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Electronic Compass

Neil · 23 · 8102

gb Offline Neil

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Electronic Compass
on: April 18, 2012, 11:54:49 AM
I acquired this at a local car boot sale last weekend.



Accurate to a degree and I like the fact you can preset declination.  Here's some more info.

A quick look at the Silva website doesn't show any electronic compasses in their current range.  I wonder if the market was too limited?
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ca Offline Grant Lamontagne

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #1 on: April 18, 2012, 01:07:27 PM
I think it's more likely that with the dropping cost of GPS units, coupled with most phones having built in compass software that it's too limited a market now.

Neat find though. If you go missing for a while we'll assume the batteries died while you were out walking in the woods!

Def

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gb Offline Neil

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #2 on: April 18, 2012, 03:49:03 PM
If you believe my boys, its more likely that the Gruffalo ate me :D

Battery life is stated as being five hundred hours and it only takes a single cr2032.  I can carry a spare without feeling too weighed down :P

The backlight would probably drop that figure considerably as its EL behind the screen and LED for the bubble.  Very low level though, just right for not mucking up your night vision.

I think your right about the falling price of compass enabled GPS units making a standalone magnetic compass not worth producing any more.
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ca Offline Syph007

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #3 on: April 18, 2012, 03:59:15 PM
Ok I gotta ask, is a car boot sale the same thing as it is over here?  If someone says they bought something out of the back of the car *wink* its some guy selling merchendise of questionable origin.  Or is this more like a yard sale/garage sale from ones car?
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gb Offline Neil

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #4 on: April 18, 2012, 04:05:20 PM
Its like a flea market / yard sale.  Normally held in a soggy field on a Sunday morning at a time all civilised people are still in bed.  Its mainly full of old baby toys and second hand electric razors from 1982.  Occasionally you find something interesting :)
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gb Offline Sparky415

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #5 on: April 18, 2012, 04:19:29 PM

 
Its like a flea market / yard sale.  Normally held in a soggy field on a Sunday morning at a time all civilised people are still in bed.  Its mainly full of old baby toys and second hand electric razors from 1982.  Occasionally you find something interesting :)

+ rust  :rofl:
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ca Offline Syph007

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #6 on: April 18, 2012, 04:25:27 PM
Its like a flea market / yard sale.  Normally held in a soggy field on a Sunday morning at a time all civilised people are still in bed.  Its mainly full of old baby toys and second hand electric razors from 1982.  Occasionally you find something interesting :)


Ah gotcha!  I check our flea markets from time to time, but have yet to come home with anything decent.  Mostly it looks like people went to the garbage dump and put it on their tables with prices added.  Osccasionly i find old tools that look interesting, but i still dont 'need'. :D
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gb Offline nuphoria

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #7 on: April 18, 2012, 04:50:40 PM
Perfect description Neil :D
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gb Offline Sparky415

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #8 on: April 18, 2012, 05:07:21 PM
Its like a flea market / yard sale.  Normally held in a soggy field on a Sunday morning at a time all civilised people are still in bed.  Its mainly full of old baby toys and second hand electric razors from 1982.  Occasionally you find something interesting :)


Ah gotcha!  I check our flea markets from time to time, but have yet to come home with anything decent.  Mostly it looks like people went to the garbage dump and put it on their tables with prices added.  Osccasionly i find old tools that look interesting, but i still dont 'need'. :D

Yep Garbage an rust  :D

Look at reply No 256 in this thread  :tu:

http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,20179.250.html#lastPost

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us Offline sergemaster

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #9 on: May 24, 2012, 02:53:36 AM
Amici,
Unless I found one at a super duper price, I would be better off sticking with the free app thayt I use on my smart phone. Besides that, I prefer liquid filled casing any day.

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00 Offline cool123

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #10 on: January 05, 2015, 09:01:34 AM
I acquired this at a local car boot sale last weekend.

(Image removed from quote.)

Accurate to a degree and I like the fact you can preset declination.  Here's some more info.

A quick look at the Silva website doesn't show any electronic compasses in their current range.  I wonder if the market was too limited?

This seems to be a perfect camping essentials without which you can be lost in dark forests.
If I need to pick some good EDC tools.
Then I would take my love leatherman multi tool wave and a flash light. Other are just a waste !!!


au Offline gregozedobe

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #11 on: January 05, 2015, 10:27:17 AM
Now you'll have to get a Schrade I-Quip (electronic compass, altimeter etc) AND an MT as well  :pok:

http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,44390.msg717406.html#msg717406

http://wiki.multitool.org/tiki-index.php?page=i-Quip
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gb Offline Cupboard

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #12 on: February 27, 2015, 08:49:40 PM
Woah now that's a serious bit of thread revival!


00 Offline cool123

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #13 on: March 20, 2015, 06:45:37 AM
This seems to a nice pick, but I doubt that it will not stay back in outdoors survivals. I prefer to use a compact and non-electric compass.
If I need to pick some good EDC tools.
Then I would take my love leatherman multi tool wave and a flash light. Other are just a waste !!!


us Offline Obi1shinobee

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #14 on: April 15, 2015, 03:04:08 AM


us Offline Obi1shinobee

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #15 on: April 17, 2015, 03:41:45 AM
 :cheers:
Schrade Iquip.jpg
* Schrade Iquip.jpg (Filesize: 42.6 KB)


00 Offline cool123

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #16 on: July 10, 2015, 10:53:54 AM
How about this compass.



Looks a bit small.
If I need to pick some good EDC tools.
Then I would take my love leatherman multi tool wave and a flash light. Other are just a waste !!!


gb Offline Tasky

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #17 on: November 01, 2021, 11:56:06 PM
Woah now that's a serious bit of thread revival!

And how about now? :-D

TBH, I'd still find a compass like this to be useful. I have a properly calibrated prismatic one and another on my ABC watch, but most people seem reliant on their phones, which are generally only accurate to within about 15º... and if you're navigating several miles by that, it's a lot of error.


de Offline Shuya

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #18 on: November 30, 2021, 12:22:58 PM
I acquired this at a local car boot sale last weekend.

(Image removed from quote.)

Accurate to a degree and I like the fact you can preset declination.  Here's some more info.

A quick look at the Silva website doesn't show any electronic compasses in their current range.  I wonder if the market was too limited?

I think they vanished because not only because of GPS and phones but because they are a electronic gadget with lots of limits.

If you have worked with a real compass you know its not only for knowing where north is, with a good one you can do a lot of map work (I got a few, for real work a Recta DS50G, a more basic Recta DP2 and a Silva Field as pure basic ).
All of them, even the most basic is more usefull than your electronic device, not talking about batteries.
This thing doesnt even have a straight edge to do basic map work or any scales, rotatable housing, glowing marks or some sort of illumination for bad light....list goes on.

if you really need a compass, its more than a gimmic, its a tool that can save your life.


See here: https://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,86442.msg2211211.html#msg2211211
« Last Edit: November 30, 2021, 12:28:02 PM by Shuya »


gb Offline Tasky

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #19 on: November 30, 2021, 01:47:53 PM
All of them, even the most basic is more usefull than your electronic device, not talking about batteries.
This thing doesnt even have a straight edge to do basic map work or any scales, rotatable housing, glowing marks or some sort of illumination for bad light....list goes on.
According to Silva, this Nomad electronic compass has: "Forward & back bearing memory, off-course indicator, backlit digital display, adjustment for magnetic declination, 5º accuracy with 1º resolution".
More here: https://www.manualslib.com/manual/318819/Silva-Nomad.html

What you say above, I would say the same about most of the military compasses we used... and yet, strangley enough, we never got lost and were always able to place artillery fire directly on target from several miles away.
I would also say the same about the various globular compasses on the majority of aircraft and ships, which also seem to make it to their destinations without any trouble.

As for map work itself - We have protractors and romers that work just fine. Sometimes even better.


de Offline Shuya

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #20 on: November 30, 2021, 01:58:01 PM
According to Silva, this Nomad electronic compass has: "Forward & back bearing memory, off-course indicator, backlit digital display, adjustment for magnetic declination, 5º accuracy with 1º resolution".
More here: https://www.manualslib.com/manual/318819/Silva-Nomad.html

What you say above, I would say the same about most of the military compasses we used... and yet, strangley enough, we never got lost and were always able to place artillery fire directly on target from several miles away.
I would also say the same about the various globular compasses on the majority of aircraft and ships, which also seem to make it to their destinations without any trouble.

As for map work itself - We have protractors and romers that work just fine. Sometimes even better.

5° is a lot when mapworking or navigation. Thats 87m error at 1000m distance.

And according to military compass: all of the ones I have seen have a straight long side when fully opened to be used as a ruler when doing map work, and this ruler has a scale on it.
When not having a transparend baseplate a protractor indeed is a very usefull tool .
I used my Recata DS50G a lot on maps or open landscapes, and never missed a protractor to be honest.

I guess when they gave you this compass with 5° accuracy and no protractor lots of your shells would not have hit anything :pok:
« Last Edit: November 30, 2021, 02:03:02 PM by Shuya »


nl Offline Reinier

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #21 on: November 30, 2021, 01:59:33 PM
My goodness, I thought Neil was back...
You should seriously visit vicfan.com. All the hoopy froods are doing it.


gb Offline Tasky

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Re: Electronic Compass
Reply #22 on: December 01, 2021, 04:16:37 AM
5° is a lot when mapworking or navigation. Thats 87m error at 1000m distance.

And according to military compass: all of the ones I have seen have a straight long side when fully opened to be used as a ruler when doing map work, and this ruler has a scale on it.
When not having a transparend baseplate a protractor indeed is a very usefull tool .
I used my Recata DS50G a lot on maps or open landscapes, and never missed a protractor to be honest.

I guess when they gave you this compass with 5° accuracy and no protractor lots of your shells would not have hit anything :pok:
5º is far less than the 15º average of even modern digital compasses... Incidentally, your Recta is only accurate to 2.5º, according to the manufacturer and if it's anything like my DP6 from them, the markings are visibly out of alignment. 

Current issue military compass: https://pyseroptics.com/product/m-88-green-liquid-prismatic-compass-degrees-model/
A design roughly unchanged since the late 1800s. Not that you asked, but it's accurate to 5 mils (or 0.28º), incidentally, but only because it's limited to the resolution of your own eyeball. If your eyesight is that good, you can be even more accurate with it.
The protractor is larger than most baseplates and has a thread that allows for far longer measures than a baseplate can manage.
Even WW2 US military compasses lacked any baseplate elements, yet people managed fine with these: http://www.44thcollectorsavenue.com/Militaria/WWII/US/Field-gear-and-equipment/US2-F-000081.html

So for the purposes for which this compass was likely designed, it's perfectly fine... and if you want to get all snobish about doing 'real' map work, any 'real' navigator will have other methods that partner with this.


 

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