Telltale compass source

Sven

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I just found a source for a telltale compass - an upside-down compass over the captains berth. I didn't know they were still made and was actually searching for a used (antique ?) one.

The price is of BOAT proportions: $390.

A link to the manufacturer, Robert White: http://tinyurl.com/dcys57

Maybe for my birthday :)



-Sven
 

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u079721

Contributing Partner
A poor man's solution

I just found a source for a telltale compass - an upside-down compass over the captains berth. I didn't know they were still made and was actually searching for a used (antique ?) one.

The price is of BOAT proportions: $390.

A link to the manufacturer, Robert White: http://tinyurl.com/dcys57

Maybe for my birthday :)



-Sven


I had wanted one of these for years, but just couldn't come close to justifying that kind of expense. But I came up with an alternative that I wrote up as a "Simple Solutions" project for Good Old Boat magazine a few years ago, which was later reprinted in Practical Boat Owner.

It basically involved spending $5 to $15 buying an orienteering baseplate compass (see photo), and mounting it at the corner of my nav station in the main cabin. Whenever I would be on an overnight delivery, or (far more often) anchored out for the night, I would align the baseplate bezel with the needle (which is how these are used in the field). You could then tell at a glance whether the boat had strayed off course (or swung at anchor) just by noticing whether the needle and the baseplate were still aligned.

It worked great, and the best part was that you didn't have to try and remember what your heading or bearing was to see if things had changed.

thecompassstore_2038_3494531
 
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Sven

Seglare
Steve,

Good idea !

I used to use a Silva compass when SCUBA diving before I got a console compass. The Silva a is no-nonsense low cost quality product.

I suppose you could velcro one right-side-up for an over-berth compass since it is see-through ? It probably wouldn't work too well on a heal.

Glyn also sent pictures of his eBay finds (thanks Glyn). eBay is another good alternative that I might look into.

One alternative to the overhead compass is trees: As a kid cruising my parent's sloop I woke up one night to see a branch through the v-berth hatch. Boy did I get on deck fast ! :)


-Sven
 

u079721

Contributing Partner
Steve,

Good idea !

I used to use a Silva compass when SCUBA diving before I got a console compass. The Silva a is no-nonsense low cost quality product.

I suppose you could velcro one right-side-up for an over-berth compass since it is see-through ? It probably wouldn't work too well on a heal.

Glyn also sent pictures of his eBay finds (thanks Glyn). eBay is another good alternative that I might look into.

One alternative to the overhead compass is trees: As a kid cruising my parent's sloop I woke up one night to see a branch through the v-berth hatch. Boy did I get on deck fast ! :)


-Sven



I thought about trying to mount one on the overhead, but these things are not really gimballed, and have to be mounted pretty much level to work. I had a forward shelf on my nav station that was level when the boat was at rest or motoring that worked fine - not so well if we were heeled while sailing.

But hey, it only cost $5, so don't expect too much!
 

Sven

Seglare
As a kid cruising my parent's sloop I woke up one night to see a branch through the v-berth hatch.

I should clarify. The branch was not coming in through the hatch. You don't sleep with the hatch open in the Baltic archipelago unless you want to be sucked dry by mosquitoes. The branch was visible through the clear plastic hatch :)


-Sven
 
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CaptDan

Member III
Steve,


I suppose you could velcro one right-side-up for an over-berth compass since it is see-through ? It probably wouldn't work too well on a heal.


-Sven

Here's another less elegant, slightly more inconvenient option:

Mount a hand bearing compass to the nav station - visible from the quarter berth. Keep flashlight handy for checking course at night. :nerd:

Capt Dan G>E35II "Kunu"
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Another fantasy ruined

I should clarify. The branch was not coming in through the hatch. You don't sleep with the hatch open in the Baltic archipelago unless you want to be sucked dry by mosquitoes. The branch was visible through the clear plastic hatch :)
-Sven

Oh Darn! Here all along I was imagining that if we ever visited my wife's unknown bunches of relatives in Sweden we could go boating in a water-and-forest paradise! (Like this neat photo I dragged off a Swedish web site... somewhere... on the 'net). I mean, hey, we've got skeeters right here in the NW; Screens on all hatch openings most summer nights.
:rolleyes:

Loren
 

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Sven

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Oh Darn! Here all along I was imagining that if we ever visited my wife's unknown bunches of relatives in Sweden we could go boating in a water-and-forest paradise!

You could and you should !

The Baltic archipelago (East Coat of Sweden) is stunning with 1000s of islands and islets that you are free to anchor by and go ashore (as long as you respect the privacy of any owners, stay out of sight and sound and pick only wild stuff, no crops. Same "all-mans-right" applies all over Sweden). They are a lot greener than the washed-out picture you posted :)

Navigation is a must, there are shoals and rocks everywhere. Anchoring is a challenge because the glaciers scraped the dirt off so you only have bedrock, boulders and sometimes a bit of mud to hold on to.

In the last decade algae blooms have become a real problem. Some of them have toxins. The cause is either the remnants of the USSR polluting the Baltic or too many Swedish golf courses draining nitrates into the water, or the fish farming putting too much feed in the water. I suspect the cause is all three in combination.

The West Coast is also stunning, but in its barrenness and starkness. On the West coast you also have much salter water and tides.

It's been said that there are so many boats in the country that the whole population would fit on board at the same time if we were so inclined.

Paradise ? Yes, in the summer it is about as close as you can get, but it is not perfect by any means. I think it was Mark Twain (?) who when asked what he thought about Sweden replied "too many flies", I would have said too many mosquitoes.

Go there and try to rent an Albin 25 or some slow comfortable little powerboat like that and take off on a week-long cruise just exploring out of Stockholm. Go sailing if you have a lot more time and don't mind the very slow in-archipelago progress as you thread your way between all the islands.

What is your wife's ancestry ?



-Sven
 

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Gary Peterson

Marine Guy
Best thing about Norway is their neighbors !!
I am 3/4 Swedish and quietly announce 1/4 Norwegian.
Never been to Sweden but it is on our "To do" list.
 

Sven

Seglare
Best thing about Norway is their neighbors !!
I am 3/4 Swedish and quietly announce 1/4 Norwegian.
Never been to Sweden but it is on our "To do" list.

Now I know why you aren't a Petersen :)

Norway is beautiful ! A lot fewer people, but they talk funny even if they are very nice (nicer than Swedes). I've only been there for a few winter vacations but love the place.

Sweden is changing so I'd suggest going sooner rather than later. You'll find US fast food chains and 7-11 stores all over the place :-( Graffiti has been imported too and in some areas there is litter. The archipelago is still almost pristine and that's where you want to be anyway.

It will be interesting to see how our 6' draft will do in the archipelago. I've only been aground twice (once when a marker had drifted and once in a 1.2 m draft boat passing over a 1.5 m shoal !) and hate the feeling !


-Sven (who will try to stop sounding like a tourist bureau :)
 
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