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excellent.. i have same problem. and i don’t have that spare parts and tools.. i will try to do my best..
thanks…
HI, i also have a Suunto compas on a bavaria 37 that has lost its fluid.. Am about to dismatle it to try and replace the bello that i suspect is dammaged. i am intrested in one of your replacement bellows to repair the compass as spares are not avaliable as you alreqady know. Please let me know if you are able to post a replacement to me on the Isle of man where we are based. I look forward to hearing from you and my compliments on a great write up to this problem.
I’ve added an order page now 🙂
Hello together!
My suunto compass just lost almost all oil (bought the boot recently Bav 31 1999) i do not see any cracks on the below part and also no signs of oil where glas is connected with black plastic. Only place where stil oils is coming out is the lowest part , where is a hole. I ‘ve tried to check what is inside ,looks a rubber gasket or membrane. If I stick this hole with oil resistant glue (or clean it properly the surface) I think can refill the compass with baby oil..😉 Do you think it will be a solution or even if I do not see cracks or damag on the plastic this make no sence? Thx Mate-Hungary
Inside the plastic cover there is a membrane, and these fail from old age. That’s why I designed and printed a new one. I do not think plugging the hole at the bottom will work, as a flexible membrane is needed to let the oil expand and contract due to temperature. I guess it will start to leak again after a few temperature cycles.
Aah no I got it. And Your poliurethane materiel is flexible enough instead the original hard plastic + membrane inside
Thx
Hello, I already dismanteled the compass so I only need the cup with clamp and the new LED. Wat would be the price for the set (without the vise for dismanteling) including postage to the Netherlands ??
My tip : after filling the compass put it in the freezer for some hours , the liquid will crimp. Take it out of the freezer and fill-up the compass again. Repeat if nessessary. This will during normal temperatures cause an overpressure inside the compass wich is absorbed by the flexible cup. It prevents that during temperature variations the inside pressure becomes lower than outside resulting in air being sucked in the compass causing air bubbles. This is the exact reason why every compass has a membrane to keep the pressure inside on a steady level ( just like Your central heathing).
Best Regards Bas ( Dehler 35 Cruising )
If you place an order for the kit I’ll remove the vice-tools and throw in the LED for free.
Hi,
I just placed the order , hope I can save the compass with it , I will keep You updated….Bas
Have you double checked the fluid type before giving advice? Many compasses use Isopar L which is a low viscosity hydrotreated heavy naphtha. Sounds fancy but not too hard to find in marine and aeronautical supply.
I couldn’t source Isopal L locally, so I went with baby oil (mineral oil) that had been suggested at other forums. It has worked perfectly for my two compasses. Other brands/models might differ and everyone should check before they pour liquid into theirs. I’ve only tested my 3D-printed parts with baby oil, not with Isopar. According to the material datasheet (https://fiberlogy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/TDS-FiberFlex-30D.pdf) it’s resitance to naphtalene is “fair”. So I cannot be sure that it’ll work as well as with baby-oil.
What 3D printer are you using?
A self-made one, core XY with bowden extruder.
Thank you for this web site
How is the baby oils reaction in wintertime.
Will it freeze ?
Best regards / Oskar
Hi Njal,
recently, I bought your fantanstic repair kit, and it worked really fine. Thanks a lot for this solution for a really nasty problem.
As I said: Everything went fine, but now, after having the repaired item resting on my desk for several days, I detected a tiny, but clearfly visible oil leakage THROUGH THE BOTTOM of the yellow plastic part. There is neither a mechanical damage to be seen (even not with a magnifying glass), nor can it be from hidden oil spill somewhere on the compass – I washed it thoroughly several times, but the leakage is still there. And I can provoke the spill when putting some soft pressure on the mebrane: then you can see where the oil comes through, but – as I said – there is NO visible damage or such.
BTW: I used just common, but high-class baby oil.
I could imagine, that there was a small printing error, which caused a tiny, not visible micro-hole in the material? Or do you have another explanation? What would you suggest to repair this?
Very best regards from
Ralf Remensperger
I sent you an email, I’m hopeful we’ll find a fix 🙂
Hi Njal,
just to make the story complete:
It really looks like that the leakage came from a micro-size printing error in the first bellow, which was not visible at all. But after all, a hole of 0.01 mm is not detectable by eye, but is enough to let the damned baby oil seeping through …
Anyway: You sent me another bellow for free, which solved the problem. Now my compass is tight, no leakage anymore, everything is ok. Thanks again for your reactivity and support!
Cheers from Ralf
Hello Ralph, I have two suunto compass, with bellow broken.
I need two suunto compass bellow replacement kid.
Can you help me ?
I am from Andorra
Back in stock now.
* Njal
Hello,
I suffered from exactly the same problem as described above by Ralf. I even tried to seal it with some oil resistant sealant but it did not hold up.
Kind regards
Thomas
Hi Njål
I also need two replacement kits please. Thanks Steve
my suunto compass is of wall mounted type, but the dimensions of the broken diafragm bellows are similar. My cup is somewhat deeper, but your design would fit anyway.
I would only need the PU cup.
Can you still print one for me?
Sure
Hi everybody,
Just an update on the leaking bellow I wrote about earlier.
Njal sent me a new one free of charge on short notice and now it’s been OK for 3 weeks.
No signs of any leaks so I’m pretty cofident it will work.
Thanks Njal for your support!
Best regards
//Thomas
Thank you for the update. I’ve upgraded the printer to get a more consistent print, and printed a test rig to pressure test them so hopefully this won’t happen again 🙂
Thank you for your patience!
Hello !
I have a Suunto compass which is leaking totally empty. I have disassembled it from the boat (Bavaria 31, 2001) and tried to fill it up in order to find the very leakage point. I have seen your pictures about the process and the spare parts you have made, and I was on the brink of ordering the kit, but I’m not sure if my compass is exactly identical to yours. I cannot find any model number. I seems that splice between the bellow and the housing is somewhat different. Since there is no option for attachment here, I would need an address to send a good photo separately. I appreciate your intention to help remedying products in stead of bying new ones.
Hi, I am looking for a replacement diaphragm for a B95 suunto (slightly smaller). Can you tell me what it possible? Best regards, Matthew in USA
Hello,
Thank you very much for your Suunto Compass bellow replacement kit.
It’s a great idea !
I send you an order today for one kit.
Best regards
Jean-Yves (from France)
Hi, are you still supplying the repair kits? I require a kit as my suunto compass on my Bavaria 31 from 1999 is totally dry due to the membrane leaking. I am based in England. I look forward to hearing from you soon. Kind regards, John
Yes, I just printed some new ones 🙂
Order now placed and I look forward to receiving your repair kit. Kind regards, John
Heisan
Jeg bestilte et slikt repsett fra deg 26.4.22, ordrenr: 462 og monterte det i hht deres beskrivelse.
Alt virket veldig greit og fint, men så ser jeg nå at i løpet av vinteren så var kompasset igjen bare halvfullt…?
Jeg har nå demontert det og ser ved nøye studering ikke noen nevneverdig grunn til lekkasje…
Men jeg ser en brun flekk i bunnen av den gule beholderen.
– Kan dette være årsaken til at kompasset lekker?
– Eller har du andre teorier på hvorfor oljen lekker ut?
Mvh Karl Edvard
Hello,
Very well done. Impressed with your doing!
I have another nice suunto compass that is a bit dirty inside, lack of light and missing liquid creating a bid air bubble. I did not think about baby oil but some “de-natured” white spirit also called “desaromatisé” WSp for refill. The compass is “white lock” I do not know dimensions
I will try to dismantle it and revert to you hoping not to break anything.
Looking forward
Regards
Pierre
Hello Njål,
Sorry to bother you but I have no news about the package.
The tracking number has not given any result for a week.
Do you know what’s going on?
Thank you in advance for your answer
Regards
Hi!
The tracking is for some reason not updated until it arrives at the national post sorting facility. I see that the tracking was updated about an hour after your post, so hopefully you can see the updates from now on 🙂
-Njål
Yesssssssss !
I just saw this information.
Thank you again
Best regards
Jean-Yves
Hi
I have a Bavaria 40 – 2001. I need a repair kit for the compass. It is
The original equipment. Is it a Sunto 115 or 125, do you happen to know? Are they the same fitting? Please confirm you have stock.
Hi Njal, greetings. I’m trying to process an order for our Suunto binnacle compass repair kit but it’s not going through (PayPal) – please can you kindly confirm it is still possible, and that you are able to supply?
Many thanks,
James
+44 7773 377558
Hi There. I live in Melbourne Australia. Recently my k-14 model compass has been malfunctioning. It does not rotate freely and is sitting off its level axis. There are no leaks or airbubbles. Do you have any advice fir me.
Thanks.
I’m attempting to print this myself. What size and length stainless bolt did you use exactly?
Many thanks.
M3 bolt, 20mm. Use stainless steel (A4), ordinary steel is ferromagnetic and will affect the compass. Good luck 🙂
Legend thanks very much. Fingers crossed 🤞
I´ve stumbled upon your work – very impressive! I have a riviera bu1 compass that seems to have the same problem, though the seal is much easier to dismount. I´ve purchased a 3d printer and some tpu filament, but it does not work at all. even if I print it as a flat surface (without the expansion body) it is not sealing at all. although it feels like a flat surface, you can blow through the material – it is like a filter – not a gasket. Do you have any hints?
It’s not easy, I’ve used quite some time tuning the printer to get it right.
First I would suggest tuning the filament multiplier really well. Depending on how soft the tpu you are using is (mine is very soft), it will deform quite a bit in the extruder making any calibration for e.g. PLA useless. When I used a titan extruder with a bowden setup, I had to use a multiplier of ~1.40. Nowadays I use a Sherpa MINI Extruder, direct feeding and a multiplier of 1.12. I used a caliper to measure the amount of filament actually fed when telling it to extrude 100mm @ printing speed, and calibrated it that way. I repeated this multiple times to get it right. Next I set the max volumetric speed at 2.5 mm^3/s. 0.15mm layer height, 3 solid layers top and bottom. Ironing on. 2 perimeters. Extra perimeter on odd layers on (superslicer has this option). I also tuned the extrusion width to fit the wall thickness in the 3d model, so I get a wall thickness of two through the whole cup. Then I ensure the seam position is set to nearest, so I get a continuous seam. I’ve recently used the function “one-loop perimeters” also, as this should in theory make the seam less of an issue. After printing I use a soldering iron to seal the seam anyway, as this is the part most susceptible to leaks.
Of course bed needs to be level, and flat. I think I run the hot-end slightly hot, to ensure good layer adhesion.
Hope this helps.
Hi Njal,
vielen Dank für die schnelle Lieferung. Den Kompass habe ich gleich instandgesetzt und mit “Penaten Pflege öl” befüllt. Die Reparatur war Dank des Manuals sehr einfach umzusetzen.
Da meine X-99 noch einen zweiten Kompass besitzt hoffe ich, das dein 3D Drucker im neuen Jahr fleisig seine Arbeit aufnimmt und den shop gleich auffüllt.
Beste Grüsse Ralf
Hi Njal
Do you have the repair kit available?
I do need one
It seems you have cracked the repair of these lovely compasses. In my case since I have taken my Boat to warmer climes the oil seems to be escaping slowly.
Is there anyone using your techniques and parts who could refurbish my 2011 F-116/Sail?
In an ideal world in the UK but Incan mail it to anywhere in Europe
Hej Njål!
I’m interested to buy a repair kit if you still are making these.
Hello
Any chance to get the repair kit of you or do I need to print them by myself?
Hi,
I receiver a compass repair kit last year and succesivly repaired one of my compases. Now the second compas have given up. Thereby want to order another repair kit.
Best Regards, Assen
Hej, kan jag beställa ett renoveringskit till suuntocompass?
Hi Njal,
I have a Suunto Compass, 1992 version, very similar to the unit you show for installing the bellow repair kit. I actually don’t have any leakage of my fluid presently. My problem is with the plastic dome you show in the reassembly of the compass. Yes, I broke the plastic dome and need a new one. If there is a possibility you have a dome you wish to sale, I would be thrilled to purchase one.
My website is presently not up.
Thanks
Tom
Hei. Driver du med dette fortsatt?
Hva med kompensatorblæren? Finnes det nye der?
Hello. Where is the compass repair kit order page?
Moin Moin aus Nordfriesland,
Per Zufall bin ich auf Ihre Webseite gestoßen. Reparieren Sie einen undichten Suunto Kompass auch, wenn ich Ihnen den zuschicke? Welche Kosten kämen etwa auf mich zu?
Vielen Dank für Ihre Rückantwort und mit freundlichen Grüßen
U. Meyer
My god, thank you for this detailed guide, this is EXACTLY, what I was going to figure on my own because there is just bits and pieces over the net, but not the whole process! Can you please tell me tha model of op-amp and the dc-dc converter?