ORIGINAL 1950’s CAST BRASS
HAND BEARING
COMPASS by
Gordon
Roberts, Mt. Vernon, New York

 

GORDON ROBERTS,
“COMPASCOPE” HAND BEARING COMPASS – with original
documentation

 

 

Presented is a hand
bearing compass which was made popular in the
1950’s by Gordon Roberts of Mt.Vernon, NY for small craft
boaters.

 

The bowl is made from
cast brass with a 2 inch compass card over which is mounted a low
powered telescope that reads the bearing by way of a mirror.
The user can see both the object
being
sighted and the compass card bearing at the same
time. An accessory penlight attachés over the
card for night use. Complete instructions and the original
bill of sale dated June 26, 1953 are included.
At one pound plus, it has the heft and feel of strength and
durability.

All
this is housed in its original Mahogany case.

 

The
entire rig would look great on a
desk and will appeal to a collector or in a
room decorated in a nautical fashion.

 

 

 

 

USING A HAND BEARING
COMPASS:  The
seller has used a similar compass while at sea for an extended period.
In this day of electronic navigation, they are still handy for the
following purposes which are as valid now as they were 45
years ago. For those people who grew up with GPS, that
system can not provide the information a  hand bearing compass
can unless coupled to a Radar. And then you need to know Radar
plotting to solve Closest Point of Approach situations.
Here’s how to use this compass:

 

WHILE UNDERWAY:

• Take bearings of vessels in crossing situationsto determine risk of collision.

• 
  Take bearings of sea buoys, land marks or other
  objects to determine distance off at time of passing
• In congested waters, take bearings of a number
  of
  different vessels to determine if their relative position is constant
  or changing.
• Sailors learn to take back bearings to determine
  your leeway

                           
                              AT ANCHOR:
                                             

• Always take anchor bearings of own vessel to

  make sure you are not dragging.

• 
  Take
  bearings of other vessels to make sure they are not a danger to
  you.

The compass card is
seen in reverse above because it is intended to be viewed through the
prism which reflects the image in its proper
orientation.

DIMENSIONS:

COMPASS:      2
1/2″ bowl,  2″ card, 6″ length overall
TEAK
CASE:    7 1/2″H x 4 1/2″ W
x 3″ D

WEIGHT:
Compass 1 lbs 2 3/4
oz,
In case 2 lbs 9
1/2 oz =left>=left>=left>

CONDITION: The two
inch compass
card swings freely. The mirror shows some degradation with age and
affects the clarity when reading the card. There is no fluid dampening
the action. There is some paint loss as would be expected. The
penlight works.  The Mahogany wood case is in excellent
condition, but shows some minor handling
marks. 

This
is the perfect item for those
who have an interest in navigation, or want to have a
vintage hand bearing compass to
display 

Optical Mahogany storage case

Original invoice dated June 26, 1953