Silva Pocket Type 14G Compass
By Jeff Porcaro

Silva has been a leader in the compass market for over 60 years. We recently ran a field test on GPS receivers and used the Pocket Type 14G compass for navigation.

The 14G is filled with permanently clear, antistic liquid. With a friction free sapphire bearing the needle will settle in 4 seconds or less. The 14G includes fan out UTM grids for use with maps. The following scales are included: 1:24,000, 1:25,000, 1:50,000. Using coordinates from your GPS receiver, you can use the grids to plot GPS waypoints on a map. It also has 2 degree graduations.

Our testers liked the small size of the compass and how well it fit into a pocket. Another nice feature is the direction of travel arrows on the baseplate to assure you are heading in the right direction. The GPS grids are too thick to be very useful for more than just eye-balling a position on a map. We also didn't like the fact that there are no holes in the grids for marking positions on the map with a pen or pencil.

Summary:
The Silva 14G is a compact pocket compass with fold-out GPS grids. This compass is protected by a rubberized case and includes luminous points for use in the dark.

The suggested retail price is $33.99.

Jeff Porcaro is the Field Manger at GearReview.com, and co-founder. He specializes in stoves, GPS navigation, mountaineering, and trips to Utah's remote backcountry.

For more information, contact:
Silva
1326 Willow Rd.
Sturtevant, WI 53117
(414)884-1500 (800)345-7622