Compass Air Bubbles

[Brad Elbein]

My compass, apparently original equipment, had an air bubble when I bought the boat a few years ago. This keeps growing. I've taken the compass off and have brought it home under the impression that it shouldn't be too hard to fix it. But now that it's on my workbench, I thought I might ask ... has anybody out there tried this?

 

[Tom Hultberg]

No, but I went to a seminar at the Chicago

Sail Show about compass repair and adjustment. If memory serves me right, there is a diaphram in the bottom of the compass that is wupposed to compensate for the expansion and contraction due to hot and cold weather. After several years, they can weaken or crack and air geets into the liquid. They suggested that if you live in a climate that freezes, it is a good idea to take the compass off and keep it in a heated environment, above freezing. That's what I know.Good luck.

 

[John C. Bollinger]

I fixed mine and then

I did a good bit of research and took mine to a compass repair shop. At the shop they said it was to old and couldn't be repaired. I then took it home and filled it with mineral oil, it looked great, I even got the bubbles out.I remounted it and it worked fine for a few weeks, then one day when I arrived on the boat I found this oily mess on the floor of the cockpit, you guessed it the compass drained all over the cockpit. What a mess.I then threw it away and bought a new compass, the new one works fine.Good Luck,Jack