Sure, I'm gonna be working on the reae sight first, bur it will probably be good to know in case I overshoot it.
Questions about filing sights and the math involved
- Thread starter SomeDude
- Start date
Help Support Muzzleloading Forum:
DOUBLEDEUCE 1
69 Cal.
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2008
- Messages
- 4,167
- Reaction score
- 880
I would start shooting from a sand bag rest first. Shoot groups of maybe five rounds each, holding at the same point of aim, not point of impact.
Check your powder measure. Start for example using 25 gr FFG. See where you hit at 25 yards. Increase your load 5 grains at a time. Use the same point of aim for each load. That should help you figure out what your pistol likes. Then if needed, adjust your sights. I would probably start with a taller front sight. You could hot glue something like a thin piece of a credit card to the rear edge of the sight. A wooden match stick can work. If you want to reduce the height of the temporary sight, clip it off with fingernail clippers. You can end up with a model for the height of your new sight if you need one.
Shooting from a bagged rest eliminates most if not all of the human errors. Get the pistol sighted in first before you shoot the one handed stuff, That way, you’ll know the pistol will hit where it is sighted. The rest is up to you. Easy peasy...
Check your powder measure. Start for example using 25 gr FFG. See where you hit at 25 yards. Increase your load 5 grains at a time. Use the same point of aim for each load. That should help you figure out what your pistol likes. Then if needed, adjust your sights. I would probably start with a taller front sight. You could hot glue something like a thin piece of a credit card to the rear edge of the sight. A wooden match stick can work. If you want to reduce the height of the temporary sight, clip it off with fingernail clippers. You can end up with a model for the height of your new sight if you need one.
Shooting from a bagged rest eliminates most if not all of the human errors. Get the pistol sighted in first before you shoot the one handed stuff, That way, you’ll know the pistol will hit where it is sighted. The rest is up to you. Easy peasy...
- Joined
- May 6, 2014
- Messages
- 17,489
- Reaction score
- 16,602
OK, well you can use the same basic technique when you file either the front or rear sight, though with a slight difference for each.
OK, first you need a "Handy File" like the one in the image below.
Here's a link to one from Home Depot, but you can buy a "Handy File" like this at most Hardware Stores.
Nicholson 8 in. Handy File-06601N - The Home Depot
There are two reasons to use this file. First reason, one side is coarse and the other side is fine cut. You use the coarse side to cut close to where the sight needs to be and you use the fine side to smooth the top of each sight.
Second reason, the tang of these files is wide and pretty much straight in line with the cutting teeth.
OK, for the rear sight first and to keep it parallel to the top of the top barrel flat and with a slight downward angle on top as it goes forward. You need a flat piece of steel or brass or even well cut wood that is equal in thickness and should be close to the width (or wider) than the rear sight. It should also be just a smidgeon shorter or lower in height than the top of the rear sight. You put that flat piece of block ahead of the rear sight on top of the top barrel flat and hold it there with a finger on each side. Next, lay the file flat with the cutting teeth on top of the rear sight and the smooth tang of the file on top of the flat piece of metal or wood (you don't want the cutting teeth to file into this). If you don't need to file much off the top of the rear sight and only want to get it parallel to the top of the barrel, you keep even pressure with the file on the top of the sight and the top of the flat stock and don't put much pressure on the file with the fine cut side. You will notice it cuts the very front of the top of the sight first and as you file more strokes, it will cut all the way front to back on the rear sight. By keeping the file tang on the flat stock on top of the barrel, it will ensure it cuts the top of the front sight parallel with the top flat of the barrel.
OK, to file the front sight, you need a piece of metal or wood flat stock that is also of uniform thickness BUT this piece has to be a little higher than the top of the front sight. You lay that on the top barrel flat and hold it with a finger on each side as you lay the file tang on it and the cutting teeth on top of the front sight. Keeping equal pressure on top of the flat stock and on top of the front sight, will make the file cut the rear of the front sight parallel to the top flat and the top of the blade will angle downward from rear to front.
Gus
Last edited:
- Joined
- May 6, 2014
- Messages
- 17,489
- Reaction score
- 16,602
I would start shooting from a sand bag rest first. Shoot groups of maybe five rounds each, holding at the same point of aim, not point of impact.
Check your powder measure. Start for example using 25 gr FFG. See where you hit at 25 yards. Increase your load 5 grains at a time. Use the same point of aim for each load. That should help you figure out what your pistol likes. Then if needed, adjust your sights. I would probably start with a taller front sight. You could hot glue something like a thin piece of a credit card to the rear edge of the sight. A wooden match stick can work. If you want to reduce the height of the temporary sight, clip it off with fingernail clippers. You can end up with a model for the height of your new sight if you need one.
Shooting from a bagged rest eliminates most if not all of the human errors. Get the pistol sighted in first before you shoot the one handed stuff, That way, you’ll know the pistol will hit where it is sighted. The rest is up to you. Easy peasy...
VERY much agree you get a good load first and see how it shoots BEFORE doing any filing.
Gus
- Joined
- May 6, 2014
- Messages
- 17,489
- Reaction score
- 16,602
If your front sight is not too far from the rear, you can also use a shim on the bottom of the file tang and run it on top the rear sight to cut the front sight angle and the sight top to be parallel to the top of the rear sight.
Here's a video showing how to do it with the Handy File.
How to file down your front sight perfectly, and also making a front sight - YouTube
Gus
Modified to make it clearer.
Here's a video showing how to do it with the Handy File.
How to file down your front sight perfectly, and also making a front sight - YouTube
Gus
Modified to make it clearer.
Last edited:
To figure out how much total change must be made to the sights to raise or lower the point of impact several things need to be known.
The distance to the target. The distance the shot on the target needs to move to get to the right place and the distance between the front and rear sight on the gun. This is true regardless of whether the gun is a rifle or a pistol.
To do the figuring you will need to get everything into a common system. Usually, that would be the "inch" system.
As I go along here I'll say we shot a pistol at a target 20 yards away and it hit 5 inches low. The sights are 8 inches apart.
To convert the range distance into inches multiply the distance in yards times three to get it into feet. Then multiply that answer times 12 to get it into inches, or, to cut corners just multiply the distance to the target in yards times 36. The answer is the distance to the target in inches. Save that answer.
(Using my numbers that would be 20 yards times 3 = 60 feet, times 12 = 720 inches.)
Now, divide the distance the shot on the target needs to move (in inches) by the distance to the target in inches.
(Carrying on with my example, 5 inches low/720 inches = .0069 or, rounding that off to three places, .007.)
Now, multiply that value times the distance between the sights.
(Since the sights are 8 inches apart we have 8 times .007 = .056 inches.) That's how much needs to be removed from the front sight.
If there isn't enough material to remove that much from the front sight, adding that much material to the height of the rear sight will do the same thing.
In other words, the amount that needs to be changed is a "total change" in height between both the front and rear sight.
Oh. For those who want to impress their "significant other" tell her, "I just used my skills in Trigonometry to calculate the amount of change I need to make on my gun." You see, dividing the distance the shot needs to move by the distance to the target equals Tangent A for the angle of the error. Multiplying the distance between the sights times Tangent A gives me the amount of correction needed to fix the error.
She will be so impressed her next response will be, "Take out the garbage."
The distance to the target. The distance the shot on the target needs to move to get to the right place and the distance between the front and rear sight on the gun. This is true regardless of whether the gun is a rifle or a pistol.
To do the figuring you will need to get everything into a common system. Usually, that would be the "inch" system.
As I go along here I'll say we shot a pistol at a target 20 yards away and it hit 5 inches low. The sights are 8 inches apart.
To convert the range distance into inches multiply the distance in yards times three to get it into feet. Then multiply that answer times 12 to get it into inches, or, to cut corners just multiply the distance to the target in yards times 36. The answer is the distance to the target in inches. Save that answer.
(Using my numbers that would be 20 yards times 3 = 60 feet, times 12 = 720 inches.)
Now, divide the distance the shot on the target needs to move (in inches) by the distance to the target in inches.
(Carrying on with my example, 5 inches low/720 inches = .0069 or, rounding that off to three places, .007.)
Now, multiply that value times the distance between the sights.
(Since the sights are 8 inches apart we have 8 times .007 = .056 inches.) That's how much needs to be removed from the front sight.
If there isn't enough material to remove that much from the front sight, adding that much material to the height of the rear sight will do the same thing.
In other words, the amount that needs to be changed is a "total change" in height between both the front and rear sight.
Oh. For those who want to impress their "significant other" tell her, "I just used my skills in Trigonometry to calculate the amount of change I need to make on my gun." You see, dividing the distance the shot needs to move by the distance to the target equals Tangent A for the angle of the error. Multiplying the distance between the sights times Tangent A gives me the amount of correction needed to fix the error.
She will be so impressed her next response will be, "Take out the garbage."
Last edited:
