original peep sights

[4570tc]

My eyes are getting older and dimmer. So what kind of peep sight would look proper on a Pre Revolution flintlock? Does anyone sell them? or any pictures, I am a tool and die so I think that I could make one? :hmm:

 

[Rifleman1776]

You will probably get replies that range from "nothing" to whatever.
Check out about the middle of the page here: http://www.muzzleloaderbuilderssup...?cart_id=4870234.19376&next=25&product=Sights
and just below for the actual peeper.
Dunno how 'authentic' for your gun but look OK to me. Some concessions have to be made for age and eye changes. Remember back in the day the average life expectancy for a man was about 43.

 

[Semisane]

Here's one I have on a .32 Pedersoli Frontier. It doesn't look too out of place and is an excellent sight for my tired old eyes. It's adjustable for windage and elevation and shouldn't be too difficult to fabricate.

 

[4570tc]

Thanks Guys!

Those sights are alot easier than What I had planed!

 

[jamesthomas]

That looks nice, I may be heading that way myself. Its tuff, glasses to see far away but they make the rear sight a little blurry. :shake: :idunno: .

 

[F.G. Ford]

Thank you, also.
That is a fine looking sight!
Fred

 

[nkbj]

Looks great. Thanks for the info.

 

[DonPiano]

My Lancaster has a small peep sight dovetailed into the tang and it works very well and I don't think it looks too out of place. I'll attempt to post a picture or two

 

[Wes/Tex]

Have seen a couple old German "Jaeger" style rifles with adjustable peep sights. At least one was adjustable vertically as well as horizontally. How common peep sights were outside of that application is hard to say. Obviously, there was such a thing but how many and where is a guess.

Have also seen an old hunter's bag with a pair of period glasses. This particular pair had the left lens removed and the right one replaced by a blackened sheet of tin with a small hole drilled in it's center. Since period frames are available from several sources you might try that trick before defacing a gun with something you might later want gone.

 

[Twisted_1in66]

Be aware that if you are looking for Historically correct, statements such as "doesn't look too out of place to me", have nothing at all to do with whether or not such an item was available in the 1700's. If you are looking to be historically accurate, you'll need to find some primary documentation of such a sight being used. I am not aware of any such documentation but that doesn't mean it's not out there.

If you are just looking for a peep sight so you can still use your flintlock without the sight being garishly out of place, both of the examples would do the trick with the dovetailed one being the least noticeable of the two. Either one is a better choice than no longer using your flintlock.

Twisted_1in66 :hatsoff:

 

[Rifleman1776]

The "documentation" is found on many old guns themselves. Just visit any museum with guns of the day. You will see plenty of peepers.

 

[Dphar]

 

[Dphar]

Aperture sights pre-date firearms BTW.

Dan

 

[dbutch]

About as simple as you can get!...