Compass - Calibrations don't work F5/935

Former Member over 8 years ago

Hi!

How to do a correct compass calibration? I did many times this magic 8 movement with both an F5 and a 935. I repeatedly ended up with the F5 pointing East instead the correct north position and with an 935 pointing West in the same direction!

Both watches are completely wrong and to make it even worse, the are opposing each other. What did I wrong?

Next question: With an obviously wrong compass, wouldn't it be better to shut it off completely during runs? Maybe the wobbling gps tracks are due to wrong compass readouts?

Are your compasses ok?

0 ChevronLugs over 8 years ago

The only thing I have to offer is the suggestion to calibrate the compass away from any large metal objects, nor in a house. I've read it's best when you're somewhere out in the open.

0 mcalista over 8 years ago

Depending on where you are on the planet, magnetic north and true north can differ by quite a bit (known as "magnetic variation"). You may want to check your compass settings as to which it is displaying.

My compass accuracy seems good when compared with the known alignment of nearby roads.

0 derek87 over 8 years ago

this also might be helpful (i'm a 935 user who couldn't calibrate my watch so i called Garmin support):

- try doing a soft reset: power off the watch by holding down the power/light key until it goes off (don't go to the power setting on the quick access menu)
- wait 60+ seconds
- turn it back on.

at least for me, this did the trick and now my watch is within 5 deg of my iPhone compass (both using true north)

and as others noted, stay away from ferrous materials...