Dovetail help on smr.

[Mark E. Prickett]

Yep, mess up #3 on my first rifle build. My rear sight dovetail is messed up. To wide and the sight pops right up. I tried shim, peening under and neither helped. It looks like I will have to cut a longer dovetail and get a longer sight. So who sells a longer sight and a quility dovetail file? I made a safe file out of an old file and this is probably how I messed it up! I'm pretty sick over this. It's a kibler srm.

 

[ord sgt]

Did you peen the underside of the sight or just the edges of the dovetail? Do both. It might make up the difference between the sight and the dovetail.
It's a little late for this tidbit but here goes....file, fit, file, fit until you get a nice tight fit between the two parts.

 

[pacanis]

Brownells has good files. Sixty degree is the dovetail file you want. NOT 65. Sixty-five is 1911's. Don't ask me why.
I've had to touch up some poorly cut Uberti dovetails recently and the right file is what you want.

I had a smith cut in a front sight for me before and it was too large... That's when I started doing them myself.
The only thing I found that worked was a shim. Putting craters in the gun itself with a center punch grabbed the sight, but not under firing. Not even with red Loctite.

Cut a shim from an old feeler gauge. Get exactly the size shim you need. When everything is in place and sighted in get some red Loctite on things.

 

[Mark E. Prickett]

I'm sure I messed it up beyond repair. I need a longer dovetail and a trip to a gunsmith to have them professionally cut. I would like to replace front and rear and have them fit. I surrender. I'm looking on TOTW but honestly I'm overwhelmed at this point.

 

[64Springer]

ACE Hardware sells 60 degree files. And they cost WAY less than Brownell's. And they do the exact same job.

Take a sharpening stone and put one safe edge on it. It doesn't take much time or pressure. Just break the edge on the teeth. Then test that edge on a piece of metal. If it cuts, stone a little more. Do not cut into the cutting edges on the sides of the file.

Find some metal and practice cutting dovetails. Then recut your dovetail.

 

[TDM]

Yep, mess up #3 on my first rifle build. My rear sight dovetail is messed up. To wide and the sight pops right up. I tried shim, peening under and neither helped. It looks like I will have to cut a longer dovetail and get a longer sight. So who sells a longer sight and a quility dovetail file? I made a safe file out of an old file and this is probably how I messed it up! I'm pretty sick over this. It's a kibler srm.

I’d advise giving Jim a call and see what his ideas are first. I doubt you are the first to have this problem. He may not have a longer sight, but it’s worth a call.

 

[jdw276]

I'm sure I messed it up beyond repair. I need a longer dovetail and a trip to a gunsmith to have them professionally cut. I would like to replace front and rear and have them fit. I surrender. I'm looking on TOTW but honestly I'm overwhelmed at this point.

Look at the track of the wolf catalog and see if they have some rear sights that fit the bill as they say. Even give em a call.......

 

[CuNosecap]

Don’t give up!
It is OK to make a mistake on a rifle build, as long as you learn from it. If you order 3 or 4 different sights from TOTW or Pecatonica, or any other source, you’ll find that they are quite rough cast and there is lots of room to work. And you may find one that fits your gap. If you have a torch, you can even weld two bases together, then cut off the extra sight and file to fit. This seems like an easy fix, way better than a botched breach plug!
Learn from it. And when you are done, only you will know how it started. But most important is my first sentence.
Don’t give up!

 

[ColonialRifleSmith]

Yep, mess up #3 on my first rifle build. My rear sight dovetail is messed up. To wide and the sight pops right up. I tried shim, peening under and neither helped. It looks like I will have to cut a longer dovetail and get a longer sight. So who sells a longer sight and a quility dovetail file? I made a safe file out of an old file and this is probably how I messed it up! I'm pretty sick over this. It's a kibler srm.

My solution to this issue is to buy a sight with a longer base. Then you can cut the base to fit the dovetail. These come in several styles. 9$ or less anywhere. Semper Fi.

 

[CuNosecap]

The more I think about it, the more I like the welding idea. You won’t even need acetylene as the cast sights are soft and thin. Get two sights together in a vise, heat and pound away, like a blacksmith. The cut and file.
Good luck.

 

[ColonialRifleSmith]

My solution to this issue is to buy a sight with a longer base. Then you can cut the base to fit the dovetail. These come in several styles. 9$ or less anywhere. Semper Fi.

 

[64Springer]

The more I think about it, the more I like the welding idea. You won’t even need acetylene as the cast sights are soft and thin. Get two sights together in a vise, heat and pound away, like a blacksmith. The cut and file.
Good luck.

The OP is about to send his rifle to a gunsmith to fix a dovetail.

Me thinks he's not the heating and pounding and welding metal type.

OP. What is your workshop skill set? If you know in your heart of hearts that this is beyond your skills, find a professional to do it. No shame in that. Your man card will remain intact.

 

[david w]

Could you post pictures, and or give a measurement of the sight and the dovetail? You may also consider a long rear sight, and file/cut it to the correct length.
EP0505 Long Base Curl Top Pennsylvania Style Rear Sight

 

[ColonialRifleSmith]

The OP is about to send his rifle to a gunsmith to fix a dovetail.

Me thinks he's not the heating and pounding and welding metal type.

OP. What is your workshop skill set? If you know in your heart of hearts that this is beyond your skills, find a professional to do it. No shame in that. Your man card will remain intact.

OP, I can fix this for you if you send me the barrel. Just pay for the part and the shipping. Here's a pic of my shop. Semper Fi.

 

[CuNosecap]

I think the real easy answer is from the pictures posted by colonial rifle smith. Those longer sights are perfect.
As to the point about building experience and welding, I just jumped to the conclusion that a person trying to build a high end rifle would at least try before calling a gunsmith.
But every one has their own limitations.

 

[skwerleater]

Take a deep breath!! It’s ok. There are sights with longer dovetails, and you or somebody else can make a sight if you don’t find one. I once received a rifle with no rear sight and the dove tail was longer than any sight I could find. I soldered a piece of metal into the dovetail, partially filling the void to accept a smaller sight, filed it flush with the barrel and then re-dovetailed a sight into the barrel. After bluing nobody could tell. Take your time. It’s fixable

 

[david w]

OP, I can fix this for you if you send me the barrel. Just pay for the part and the shipping. Here's a pic of my shop. Semper Fi.

View attachment 189046
View attachment 189047

I wish I had a nice shop.

 

[CuNosecap]

Hey OP, where are you in NC? I’m in Chatham county, maybe I can help out.

 

[NorthFork]

TOTW sells sights that can be cut down to fit any reasonable dovetail. Call them, they will help.

 

[Mark E. Prickett]

Deep breath taken. Ordered a 60° file to fix the dovetail and I'm going to braze the original sight and refit it.