New to this forum. Can anyone Identify this Compass

• Oct 10, 2007

• #1

M

mrrcp

Recruit

1

0

Oct 10, 2007

Hi; I'm new to this forum. I'm a pilot myself but I haven't flown for quite a few years and I miss it. Can anyone identify this compass? I think it came off of a military aircraft but I'm not really sure. I don't think it's from a ship. It's old and made of brass underneath the black paint. Their is only one marking on the top that a young guy told me said Mazda, 12V. I can't read it so I'm taking his word for it. If you have any information, let me know. Thanks! I'll try and upload a couple of photo's.

 

Attachments

• 181a.jpg

  12.3 KB · Views: 192
• 181b.jpg

  13.4 KB · Views: 184

• Oct 11, 2007

• #2

Wurger

Siggy Master

Staff

Admin

Mod

112,495

30,539

Jun 19, 2005

Poland

Welcome to the forum.

 

• Oct 13, 2007

• #3

Emac44

Staff Sergeant

1,362

1

Oct 17, 2006

Brisbane Queensland

G'day mccp welcome to the site. Sorry can't help you with the compass

 

• Oct 14, 2007

• #4

G

grob

Airman

63

0

Sep 1, 2007

Hi and welcome from the UK

 

• Oct 14, 2007

• #5

evangilder

"Shooter"

19,049

208

Sep 17, 2004

Moorpark, CA

www.vg-photo.com

It doesn't look familiar to me, but it might be out of a vehicle as well.

 

• Oct 15, 2007

• #6

ccheese

Member In Perpetuity

12,408

131

Jul 10, 2007

Virginia Beach, Va.

MRRCP: Welcome to the forum. I work for Mazda, and to the best of my
knowledge Mazda doesn't put compasses in autos. You can buy an after-
market compass, but it doesn't look like that. Sorry....

Charles

 

• Oct 15, 2007

• #7

H

HoHun

Tech Sergeant

1,759

28

Oct 15, 2006

Hi Mrrcp,

>If you have any information, let me know. Thanks! I'll try and upload a couple of photo's.

I've just had a look at a 1930's book on air navigation, and it seems that the compasses of the day usually had a mechanism to rotate the scale to the desired heading, where it would be clamped down to fix the position of auxiliary markings which signalled the desired position of the compass needle.

As long as the compass needle was between these auxiliary markings, the airplane would be on the pre-selected course.

Does that sound like the compass you have? From the photographs you posted, I can't make out all of the details, and I'm confused about the function of the silver-metallic part ...

Regards,

Henning (HoHun)

 

• Oct 21, 2007

• #8

DOUGRD

Staff Sergeant

800

11

Apr 15, 2007

Alexandria, MN. USA

HoHun said:

From the photographs you posted, I can't make out all of the details, and I'm confused about the function of the silver-metallic part ...
Regards,Henning (HoHun)

Click to expand...

If I'm not mistaken the silver cylinder at the back of the compass is the electrical connector for the light in the compass. See the tube running from the silver cylinder to the top front? The light bulb housing is that forward termination point.