Notifications
Clear all

Transit Notes

11 Posts
10 Users
0 Reactions
109 Views
Norm
 Norm
(@norm)
Posts: 1308
Member
Topic starter
 

Thinking about the start of my career and wondering how many of us dinosaurs are left. How many have sharpened their 4h lead in the field with a sandpaper board while taking 100 scale transit notes in a field book? How many have made 10 scale plane table topo maps in the field as the survey was being made? I recall using my triangle to sweep the snow off my plane table.?ÿ

 
Posted : June 27, 2023 11:42 am
jimcox
(@jimcox)
Posts: 1989
Member
 

Guilty as charged, your Honour 🙂

 

 
Posted : June 27, 2023 12:19 pm
(@learner)
Posts: 181
Member
 

Steel tape (chain), plumb bob, and transit is as far back as I go.

 
Posted : June 27, 2023 12:31 pm
(@rovaut)
Posts: 10
Member
 

I've turned left angles

 
Posted : June 27, 2023 2:15 pm
field-dog
(@field-dog)
Posts: 1390
Member
 

I've used a Teledyne Gurley transit with a hanging plumb bob and a piece of plywood to block the wind, 200' super highway chains, wooden rod stackers, and hexagonal wooden range poles.

I would love to learn how to use a plane table. Talk about field-to-finish!

Other missed surveying adventures:

(1) Running a 15-20 mile traverse using sun shots to check orientation along the way.

(2) Using Polaris observations to layout a very long curved piece of railroad track.

(3) Retracing section lines in very rural areas.

(4) Running first order levels.

 
Posted : June 27, 2023 6:10 pm

oldpacer
(@oldpacer)
Posts: 656
Member
 

Thinking about the start of my career and wondering how many of us dinosaurs are left. How many have sharpened their 4h lead in the field with a sandpaper board while taking 100 scale transit notes in a field book? How many have made 10 scale plane table topo maps in the field as the survey was being made? I recall using my triangle to sweep the snow off my plane table. 

I really, really, really liked using a plane table, pobably why my back is now wore out 

 

 
Posted : June 27, 2023 6:55 pm
jhframe
(@jim-frame)
Posts: 7308
Member
 

I've been on the rod end of a few plane table stadia surveys, but never on the instrument end -- I was still too far down in the chain of command (i.e. right at the bottom) in those days.

 
Posted : June 27, 2023 9:30 pm
oldpacer
(@oldpacer)
Posts: 656
Member
 

I've been on the rod end of a few plane table stadia surveys, but never on the instrument end -- I was still too far down in the chain of command (i.e. right at the bottom) in those days.

The best part was at lunch or end of the day when we would stand around the table and revise the map by the seat of the pants comment from the rodman and fudge contours by eye. Or was is because I had a huge umbrella and the water cooler. 

 

 
Posted : June 28, 2023 9:43 am
(@gordon-svedberg)
Posts: 626
Member
 
calvin on math
 
Posted : June 28, 2023 10:29 am
holy-cow
(@holy-cow)
Posts: 25369
Supporter
 

@gordon-svedberg 

Very good comic.  To the point.

 

I started with chain, plumb bob and a transit that George Washington may have used when new.  The best practices available to us seem incredibly crude compared to what we do today.  However, we WERE WALKING  in the footsteps of those who had gone before us.  Helps to comprehend those egregious ERRORS the button pushers claim to have found and believe NEED TO BE FIXED.

 
Posted : June 28, 2023 11:04 am

(@james-fleming)
Posts: 5696
Member
 

I've turned left angles

I was explaining to a younger guy yesterday how with a theodolite that turns right/left and direct/reverse you can back site and turn bearings.  

 

 
Posted : June 28, 2023 11:35 am