Compass Inlet Into Buttstock

Nyckname said:

One that looks period?

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Of course.

I know some folk "back in the day" had a compass mounted into their stock.

It may not have been "main stream" but it was not unknown.

In the days well before gps, 40’s thru 70’s my father had a compass inletted in his 740 buttstock. It was accurate with no issues due to barrel or receiver. He hunted a lot, mostly all thick northern Mn woods, and liked the fact that he would never be without one.

I don't wan't a compass. When I go to the woods with my muzzeloader I want to get lost, in both place and time.

Horns aren't magnetic and in orienting them, you don't have to remember to keep it pointed in a safe direction.

Robby

Robby said:

Horns aren't magnetic and in orienting them, you don't have to remember to keep it pointed in a safe direction.
View attachment 21006
Robby

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Wow, that is beautiful.

Artificer said:

PLEASE tell me that was at TBS?

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NAILED IT!
John was a fleet Marine before he went to college with me and then to TBS. It was during the first lessons of the "compass course". The tank was sitting in the trees with the engine off. He hadn't seen it. His reply was to roll his eyes, shake his head (of course with a lit cigarette in his mouth) and mutter,
"Sometimes I'm just a D--- F---!"

But again I think in the butt of the powder horn is a better place, if for only the fact that folks could've put the compass in rifle stocks, but chose from time to time the butt of the powder horn. IF you never own but the single gun or rifle, you're fine, but if own several guns or rifles, and you chose a different rifle on different days, all the rifles need a compass in the stock, while it would be easier to carry the same horn sporting but a single compass, regardless of the rifle chosen.

LD

The compass in the stock could be made to be removable. Screw in and out maybe.

All of the compass's I've seen are fairly fragile. Even the oil filled ones aren't very shock resistant so I wouldn't be surprised if the recoil from firing a rifle wouldn't in time, destroy a compass.

That might be the reason I've never seen or heard of a compass mounted in a old rifle from the 1800's or earlier.

flntlokr said:

I put my Grandfather's pocket compass into myView attachment 20950 priming horn.

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That looks like a really good idea, as I would be carrying a primer horn from a lanyard around my neck.

Loyalist Dave said:

IF you never own but the single gun or rifle, you're fine ...

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Ancient prehistoric adage:
"Beware the man with but one __(weapon)__; he probably knows how to use it."



No place to mount a compass on my pistol.

Thinking about it, having the compass in the stock forward of the patch box would make it a right pain in the sitter to use.
A compass small enough to be mounted in the (brass) buttplate would be a pain in the shoulder ... not to mention too tiny for vintage antique eyes to see clearly.

I guess I'll just change plans and use a compass in belt pouch ... maybe one a them fancy ones with a folding sundial on the lid ...

I own and have used the repro period "sun dial" compass and while it is better than nothing, it seems pretty fragile to me and much too fragile to inlet into a stock IF you actually want a "usable" compass.

Of course, I'm used to the Military Lensatic Compass. FWIW, this type of compass must be "surveyed" or turned in and replaced every 8 years by the Military, as the low grade radioactive luminescence needed for using it at night degrades so much it no longer can be seen well at night. Good news is there may be nothing else wrong with the compass (though you should inspect them to see they are not damaged) and you can find them fairly cheap in Surplus or Army/Navy stores and especially close to a military base.

You can also get topographical maps to use with this type of compass and for most areas in the U.S. from the U.S. Survey Office.
https://www.usgs.gov/products/maps/topo-maps

I used to get "Topo" maps from them for areas we did "Tacticals" or Civil War period War Games, back in the 1980's.

Gus

Artificer said:

I own and have used the repro period "sun dial" compass and while it is better than nothing, it seems pretty fragile to me and much too fragile to inlet into a stock IF you actually want a "usable" compass.

Of course, I'm used to the Military Lensatic Compass. FWIW, this type of compass must be "surveyed" or turned in and replaced every 8 years by the Military, as the low grade radioactive luminescence needed for using it at night degrades so much it no longer can be seen well at night. Good news is there may be nothing else wrong with the compass (though you should inspect them to see they are not damaged) and you can find them fairly cheap in Surplus or Army/Navy stores and especially close to a military base.

You can also get topographical maps to use with this type of compass and for most areas in the U.S. from the U.S. Survey Office.
https://www.usgs.gov/products/maps/topo-maps

I used to get "Topo" maps from them for areas we did "Tacticals" or Civil War period War Games, back in the 1980's.

Gus

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No way I would put a sundial compass in the stock.
I'll probably just get a brass case lensatic compass like you spoke of for actual use, and a 3 or 4 inch diameter "period style" for show.
I still remember how to use them from time in Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, and the Army Reserves.

ugly old guy said:

What 1.5 inch to 2.0 inch diameter brass compass would you recommend to inlet into the butstock of a TC .54 caliber Hawken? (forward of the patch box)

Is an oil filled compass needed to withstand recoil?

Epoxy in place to ensure the compass does not go AWOL?

MODERATORS:
If I put this in the wrong place, please delete.
Thank you.

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I am like others here who would not like a compass on my gun, but that is not what you asked. If you are going to decorate your rifle, then freeze the needle to a desired direction. If you are planning on using it for true direction, metal interference and recoil could be an issue. JMO
Flintlocklar

I would think the recoil would soon turn a precision instrument into rattling scrap metal.

Pete G said:

I would think the recoil would soon turn a precision instrument into rattling scrap metal.

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A needle on pivot in fluid isn't exactly delicate. That's why GI compasses survived being in the field.

I don't personally love the idea, but it is not my gun. The earlier comment about muzzle direction, and thinking of ways to limit barrel steel interfering with the reading make me wonder about an alternative mounting in the rifle. Could one use a plug cutter or hole saw to inlet through the brass buttplate into the butt of the stock? The rifle would then remain pointed at the ground when the compass is in use, and the barrel would be further from the compass and the base plate of the compass would be toward the barrel.

I thought I'd recently seen a small brass compass that would be perfect for your needs but now I can't find it.
There is this own which I've heard is very high quality and the case will be hidden in the buttstock anyway.
https://prometheusdesignwerx.com/co...ts/expedition-watch-band-compass-kit-ti-black

Since it is intended primarily for decoration more so than practicality (better options exist if you want to depend on it for actual navigation), I would look around for some pictures showing historical precedent before I committed to doing it for real.

If you use some form of permanent attachment, (like epoxy glue) if it breaks and you want to replace it you are going to have a devil of a time getting it out of there. On the other hand, you MIGHT be able to make it removable with a soldered nut on the compass or captured screws.

I personally wouldn't do it, but the T/C is not an actual historical style, so what ever you do is not going to change that fact.

Col. Batguano said:

T/C is not an actual historical style

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No argument there.

However, HA/PC or not, they do seem to shoot well and are accurate ... if you spend the time, targets, powder, caps, lube, patches, and lead to work out that "perfect" load for your individual rifle.
(and as with any ML, it can take a lot of each to find that "perfect" load for each projectile that you shoot.)

I used to carry a Ruger Blackhawk in a shoulder holster while deer hunting. My compass, pinned to my jacket, always pointed to my armpit. DUHHH.

ADK Bigfoot

Carbon 6 said:

I don't wan't a compass. When I go to the woods with my muzzeloader I want to get lost, in both place and time.

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My Grandma had a saying, watch out what you wish for - - it just might come true.