User Review: Brunton 8099 Eclipse

Brunton 8099 Eclipse
Above: The current 8099 Eclipse, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed December 12, 2006 by an anonymous hiker

Rating:

It's a bit of an average compass for all the hoopla. The mirror used to take a sighting is small, and the degree readings are printed on cardboard and aren't visible at all in low light (not luminous). Also, the degree readings are reversed in the 8099's mirror which is a bit of a pain, and the declination adjustment is by friction only, not by geared wheel; slight slippage was a problem on mine and I had to keep checking it when in use. The orienting lines (used to orient the compass to map north) are tiny hashmarkes around the tsa and difficult to use - because the Brunton's style of declination adjustment rotates the compass dial relative to the capsule, they weren't able to put orienting lines in their usual position at the bottom of the capsule.

Biggest problem I found is the compass is clumsy and bulky when it's needed for use with a map or to wear around your neck. You must strip it of its rubber cover and all its cards and impedimentia to get the baseplate to work with the map, find a place to put everything, then re-assemble once you're done. It's advisable to keep the cover on the baseplate otherwise, since the ink markings appear to be simply printed on, not engraved, and have a tendency to wear off with use.