You've gotta get prepared for that Mayan 2012 pole reversal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RPM27TuOqk

Just needs that huge Mass solar ejector to give it a nudge.



Huge ring of sun spots were forming on the sun about a week ago.

Couldn't see any of those darned obelisks though.

dont worry about the Mayan end of the world on 12/12/12 thing. the 3 guys who came up with that deal based on a single paragraph of tablet just said that they were off by as much as 200 years.

Is it a co-incidence that they state this two years before the date and they are all still alive? you decide.

Outdoor Quest had mentioned the Brunton 8010G. That is an excellent compass, especially for the money. As I recall I chose that model to present to a group of Cub Scouts graduating to Boy Scouts. I think its about the equal of the Suunto Leader M-3 (which is what I latter chose to present to my own son's den when it graduated to Boy Scouts).

The Brunton doesn't require a screw driver to adjust the magnetic declination. That might be more convenient, but it also could get bumped out of adjustment, but not likely. I do worry about the screw head eventually getting damaged enough to not work, but it would seem that would take several lifetimes.

The only thing that frustrates me about the Brunton 8010G (and its minor) is that the mark where you read the angle could suffer from parallax problems since the bezel is raised off of the baseplate. That's probably not a big deal for most users.

The Brunton baseplate compasses are made by Silva in Sweden, some of the best around. The 8010 and 9020 are among the most cost effective compasses for most users who do not have specialized needs. Personally I do not like the declination scales, I much prefer an adjustment. I have not had problems with the Brunton "no tool" adjustment but I do check them every time I use them.

The best,

Jerry

I wouldn't worry much either. If I recall my college correctly (it's been a while), the poles have shifted in the past, several times. No, not recently. But we're all still around.

Honestly I'm not well versed in it, but I can't imagine it'd have any real noticable effects. The earth's magnetic field would still be around. I mean, an MRI machine has more magnetism than your typical baseline magnetic field.

Thank you to all for the responses.

Regarding the 8010G by Brunton, I have been using mine for years. I've sold many to my students and have had positive feedback.

I'd like to see Brunton improve the red lines on the compass ring (on the face) used when triangulating a postion fix.

All the best,

Blake
www.outdoorquest.biz

I would avoid, or at least be careful about, selecting any compass with adjustments to correct for declination. I'm used to correcting for it in this area but anything that can be adjusted can be maladjusted, spun in the wrong direction (doubling the error) or adjusted for one area and used in another.

I like a compass to do what a compass does, point at magnetic north. I'll do my own correcting.

My preferred solution is to apply a piece of tape and write the correction factor on it as a reminder. This keeps me from forgetting the declination by forcing me to correct for it. After the first few times it becomes second nature.

My Suunto M-3DL compass has an adjustment for declination and despite moderate to heavy use over the last few years, there have been no problems that you have mentioned. Like anything else, all gear whether it be a compass or a sleeping bag needs to be checked on a regular basis, regardless of it's intended use...

Are you sure of that?

I suspect that the compasses that existed BEFORE Silva of Sweden acquired Suunto (the "green ones" - 8010G, 9020G, & 8040G - and the Eclipse compasses) are made somewhere else, but I honestly don't know where. I don't have one of them here at work (sorry) so I can't look on it to see if it has a "made in xxxx" label.

I tend to fall in Teslinkhiker's camp there.

Stoves are special candidates for careful pre-trip testing and care. That is why I like stoves that are simple and completely field maintainable. Some of mine are getting to the age where I think seals & gaskets are aging out.

Anything that involves a battery too.