David White LT6-900 Meridian 22X Optical Level-Transit

I was a little worried about buying this transit because someone said in a review that there was excessive backlash in the tangent screws, this is not true, there is a spring that keeps pressure on the tangent screw so there is absolutely no backlash. I used the transit to flag for a 1280' long fence with a hill in between. There were 3 survey pins, one at each end and one 400' from one end, The wife and I were able to align from one end to the 400' pin, pivot up the hill about 800' and set a pin at the top, then using a 16' pool vacuum handle set another pin about 75' over the hill. We then moved and reset the transit on the other end survey pin and aligned with the 2 pins we had set, the fence came out perfectly straight. The optics were easily able to focus on a piece of 1/2" conduit painted orange and the pool vacuum handle at 800'. I am very happy with the performance of this transit for the job I was doing and the price was less than a surveyor, but if you need to read precise angles vertically or horizontally you should probably spend more and get a better transit.

Transit works great and is very easy to set-up and use.

This is a not-too-expensive instrument for my Junior Ranger surveying project of my property. The 22X scope works well, although the crosshairs can be difficult to see. I found slightly defocusing the image helped. The vernier on the azimuth theoretically lets you measure to 10' of arc. For my hobby-level work, half a degree is fine. It also does altitude measurements, but no vernier. Not an issue for me because I use a laser level to get elevation differences between survey points. Worst part is in the azimuth readout dial: a). there's no lock, so you have to be careful that when you're reading an angle between two points that you don't bump the dial; b). the axle for the dial is not a snug fit so you can move it slightly laterally (enough to make it off by a degree, or so). Fits a standard surveying tripod screw mount (not a 1/4-20 photographic tripod mount). Amazon has an inexpensive Bosch tripod that works well.

This is my second David White Quality instrument. You get what you pay for.

Read all the reviews on this product. Was on the fence about yes or no. Some were talking cheap plastic case, bent adjustment screws, bad packaging Etc... Don’t know why they had these issue, because the case is the same plastic as other use. Came in the case perfectly set in foam, with no bent adjustment screws at all. I work heavy construction, and needed something simple with an affordable price. This was it!!!! Great product so far & I would buy another if I need one.

The horizontal circle on this transit cannot be locked, but what is worse is that it literally can be moved side to side almost 1/16”. There is unwanted play between the hole in the center of the horizontal circle, and the spindle. Makes it useless for shooting 90 degree corners for building layout unless you are a heck of a sloppy builder. I know the price of this unit is very reasonable, but this really is not acceptable.

First, I set out to get a reference point off of my back, left boundary stake. To do that, I started at a known stake, took 8 turns down a trail through the woods, and distance measurements totaling about 400ft to arrive at the back, left stake. Using a tool I wrote to do the calculations, I determined the exact angle of my last segment arriving at my destination. Having an angle and a starting point, I surveyed another trail that led to about where I thought my back, right stake (the ultimate goal) should be (based on GPS). That survey involved 6 turns and 270 ft through dense foliage. I discovered that my GPS estimate was way off, and the stake I was looking for was buried. However, using this transit and a 100ft tape measure, I got within 12 inches of the lost stake! I could never have found that stake in the dense undergrowth without knowing almost exactly where it was. I am so happy that I was able to find a boundary stake that I've been passively seeking for almost 30 years. I wrote a piece of software that I could use to enter my measurements, which would compute and graph my path based on the angles and distances I entered. I'm happy to share my survey tool, if anyone is trying to do something similar. I'm also putting together an instructional video. I am very happy with this transit.

The first one of these arrived with a bent adjustment screw. Still opened it and set it up. The unit would not focus to a clear picture. Returned it. Second unit arrived and all screws were in tact! Set it up on the tripod, optics were great, focused perfectly. The crosshairs of the second unit are harder to see that on the first one. Seems like a decent price if you don’t mind wading through the poor quality control. Both of the units appeared to have been opened before, and were shipped without the level lock engaged.