger...153763&sr=1-43

[awarner]

Silva all the way, the swinging needles on cheap models is generally down to not having any fluid to dampen the needle movement.
Had a quick search on the yellow compass above and apparently some used to be filled with kerosene which would make it yellow. There is a white kerosene now as well as various oils. Looking in more detail aviation oil is very expensive which would account for most of the cost on the expensive models I would say.

[tinderbox]

Every time there's a thread like this, on any forum, the recommendations come in for the Silva 4 Expedition. For the same price you can get a Recta DO 590, same quality, but it also has a declinometer and an inclinometer.

[Wook]

Perhaps, but I've never heard of Recta. However, I know Silva are a reliable brand and I've never heard of a shonky one leading someone off a cliff in the fog.

[tinderbox]

Recta are a Swiss brand, now owned by Suunto. Every bit as good as Silva, but don't have the same brand recognition in the anglosphere. In some European countries recta are the known brand and Silva the forgotten one.

[Wook]

Thanks for the info, tinderbox. I'll bear that in mind.

Although, that said - with something like a compass there is an advantage to buying one you know will work.

[tinderbox]

Absolutely Wook, although most falls off cliffs in Scottish hills aren't due to faulty equipment. The Ben Nevis plateau is a navigation nightmare in a white out. Other than than that it's mostly stupidity that gets folk killed, like trying to find the Goat Path in Coire an t-Sneachda rather than taking the safe route through Coire Cas.

[Gythral]

Absolutely Wook, although most falls off cliffs in Scottish hills aren't due to faulty equipment. The Ben Nevis plateau is a navigation nightmare in a white out. Other than than that it's mostly stupidity that gets folk killed, like trying to find the Goat Path in Coire an t-Sneachda rather than taking the safe route through Coire Cas.

Oh so true!!!


Anything made by Silva, Recta or Suunto will suit you, degrees are easier to convert between map and magnetic north (but you only need the conversion to use mils) & a longer baseplate makes measuring distance on a map easier & someone mentioned an NL version - NL means non-lumious or dont use at night without a torch...

Personally I'd buy a Silva 4-360

[widu13]

Yep, Recta are a good make. Still sold, just not that common now.

[mcniac]

I love my Recta DS-40, you can't go wrong with a good brand map compass

[Wayland]

Can't really go wrong with a Silva, Expedtion is fine. There is the little Silva Field compass but I've no experience of it.

http://www.rockrun.com/products/Silva-Field-7.html

Generally I would say this is true unless you intend to ever fly with one in your baggage or even in the cabin.

I have ruined more fluid filled compass' on aeroplanes than I care to recall.

Some do not even stand being taken up a mountain in my experience.

If you are flying to your destination I would recommend buying one when you get there and don't expect it to get home again without an air bubble forming in the capsule.

[decorum]

I use an old Silva Type 54 (not a 4/54). It makes use of a rose rather than the more traditional needle ~ the newer versions have a combo rose needle affair. The rose allows for a greater degree of accuracy when taking / checking bearings through the sighting prism in the bezel. No chance of an issue of bubble formation in mine because it isn't liquid damped ~ I'm not sure whether the more modern version is though .

[santaman2000]

I've always preferred induction dampened personally. Less to go wrong and lighter.

[mrcharly]

Silva all the way.

Apart from the fluid damping, the needles are balanced for your hemisphere. the mag field ain't parallel to the earth's surface and the better compass manufacturers weight the needle so it sits flat when used in the right region.

I still have my (made for Australia) Silva I bought when I was 15 and doing orienteering. Flown all over with it but it's not a lot of use up north - the needle sits at an angle and scrapes on the bezel.

[santaman2000]

Silva all the way.

Apart from the fluid damping,..

???? I've only ever seen induction dampened Silvas.

[mrcharly]

All of the suggested compasses, the ones of the transparent rectangle and a rotating bezel, are fluid-damped. Never seen an induction-damped compass in my life, not even on sailing barges.

[Snowfire]

And whatever you do buy don't leave it near a strong magnetic field! I've got one where the red 'N' end of the needle points roughly south as a result of leaving it somewhere it shouldn't have been.