Changing sights??

[Slowhand Bob]

I have a pair of Pietta Navy's that are in bad need of new front sights.  The ones that came on them look like tiny inverted brass cones.  Has anyone replaced these in the past and know how I need to go about removing them?  If I can just get them out without damage to the guns then I would seek guidance on what and how to replace them with something decent for my old eyes!

[hellgate]

I filed off the front sight (or lifted it out of the hole) and epoxied a cut off #4X3/4" brass flat head wood screw (upside down). This fix made a nice tall bead/post that a little cold bluing "ages" it nicely and it looks good if you don't goop too much epoxy onto the barrel. Cut, size, & shape the "bead" before you glue it on. You can also drill out the philips head slots so there is a cone shaped area that fits over the original bead when you tip the screw onto the barrel.

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

I had brass dovetail front sights put on my '51 and a pair of Colt 51 R-Ms.  I was living in the same town as Gabriel Law at the time and be did the job.

Thanks for the tip on the brass screws, as I have a '62 Police requiring a higher front sight. Another project!

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[Slowhand Bob]

I would like to get something similar to the sights that came on my Pietta '62 models but think they would need to be soldered into a slot??  The little cones I need to remove are likely set in a small round hole with solder or perhaps just tension.  Anyone know for sure?  I have a friend of a friend who is a super machinist and could do the cut for a new sight if I can get this old one out and find the new sights.

[Blair]

Bob,

I think you will find most of the cone or bead type front sights are threaded to the barrel.
The tallest bead type front sight I know of is the one used by Euroarms on their Rogers & Spencer revolver. (about 3/32 tall)
I do not know if the thread will interchange between the Euro and Pietta ?
I hope this helps.
My best,
 Blair

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

The 1860 has a longtitudinal slot to hold the blade sight.  It was easy to have it removed and a taller one fitted. Me, I had it done by a gunsmith.

I don't think there is enough meat in the UBERTI 1862 Police barrel for a slot. (The Pietta, pseudo-police is different.) I like the idea of the replacement being epoxied or soldered on.  I was thinking about this one from TOTW;

http://www.trackofthewolf.com/Categories/PartDetail.aspx/874/3/FS-FUSIL-2-B

[Slowhand Bob]

Whether threaded or pressed in it will be a tough job getting them cones out, there is no purchase available to grip them with pliers or???

[hellgate]

Bob, you can get flush cut wire cutters at Harbor Freight for about 3 bucks. The sharp edge is flush with whatever you are cutting. They should be able to grip the brass enough to pop the sight out. My experience has been that the post sights are swaged in and not threaded. I have used small, tiny wire cutters to grab the sight and pry it up.

[Noz]

The Colt type guns sights are swaged in. They'll pop out with a little persuasion. If you are going to have the barrel slotted for a blade front sight, why not have the machinist make the slot the correct width to accept a coin of your choice. Many style points available there.

[rifle]

I know of a Hombre that made a larger cone that was inletted to fit well onto the small original Navy sight. He soldered or epoxied the new sight to the original. It stayed on.

[Blair]

Bob,

There is a small hand tool called a "Pin Vice".
This will grip the pin, or in this case the cone/bead type front sight from at least two side with equal pressure.
It works very much like a small hand drill, or Dremal tool type chuck.

Your machinist friend may have one?
People that work on shot guns will have them for replacing and or repairing the front sights on shot guns. (the shot gun bead front sights may also be a source for a larger dia. and/or taller sight for your revolver.
If you have a Harbor Freight near you, this may also be a source. Or there is always Brownell's.
My best,
 Blair

[Pettifogger]

The front sights aren't in there that hard.  You can pull them out with a quality pair of pliers or as noted above with a set of diagonals.  Just don't squeeze the diagonals to hard or you'll cut the sight off!

[Slowhand Bob]

Many years ago I found a tiny silver coin called a Spanish Real while metal detecting.  At some point, later on, I considered using it as a pistol sight and asked the wife to retrieve the coin for me, at which I was informed that I gave the coin to her and thus it was hers and sorry, no sight!  I inquired at what point I gave the coin to her and was promptly informed that when I walked in the door with it, I handed it to her and told her to put it away.  Thus I had given it to her!!!

I do like the sight that s on my Pietta '62s pretty well and might inquire as to whether they will sell them, if they have a US distributor.  If I end up having to buy the 'friend of a friend' the mill bit, it might be just as feasible to send the barls off and have it done. 

[Pettifogger]

I usually just mill them out with the slot for a new blade front sight like this cut down 51 Navy.  Most of the time I use brass instead of the steel one in the photo.  Then I square up the notch in the hammer.

[rifle]

What I do is to mill a sight the size I want it. Usually I start with a Remington dovetail sight. Then I mill the dovetail in the barrel with a  60 degree dovetail cutter ....... the smallist dovetail cutter available. I have the sight dovetailed with the same dovertail cutter used for the barrel. That way the angles are exactly the same and can make for a very precise fit.

That done and with the barrel still in the machine vise I start to check fer fit to get the sight in the dovetail TIGHT. Takes some patience and some do-in to get the dovetailed sight into the barrels dovetail cut tightly so no pegging or peening needs done to hold the sight firmly in the barrel. I do it so there's no loose to the fit of the sight to the barrel.
If the barrels cut is too tight then I carefully run the dovetail end mill across one side of the cut to make more room. Trial and error over and over till the sight can start in.

Always with no space under the sight. If the fit gets even a tiny bit loose I make a new sight and start fitting again. I don't like set screws in my dovetailed sights or sights that can move from shooting.

I leave the sight high so it can be filed to give the right elevation. I use the dovetail to move the sight for windage. After the gun is sighted so point of impact is the same as point of aim I file the ends of the dovetail base off flush with  the barrel and then refinish one way or the other.

Some times I leave some base on each side of the dovetail but round the sharp corners off so I don't cut myself while cleaning or handlng the revolver.

I go the dovetailed sight way for sighting in since all the guns don't shoot to point of aim with a blade that's centered.

I use the Remington sight since it can be milled to be just a short high blade typethat fits the look of a Navy. I have used a blade dovetail sight on a Navy for myself or if I help an Hombre with a sight and he/she likes the blade it can be there.

I can dovetail blade front sight an Army Colt or Pocket Police even with the cut being more shallow since a tight dovetail need not be real deep to be strong.

The 3/8's standard dovetail slot in a barrel is too wide fer a Navy Colt but looks alright on a Army Colt and can cover the ends of the existing slot where the blade once was.
The Army can look alright with a small width doverail base so.....I have at times had the ends of the slot only tack welded to cover the excess length of the existing blade slot. Filing the weld round with the contour of the barrel and that necessitates refinishing the barrel.

I like the Nitre Bluing so I do that at times but Dicropan IM from Brownells can do an alright job too. So can some of the slow rust blues around.

Anywhooooo I like the dovetailed front sight with the base ends filed flush with the barrel after sighting so the point of aim and point of impact can always be made the same.
A Navy Colt can look kinda cool with a brass blade front sight but I prefer the milled down Remington dovetailed sight made of iron and blacked or blued.....of course with the front sights back top corner rounded a lil and made shiny so my dang eyes can pick it up easier.

I may as well add this......A gunfighter of old back in the day was good if the point shooting was used where the front sight was not aimed with. I like to use the next best thing and that is a sight picture where the whole of the front sight is sitting on top the rear sight or at least in the middle of the rear of the barrel. I find where the gun hits that way and try to remember so....if I have to aim fast and no time to aim I can just find the whole height of the front sight and put the top of it where it will letthe ball/bullet hit ina good place(normally aim the top of the front sight on the belt line and hit center pie pan size somewhere in a chest area of an antaganist.

One weird thing....if a gun is sighted to hit pont nof aim with a proper sight picture it most ofter can be shot with a sight picture where the whole front sight is sitting on the top of the rear sight because......to do that the gun has to be lowered to get the top of the front sight sitting on top the rear sight on target so...lowing the gun when aiming with the blade atop the rear sight compensates for the gun shooting high with the front sight left so high in the sight picture. It has to do with the distance fromthe shooter to the target some too.

Not all guns can be aimed with the front sight left atop the rear and hit close to where the top of the front sight is but some can do it. Depends. Sometimes the gun shoots a lil high so you shoot a lil lower on the target.
The idea is that the sight can be picked up quick when it;s not tried to be put down in the notch of the rear sight. It's sorta like point shooting with just the front sight on the target instead of trying to aim real fast with the front sight down in the rear sight which is slower.

Know what I mean? Try it....put a proper sight picture on the center of a target...then raise the front sight to be atop the rear...then lower the whole gun to have the top of the front sight on what you want to hit and fire and see where the ball/bullet goes. It may just go where the proper sight picture was aimed on the target.