Postion of iron sight

18 February 2008, 03:40

I am getting ready to order some NECG sights for a Lott project and have a question.
Generally speaking, how far in front of where the barrel joins the action do you mount the rear sight?

My biggest fear is when I die my wife will sell my guns for what I told her they cost.

18 February 2008, 05:33

ROSCOE

I measured several of my rifles and they all are between 5" and 7" with most closer to 5". These were both custom rifles and factory rifles. One thing to consider is the scope. Make sure you have some room if you plan on using a low mount or a large bell scope. Hope this helps.

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R. Lee Ermey: "The deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and his rifle."
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We're going to be "gifted" with a health care plan we are forced to purchase and fined if we don't, Which purportedly covers at least ten million more people, without adding a single new doctor, but provides for 16,000 new IRS agents, written by a committee whose chairman says he doesn't understand it, passed by a Congress that didn't read it but exempted themselves from it, and signed by a President, with funding administered by a treasury chief who didn't pay his taxes, for which we'll be taxed for four years before any benefits take effect, by a government which has already bankrupted Social Security and Medicare, all to be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese, and financed by a country that's broke!!!!! 'What the hell could possibly go wrong?'

My biggest fear is when I die my wife will sell my guns for what I told her they cost.

18 February 2008, 07:17

Duane Wiebe

Do you remember seeing old flintlocks with about three dovetails on the barrel? As the shooter got older, he needed the rear sight further away to "focus"...The older you are, the futher down the barrel the rear sight goes. M-70's were at 4" (young guys can use this to advantage)

18 February 2008, 07:23

TMG

After handling a couple of different rifles to check it, I think that (for me) rear sights that are further down the barrel are 'pointier' i.e. quicker to get on target and maintain your focus on the target - probably from what Duane describes. This despite the fact that my vision is 20/20. On the rifle I currently like best, this distance is 6"

Since you mention a Lott, I would assume you want it to handle like a shotgun and get on target quickly, with a minimum of visual fiddling.

As usual just my $.02
Paul K

18 February 2008, 20:04

montea6b

quote:
Originally posted by Duane Wiebe:
As the shooter got older, he needed the rear sight further away to "focus"...The older you are, the futher down the barrel the rear sight goes. M-70's were at 4" (young guys can use this to advantage)

That is an interesting concept. The technique I was taught was that the rear sight should be blurred. Eyeball focus should be on the front sight, and you can't really move that out without going to a longer barrel!

18 February 2008, 20:40

Marc_Stokeld

For everyone's eyes, the farther down the barrel the rear sight, the faster the sight picture aquisition. The closer to the eye the rear sight, the more precision is possible, but at price of decreased speed in aquisition of sight picture.

It is a trade off between precision and speed, and yes, your individual eyeball ability is a factor in what is practical for your rifle. Someone who required tri-focals is really screwed with iron sights. Well that is what all of the tri-focal wearing shooters have told me.

An interesting, yet at the same time personally depressing to me, realization last year was that I can no longer use vernier calipers. I also had trouble with my depth mic and outside mics. If I do not use an optivisor, then I am not 100% sure what I am looking at.

18 February 2008, 21:21

Wink

I'm finding that as I get older I shoot more accurately with peep sights as compared to other iron sights. Undoubtedly they will start looking "right" to me on rifles as well.