Who am I to judge? I own and use still Brunton geologist compass, it is very good and practical where bulk does not matter that much and where it can be protected from damage. I own and do not use an early version of SUUNTO KB-14 compass that had few limitations: difficult to read in less than bright light, no dioptrical correction of the sight, limited aiming up/down horizontal level.
After decades, SUUNTO perfected their design. The KB14G (global) sight is very bright, if you can see object you are aiming at, you can also clearly read the dial. I can too with my -7.5 dioptres. When aiming you can incline the sight line according to elevation without the card being stuck. This is because of the design of the card bearing/suspension, which makes the compass also work anywhere in the world (global) and also allowing the compass inclining for sighting.
The compass does not have the ability to adjust for magnetic declination. SUUNTO was making such version KB14GD but they discontinued this model. It is still available in some stores, but I would advise against it. Since the reading is taken from the markings on the card itself the optical sight has to have a provision to look at the card markings at the declination angle. This complicates the design and requires careful technique of reading the sights. Instead, I have to add the declination when taking the reading. This is not really bothersome for me. Besides, when working with azimuths only, the declination does not matter, you can operate with straight readings.
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What a fine instrument.
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Reviews with images
not for high altitude
No doubt this Suunto KB-14/360R is a nice and accurate compass, but when I used it at 13,000 ft (4,000 m) altitude, it had a giant bubble (see photo). The Suunto clinometer of the same style did not have a bubble, so I suppose it's a 50-50 chance. This won't matter for use at low altitude.I had a much less expensive compass that did not develop a bubble at 13,000 ft during its first few years, although eventually it did.
