Ritchie Navigation Sailing Shop

RITCHIE NAVIGATION EQUIPMENT We have a total of 31 Ritchie Navigation Products in the following categories: Compasses (31) RITCHIE NAVIGATION EQUIPMENT HOT PICKS These are our Ritchie Navigation Hot Picks:   B-80 Top of line features, with an economical price. The Voyager Series by Ritchie features powerdamp fla ... $109.99... View Details   B-81 Top of line features, with an economical price. The Voyager Series by Ritchie features powerdamp fla ... $109.99... View Details   S-83W Top of line features, with an economical price. The Voyager Series by Ritchie features powerdamp fla ... $109.99... View Details   SS-5000 Wheher you are on the race course or offshore fishing, the Supersport series by Ritchie offers the U ... $589.99... View Details   HB-70 Take all the great features of the Voyager line and add structally reinforced fiberglass housings an ... $159.99... View Details   FN-201 Designed for serious stability in even the worse of pitch and roll conditions, the Navigator series ... $274.99... View Details   S-53 The explorer series by Ritchie is the best bet for small boat owners, or anyone just short on space. ... $64.99... View Details   F-50W The explorer series by Ritchie is the best bet for small boat owners, or anyone just short on space. ... $59.99... View Details   SS-1000W Wheher you are on the race course or offshore fishing, the Supersport series by Ritchie offers the U ... $179.99... View Details RITCHIE NAVIGATION INFORMATION For over 130 years each compass manufactured by E.S. Ritchie & Sons, Inc. was recorded by serial number in hand written ledgers. These ledgers are still maintained at the Ritchie factory, shown above, located in Pembroke, MA USA. The first successful liquid dampened compass was awarded a U.S. Patent in 1860. It is just one of the compasses that we see highlighted in company literature dating back to the formation of E.S. Ritchie and Sons. Early compass dials were hand painted using egg white based paint for the background and India ink for the graduations. This photo shows three different types of early float chamber dials. Today's dials are printed using modern lithographic processes on extremely light aluminum or composite dials. Ritchie manufactured all the US Navy standard compasses for over forty years. The dial on the left shows the prominent float chamber which reduced weight on the pivot, reducing wear and greatly improving performance. The four vertical rods are actually bundles of needle magnets which gave this compass the power to lock on to magnetic north. Ritchie Compasses have won many awards for design and engineering excellence in the past 150 years. An early Ritchie liquid filled compass with a floating dial is exhibited in the Albert Museum of Science and Industry in England, proudly displayed along with a collection of nautical instruments created by the famous Lord Kelvin.