Can you add to the list of sextant numbers?

[Martin X. Moleski, SJ]

Anyone read Russian?

My vocabulary never was good enough for this kind of text.

But I can transliterate some of it for Google translate.

You can see that the date of one certificate from the workshop was 1957. 

The heading on that certificate is Исправлен, which means "corrected."

[Jerry Germann]

Found this article;

http://uiobservatory.omeka.net/items/show/40

[Martin X. Moleski, SJ]

Found this article;

http://uiobservatory.omeka.net/items/show/40

Thanks, Jerry.  Added to table.

[Andrew M McKenna]

Update on this sextant

Seller indicates that there is a number stamped into the wood of the box between the hinges 2827

There is also a US Navy stamped into the left end of the arc, but no number.

see photos below.

So, what we have here is an oddity
Brandis 2539 at the right end of the arc
Navy 25222 etched on the frame
in Box # 2827 stamped into the wood
with US Navy stamped at the left end of the arc


Andrew

New eBay listing

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-BRANDIS-SONS-NAUTICAL-SEXTANT-Original-Box-Amazing-L-K-/191524090278?ssPageName=ADME:SS:SS:US:3160

Looks to me like the serial number is on the right end of the arc and it indicated NO 2539.  Typically the Brandis numbers are 4 digits at the left end of the arc.

And it has a hand etched number on the frame of 161-U(?)SN-252222.  Usually the USN number is hand etched at the middle of the arc.

This one is interesting.  It is an F.E. Brandis, Sons & Co, Brooklyn NY unit, which would seem to pre-date the Brandis & Sons Mfgr Co.  Here is a quick history from the Smithsonian site:

http://amhistory.si.edu/surveying/maker.cfm?makerid=5

Frederick Ernest Brandis (1845–1916) was born in Germany, came to the United States in 1858, worked for Stackpole & Brother for a few years, and then opened his own instrument shop in 1871. The firm became F. Brandis & Co. in 1875, F. E. Brandis, Sons & Co. in 1890, and Brandis & Sons Mfg. Co. in 1916. The Pioneer Instrument Company purchased control of Brandis in 1922, and sold it to the Bendix Aviation Corporation in 1928. The manufacture of Brandis instruments ceased in 1932.

So, it would seem that this unit had to be manufactured between 1890 and 1916.  Perhaps it pre-dates most of the sextants we've seen, hence the unusual placement of the serial number.

I've asked the seller if there are any other numbers on the instrument or the box.

Andrew

[Martin X. Moleski, SJ]

So, what we have here is an oddity

Brandis 2539 at the right end of the arc
Navy 25222 etched on the frame
in Box # 2827 stamped into the wood
with US Navy stamped at the left end of the arc

I put it in the table twice.

2827 looks like a normal N.O. die-punched number

I see the hand-etched string as ""161 - USN - 252222"

Older Navy numbering system?  Predecessor to the 4-digit system?

[Andrew M McKenna]

for those of you itching to get your hands on a Brandis Sextant, this one is for sale again on eBay at a fixed price of $279.  It has been listed twice at that price and not sold.  Doesn't look like there is a way to make an offer.  Prices for these have ranged from $200 to $350, so this is about in the middle.

Andrew

So, what we have here is an oddity

Brandis 2539 at the right end of the arc
Navy 25222 etched on the frame
in Box # 2827 stamped into the wood
with US Navy stamped at the left end of the arc

I put it in the table twice.

2827 looks like a normal N.O. die-punched number

I see the hand-etched string as ""161 - USN - 252222"

Older Navy numbering system?  Predecessor to the 4-digit system?

[Andrew M McKenna]

Another Brandis on eBay

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-US-NAVY-SEXTANT-BRANDIS-SON-BROOKLYN-NY-/281661274832?

This one has USNO # 1110 etched on the arc.

I've asked the seller to look for the serial number at the end of the arc, and any other numbers on the box.

amck

[Martin X. Moleski, SJ]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-US-NAVY-SEXTANT-BRANDIS-SON-BROOKLYN-NY-/281661274832?

This one has USNO # 1110 etched on the arc.

I like the little screwdriver hack on the bottom of the box.

I haven't noticed that before.

There also seems to be a "5851" in this photo on the edge of an interior piece.

[Andrew M McKenna]

Good catch on the 5851.

One of the eyepieces seems different than most as well, with the flared ending.

amck

[Andrew M McKenna]

Update on this sextant.

Seller relates that the number on the instrument matches the number on the box, 5851.

So we've got

Brandis 5851
Navy 1110

This will be the second to highest Brandis number we've seen, but with a relatively low USNO number.  Go figure.

Sure would be interesting to locate the Naval Observatory archives.

Andrew

[Bruce Thomas]

Update on this sextant.

Seller relates that the number on the instrument matches the number on the box, 5851.

So we've got

Brandis 5851
Navy 1110

This will be the second to highest Brandis number we've seen, but with a relatively low USNO number.  Go figure.

Sure would be interesting to locate the Naval Observatory archives.

Andrew

Table in Ameliapedia has been updated with this record.

[Martin X. Moleski, SJ]

Brandis 5851
Navy 1110

This will be the second to highest Brandis number we've seen, but with a relatively low USNO number.  Go figure.

It makes 3500/1542 (Niku box) and 3547/173 (Pensacola box from Noonan) seem less weird.

We knew that the relationship between the two kinds of numbers was pretty random--but not THAT random! 

Sure would be interesting to locate the Naval Observatory archives.

Yup.

[Dave Thaker]

Brandis 5851
Navy 1110

This will be the second to highest Brandis number we've seen, but with a relatively low USNO number.  Go figure.

It makes 3500/1542 (Niku box) and 3547/173 (Pensacola box from Noonan) seem less weird.

We knew that the relationship between the two kinds of numbers was pretty random--but not THAT random! 

Sure would be interesting to locate the Naval Observatory archives.

Yup.

A Google search on Brandis sextants brings up this site, which seems to explain a lot about Brandis and USNO serial numbers.

[Andrew M McKenna]

Very interesting.  Some great work there, and maybe some questions. I've recently become aware that there also may be a change in the Brandis frames at some point that might be useful to analyze as well.

Any idea who put that together?  Would be great to collaborate with them.

Andrew

[Andrew M McKenna]

Newly added Brandis on eBay this am

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-BRANDIS-SONS-NAUTICAL-SEXTANT-Navy-836-/141656162631?

Would appear to be
Brandis 3249 with the number printed on the frame under the Brandis name
Navy 836

No numbers on the box are visible.

The instrument frame is different than many others we've looked at, and I suspect that it is older.  The Brandis and the Navy numbers are pretty early in the matrix.

Andrew