Pommel Compass: Discussion on why they were dropped?

[Quarterbore]

I got an e-mail from an individual today that indicated he was at REI and purchased a small compass that fit perfectly in the Pommel of his Buckmaster. He said however that the compass doesn't work worth a darn because of the steel pommel affecting the magnetic field...

I am curious if the intention was that the user would remove the compass from the pommel or use the compass left inside the pommel?

Can anyone with a Buckmaster with the compass in the pommel advise if your compass works inside the pommel and/or does the compass come out of the pommel easily if the design was to use it outside of the knife?

I am assuming that these are the reasons that Buck and Qual-A-Tec walked away from this design but I would welcome additional oppinions... informed or not.