Tom,

I have had lots of liquid compasses develop bubbles, but I have never identified significant errors caused by them (and I have checked carefully). Any errors that might be produced are lost in the accuracy of the compass. If I need higher accuracy (still handheld), I use a Brunton Pocket Transit (in fact I use it most of the time if I know I am going to need compass because I am most familiar with it).

Respectfully,

Jerry

Sure, as long as the bubble isn't too big there shouldn't be much reason to worry. On one of my treks earlier this year though, I ended up with a bubble about the size of a dime inside my Suunto. Unless I held the compass perfectly still and level the bubble would push the needle to one side or other by quite a bit.

I realized it was bad when I checked my bearings repeatedly and got a totally different reading each time. To make things worse, GPS signal was very poor (no cellphone signal either) due to heavy tree cover and difficult terrain. So it took some serious effort to backtrack to the car safely. Luckily it wasn't more than a good couple of hours walk to get back but overall, still a pretty scary experience.

My tiny back-up compass is not liquid filled. Check out the Companion Compass. Just a little something to get you out of the woods.

There are other compasses that are not liquid filled.For a small compass there is the NATO button compass by Pyser.Tru-Nord is about the diameter of a US quarter and around a third of an inch high.For a full size I recommend the Cammenga military compass.I have this and love/hate it.It is not light by any means but is bomb proof.It is also ugly as sin and is OD green and could easily be lost.

BOATMAN
John

Looking at the County Comm compass, the review link they provide has a photo that clearly shows a bubble in the compass, so my suspicion that it is just a cheap Chinese liquid compass pressed into a brass case seems correct.

The Tru-Nord looks to be of stouter stuff, though I wish they'd make the casing out of aluminum as an option.

Yup, I've replaced the Suunto with a Cammenga GI compass. The Cammenga looks really clunky compared to a modern baseplate compass and it's definitely not as user-friendly. However, if you don't mind the learning curve (and possibly the need to carry a separate protractor for any serious map work) it is a pretty good choice and very reliable in the field.

IMHO, an average hiker/outdoorsman is better off with a Scandinavian-style baseplate compass. It's just way easier to use and works well most of the time. The only real concern in my experience is mechanical reliability. Alas, even Silva and Suunto are no longer what they used to be. Build quality has gone down quite a bit and even the high-end (read expensive) models leave something to be desired in that regard. So the good old Cammenga is still a viable alternative despite its dated design.

Carry Redundant, Robust Navigation Tools and Know How to Use them! Then Plan your Trips and Have Backup Plan just in case!