Half century old surplus compass. Bite or not?

[Herrmannek]

Its a half century old compass, surplus, never issued, externally ideal condition... Will it still work? Guy who sells it says it does, but you can't trust them... its 20$ , my el-cheapo clear plastic current compass developed bubble, ruler is broken, and is slow as the cow... So Should I risk biting it?

http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/4418/84366895cu7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[loganinkosovo]

New Manufacture Compasses aren't that expensive.....

http://www.amazon.com/SD-Lensatic-Military-Marching-Compass/dp/B000B55AO0/ref=pd_sbs_sg_img_3

http://www.amazon.com/Brunton-Lensatic-Military-Sighting-Compass/dp/B000P3L2TK/ref=pd_sbs_sg_title_1

http://www.amazon.com/Brunton-9076-Classic-Lensatic-Compass/dp/B000093ILS/ref=pd_sbs_sg_title_6

http://www.amazon.com/Silva-2801020-Lensatic-360-Compass/dp/B000EQ81QK/ref=pd_sbs_sg_img_4

http://www.amazon.com/Pachi-Paradice-LENSATIC-MILITARY-COMPASS/dp/B000TBRE4A/ref=pd_sbs_sg_title_10

http://www.amazon.com/Military-Style-Compass/dp/B0002Q91GG/ref=pd_sbs_sg_title_15

http://www.amazon.com/U-S-Govt-Military-Lensatic-Compass/dp/B000661GWE/ref=pd_sbs_sg_img_2

[SkyUS]

Are you a person who likes to collect old things, but never use them, then buy it. However if you are thinking of using this old compass and depending on it,. I would say buy yourself a new one, why risk being stranded somewhere in the mountains or anywhere for that matter, because of that old compass.

[Nick_Karatzides]

Its a half century old compass, surplus, never issued, externally ideal condition... Will it still work? Guy who sells it says it does, but you can't trust them... its 20$ , my el-cheapo clear plastic current compass developed bubble, ruler is broken, and is slow as the cow... So Should I risk biting it?


http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/4418/84366895cu7.th.jpg (http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/4418/84366895cu7.jpg)

As SikorskiUS (http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/member.php?u=38779) said, if you are thinking of using this compass and depending yourself on it, DO NOT buy it - DO NOT risk being stranded somewhere in the mountains or anywhere. I would advice to forget any compass bellow $50 to $60 USD price and go for something more expensive but surely reliable, accurate and MilSpec.


DO NOT GET FOOLED BY CHEAP CHINESE IMITATIONS!

For me,the Brunton M2 MilSpec compass is one of the best and accurate compasses ever built, adopted by many military forces around the world. Check HERE (http://www.survivalprimer.com/appg.htm) and HERE (http://brunton.williamjhudson.net) for more infos for Brunton M2 compass.


Brunton M2 MilSpec compass


http://www.survivalprimer.com/image174.gif

http://www.brunton.com/images/catalog/5008_Transit_Alt1_L.jpg

http://casanovasadventures.com/catalog/compass/5008_Transit_L.jpg


I personally use a Cammenga (http://cammenga.com/cammenga-products.php?category=1) US military issued compass, with tritium ³H digits for night use. I'd advice you, not to use something less than this. Have a look HERE (http://cammenga.com) and HERE (http://cammenga.com/cammenga-products.php?category=1). You can also find these compasses, on eBay (http://ebay.com) or amazon (http://amazon.com).


Cammenga H3 MilSpec compass


http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/3/9/9/0/1/8/webimg/62015676_o.jpg
http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/3/9/9/0/1/8/webimg/62015683_o.jpg
http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/3/9/9/0/1/8/webimg/61998131_o.jpg

http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/3/9/9/0/1/8/webimg/61998055_o.jpg

http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/3/9/9/0/1/8/webimg/62015751_o.jpg
http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/3/9/9/0/1/8/webimg/62015835_o.jpg
http://img.auctiva.com/imgdata/3/9/9/0/1/8/webimg/62015791_o.jpg

[Kilkenny]

Silva Ranger is an excellent compass.
http://www.gear-up.com/cart_showproduct.php?pid=217.
The shame is, is that it's only in degrees and not in mils anymore. Great compass.

[TacoDelRio]

Neat compass.

Herman, WTF do you do that requires a compass? This determines your need of accuracy.

[Herrmannek]

I'll use it in Poland. Its very hard to get lost here for real... Only way to get remotly close to be lost is to do it on purpose. In thick fog, at night, having your eyes blind folded :) Risk of being killed by it is virtualy none, unless I trip over branch while reading it.

If compasses don't loose its magnetic properties over time it should be a good deal*. As for buing new ones, Sikorski and Nick are right, but I can't afford real compass right now and I suspect all new compasess up to 50$ will be no better than what I already have. I want to use it for learning the skills and if I see is compass accurate enough I may trust it a little more. But eventually I'll buy a real deal.

As I said to get unlost its enough for compass to show constantly same general direction plus maximaly(literally few places like that in Poland) 2hour of walking distance to paved road, power lines or setlements :)


As for accuracy: I was plannig to learn using compass on some caching games... One day I go dig something in the field and next week I try to find it :)

BTW I don't know if tritium glow is legal in Poland. Guys are pretty picky here about radioactivity...

*no fluid, military design, nice leather case and mirror...

[TacoDelRio]

My favorite compass is the Suunto M9. It is accurate enough for almost anything anyone does, short of surveying, land-nav courses that have them damn chem lights (you can do that too, just a disclaimer), etc. It's nice and small, right on yer wrist, easy to orientizate yerseff.

Prepare for extreme linkage:
http://www.suunto.com/suunto/main/product_long.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673940065&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=9852723697223380&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442490163&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=1408474395903523&bmUID=1198836252128

Better yet, go here: http://www.opticsgiant.com/suunm9wrisco.html
Or here: http://tadgear.com/x-treme%20gear/compasses%20main/suunto_m9_wrist_compass.htm

I got mine at the Sand Hill Annex/PX in Ft Benning for cheap, $15 or something. Dunno why Optics Giant has it for $30 USD.

[Pablo666]

DON'T buy it Herrmannek!!!!
They are worth 20zl not $, and that is pice of crap, old slow, with strange scale 600 of what? not 360 degre...
And needle is on some piece of glass and sometimes when it falls or something like that glass breaks, and You can trow it to trash.
I had few of them in my life, that's a bad idea.

[Herrmannek]

DON'T buy it Herrmannek!!!!
They are worth 20zl not $, and that is pice of crap, old slow, with strange scale 600 of what? not 360 degre...
And needle is on some piece of glass and sometimes when it falls or something like that glass breaks, and You can trow it to trash.
I had few of them in my life, that's a bad idea.

You make me cry, but you saved me some bucks :) On other hand I can't imagine why its so hard to make good quality inexpensive compass.. Its not rocket science after all...

[James]

Get a little one and put it on your watch band.

[oldsoak]

try a suunto a10. Cheap enough.


copy and paste this link


http://www.outdoorgb.com/p/suunto_a10_handheld_compass/?utm_source=froogle&utm_medium=directory&utm_content=GBP&currency=GBP&country=GBR

[big_les]

DON'T buy it Herrmannek!!!!
They are worth 20zl not $, and that is pice of crap, old slow, with strange scale 600 of what? not 360 degre...
And needle is on some piece of glass and sometimes when it falls or something like that glass breaks, and You can trow it to trash.
I had few of them in my life, that's a bad idea.

And if the glass does break, you could find yourself inhaling some lovely radioactive isotopes.

Antique compass $50
Vacation in the mountains $200
Radium-induced bone cancer... priceless!

[Basillicus]

with strange scale 600 of what? not 360 degre...

At least FDF uses system where full circle is divided to 6000 "piiru" ("mil" or something in English?), sort of like minutes on a clock times 1000. I believe Imperial Russia and later Warsaw pact and now probably Russia used the same system, while e.g. NATO uses system where there's 6400 mils in a circle (I don't know what's the logic behind that, IMO 6000 is more intuitive due to resemblance to clocks). So in practice it probably comes down to what kind of maps and other equipment you use, though I don't think one will need to even use those when doing something simple like orienteering that doesn't require much accuracy.

[Nick_Karatzides]

when it falls or something like that glass breaks, and You can trow it to trash.And if the glass does break, you could find yourself inhaling some lovely radioactive isotopes.

Antique compass $50
Vacation in the mountains $200
Radium-induced bone cancer... priceless!

http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/4418/84366895cu7.th.jpg (http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/4418/84366895cu7.jpg)


The old antique compass that Herrmannek (http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/member.php?u=1367) asked infos for, is not equiped with H3 tritium or any radioactive isotopes. Even in modern tritium compasses equiped with ³H, the radioactive isotopes are not floating free into compass and the radio activity levels are so low - your TV set radiates more dangerous waves.

So, nobody will get a radium-induced bone cancer because a compass or tritium H3 sights on pistols, rifles etc! We should worry about smoking...

[oldsoak]

Are you sure ? Radium was used in watches up until the 1950's.
Certainly the Uk used it in luminous paint on compasses and watches. If you ever get a gieger counter near a a WWII watch it goes mad !

[Nick_Karatzides]

Are you sure ? Radium was used in watches up until the 1950's. Certainly the Uk used it in luminous paint on compasses and watches. If you ever get a gieger counter near a a WWII watch it goes mad !
The phosphorecent painted illuminated watches (or compasses) are different than ³H tritium. Tritium does not need external light source to illuminate. Tritium (symbol T or ³H) is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. The nucleus of tritium (sometimes called a triton) contains one proton and two neutons, whereas the nucleus of protium (the most abundant hydrogen isotope) contains no neutrons. Tritium is radioactive with a half-life of 12.32 years. It decays into helium-3 by the following reaction


http://upload.wikimedia.org/math/5/d/8/5d8d873acebc2eb7a6720228108d7941.png

releasing 18.6 keV of energy. The electron has an average kinetic energy of 5.7 keV, while the remaining energy is carried off by the nearly undetectable electron antineutrino.


The low-energy beta radiation from tritium cannot penetrate human skin


So tritium is only dangerous if inhaled or ingested. Its low energy also creates difficulty detecting tritium labelled compounds except by using liquid scintillation counting.

For more infos, click HERE (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tritium).


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Tritium-watch.jpg/400px-Tritium-watch.jpg

[oldsoak]

Agree that tritium is not the problem - radium is. In the UK, all military issue watches were recalled in the 50's, their radium paint removed and replaced with tritium. I had a WW1 pocketwatch that had to be disposed of as radioactive waste as the paint on the dial had started to disintegrate into dust.

[big_les]

Yeah, radium Nick mate, not tritium. Radium is pretty nasty stuff if you're unlucky enough to have an open source (i.e. a 50s compass with a cracked dial).