Posted: 7/24/2006 7:09:55 AM EDT
| I have a loaded springfield with adjustable sights and want to replace them with fiber optics. How do I get the old doves tail out and the new ones from dawson in? I'm asking before I try so I don't do anything stupid with my BFH. |
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Take it to a smith. I only say that because most people will make a mistake the first time, not with removal, but with installation of the new sight. There are many ways to do this, but I'll go over the easiest way for a do it yourselfer. This will be sort of long and there will be some little details that, while not neccessary to follow, will guarantee that the removal and subsequent installation goes easier. Look at your gun. Is there a hole in the top of the front sight? If so, that hole is for a roll pin. If there is a hole, check to make sure the roll pin is actually present. If there is a rill pin, you need an actual roll pin punch to drive it out. You can use a regular punch of the appropriate size, but you stand a high chance of flaring out the top of the pin, and making it harder or impossible to drive out. Also, if there is a roll pin hole in the slide and sight, you will definitely need a roll pin punch to drive on the new pin. If there is a roll pin, use a 1/16" inch roll pin punch to drive it out the bottom. Obviously, the slide will have to be devoid of barrel and barrel bushing. Do this by placing the slide in a vise. Make sure the slide is padded in the vise, prefferably in leather padded vise jaws. Otherwise, pad with rubber vise jaws or a thick layer of tape. Once you drive the pin out the bottom, make sure there isn't a raise burr on the bottom of the pin hole. If there is, dress it lightly with a round file, sanding paper, etc. The object is to be able to put the bushing back in, so make sure there bushing fits after removal of the front sight roll pin, if one is present. From here, make sure the slide is positioned in your vise with the front of the slide back in the vise jaws. Ideally, you want the front sight placed in the middle of the vise jaws so that the vise has as little room for flex as possible. This will make removal easier, as energy is transferred to the sight more efficiently when hitting the punch you will be using. Now, you will need a punch and a hammer. Thepunch should be brass, ideally with a squared off tip. You can have a round punch, but it can move around easier. You can also have a nylon punch, but it will absorb some of the energy of your hammer blows, making it harder to remove the sight. You will want a punch that is not too long, but long enough that you can hold it properly. The point is, if you have a skinny punch, and it's long, it will bend. Pad the front sight a little with tape. I use masking tape, one layer. Then, I fold some masking tape, about 4 to 6 layers, as a little piece of padding to put between the punch and the sight. You can use a piece of card stock, or whatever. Keep in mind, the punch will go through whatever padding you use in just a few blows. This will not be important when you remove the old sight, but it will be important if you want to keep from marking your new sight. Punch out the old sight with the hammer and punch. Check your work often to make sure you don't punch through whatever padding you use. Once it gets near the end of the dovetail, go slow, and be careful not to send the sight flying. You don't have to take all this care removing the old sight, but it's not a bad idea, as you might want to keep it as a spare, or you might sell it, depending. Installation, though it can be simple, has many more considerations. First, look at your new sight. Does it have sharp edges on the dovetail? If so, they need to be de-burred. Also, no two sights are identical, and though the dovetail should measure .330" wide to the theoretical corners, by .075" deep, by 65 degrees, your dovetail on your sight could be .331 wide, or the dovetail in the sight could be as small as .325", for example. When dovetails are cut in slides, they are usually cut with a .330" cutter. That means that dovetails cut with a fresh cutter will be .330", while a slightly used or worn cutter will be smaller. As a result, most sights are an overly tight fit, and absent a sight pusher that will force it in, you will need to dress the sight down using a dovetail file of 65 degrees. These files are hard to find. You can get one through Brownells, but it will cost about the price of installation by a gunsmith. Other things to consider is that it will take some trial and error fitting to know if you tool the correct amount of metal off the front sight dovetail, if any removal is needed at all. You will also have to take great care in keeping the file parallel to the sight while filing, if filing is necessary. Finally, when installing the new sight, you need to take great care in driving the sight in straight, both up and down, and from side to side. You also need to ensure the sight goes in with the dovetail bottomed out. So, if you still want to put in the new one, pad it like you did during removal. Drive it in. Direction doesn't matter (except for Heinie fronts, but that's another story). Once it's in, if there was a roll pin present, make sure the holes are lined up. If they are lined up from side to side, but not front to back, drill with the appropriately sized drill bit in a drill press, dress the hole, and drive in the roll pin with a roll pin punch. This is all very detail intensive. Failure to do it correctly can result in a loose fit. You can also drive it in with the dovetail not bottomed out, and compress the dovetail to the point that only the corners are truly holding the sight in place. Do this, and over time, it will loosen, and one day fly off. Installation can be done by a careful person, but it's just easier to have an experienced smith do it. |
