With this, I will be master of all that I survey.
This will allow me to do any sort of construction project on the farm as well as help me with my antenna design for the amateur radio. Instruments like these used to be common on construction sites but then computers happened and the complex transit got packaged into a gray box full of miracles that costs $10,000 on up. Much more accurate and able to do all the calculations internally so user error is minimized but still - out of reach for me.
The segment of the market that was left over was for people who needed just a simple optical level - these are all over the place but only have about ±10° range in elevation and the azimuth (left and right) is not calibrated at all.
For amateur radio antenna design, I live between two mountains. By varying the height of my antenna, I can adjust the beam angle of my signal to scoot over the mountain tops and not just expend its energy warming the trees. I need to know the precise vertical angle of where the top of the mountain is relative to my location at the bottom of the valley. With this? Piece of cake!
I can also measure distances. I own a 300 foot tape measure so I focus on a tree at one location, read the compass angle, move 300 feet perpendicular to my first location, focus on the same tree and read the new angle. I can then use the Law of Sines to calculate the distance of the tree to my 300 foot centerline. If I make sure that the first measurement is set to 90°, the calculations get a lot simpler and I can find the distance from that first location.
Finally, this works great for simple levelling so if I want to build a pond or greenhouse, I am all set.
Like I said earlier, it had been stored in a damp location so there is some mildew and the optics are cloudy but it is useable now and will be a lot of fun to restore - maybe a winter project.
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