Not worth it

By Hans Ludwig Ranked #3 - Life Jackets and Safety Gear January 6, 2012

Last month, I bought Brunton's 26DNL-CL and have not been too impressed. Two problems: one small and one huge.
1) The clinometer needs to be cajoled into vertical (i.e. with more cajoling than what feels accurate). On northerly aspects the compass needle tends to go near vertical (aligning with the magnetosphere) and this gets in the way of the clinometer (which only goes to 60°).
2) The worst feature of this compass is the hinge design which attaches the sighting mirror to the baseplate. The baseplate and the top are one piece of molded plastic with two folded slivers of plastic functioning as a 'hinge.' The problem is a lack of torsional rigidity between the top and the baseplate.
(*I know this sounds like nit-picky minutiae but hear me out*).
To take the bearing of a feature (like a distant peak), you adjust the compass-housing & mirror with one hand and while holding the baseplate with the other; keeping the mirror steady with the thumb. Minimal torsional rigidity means the mirror rotates through more than one axis in relation to the baseplate. I.e. The v-sight & centerline of the mirror are not true with the direction of travel arrow on the baseplate & index pointer on the compass housing (because you keep the angle of the mirror steady with slight pressure from your thumb, thereby torquing lid slightly). When you use the mirror to take a bearing (aligning your eye with the index pointer through the centerline of the mirror), you end up rotating the whole compass to compensate so the peak is aligned with how the lines appear in the mirror; yielding a false reading when you use the v-sight, or the mirror as a guide when you rotate the compass housing.

Bottom line: Brunton's 26DNL-CL is inaccurate as a sight compass while awkward and lacking in standard features as a baseplate compass.

If you need a sighting compass, spend the extra money to get a compass with all the features (adjustable declination and clinometer) and a decent hinge like the Brunton 15TDCL.
http://www.backcountry.com/brunton-15tdcl-mirrored-compass
Otherwise save your money and weight and get a nice baseplate compass like K&R's Horizon Map Compass.
http://www.backcountry.com/kasper-richter-horizon-map-compass

I'm so glad Backcountry is 'out of stock' for this item.

View Details: Brunton 26DNL-CL Mirrored Compass

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