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Replacement compass for the Edson Pedestal

pmf44

Member
I posted this a while back-and never got any responses!! :( So I am asking again--the binnacle mounted Teleflex Compass needs to be replaced. I belie that Ritchie is the best option. Any suggestions from others who have had to replace their compass??? My boat is a 1980 382. Thanks!
 
Which steering pedestal do you have, Edson or Orion? I've got a Ritchie on my Edson pedestal. As advertised, it points North. It also has compensating screws for swinging and can be refilled. I replaced the incandescent light with an LED. Not much else to say about it - unless you have some specific questions.
 
I have a Ritchie Globemaster. It might be OE on the Morgan, not sure. A bit of browsing online and it is apparently a very expensive model. It is quite a nice compass, I recently replaced the light. As Ken mentioned, it points north, is compensated and adjustable, and is repairable/serviceable.

 
I have the Ritchie Globemaster 6". It's great ,but if I had to replace it I would opt for the less expensive Globemaster 5".
 
Thanks to all--I have the Edison pedestal. The teleflex could not be repaired and is out of business. I have contacted Edison and Ritchie and neither are very helpful. There are so many possible sizings given--total diameter, card diameter, rough opening diameter....I am going to remove the compass once again, take lots of photos and lot of measurements, but then there are the mounting screw holes--how does on know if they are the same?. It's almost as crazy as buying printer ink, but there are a gazillion printers...and alas, just a few hundred Morgan 38's. I will look at the Globemaster 5" (5 inch what?), but someone else said Aquameter and another suggests Ritchie, but not a specific size. Who can tell me which is the proper sizing dimension needed to provide? I have a fellow who wants to sell me a used Ritchie HF 72 and I have not found yet from Ritchie is that is still being produced or if it is available--or which model replaced it. What can you suggest? I think that every Morgan 38 had one of two Edison pedestals. Mine is 1980 model # 234. The Globemaster is a binnacle mount and I only need a flush mount which is way, way less expensive. And thanks in advance to all.
 
Thanks to all--I have the Edison pedestal. The teleflex could not be repaired and is out of business. I have contacted Edison and Ritchie and neither are very helpful. There are so many possible sizings given--total diameter, card diameter, rough opening diameter....I am going to remove the compass once again, take lots of photos and lot of measurements, but then there are the mounting screw holes--how does on know if they are the same?. It's almost as crazy as buying printer ink, but there are a gazillion printers...and alas, just a few hundred Morgan 38's. I will look at the Globemaster 5" (5 inch what?), but someone else said Aquameter and another suggests Ritchie, but not a specific size. Who can tell me which is the proper sizing dimension needed to provide? I have a fellow who wants to sell me a used Ritchie HF 72 and I have not found yet from Ritchie is that is still being produced or if it is available--or which model replaced it. What can you suggest? I think that every Morgan 38 had one of two Edison pedestals. Mine is 1980 model # 234. The Globemaster is a binnacle mount and I only need a flush mount which is way, way less expensive. And thanks in advance to all.
We have a 1980 382, hull number 232 (which one is yours?). We looked into replacing our teleflex due to extreme hazing but the fitment issue you describe was a major headache, and forced us to refurbish instead. The 5” and 6” measurements refer to either domes or bezels interchangably depending on the manufacturer - any claims about size should be viewed skeptically, unless you can get a diagram with more exact references, or unless the seller is familiar with Edson pedestals. It took us 3 or 4 eBay compasses to reach this conclusion.

As far as I could tell, after a year of online and yacht surplus store sleuthing, nothing else fits perfectly into the teleflex adapter ring hole without needing some sort of /additional/ custom adapter rings between the top of the pedestal and the compass.

If you end up refurbishing, be aware that the mounting screw holes on the existing compass adapter ring were awfully brittle from UV damage and will probably crack apart unless beefed up with some fiber filled epoxy. As you suspect, the holes are 100% guaranteed not to align with any other compass. I could have made it work with a new compass and a couple laser cut adapter rings but I ended up figuring out how to repair it.

If you are able to find another teleflex, I applaud you.

Speaking of which...
Out of curiosity, what do you want for your broken compass?
 
The Globemaster 5" compass (that is the card size) is a direct fit to the Edson 300 series pedestal. No adapter is needed. The 6" is a bit larger, and is a direct fit to the Edson 400 series pedestal. An adapter is available to fit one on the other. The Morgan uses the 335 (300 series) pedestal.

From Ritche's Website, here is the bolt and circle pattern of the Globemaster 5, which is also the bolt circle for the Edson pedestal.
 
Thanks again to all! I simply cannot "fathom" spending $500 or $600 and I chose to buy a used but very clean Ritchie HF 72 which is a bit smaller but it was affordable. I am going to have to fabricate something, either Teak or Starboard or Mahogany and figure out how to make it fit and look nice. Another example of how everything on a boat, takes longer, is more complicated and more expensive than anything should ever ....oooh nevermind. Now--off to get estimates for engine rebuild, new canvas and some rigging hardware.....(And all I need is a tall ship and a bank account--or compass, to steer her by....)
 
We have a 1980 382, hull number 232 (which one is yours?). We looked into replacing our teleflex due to extreme hazing but the fitment issue you describe was a major headache, and forced us to refurbish instead. The 5” and 6” measurements refer to either domes or bezels interchangably depending on the manufacturer - any claims about size should be viewed skeptically, unless you can get a diagram with more exact references, or unless the seller is familiar with Edson pedestals. It took us 3 or 4 eBay compasses to reach this conclusion.

As far as I could tell, after a year of online and yacht surplus store sleuthing, nothing else fits perfectly into the teleflex adapter ring hole without needing some sort of /additional/ custom adapter rings between the top of the pedestal and the compass.

If you end up refurbishing, be aware that the mounting screw holes on the existing compass adapter ring were awfully brittle from UV damage and will probably crack apart unless beefed up with some fiber filled epoxy. As you suspect, the holes are 100% guaranteed not to align with any other compass. I could have made it work with a new compass and a couple laser cut adapter rings but I ended up figuring out how to repair it.

If you are able to find another teleflex, I applaud you.

Speaking of which...
Out of curiosity, what do you want for your broken compass?
Travis Please contact me paul@foerfront.com thanks paul
 
Travis, If hazing on the globe is the issue try a headlight hazing repair kit. I used one on mine and it worked like a charm. I had other issues with the compass the base had cracked but other than that the headlight restoration kit worked fine.
 
I thought mine was beyond repair but I was able to find a new globe. I added the globe, a new seal and compass fluid. Going on 3 years now, still looks good and it working great!
 

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Travis, If hazing on the globe is the issue try a headlight hazing repair kit. I used one on mine and it worked like a charm. I had other issues with the compass the base had cracked but other than that the headlight restoration kit worked fine.
Rick,
Thank you for the suggestion, that is precisely what we did. Worked so well I could hardly believe it!
 
I thought mine was beyond repair but I was able to find a new globe. I added the globe, a new seal and compass fluid. Going on 3 years now, still looks good and it working great!
Tim I took it to a firm in Annapolis that advertises compass repairs. They told me simply that teleflex was out of business, they could not get parts or repair it...so hats off to you! Where did you find such parts?
 
Tim I took it to a firm in Annapolis that advertises compass repairs. They told me simply that teleflex was out of business, they could not get parts or repair it...so hats off to you! Where did you find such parts?

I bought my parts at vikingcompass.com
My compass is a Danforth Constellation.
 
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