Help needed-installing PGW Speed Sight front sight

[TheOtherLeft]

Hi pards,

I'm having trouble installing a replacement front sight into my Uberti 1873.

I bought a PGW Speed Sight and its dovetail seems to be too big to fit into the barrel dovetail. The factory sight came out very easy as it's obviously undersized and they use a grub screw to keep it in place. When I try to install the Speed Sight using a brass-faced hammer I can see deformation in both the barrel dovetail and the Speed Sight dovetail. Obviously it's meant to be an interference fit but this seems a little extreme if there's this much deformation.

Here's a few pics of what I mean:




Circled is the deformed dovetail slot.





Circled is the deformed sight dovetail compared to the factory sight.

I'm using a Lyman brass-faced hammer. Am I meant to use something else?

Note: I installed a Marbles flat top rear sight and it went in with a bit of force bit neither the sight or barrel deformed.

Thanks.

EDIT: I meant to post this in the Gunsmithing page and can't seem to delete this one.

[Buck Stinson]

If Uberti uses the standard Winchester dovetail size, all of these guns should be 3/8th's inch.  Your Speed Sight may actually be more of a universal size, which means it will have to be fitted to your dovetail.  Do not file the barrel dovetail to fit the sight.  File the sight to fit the dovetail.  If you file the barrel, it will be difficult if not impossible to use any standard front site on the gun in the future.

[Lefty Dude]

The sight must be fitted to barrel dove tail. Do not file the barrel dove tail, except to remove burrs in the channel. I have a special small triangle safe file, the bottom is flat & smooth. I use this to clean up any burrs in the channel.
Then the fitting of the new sight begins.
I use an oil stone and only stone the bottom of the sight. At this point, it is a trial and fit procedure. Usually if you can get the sight started with very little resistance in the first 1/4 of the dove - tail, the sight will be able to be tapped in and secure. However this is not for certain, I go slowly on the trial & fit. Just remember, do not stone the side angles of the sight, only the bottom.

If you some how go to far, and the sight is not tight in the dove-tail. You can use a brass drift punch and peen the top on the rear barrel angle of the slot, then install the sight. If you do this, be careful not to collapse the dove-tail.


 

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[Cutter Carl]

The dovetail is slightly tighter on one side than the other.  If I remember correctly it taps out from the left of the barrel to the right and in from the right to the left.

As already stated stone the new sight on the bottom only 2 or 3 passes at the most then trial fit.  It should go in with finger pressure only from 1/4 to 1/3 of the way.  Once you reach that point it taps in the rest of the way.