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new thumb compass with ident

Show Profile  kman Posted: 24 May 2016, 4:41 AM  
we had a competitor on Sunday rogaine with one of the thumb compass sportidents, it did not work on our blue boxes,clear and check, control, boxes so i tried the newest ones we had got last year still no go, the download box would not read it either. luckily he had his old ident with him. is does this need new firmware we have up dated firmware for 1.5 years, it was bought from mapsport. or is this a one off faulty item. We need to know before some major events come up. thanks

Show Profile  Martin Posted: 24 May 2016, 7:21 AM  
There's two versions, based on SI-8 and SI-10 technology, so either should work with these boxes.
Had they used it at a previous event or was this the first time?

Show Profile  mcroxford Posted: 24 May 2016, 8:21 AM  
One of our club members has one and it takes a while to activate on the CLEAR and DOWNLOAD boxes but once activated then it works very quickly on the normal SI boxes. Sometimes it is a matter of patience for the long time to activate.

Show Profile  SteveO Posted: 25 May 2016, 4:01 AM  
I've had an SI ComCard Pro (the SI-10 version that Martin mentions) since Queens Birthday last year and have used it successfully at a number of events around the country in the last year on many different clubs' hardware. The only hardware I've had any problems with is the very old set that AOC reserves exclusively for urban sprints and Self's Farm (where there is a higher than usual chance of boxes sprouting legs and walking). Basically, if the boxes can handle SI-10 - and all of them should - then the fact that it is a ComCard rather than a standard SI dibber should not be a factor.

Show Profile  jeffg Posted: 25 May 2016, 12:20 PM  
Are the results from the rogaine available?

Show Profile  Michael Posted: 25 May 2016, 3:38 PM  
If anything doesn't work as its supposed to, its always good to talk to the retailer. If there's a fault, he will repair or replace.

Show Profile  rgreatrex Posted: 31 July 2016, 12:21 PM  
After using my SI ComCard Pro for the better part of a year, I now feel like I can give it a fair review. In summary; They are a quality product, but I wouldn't recommend one.

The main problem is that they don't allow you to move seamlessly through the control as intended. They won't reliably read through a folded map (particularly in a plastic bag), and even when they do you can't verify it because the Control unit flash is obscured with the map in the way. I've had issues on two occasions with it refusing to punch. On one occasion I caught it and took a manual clip. On the other I didn't catch it and ended up with a DQ.

So I now separate the ComCard from the map and punch with it clearly visible. This is actually worse than having a separate compass & SI card, because one can't line up and orient for the next leg on the run into the control (or if you do you lose the map set).

They do read very quickly and have the major advantage that you don't need to get the dibber into the hole, just wave across. It’s slow (like 3+ seconds) on the download but fast in the race where it counts. It's also nice having one less thing to worry about in your hands. The default capsule has the fastest needle I’ve ever used and I can comfortably use it on the run. Also helpful is that the unit can be flipped for L or R handed.

Yet to decide if I'll shell out on any sort of replacement though...

Show Profile  Michael Posted: 2 August 2016, 9:52 AM  
The other thing that potential purchasers should consider is that the base is the short "Thumb-over" one rather than the "Thumb-on-top" one. I prefer the latter but I know that some orienteers like to have their actual thumb on the map, and Silva has used this style in its Race Jet compass for several years now.

I agree with rgreatrex that you can't afford to let go of your map to punch, but I find I can punch through the map OK. The biggest obstacle for this is that some clubs (WOC, OHV) have clippers sticking up above the SI station. In this day and age the clipper doesn't deserve such prominence and should be out of the way.

Show Profile  SteveO Posted: 9 September 2016, 7:25 AM  
Over the last month I've run in three OY level events organised by the Auckland, PAPO and Counties Manukau clubs respectively and so using three different sets of SI controls. I used a SI Com Card Pro for all three and, in the interests of science and entertainment, made it a point to punch every control with my map in a plastic bag folded three times. Hence between the Com Card and the control were 8 layers of paper and 16 layers of plastic. This isn't my normal practice, I usually carry an A4 map folded twice but for the purposes of this experiment I took one for the team and folded the map an extra time at each control.

During the three races I punched a total of 69 controls (including three sets of start and finish and a bonus control in one event). In all 69 cases the card registered successfully the first time. Folded this small, there was no problem seeing the flash of the LED but even an A4 folded twice - depending on how it is held - usually allows me to see the flash.

In summary then, I don't find any of the problems that Richard reported and I would recommend the Com Card Pro to anyone looking to replace their SI card. The one thing I did find awkward to begin with was that, prior to using a Com Card, I would hold my map and compass in one hand and have my SI dibber on the other. Working out which hand to use for both together wasn't easy but a year down the track it is now second nature

Show Profile  rgreatrex Posted: 19 September 2016, 10:07 AM  
The level of scientific rigour that went into my review doesn't approach yours Steve but I am entertained to hear about the trial! And I have not yet replaced mine either (I have big problems to solve with my orienteering before little ones like this truly matter!) so read into that what you will.

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