Gullwing G-Series marine compasses

We have built the Gullwing on Pelican Quay since 2003. Card sizes, the G-4 price and the gimbal specification are on Products. This page is for choosing between the three sizes and getting one mounted.

Which size do I need?

The card size is what you are choosing, and the honest answer is that it depends on how far your eye sits from the compass. The G-3 is a 75 mm card, readable to about a metre and a half, and it suits a tiller-steered boat where the compass is almost in your lap. The G-4 is the one most people want. The G-5 is a 125 mm card for a wheelhouse, where the helm may be three metres from the binnacle; it costs $520 and it is the only size we build with a flat glass rather than a domed one, because a dome that size catches too much wheelhouse glare.

Binnacle or bulkhead?

Every size comes in both. A binnacle compass sits horizontally and reads off the top of the card; a bulkhead compass mounts vertically and reads off the side. They are not interchangeable — the card is weighted differently — so tell us which you want when you order, because we cannot convert one to the other afterwards. The bulkhead version costs the same.

What is the deviation card?

Every Gullwing leaves here with a blank deviation card in a pocket under the bezel. Once the compass is fitted to your boat, the iron in the boat pulls the card off true, and by a different amount on every heading. The deviation card is where those errors get written down, one figure for each 45 degrees. Swinging the compass to fill that card in is a separate job we do at the quay — see Support for the bench and its Wednesday booking.

What if the card sticks or the fluid discolours?

Both are warranty faults and both are our problem, not yours. A sticking card is nearly always a pivot worn by vibration, which we replace. Fluid that has gone yellow means the seal has let go, and a compass with a yellowed fluid will develop a bubble within a season, so bring it in before it does. Neither is affected by the compass having been fitted by someone else. See warranty claims.

Do you still service the older ones?

Yes, including the pre-2003 compasses we sold but did not build. We keep pivots, bezels and gimbal rings for every Gullwing ever made. Fluid replacement is $45 and takes a week, because the compass has to stand inverted for four days afterwards to prove the seal before we will give it back to you.