do people still use a compass?

[PKFK]

........... for tacking and cross checking.

I'm curious about using the compass for tacking - I have been cruising for 13 years, and except for a few times on race boats, I never use the compass for tacking. I just tack and adjust course according to the windex or until the boat is back in the "slot".

What do you use the compass info for when tacking ? Isn't is better to just adjust course to the wind rather than a pre-determined number of degrees to tack through ?

Paul

 

[Scotty C-M]

I agree with the above comments about the usefullness of a compass. I carry two GPSs and have never had one fail, but still recognize that if it does, a compass is a very good back-up. I also use the compass (actually I have two) to sail to a course when out of sight of land. It feels good and I keep a streight course. I also have radar. I use the radar all the time so that I'm comfortable with it when I really need it. One time I went out the SF Gate in fog. I was really glad for it's use that day and glad that I had practiced with it. The compass is similar. I practice dead reconning (using the compass and charts) so that if I ever need it I'll be comfortable with it. That probably makes me a belt and suspenders type of guy - is that the term BS?. Lots of us "redundency types" are attracted to sailing, and that's OK. Room for divergent opinions here on the forum.

 

[troutman]

I am by no means a expert but it is my understanding that some people feel that their boat sails faster, distance traveled to a point, at a certain degree to the wind. Like you said this is a thing that racers are more concerned with than a casual cruiser.

 

[Stu Jackson]

I'm curious about using the compass for tacking - I have been cruising for 13 years, and except for a few times on race boats, I never use the compass for tacking. I just tack and adjust course according to the windex or until the boat is back in the "slot".

What do you use the compass info for when tacking ? Isn't is better to just adjust course to the wind rather than a pre-determined number of degrees to tack through ?

Paul

Paul, after sailing our boat for a few years I learned what angles my boat can tack through. For an example, with new crew who are good helmsmen (rare but I've found a few), before they call a tack I ask them what the new heading will be. I explain that if they add or subtract say 120 degrees from the course they are on, that is a good starting point for the new heading. Works all the time.

 

[Rick D]

Me Too, I Think..

Rick D

You know I always respect your opinions. As to the original post, you know our waters as well or better than I do. Im just saying our original poster might find better use for his funds to buy, fit, and mount a ship's compass than say download a phone app, or a simple survival one that can be purchased at say Cabelllas.

I find myself looking for sealife, visiting with the crew, or anything besides checking for drift or course on my ship's compass. When making a coastal passage (max of say 40 miles off shore) I simply look at the chartplotter or if below, check the laptop readout which displays a map and boat position relative to my destination. The compass is very far down the list of data input when sailing.

Cant imagine trying to make an approach at night to San Diego in the weather, with the kelp, with nothing more than a chart, tide info, and a compass. I would keep searoom and wait for daytime and then take my chances with the oh so common fog.

As for emergencies, if you are cruising on long passages then yep you should exercise due diligence.

Our original poster did not give that information.

Cheers Rick D and see ya soon at Two Harbors I hope!

Yea, Rick, I use my laptop and chartplotter for waypoint & bearing info. What I use the compass for is racing, windshifts, daysailing, tacking and double checking the AP. I also don't use the compass much for coastal cruising. In fact, with any view of landmarks to the bearing, I use the landmarks. But, when the weather is good and I don't feel like having the AP on, I just steer to the compass.

 

[Rick]

Yea, Rick, I use my laptop and chartplotter for waypoint & bearing info. What I use the compass for is racing, windshifts, daysailing, tacking and double checking the AP. I also don't use the compass much for coastal cruising. In fact, with any view of landmarks to the bearing, I use the landmarks. But, when the weather is good and I don't feel like having the AP on, I just steer to the compass.

Concur Rick

This summer we rounded Point Loma with Oceanside as our destination. Abeam La Jolla, we could see the mine. Tremendous visibility! It is amazing after 9 years of cruising our coast between Santa Barbara Isle and Ensenada, to say nothing of the countless times I have looked at it from the air on the Orange County arrival, I pretty much can just use landmarks. And even update my eta just by judging my position with my Mark 1 Eyeball.

Cheers

Hope I didnt make anyone feel that a compass isnt a very useful tool. Its just where it fits in one's particular application.

 

[SenecaDaze]

All the above ok and whatever but
A big old bulkhead mount compass just looks Cool

 

[Benny17441]

A compass has other uses besides navigation. It can indicate a collision course.

 

[Jared1048]

One time I was sailing at dusk and the autopilot was on taking me home under motor power alone. The damn thing got a wild hair up its @ss and turned HARD to port and I ran up as soon as possible to disengage autopilot and get us back on course. Unknown to me I flipped us 180 degrees. Going now in the exact opposite way! Now it was near dark at this time and in the Puget Sound there isn't much of lights to help identify where you are at. I was leaving Port Townsend and trying to get to Everret which was on the "left". I kept turning to the "left" looking for a big city lite up but nothing. I might say that it was during a small craft advisory too. Winds were nasty and not the time to get switched around. I went straight out into the mouth of the Straight of Juan De Fuca. Swell was so big I couldn't motor straight into it and had to run in the trough then turn up in the the wave's to hold our ground. I ended up getting in the lee of a little spit and dropped the hook. Kicked on the diesel heater and went down below and called it a night. In the morning I noticed a huge mountain range around me which was odd! I finally figured out what I had done and felt like an idiot. If I would of been watching the compass I would of known quickly I was going the wrong direction!

So yes, at night I use a compass!

 

[Nereussailor]

I use my compass more than my GPS but have both in front of me at all times

 

[centerline]

Official dis of the compass.

In my airplane I have two GPS and two IRS ses ( Global Positioning and Inertial Navigation)... I have a standby compass and that is what it is.. an emergency data base to monitor... but I havent yet in 32 years of flying and sailing.

Seriously!

Yeah it is on the binnacle. I KNOW how to use it... do I?

Never. And if you people who use your compass havent done a "swing" to calibrate your deviation and variation then you will be the next grounding!

Come on seriously, you people sail by a compass? How about buying a boat that was built after the turn of the century... 1800

I am floored. Think there is some serious BS in these responses.

Sail to where... your jetty, favorite anchorage, compass.... I know Joshua would probably roll over but did you all know that there have been multiple circumnavs without paper charts? Set and drift is a thing of the past. IMHO.

Sheesh... know how to read it yeah but enter the jetty in the fog on your compass... looking at your chart and your ELECTRIC depth finder....

I have three GPS's and a compass... which one loses.

Troutman if you find a free compass on Criag'slist grab it... otherwise put the money towards a half kite! This is just bizaar.

If you run out of all the above options its called Tow Insurance!

this may be the strongest opinion I have ever posted.... and although i mean no offense, my opinion is as strong for the need of a compass, as Ricks is against the need for one on a modern boat rigged with full compliment of electronics... even though the OP does not have the luxury of full electronics...

basically, what im hearing in this statement is, if you go out without being prepared and get into trouble, just call for help and have someone else come and get you out of it.....
that is an EXPENSIVE option when in an area that it is available... but sometimes it is NOT an option.

and even Joshua, who you mention, WAS wishing for more charts on his journey!!! and all the "circum navs" that have been made without paper charts, were NOT made without a compass.... and so many in history have also been made without electronics.


all kidding aside, there are those in the world with more money than common sense... or maybe its that they have never been without their electronics to guide them thru the blackness or fog, so they havent learned its possible to do with the right equipment.
or maybe they leave the navigating to someone else, which would be a wise choice if they think a basic compass aboard a boat is outdated or not useful. whatever their reason is for thinking this way, my luck has proven that I cannot follow this practice for the sake of self preservation...
but no matter, I will keep the compass and the paper charts, but will also embrace the electronics for the convenience of it, but never rely on it solely....

I feel its Irresponsible to say that a compass has no use in modern navigation, and to recommend that the money to buy a decent compass would be better spent elsewhere... IMHO

 

[KingAirDriver]

Been flying a long time... From airliners to Cubs.

I use my compass. All the time. On the boat or in the plane. I am never without one. Got one in my pocket at all times too.

I can still fly needle/ball/airspeed and compass if needed. And I have had to do that on more than one occasion.

A good aviator, like a good sailor uses everything in his/her possession to accomplish the mission. I have the GPS in my airplanes, but not on my boat. I use electronic nav systems, but I never rely on them. I always have my paper charts and my compass and stopwatch handy.

Just my opinion. FWIW.

 

[Kermit]

This thread makes me even happier to be sailing on an inland lake. Both of my boats came with compass installed and I enjoy looking at them from time to time. A compass serves no actual purpose for me but I'm sure I would miss it if it weren't there. Especially at night when I'm figuring what star or planet I'm looking at. Or during the day to see if the wind direction forecast was even close.

 

[dparilla]

All this makes me want to just go sailing.

 

[Kermit]

All this makes me want to just go sailing.

Amen, Brother! Amen!

 

[jenquay]

In this crazy world, what if some not so friendly country or group found a way to disrupt our GPS satellites? If if that happened, I don't think they'd mess up earths magnetic field. My compass will still work!

 

[nolasafari]

In this crazy world, what if some not so friendly country or group found a way to disrupt our GPS satellites? If if that happened, I don't think they'd mess up earths magnetic field. My compass will still work!

If this happens having a compass on your boat will be the least of your worries.

 

[Chris Patterson]

If this happens having a compass on your boat will be the least of your worries.

Huh? Last I heard, there are 14,000 satellites up there, of course not all navigating but whatever. So who's gonna get 'em all?. North Korea? This is the same people that made the damn YUGO!! The miracle of 3rd world country technology. What would they even do with a bomb, paddle it over and beat it with a claw hammer and hope it blows?
This is only exceeded by the Guatemalan Space Program. This consist of a bucket. And one man with a dream..

And besides, what ELSE would you put on a binnacle? A magic 8 ball?


(Waitaminute, waitaminute. Some already DO! Some of the decisions that I see being made could ONLY come from such a source).

Here's another one. 'Magic 8 ball, should I have a compass on board'?


'Ask again later'...

From a phone. Ashore.

 

[Mulf]

1984

Not the book! That was the year I moved up from a day sailor to an O'Day 222. Boat came with no instruments, not even a compass. For her maiden voyage we invited non boating friends to come sail with us in the bay behind Long Beach Island NJ. For those of you that don't know the area there's a lot of water but only small parts of it are deep enough for a sailboat. We sailed down to Holgate where we anchored out of the way to enjoy lunch where we could see out the inlet into the ocean. Beautiful day, partly cloudy and pleasant winds. Lunch went on for a while when we suddenly realized that we couldn't see 10 feet beyond the boat. If I hadn't been positive of the direction of the anchor rode when we anchored I would not have been able to get back to the red can channel marker I knew was nearby. When we got home I went direct to the boat store and bought a compass. Lesson learned! While I now have thousands of dollars of instruments I always know where the compass is pointing!

 

[Deadhead]

I thought the Yugo was from one of the Baltic countries. I think I heard it came with a compass too . . .