All About Pocket Knives

....I've got an old 4 line Camillus scout knife, the first version, which has the small round compass in the handle, it's still intact, with the clear plastic cover,but the needle does not move. has anyone ever tried to repair something like this??..or is it better to leave it alone??..... ...........

I've never attempted a repair on one, and haven't found a suitable(or any) replacement for them, sorry.

Probably be rich if we did come up with one though.

...glenn, I showed this knife to an old(older than me) guy at the last knife show we had here, and he said it was the first one he had ever seen with the compass intact!!..he told me to leave it alone, but it sure would be cool if it worked!!!......... .........

One of the things I learned from the article in Knife World That some of our members created was the compass was designed to work when you open the two largest blades on each end all the way. Then open the smaller blades to the half stop. It's a magnetic influence thing and advertised by Cattaraugus cutlery that way. Maybe this will get it moving unless the needle is totally locked down or broken.

wazu013 wrote:One of the things I learned from the article in Knife World That some of our members created was the compass was designed to work when you open the two largest blades on each end all the way. Then open the smaller blades to the half stop. It's a magnetic influence thing and advertised by Cattaraugus cutlery that way. Maybe this will get it moving unless the needle is totally locked down or broken.

.....thanks, wazu, I will definitely try this!!!!..... .........

...wazu, I tried opening up the blades as you described, and it still doesn't work!!...I'm going to leave it alone, I know better than to try and remove it and work on it!!....thanks for the tip!!........... ..........

Bummer, that would have been too cool if that had been the issue. Good tip, tho

I authored the Knife World story along with significant support from Elvis (Bob) and Ellisrichman (Ellis). I believe that Ellis may have some spare compasses that may fit your knife. I'm sure when he reads this posting that he'll respond.

I agree with the previous posting regarding repair, the compasses that were used in these knives were not of high quality and in all likelihood attempting a repair will only set you back further. Replacement is the way to go if you want a functioning compass.

Several years ago I tried tracking down compasses that would work for knife handles. I have a couple of toothpicks that have damaged compasses. There was an outfit in England that made them down to 3/8" diameter. I never did place an order and lost the contact info in a computer crash, but they may still be out there. They had both brass and spun aluminum cased ones. IIRC you had to order them by the dozen.

WB

Take a look at http://www.brasscompass.com/MilitarySpe ... ompass.htm

They offer 2 sizes of the Stanley London Military Special Forces Survival Button Compasses. Made from corrosion-resistant solid brass, our Survival Button Compasses have reliable air-damped needles that operate in the most extreme situations and out-perform plastic, liquid-damped compasses that fail at low temperatures and are prone to air bubbles affecting the compass card/needle.

The small compass measures 7/16 inch (11 mm) in diameter, 3/16 inch (4.8 mm) thick.

The compass measures 5/8 inch (15.88 mm) in diameter, is 3/16 inch (4.8 mm) thick.

This might work depending on the size of the cavity for the broken compass.

....thanks for the info guys!!, bestgear, I will check and see exactly what size mine is, it would be neat if I can find one that fits!!!..............

If the blades are full Tommy,I would just keep the original compass,working or not. Now for a knife that's an EDC,full steam ahead.Just my preference,I like originality.

......now that I have thought on it some, I think i'll leave it like it is!!!........a new compass would ruin the look of the knife!!!........... ....................

Good for you.

Tommy,I saw a very nice Cat that was etched at the Central Ky knife show that will probably sell for $600 or so to someone I know.

The compass did not work...I think you did the right thing,lots of other individual compasses out there,f you need direction.

I've got a compass,wish I could follow it closer,cause I sure don't want to be lost.

......$600.00??.............I think I paid around $35.00 for this one, all 4 blades(tools) are full, have great snap, and the handles are o.k.!!, still can't believe I got it for that!!!............. .............

Me either!!!

...........I knew someone had posted pictures of my knife for me!!..look on the Camillus forum on page 4, about halfway down-"early 4 line Camillus scout w/compass"........... ..................

I think leaving it intact is a wise decision. The compasses that were used were of poor novelty quality and replacing it would probably in time yield the same results. Having the original non-working compass probably adds more value to the knife than replacing it with a modern working compass. Wise decision!

wif tell me more about that etched Catt.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/s/111767860938? ... rmvSB=true

Slightly off topic, but that's a neat old ad.

I agree with you Steve, that is a very cool billhead from the 1940's. According to the American Museum of Cutlery in Cattaraugus, New York, the Scout in the middle is Phillip Tint Champlin, (son of the President of Cattaraugus Cutlery who when he turned 15 years old in August of 1881 and came to work full time with his father), the Scout on the left is Howard Burnmark and the Scout on the right is Rush Houte. The picture was said to have been taken in the area near the Cattaraugus factory.

The etch was pretty good D, the master blade was an unusual form of a clip. It was an eye catcher.My buddy that's got the etched Cat hunter you saw in Fl. is trying to buy it.

wlf keep me in touch if it is still around.

carrmillus wrote:......now that I have thought on it some, I think i'll leave it like it is!!!........a new compass would ruin the look of the knife!!!........... ....................

I have a short line I'm in the same boat as you. I wonder how well they worked when they were new?