filing off the front sight

[cayugad]

As many are aware, I have a .50 caliber Lyman Great Plains Hunter. I have discovered the rifle is a good shooter when you give it what it wants. I've played with countless bullets and it seems if they are in the 300 grain range, the rifle will do a good job with them.

I have been holding off filing down the front site because... I just get real nervous when I have to do that to a primitive rifle. It's like the last thing in the world I really want to do. But today I was determined. I got out a file and went to town on that front sight.

Before the rifle was shooting about four inches low. That was of course unacceptable. I wanted to sight the rifle in for the upcoming season. At my place 35 yards is the average shot. So I decided to set the rifle there for the time being. Even before any shooting started, I aggressively attacked that front sight and took off what I considered way too much sight.

I started with 300 grain .452 Hornady XTP's in a MMP HPH-24 sabot. Since the powerbelts I shoot out of the rifle like 80 grains I figured that was a good place to start.



This target was set at 35 yards. It actually shows the powerbelt hits also. But for the time being ignore them. What I did when I went to shoot the powerbelts, I gave the target a turn, knowing that the powerbelts would hit low also. Which if you can picture that turned 90º clockwise, they did. But back to the XTP's.

A-C was with 80 grains of Schuetzen powder. I really though with all the sight I took off, they would hit higher then that, but I was holding that dot on top of the front sight and squeezing off. While I wanted them to hit above the sight, they were actually hitting on the sight, or a full cover hold.

Also IMO A-C could have been a little tighter. After all this is 35 yards not 100 yards. So for kicks, I increased the powder charge to 90 grains of Schuetzen 2f powder. Immediately the group tightened right up. So I know had a good hunting load. If I aim dead center behind the shoulder, the rifle should do the rest of the work.

I then flipped the target and reduced back to 80 grains of Schuetzen 2f powder and the 295 grain copper coated hollow point Powerbelts.. #4 was so much a hang fire that I had actually thought.. "Misfire" and lifted my head. Then to my surprise it went BOOM!! So the rule of thumb.. keep on that stock. But again, the powerbelts were hitting about where the front sight was. It bothered me, but I could live with that. #6 & #7 I tried to use a full cover hold. But as you see, when I loose my point of reference, there is no telling where the bullet will hit. Granted they went higher, but to the right.

Still I took the file and again, attacked the front sight..



I accidentally loaded shot #3 with 3f powder. One reason you should never have both powders on the table. Also again.. a real hang fire. Even #2 & #4 were a TICK... BOOM! Which normally indicated the rifle needed to be cleaned real good. Prior to this the lock time was excellent. But we were getting a little fouled out by this stage.

I would have shot a few more powerbelts, but to be honest, I am down to six of them. And I have a different place I want to put them. At leas the final attack on the front sight raised the POI. With the rear sight all the way up, I can easily tune that around if I want.

But I would say.. this rifle is ready. I want to see what 80 grains and a powerbelt does to a deer.

[bronko22000]

Dave, I'm glad you went and filed that sight. Now you got your rifle shooting where you want it without guestimating. And if worse comes to worse, you can always get a replacement sight.

[HEAD0001]

Dave I have to do some filing on the sights on my new flint lock. and I am just putting it off. I hate to screw it up. They say you should shoot 100 rounds before you touch the file to the sights. so I am going to do that first. I also bought some good tape to tape the barrel so I don't screw up the barrel. I bought a set of 10 files off of E-Bay to do the work with. I hope I can get it right the first time. But I doubt if I do. Tom.

[cayugad]

I took a chunk of plastic off a milk jug and cut that off. Then cut out the center, the size of the front sight. This was put over the sight, and that way if the file slipped.. it would not mark the barrel from the file. I might take a little more off. And then lower the front sight some.

[bronko22000]

Head - be sure to do what Cayugad did before you start filing. Raise that rear sight up as high as you can get it. Then only take off enough of the front sight to get you hitting where you want. Then later, you can lower the rear sight to hit lower if you have to.

[cayugad]

I still was not satisfied. So I went back and did more filing. Now I am happy. My POA is just under that red dot. And that's with the front sight trimmed and the rear sight moved almost half way back down the ramp. So I am in the adjustable range should I ever want to move that rifle out to longer distances. And its is sighted in for where I want to hunt. I have four of the lighter powerbelts left. Although them 300 grain XTP do a real good job out of that rifle...

Those powerbelts are really accurate. I sure hope I get a chance to try them out on a nice buck soon. It should be exciting to see the entrance and I hope exit hole on the animal.

Also I switched today to a new agate. Someone gave them to me to try. I could not believe it, but the FIRST SHOT and the entire front of the agate broke off. Think if I had been hunting with that agate. I switched back to a Thomas Fuller Black English Flint and shot all afternoon. The agate is now part of my driveway.

[lemoyne]

Some thoughts on making iron sights. When I used to build Hawken Rifles I made most of my own stuff, I made a patter that I clamped to the back sight and used Swedish needle files to make the first notch and two blocks of brass 3/4 by 3/4 inch carefully drilled a hole in each end and bolted them to the front sight when I was shortening it.
After the basic notch was sighted in with narrow shoulders I then file the top inside shoulder down to make a "0" for 175 yds.
This is what we used for the Hawken and Mountain man matches at Friendship and any long shots hunting.