What's your favourite compass?

[Klenchblaize]

I have one of these:
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?...CB1F7BEAA407CA8CAD3DCB1F7BEAA407&&FORM=VRDGAR
Never used it underwater though!

K

 

[Robson Valley]

My brother lives in the Bahamas because he's been a scuba diver since he was 12 years old.
I buy his big-ticket scuba gear every few years. I asked him about the value of a submarine compass.

He said that they were of great value for open ocean instruction where everything goes gray in the distance.
He said on reefs, you use landmark formations and fin-kicks (100 this way, then 50 left etc) to keep track of stuff
as "shortcuts" get you into grief.

Not me. I worked with scuba and didn't enjoy it. Just work with compressor chainsaws, etc.
I'm very happy with my 6,000 - 8,000' scenery and a good land compass, thanks.

 

[Laurentius]

Anything by Silva, I measure all other compasses in comparison.

 

[santaman2000]

Buy a good compass. Silva, Suunto and Brunton are worth $50 - $100........

........Next compass for me? Probably the Silva Expedition.
I like the concept of a big & transparent base plate for mapping........

Be leery of the current Silvas here in North America. Ours aren't real Silvas anymore. A few years ago Johnson Outdoors won a lawsuit for the naming rights in North America and our current ones are Chinese made (the European ones are still the real deal) Now Suunto rebadges the real Silvas for sale in North America.

 

[woodsorrel]

Santaman2000, if I want a "real" Silva, what name should I look for in the US?

- Woodsorrel

 

[Tiley]

I use - and rate highly - the Suunto M3 compass. It's great for use with maps, is light and easy to read. It has a balanced needle for use wherever in the world and you can adjust for magnetic declination really easily.

I've just completed the Cape Wrath Trail and found that the compass was invaluable at a number of stages when visibility was poor/non-existent and there was no path or discernible track to follow. I do not particularly like GPS as it dulls one's more basic but dependable navigational skills and, of course, relies on battery power.

For ceremonial occasions, I have a Francis Barker prismatic compass; now that really is a beautiful piece of engineering...!

 

[Janne]

My favourite compass is a Luftwaffe Arm Kompass 39 ( AK39) made by Kadlec, a Czech company in Prague.

Never used it for its intended task though.

It sleeps beautifully between my B-uhren!

 

[Janne]

Santaman2000, if I want a "real" Silva, what name should I look for in the US?

- Woodsorrel

Buy one over the net from Sweden, but check it is Made in Sweden.

 

[MikeLA]

Used a Silva type 4 military version in Mils all the time and nothing else. Prefer mils for its accuracy.

 

[BigMonster]

Silva ranger SL
https://www.marinecompasses.co.uk/ranger-sl.html

Even though I have the top of the range Suunto and played with many Silvas. This is always with me. Fantastic build quality (fiber reinforced composite, not cheap plastic) and several clever features.
It's the size of a toy but it's a serious precise instrument. Love it and can't stop playing with it, my fidget spinner

 

[santaman2000]

Santaman2000, if I want a "real" Silva, what name should I look for in the US?

- Woodsorrel

Suunto over here are rebadged Silvas. Also if you have a friend in Europe you can get them to buy a real Silva and then forward it to you. I also prefer Silva from back in the day when they were real. Suunto's a good name too though (and as I said, the ones in N.A. are rebadged Silvas)

Buy one over the net from Sweden, but check it is Made in Sweden.

That would be good advise if there is a reliable way to check. Most (if not all) internet searches from here will default to North American suppliers and those will all be from Johnson Outdoors.

 

[Robson Valley]

I'll attempt to fix my own, soon as I get an idea of what the juice is.
Should have gone the extra mile for dry electromagnetic damping in the first place.

 

[Modchop]

Another vote for the venerable Silva type 4 (mine is in degrees), I’ve used it for around 20 years without issue, even paced out bearing on it in a white-out many years ago, definitely recommended for a no frills, reliable tool.

 

[Janne]

That would be good advise if there is a reliable way to check. Most (if not all) internet searches from here will default to North American suppliers and those will all be from Johnson Outdoors.

It is easy to send an email to Silva in Sweden and ask which compasses are made there, and where to buy them.

If you want to avoid being defaulted to US suppliers for any goods, you start by changing to (for example) Yahoo in UK, then use that. Takes a few seconds!

 

[gofive84]

My favorite is the SE Military Sighting CC4580 Compass.

 

[MikeLA]

just realised already posted my answer