Placement of front and rear sirghts

[wizard71]

I'm in the process of completing a full stock 50 Cal flintlock rifle for my wife.
I'm using a swamped colerain barrel.
My question is, because of the contour of the barrel, where do I dove tail the front and rear sight.

 

[ohio ramrod]

I like my front sights about one inch back from the muzzle. Rear sight wherever it focuses best.As we get older the eyes get "farsighted". :idunno:

 

[jdkerstetter]

As indicated, 1" from the muzzle is good. Some guns have it a little farther back so it may depend on what style you are going for.

For the rear sight, once you have the front installed or secured with tape, try having your wife hold the gun as if she were going to shoot it. Place the rear sight on the barrel about 12" from the breech and slide it back and forth until she can comfortably focus on both and then mark that spot for installation.

Good Luck and Enjoy, J.D.

 

[wizard71]

But on a swamped barrel if I move the rear sight forward or back doesn't it also change the height of the sight in relation to the the front sight or is the change so small that doesn't matter.

 

[Birddog6]

Put a refrigerator magnet on the barrel, have her sight the rifle looking at a light & adjust the rear one til she can see them both good, then move it 1" forward of that. Then take Devcon 2000 epoxy & glue the sights on & go shoot it on a good bench with sand bags. Then you can decide if you need a taller or shorter front sight. When you are sure what sights she wants, then cut the dovetails & install them.

Keith Lisle

 

[jdkerstetter]

Yes, but the narrowest point on the barrel is usually only a few inches back from the muzzle. The slope at in the portion of the barrel you will be sliding it around should be very slight so, as you indicated, it doesn't matter much.

Now, sight selection is going to have some bearing on this or any installation. Don't go crazy with tall or missmatched sights and such.

Just lay a straight edge from the breech to the muzzle and give it a look. Enjoy, J.D.

 

[Vaino]

I center the front dovetail 1-1/2" from the muzzle. With the hand at the balance point of the fully assembled rifle, the rear sight can be located at either side of the hand. This avoids having the sight "digging into" the hand. On my spec LRs, the rear sight is located at the muzzle side of the hand. This locates the rear sights opposite the entry pipes. Or...as others have said...w/ trial and error by temporarily postioning the rear sight. Actually w/ the rear sight opposite the entry pipe, the bbl dim on a swamped bbl is practically the same as at the muzzle....Fred

 

[Col. Batguano]

or lay the barrel on a flat table if you can't find a suitable straight edge

 

[wizard71]

I took all suggestion given here. I located the front sight 1.5" from the muzzle. Using a piece of tape on the rear sight. My wife looked down the barrel and we were able to find a location for the sight. Turns out to be about 9" from the breach above and just behind the ramrod entry thimble.

Thanks for all your help.

I think I have have screwed up big time on the dovetail cut. see new thread.

 

[richdeerht]

Unless you think you'll get younger as the years progress, put the rear sight an inch or 3 further forward than you might right now. Then, you won't have to move it later. A young man can see an old man's sights, but the opposite is not usually true.

 

[M. De Land]

That's one of the reasons I'm so in love with aperture sights.
Look through the hole, forget about the rear sight alignment and focus on the front blade against the target.
They're faster, easier on aging eyes and more accurate than an open sight and for a hunting arm tops. To bad they're not used more and made legal in more competitive events.
And while not popular they were used in the golden age of Muzzle loading by some savvy shooters. MD

 

[M. De Land]

With a rear aperture the Front blade goes the same place as any other sight.
Rear goes back on the tang close to your eye. MD

 

[Vaino]

Tried peep sights and it it seemed that when shooting horizontally, the rifle was right there. For some reason when shooting up or down a fairly steep slope, the rifle shot high. It's probably me but some others I hunt w/ had the same experience. So we all took them off and used partridge sights w/ good results.

Too bad, because the peep on my Garand during basic shot very accurately. Of course that was at targets on the range.....Fred

 

[M. De Land]

Yeah, that happens often when shooting up or down steep inclines but it's not the peep sight it's the trajectory in relation to the angle.
Same wither shooting up hill or down hill.
The way I had it explained to me is the bullet or ball acts on the target as if you were suddenly taken straight down or up in and elevator and were making a level shot at said target.
Angle increases the distance but the projectile acts as if you were shooting level at it and hence the tendency to shoot high, compensating for the longer shot.
You physics guys need to jump in here and help me out as I'm in over my head. MD

 

[Vaino]

You're correct asre the higher POI of shooting up or down hill, but some of it had to do w/ the physical aspect...not being able to let the eye center the bead because of the awkward position of the rifle. Missed a few deer because of it....Fred

 

[Col. Batguano]

it shoots high because the distance is only that of the horizontal distance covered by the bullet, rather than the actual distance or hypotenuse of the imaginary triangle.

 

[Carl Fowler III]

Learned this shoot'n 3D archery competitively....hold for the horizontal distance to target...but why they didn't have this issue when shoot'n with rear leaf sights is mind boggling! :idunno:

 

[jdkerstetter]

...but why they didn't have this issue when shoot'n with rear leaf sights is mind boggling! :idunno:

Who do you mean by "they"? And why wouldn't they? Enjoy, J.D.