Exabits post about trading in his 458 for the new .375 got me to thinking about my .375 and its sights.
I have a Win M70 Classic Stainless synthetic in .375 that I just love. However the only thing I don't like is the front sight.
Do any of you have an idea for a "bolt on" front sight for this gun that will look good, function well and by bolt on I mean possibly screw into existing holes and no sweating or milling involved?
I'd like to find this sight in stainless if possible but may "coat" the whole gun someday anyway.
Thanks for all your opinions.
Snellstrom

I really like the Williams ramped sight with the hood.....it's a good looker and holds a mirade of sights and sizes.

It's available in a 6 x 48 screw on model and while one may have to drill and tap a hole it's well worth it.

I really don't like heating barrels but it's not a very bad thing to do.....lots of items are sweated on.

Here's one on a 6.5 X 55

Did you look at New England Custom Gun (NECG) as they made the sights you already have and have many others, some of which you might like better and probably would be easily adapted to your existing gun.

The front sight on my Safari Classic Express is okay (or easily replaced), but the flip up rear seems like a poor design for an emergency sight, what with all the adjustments, screws, hinges & springs. Is there a screw-on rear island that will use the existing screw holes and accept a single blade fixed rear sight (and when I say fixed I mean the kind a fella needs a brass drift and a file to zero)?

I do believe that some of the later Stainless 375 Classics came w/ NECG rear sights same as the Safari Express but the older flip-up models are not NECG. I also believe that the front sights are actually Williams Streamline same as in the pic above. My newest Winchester purchased just prior to end of production does have a Williams Streamline base w/ a Williams 3/32 bead and a Williams hood. It also has the NECG rear sight.

Ruger has factory Stainless banded bases but are only available in .613 ID (used on barrels up to approx .630 muzzle) and the next size is .750 ID (used on all their large calibers). If your Winchester muzzle is between approx .615 to .630 it should work. you can use factory Ruger beads, NECG Ruger beads or re-cut the dovetail and use NECG Masterpiece beads.

The ramps,hoods and sights ARE Williams, I had no problem with mine, other than not likeing the small silver bead. I replaced it with the Williams Firesight bead and hood, its a definite improvement, but still not perfect.

quote:

Originally posted by loboga:
The ramps,hoods and sights ARE Williams, I had no problem with mine, other than not likeing the small silver bead. I replaced it with the Williams Firesight bead and hood, its a definite improvement, but still not perfect.

Do you feel that the firesight is robust enough for rough handling, or would you carry a back up just in case?

If I may make a suggestion:

Toss the front bead and the rear sight. Replace the rear sight w/ either the Brockman pop-up or the XS ghost/peep. The factory Williams Streamline base should have a flat on the top that is a bit longer than .700" w/ the 3/8" dovetail centered. This happens to match the XS Sights new 24/7 Tritium Stripe blade front sight which has a base that is .700" long and a 3/8" centered dovetail. They make this blade in numerous heights all the way up to .600". At most, you would need to swap out to a different height Williams base to regulate w/ the correct height blade.

I cannot think of anything as rough and tumble as this that would be easy to see in most shooting situations.

The Firesight bead is a bit fragile, I wouldn't want to rely on it without using the special cutout hood that they make for use with it AND I would use a drop of red loctite to keep the hood from getting knocked off.

quote:

Originally posted by loboga:
The Firesight bead is a bit fragile, I wouldn't want to rely on it without using the special cutout hood that they make for use with it AND I would use a drop of red loctite to keep the hood from getting knocked off.

Thanks for the response.

Gary VA I like your idea about the Brockman pop-up but while thinking of that I thought of this...... go to the front sight set-up you suggested and have a machinist work up a little peep or ghost ring sight that will fit in my Leupold quick release scope base. I thought this would be slick, only thing is I'd have to install a trap on my rifle to store the sight. Also no adjustment for windage if needed and you'd have to work with different front sight heights to regulate it. The Brockmans sounds great but I've heard there are issues if you have a Leupold 2.5-8 scope which is my scope of choice on this gun.

Take a look at the NEC banded front sights. A 0.571" fits very nicely, put a 0.256" fiber optic bead and the windowed hood and you have a very nice looking, bulletproof set-up. The fiber optic bead is a huge improvement.

quote:

Originally posted by Snellstrom:
Gary VA I like your idea about the Brockman pop-up but while thinking of that I thought of this...... go to the front sight set-up you suggested and have a machinist work up a little peep or ghost ring sight that will fit in my Leupold quick release scope base. I thought this would be slick, only thing is I'd have to install a trap on my rifle to store the sight. Also no adjustment for windage if needed and you'd have to work with different front sight heights to regulate it. The Brockmans sounds great but I've heard there are issues if you have a Leupold 2.5-8 scope which is my scope of choice on this gun.

Snellstrom,

I spoke w/ Brockman about the 2.5-8 scope recently. I recall him saying that "it gave him fits" because it has the shortest max ring spacing of all the scopes. He did say that he can make his sights work if he installs them because he can make modifications. I'd suggest you contact him if that is what you want but keep in mind that the pop-up peep is more geared as a back-up sight than a main ghost sight. But w/ that said, there is no form of fiber optic bead front blade I've ever seen or used that I would consider tough (w/ or w/out hood). A stout Brockman front blade w/ a Tritium installed bead or a stout XS front blade w/ the new Tritium installed stripe are combat tough.