Clinometer

[twllddu]

Having foolishly lent my Suunto Clino to some people it's now completely trashed and no one is taking responsibility for it. I've tried getting some sense out of Suunto but they no longer repair items in the UK - they would ship it back to Finland for repair but the cost was only £20 less that buying a new one !

Before I splash out and get a new one, does anyone have experience of using any other type of clinometer, preferably something that does fill with muddy water at the first sign of a rain cloud ?

I notice that Silva make a similar one to Suunto that is for use in quarries, which I would have thought to be quite tough. I also know that a couple of people use the old style Abney Levels which are very accurate (probably too accurate) but appear a bit complicated for use in small passages.

Thoughts anyone ?

 

[SamT]

I think it was mudman that got one off ebay - and managed to give it a full service himself. see thread
http://www.ukcaving.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=359

 

[twllddu]

Just acquired a new Suunto PM-5. The new model has an adjustable focus eyepiece. I'm not sure how long this will last but if you unscrew it completely you get direct access to the inside which means it's easy to clean. I've put it inside my old rubber cover and will let you know if it survives.

Now I feel happier about attempting surgery on my old clino

 

[SamT]

Had a quick fiddle with ours at the weekend. Got the grub screws out but couldnt shift the back plate (with all the trig data on). Didnt want to gouge at them too much. Mudmonkey - if you reading this - how did you get yours off.

Also - our Compass has two screws on either side that cover two holes. these holes can be seen when looking through the lense. I took them out but could not decide what on earth they are for. They give you access (of a sort) to the chamber between the lense and the compass body but its not very useful access. My only guess is it is so you can attach the compass to some sort of mechanism/tripod thing. Anyone any clues.

 

[Duncan]

I notice that Silva make a similar one to Suunto that is for use in quarries, which I would have thought to be quite tough

The Silva clinos are about as robust as the Suuntos in my experience; neither brand is particularly well suited to caving, and both have to be treated with utmost care to prevent them from becoming either temporarily (due to moisture or silt behind the lens) or permanently (due to the capsule cracking) unusable. Silvas are, however, a bit cheaper than Suuntos.

Just acquired a new Suunto PM-5. The new model has an adjustable focus eyepiece. I'm not sure how long this will last but if you unscrew it completely you get direct access to the inside which means it's easy to clean.

The biggest problem seems to be moisture and fine silt getting into the instrument; at first sight the removable eyepiece on the PM-5 looks like it ought to solve this problem - by removing the eyepiece you can clean behind the lens. Unfortunately it also seems to let water and crud get in more easily in the first place - make sure the o-ring on the removable eyepiece is kept well-greased to reduce this problem.

There really doesn't seem to be a good, robust clino on the market at the moment; as for compasses, the Silva Type 80 seems to be very good - our chinese expeditions have been using these for some time now and they seem to have several advantages over the metal-bodied compasses made by either Silva or Suunto:

1) The optics are part of the instrument capsule - there's no space between the optics and the capsule for crap to get into, consequently this most common problem does not affect this model of compass.

2) Because of (1) even if the outside of the instrument gets totally covered with mud, it's possible to rinse it off and continue surveying.

3) The capsule is almost completely enclosed within the body of the instrument, so it's well protected. I've seen other models of instrument get cracked capsules through lack of care when transporting them through the cave. Although the Type 80 has a plastic body, it's very tough.

4) They float. Never heard of anyone losing instruments by dropping them in water though.

 

[mudmonkey]

Mudmonkey - if you reading this - how did you get yours off.

Erm, not me guv. Never taken a clino apart. Must have been another mud.

 

[SamT]

Opps - it was mudman - not mudmonkey - damnded pseudonames ( :wink: )

So - mudman - you out there.

 

[mudman]

Hello, Mudman here.
Blimey, that was over a year ago that I took mine apart. Too much beer since then has dulled the memory somewhat.
If I remember rightly, the plate on the back with the trig data on is a thin metal plate that is a good friction fit into a recess. Pretty sure that it wasn't glued in. I think that I prised it out using a thin blade like a craft knife. I bit of wiggling and it should pop out. It can then be fitted back in again quite easily. It's quite a tight fit and can be a bit difficult to get out but it can be done without too much damage.
Once you have this off then the sealed unit will drop out easily after you take out the grub screws.
I was wondering though, if after removing the screws if you can push off the plate by pushing the unit through from the front? Might work.

One other thing I tried a few weeks ago was to polish out the scratches on the front by using a dremel with poliching compound and a soft felt wheel thingy. Disaster really. Seemed like a really good idea at the time but this was due to copious amounts of beer and red wine. Being in a bit of a state all I managed to do was to make it look like a ground glass screen and create a big gouge through the centre. Suppose I don't need to look at the dial from the front anyway.