Judging from the pictures I´d say yes.

I just ordered two of them from Celestaire - $20 US each, plus shipping.

Thanks. The first link (Rainbow Symphony, Inc.) does indeed ship to Canada, according to the website - for the "sunglasses" type of filter, cost is $1.00 per pair with a minimum order of 25 pairs, which doesn't seem like such a bad price - that should be enough to build 50 sextants <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

I took a quick look at the second link ("Sky and Telescope"). Haven't found any information on viewing the sun, but I loved the "Night Sky" Monopoly game - I think my niece may get that for her next birthday <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

The Davis Mark III is the standard cheap sextant found on lifeboats etc. during the pre-GPS era. They're $40 new discounted from boating places ($50 retail) and you can get them in the $25 range on Ebay.

http://www.davisnet.com/marine/products/marine_product.asp?pnum=011

A replacement set of index shades is $6.00 direct from Davis (click the replacement parts link from above).

Edit: Looks like Celestaire has the Mark III for $34.00. Pretty good deal, I might have bought a new one from them instead of a used one for $25 if I'd known about it (but my used one came with a couple of navigation books, so I still did good). It's made of plastic and is not a fancy instrument, but it's ready made and should certainly be more durable than that $20 cardboard thing.

Oh, I'm not under any illusions about the cardboard model being used for anything but learning how to use the real thing. <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I just thought it'd be neat to learn how to build (and use) one. If I actually need one (for example, if I decide to learn how to sail and go for a cruise around the world) I'll probably buy the best one I can afford. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> Plastic is probably better, although the romantic in me really wants one made of polished brass. <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

Incidentally, I got inspired to learn how to use one after reading Tami Oldham Ashcraft's "Red Sky in Mourning". Ashcraft and her fiance were ferrying a yacht from the South Pacific to California when they were caught by Hurricane Raymond; her fiance was swept overboard, the yacht was dismasted, and Ashcraft knocked unconscious for 27 hours. With all the fancy-shmancy high-tech electronic gear ruined, she was forced to rely on her ability to use a sextant to make her way to Hawaii - 41 days under a makeshift sail, at an average speed of 2 knots.