R&K K&R Meridian Pro Compass

Have used cheap compasses for so long I forgot what a nice can do. This was over the top for what I needed but it was on sale so I grabbed it, and WOW am I glad I did. Easy math for estimation inclination. Bubble that works for level. Easy sight readings. Nice heft to it and great leather pouch. Very pleased!!

After using it a handful of times the scales on the sides began wearing away, just from taking it out of the case that it came with. That was totally unacceptable on such an expensive compass, so I returned it.

It's okay but the side measuring tape is wiped out after using several times.

This is a high quality compass with many nice features. It's definitely more for a surveyor or someone who's profession is in the outdoors. I wouldn't say it's appropriate for the typical hiker.

Best compass on the market for taking bearings in the field.

VARY SATISFIED

Love it!

I actually own a K&R Meridian Pro Luminous. The only difference is the Pro Luminous model has a luminous compass card in addition to the Pro’s luminous ring, but it also costs close to $20 more. The K&R Meridian Pro is in my opinion the best sighting compass you can buy on Amazon. It handily beats the US army lensatic compass design made by Cammenga in precision. You can read down to ½ to 1/3 a degree with the K&R Meridian Pro. You CAN’T do that with the U.S. Army type lensatic designs, ESPECIALLY with those graduated in user unfriendly 20 mils divisions. The only other sighting compasses that surpass the K&R Meridian Pro are the vaunted British/UK military compasses such as the Francis Barker M88 or M73. The Francis Barker prismatic compasses are in a universe of their own but they cost more than twice as much as the already expensive K&R Meridian Pro. The K&R Meridian Pro is very easy to read through the prism and it is highly accurate. The markings are graduated in 1 degree increments and it is possible to eyeball between the markings to achieve a REPEATABLE +- 1/2 degree or even 1/3 degree precision. (For comparison, with the same eyeballing I can read down to ¼ or maybe even 1/5 of a degree with the Francis Barker M88). The reason the K&R cannot read as finely as the Francis Barker is the K&R’s sighting line is far too thick. The Francis Barker’s sighting line is only ½ as thick. The K&R compass dial settles down to the final heading very quickly and remains very stable when held in the hand to give very precise REPEATABLE reading. I stressed the word REPEATABLE +/- 1/2 degree precision because repeatability is an important hallmark of precision. In comparison, one of my other somewhat expensive sighting compasses, the Suunto KB-20 frequently gives readings that are not repeatable. The Suunto readings can be 2 to 3 degrees apart on different attempts, even though the Suunto supposedly has a finer reading line to enable reading down to 1/3 of a degree. I also have a 1950s era U.S. Army surplus M2 pocket transit made by Brunton. That pocket transit is totally user-UNfriendly in every respect. I would never use it. In comparison, the K&R Meridian Pro is a joy to use. The precision, ease of use, repeatability, quick settling of the stable dial makes the K&R far superior to my Suunto SB-20 sighting compass or other sighting compasses I own. There are several flaws with this K&R Meridian Pro, not enough to downgrade the 5-star rating: 1. The lanyard ring is not flush with the bottom surface. It sticks out about 1mm and thus prevents the compass from lying totally flat on a map. Extending the ring (i.e. bending it back the other way) does not help because it sticks out just enough to prevent the compass from lying flat when it is fully extended. This is clearly a design flaw. 2. It is heavy (just shy of half a pound) and is probably not a good compass for hikers. That said, it is not designed for light hiking use. 3. No declination adjustment. 4. The lid is narrower than the base. So if the lid is fully extended to the horizontal position, the base and the lid do not form a continuous line to serve as a handy straight edge. 5. The inch and centimeter ruler markings are stick-on labels. They wore away in just a few days from light handling at home. (see picture I attached to this review). This is totally unacceptable. They should have been stamped on like the US Army lensatic compasses. I can of course glue on some stainless steel rulers cut to size to solve this defect. 6. Unless you use the clinometer as often as the compass, you will likely find the clinometer simply gets in the way most of the time. It gets tiresome to have to flip up the clinometer every time I want to use the compass and then have to flip it back down when done. The clinometer could have been located below the base to solve this problem. 7. It does not come with a lanyard. You have to make your own! 8. The sighting line is much thick than is ideal or necessary. It can be made ½ as thick as still be very readable. Having a thinner line would allow more precise reading down to fractions of a degree. In retrospect I probably don't need the luminous compass card feature and could have saved myself $20. The plain Meridian Pro model with only a luminous ring, but not a luminous card model can be had for $20 less. There aren't situations where I could not or would not use a headlamp to light the dial when taking a reading at night.

Very solid piece of kit. Just two negative comments: the ruler markings on the side are just stuck on, if these are etched into the metal, then the durability of that would be a lot better. Also the base of the compass is plastic, whereas the top casing is metal. iIf metal, would have made it a more sturdy. Comes with a leather pouch. Makes a perfect lifelong piece of kit, or a really good gift for someone.

Sehr gelungener Peilkompass. Stabiles Gehäuse. Sehr sauber verarbeitet. Gute Lesbarkeit der Zahlen und der Einteilung. Nach kurzer Lichteinstrahlung, ist der Leuchtring schon recht hell. Durch den Leuchtring ist auch im Dunkel eine präzise Ablesung möglich. Was ich jedoch nicht bestätigen kann ist, dass man diesen Kompass als Theodolit benutzen kann. Die Bohrung der Stativaufnahme ist nämlich nicht zentrisch unter dem Windrosenblatt angebracht; hierdurch entsteht schlichtweg ein Exzentrizitätsfehler. Noch erwähnenswert ist, dass die Lieferung auch ein Lederetui beinhaltet.

An excellent compass. I have a Silva Type 54, its good, but in really cold weather bubbles appear and spoil readings (in -5). Not had this problem with the K&R (Used in -10 so far no problems).