Suunto Compass MC-2

Unlike many of these items available on this site, this one is genuine! I was losing my mind sorting through the fakes on here so decided to come back and add my review...Compass has already been used once to navigate the Cairngorms and was incredibly accurate.Buy this one.

I have used several types of compass over a large number of years from the military prismatic type to both Silva and Suunto orienteering types. All have their particular virtues. Prismatics are almost impossible to break and are the most accurate, orienteering types weigh virually nothing and are very easy and quick to use, not as accurate as the prismatic but plenty good enough for most normal purposes. They're pretty robust but it is possible to break the baseplate and the markings can wear off with extended use. This one was bought to serve both in the UK and overseas as it has a global needle. The mirror housing, in addition to preforming it's intended function as part of the compass and clinometer sighting mechanism, also provides very useful protection to the needle housing and baseplate. Seems pretty bombproof to me and still very lightweight. Just throw away the curious little plastic clip and thread the lanyard directly into the compass baseplate, then it should still be with you when you need it!

I have used this for navigation during day and night in the Lake District and New Forest, it is the best compass I have tried. A couple of less obvious points about it:First, the luminosity of the dial, the needle and the direction of travel markers is very very bright, assuming that the luminous paint has been sufficiently charged up by a light source such as your head torch. Second, the base plate is substantially thicker than other compasses, and it has a very robust feel. Also with the mirror extended flat, it is possible to orient quite long lines on the map.The compass has a feature for measuring the incline of a slope, which looks like it could be really useful, but I have not used yet.It comes with a comprehensive user guide that actually gives you a primer on several important navigation techniques.Two very minor negative points. The magnifier on the base plate is quite small, so less useful than on other compasses... there just isn't enough space on the base plate for it. The direction is indicated only in mils, it would be nice if there was a secondary scale showing degrees. Finally the distance measurement scales are present for 1:25000 (OS Exporer maps) and 1:50000 (OS Landranger maps), but it would be nice to also have 1:40000 (Harvey maps).

This certainly has a quality feel to it and I hope it will stand the test of time. I decided against getting a Silva compass to replace my previous Silva one. It developed an air bubble in the fluid. I see that others have experienced the same problem after a while.The action of this Suunto is nice and smooth. The degrees are well marked and so it is easy to read. There is a small magnifying area in the base, which helps to magnify difficult-to-read detail on maps, but other compasses have a larger magnifying area. I need glasses anyway to read detail on a map, so it's not really an issue for me, but for those who are in the early stages of Presbyopia (perhaps in your mid-forties) then you might struggle without some form of decent magnification, particularly in lower light levels.The base plate has useful scales, so whether you use 1:50000 Landranger, or 1:25000 OL (preferable where possible) then you can use the base plate scale to measure distances.I think the only small issue is the "SUUNTO" inscription on the base which could have been more wisely placed to give better definition to the registration lines. When you want to register the lines in the circular area with the grid lines on your map it would be best to have as much clear ability to do this as possible, without having part of the area obscured by the company logo. I get around this by "juggling" my direction of travel along one side of the base plate with a clear grid line on the map aligning with the "red lines" in the centre of the rotating part, so I am sure my orientation is correct.The mirror is an excellent addition to improve accuracy. It enables you to "look down" onto the "red-on-red" to ensure it is properly aligned and the direction you are intending to follow represents the direction you SHOULD be going in. Both Map to Terrain and Terrain to Map are improved by using the mirror. There is a "V" notch at the top and also a cut-out at the bottom, both of which help you to accurately sight, plus there is a line in the centre of the mirror that enables you to ensure everything is aligned properly.There is also an in-built declination adjustment. You don't need to do this currently in the majority of the UK, I understand, as there is only about 1 degree West currently, but if you were going to use this on the Western Seaboard of the USA then you would certainly find this handy. There is a small device that attaches to the lanyard that comes with the compass. You just turn it over, insert the little "screwdriver", turn to the required declination setting (East or West) and then this is "automatically" applied when you use the compass.It also has the ability to read the angle of a slope. This is all well and good, but I tend to get more information from reading the map contours and applying Naismith's Rule to determine the additional time I will require when walking a route containing moderate (or more) ascents.Overall, a very good addition to the kit. No one piece completely makes other equipment obsolete. Firstly, to my way of thinking, there will never be a time when I leave the map at home, even though I have GPS. Studying a map, for me, is still the number one when researching and determining a route and also seeing where I am/where I need to be on a walk. Sometimes I will need the compass if I am struggling to interpret the map and need to check something. GPS is great and there should always be charged batteries and spare batteries, plus failure is probably rare, but nevertheless I don't think there will be a time when I ever leave my map and compass at home and walk out with just a GPS. This compass is light, robust, good quality and not too large, so I'm hoping it will go with me for many a trip.

I am Naval Engineer, and I im really satisfied 😌. I will find the right route every single time! THANK YOU SUUNTO! THANK YOU FINLAND 🇫🇮 💓 ❤ Greatings from Bulgaria 🇧🇬 ❤

Bought in preference to Silva which I find no longer the best. Suunto are the best in the mid range price point and this one is particularly good. I like the fact that magnetic declination can be locked in. Read the codes with care, NH is for us Northern Hemisphere folk, SH for Southern and G is Global (both hemispheres) all to do with the magnetism applied during manufacture. If you're not a Steve Backshall and won't be navigating in both hemispheres, avoid the Global version as it carries a fairly hefty mark-up for the privilege

This is the best of the lot having also purchased a Silva but returned to different seller as quality not as good in my opinion ...glad I opted for Suunto. Expensive though..hence 4 star for value.

Seems to work as described , no issues so far

This is a great quality compass for orienteering or hunting using a standard topographical map. It is far better quality being manufactured in Finland compared to the Silva which is now being manufactured in China.

La compré en caso de emergencia, pero la he probado en distintas ocasiones y de verdad que funciona muy bien. SU construcción de de muy buena cálidad y tiene diferentes funciones que resultan muy útiles.

It’s a great compass but I thought it would be the global version…MC-2G Global Compass like it said on Amazon and in the heading of this review! It’s not. It’s as shown in my photo; a MC-2USGS which I’m pretty darned sure is a northern hemisphere balanced unit…the “G” signifying global is missing from the model number embossed on the baseplate. If I’m wrong, I’d happily stand to be corrected. Since I don’t think I’ll be tramping through any South American rain forests anytime soon I’m not terribly concerned.It’s a fine piece of kit…just as good as my 20 year old Silva Ranger which still remains perfect. The only noticeable differences are the Suunto is of course newer, is a tiny bit bigger, has the sighting hole, has a luminous bezel and has the built-in magnifying glass. I’m going to carry both with the Silva stowed away as a back up. I’ve checked them both against each other and against a Garmin hand held GPS and they’re all spot on. I’m no kid so I prefer the old school baseplate/mirror devices and a map!I guess, since I paid more for what I thought was a global balanced compass, I’m a little soured on the transaction. As it stands, the compass is excellent…just not what I thought I’d ordered and paid for.

Es una excelente brújula, muy buen lume fluorescente, es global, así que debe funcionar en ambos hemisferios, tiene declinación ajustable que se ajusta con un pequeño destornillador unido al cordel que incluye y que es de material no magnético.Viene en miliradianes lo cual lo hace incomodo para referenciar rumbo con alguien mas ó para leer mapas y/ o ajustar declinaciones si no cuentas con mapas ó información en mils.Para navegar en línea recta ( seguir azimuth) es excelente, yo la compré porque tengo afición por coleccionar diferentes tipos de brújulas, cabe mencionar que Suunto vende brújulas globales idéntica a esta en grados y también brújulas para el HN y HS.