NavList:
A Community Devoted to the Preservation and Practice of Celestial Navigation and Other Methods of Traditional Wayfinding
Re: sextant telescopes
From: Ken Gebhart
Date: 2002 Oct 4, 17:13 -0500
From: Ken Gebhart
Date: 2002 Oct 4, 17:13 -0500
Although certainly not scientific, someone once told me that the power of a scope is best suited to a boat 10 times that power in feet. ,ie. 3.5X for a 35 footer, 7X for a 70 foot boat, etc. Ken Gebhart Dan Allen wrote: > On Friday, October 4, 2002, at 10:15 AM, Hal Mueller wrote: > > > My Astra IIIB came with a 3.5x40 telescope. what are > > people actually using? > > > > It appears that the 6x30 would potentially give better accuracy for > > lunar distance sights. But I've never tried to reduce a lunar > > distance, let alone shoot one. > > If you are on land, or perhaps at anchor in calm waters, 6 or 7 power > scopes can definitely improve your measurements. My backyard studies > show that I am more accurate with my Tamaya Jupiter and its 7 power > scope than I am with some of my other sextants that have 3.5 or 4 power > scopes. > > Move to the average 35-45' vessel on a typical day, and these higher > power scopes are quite hard to use. 4 power is about right for such > applications in my experience. > > Dan Allen