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Mostly sextants were designed for and used by ship's officers. They had a relatively stable platform to
work from, and stowage space wasn't an issue. The Freiberger was designed for yachtsfolk; smaller and
lighter yet still a precision instrument.

Quoting Joel Jacobs
> If there are any shooters amongst us, they may comment on the preferred
> weight of a rifle. Some people believe that light weight rifles are harder
> to hold on target, and less accurate even though carrying them is easier.
> The same holds true of a sextant. A very light weight one is thought to be
> more difficult to use.

Yep, this is a personal preference, I guess. Its one of the main reasons I 
prefer the Freiberger. Also have a
Brno (Czech) .22 rifle that is another accurate precision instrument. Must put me in the light-weight
preferring camp. Its light weight has never been a problem. I find that holding a heavy instrument steady
does become an increasing problem with extended use, particularly on a moving platform.

> If you do mostly sun sight navigation, the small size and light weight might
> appeal to some, but the 7/8 scale sextant has never had much of a following
> by celestial navigators.

Well, I know of 3 users in a very restricted local area - but in any case would encourage any potential
buyer to make an informed individual decision.

   

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