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A Freiberger scale illuminator
Julian Thornton recently wrote to me about his newly acquired Freiberger Trommelsextant , asking about a fitting attached to the outside of the micrometer mechanism. He was able to de-construct it to...
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Mending a 1975 SNO-T sextant.
A little while ago I bought a SNO-T sextant on a local auction site, not because I did not have one (I have two), but because the price was too attractive to miss. I found there were two major and one...
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Mercury amalgam mirrors
For years I have wished to reproduce the method of re-silvering sextant mirrors using the process which was common until the mid 19th century, when chemical methods of depositing silver on to glass...
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LAND USE CONVERSION OF MARK IX BUBBLE SEXTANT A few years ago, I bought a Mark IX bubble sextant for parts from a local auction web site. I had vaguely noted an excrescence had been added to the top,...
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A reproduction MHR1 Position Line Slide Rule
This post was preceded by “Hughes Marine Bubble Sextant”, “An improvised sun compass”, ” C Plath Sun Compass”; “A Fleuriais’ Marine Distance Meter” A Stuart Distance Meter”;“A Russian Naval Dip...
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Un Cercle de Reflection (Reflecting circle)
A few months ago I was entrusted with a variety of antique sextants to restore and, while restorations proceeded slowly on account of family infirmity, writing about the restorations has proceeded...
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A Small Ramsden Sextant
On page 64 of Peter Iflands Taking the Stars is a figure showing a small sextant bearing Jesse Ramsden’s name. According to Ifland, this was one of the last sextants made by Ramsden, though by the...
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Refilling a Kollsman Bubble Chamber – a guest post by Arthur Leung
Arthur wrote to me in April 2021 with an enquiry about the MHR1 navigational device and then kindly wrote a guest blog about it. He then acquired a Kollsman periscopic sextant and what follows is his...
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A French sextant restoration
During a lock-down period for Covid 19 in 2021, a large box arrived from a collector in Australia. In it were four antique sextants and a circle which Dave wished me to restore for him and over the...
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A slip of workmanship?
This post is preceded by “Tamaya Collimation Blunder” and by “Incorrect assembly of SNO-T shades” While this post is about workmanship rather than a blunder, this seems to be the correct category for...
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