What a Difference a Sight Makes...

Folks that have followed Hooligan threads know we enjoy shooting black powder. We like to make white smoke in BPCR's like our Sharps rifles, various BP revolvers like Walker's, Army's and Navy's and (of course) muzzle loader long guns. And the ML's we shoot range from cap locks like an 1861 Springfield and a Whitworth to rock rifles. With that said:

Last winter I picked up a Pedersoli Blue Ridge Flintlock. I didn't get much input on that thread: https://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=232254 At its first range trip I was not impressed. The rifle shot 15" low at 50 yards. No matter, with other priorities the rifle went on my back burner for a while.

Fast forward:

Rather than wait till next spring to figure out what the BR needed, I started looking for rear sights that would give me elevation adjustments. (Yeah, I could have filed down the front sight, but I didn't want to do that). I came up with this Marbles sight from Buffalo Arms: https://www.buffaloarms.com/marbles-flat-top-sporting-rear-sight-1-7-8-long-mar006301. For $20? it was sure worth a try! I spoke with the folks at BA. They were very helpful. The sight took <5 minutes to install!

You can see by our targets from today how much difference something as simple as an elevation adjustable sight can make on a flintlock. My first three shots at 25 yds with 90 grs. of 1.5G KIK BP and a .490 patched ball made it clear we now have elevation control.

For the 50 yd shot 4570 went up a notch with the same load. We should have stopped there for the day because it doesn’t get any better than that.

Having a sight that works makes all the difference. And I'm liking shooting "rock rifles" more after every range trip!

Nice shooting and Good info on the sight ! Seems like a cheap investment to make a rifle that much better.

Thanks OCJ

Having a sight system on a rifle that fits the need is a good thing. Especially when it only costs $20.

Fact is it's not as simple as "just replacing" a sight. I learned the first step was measuring what I had and calculating where I wanted to be. What I found was:

• The fixed factory rear sight (pics below) was .681 above the center line of the bore.
• The front sight was .809 above the bore C/L.
• With those measurements I could compare and estimate the elevation range above the bore C/L the adjustable Buffalo Arms sight would give me.
• Of course knowing the size of the dovetail is kinda important too.

It all comes down to numbers. And math is our friend!

j8064 said:

Thanks OCJ

Having a sight system on a rifle that fits the need is a good thing. Especially when it only costs $20.

Fact is it's not as simple as "just replacing" a sight. I learned the first step was measuring what I had and calculating where I wanted to be. What I found was:

• The fixed factory rear sight (pics below) was .681 above the center line of the bore.
• The front sight was .809 above the bore C/L.
• With those measurements I could compare and estimate the elevation range above the bore C/L the adjustable Buffalo Arms sight would give me.
• Of course knowing the size of the dovetail is kinda important too.

It all comes down to numbers. And math is our friend!

Click to expand...

You got it buddy, and yeah 20 bucks is Great !

Nice targets. That $20 sure was worth it, and it will pay future dividends!

Changed out the sights that came on my Blue Ridge for front and rear Lyman sights. The front has a white bead that helps it stick out in low light for deer season. It ain't PC or historic but I shoot it better.

Nice to know. That rifle is on my to get list.

Yet Another Sight Upgrade...

Most folks know we Hooligans also shoot a lot of BPCR's. Various Sharps and rolling block rifles typically find their way to our shoots. And we can thank 4570inMD for mentoring us a ton!

A Pedersoli 1874 Sharps joined my collection a couple of years ago. Being a competitive guy it was clear the original factory buck horn and blade sights weren't gonna make it. So I added an "entry level" Vernier tang sight from Track of the Wolf and a really nice Lee Shaver front globe sight (first two pics below). That as an improvement, but nowhere near the same league of my competitors like 4570 and CombatAK.

The TOW Vernier sight is OK, but wasn't going to work for me. My biggest hesitation was justifying a $400 investment in a quality tang sight to replace it. Then recently 4570 loaned me a Montana Vintage Arms Soule to try. OMG! It works great!

It was cold and windy yesterday. But my first range sight-in tests with the new sight set-up made a world of difference in my shot placements. The combination of the MVA Soule and the LS globe front sight helped me put hand loaded 45-70 BP rounds on target! Now it's a matter of figuring out the right load to keep groups tight enough to successfully get out to long range targets.

Oh, and the "sticker shock" of buying quality sights? That's gone. I spent another $100 today and ordered an MVA Magnum Eyedisc for it! https://montanavintagearms.com/product/sights/mva/eye-discs/

To quote my mentor's text to me today (that'd be 4570):

You have been thoroughly 'enabled'

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That's OK. It's what we do. And I'll say again: What a difference a sight makes!

You are going to love that Hadley eye disc!!! And when did we become competitors? I thought we were teammates?

CombatAK said:

You are going to love that Hadley eye disc!!! And when did we become competitors? I thought we were teammates?

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We are teammates! We learn a ton from each other and we always try to out shoot each other. That's part of the fun!

j8064 said:

Most folks know we Hooligans also shoot a lot of BPCR's. Various Sharps and rolling block rifles typically find their way to our shoots. And we can thank 4570inMD for mentoring us a ton!

A Pedersoli 1874 Sharps joined my collection a couple of years ago. Being a competitive guy it was clear the original factory buck horn and blade sights weren't gonna make it. So I added an "entry level" Vernier tang sight from Track of the Wolf and a really nice Lee Shaver front globe sight (first two pics below). That as an improvement, but nowhere near the same league of my competitors like 4570 and CombatAK.

The TOW Vernier sight is OK, but wasn't going to work for me. My biggest hesitation was justifying a $400 investment in a quality tang sight to replace it. Then recently 4570 loaned me a Montana Vintage Arms Soule to try. OMG! It works great!

It was cold and windy yesterday. But my first range sight-in tests with the new sight set-up made a world of difference in my shot placements. The combination of the MVA Soule and the LS globe front sight helped me put hand loaded 45-70 BP rounds on target! Now it's a matter of figuring out the right load to keep groups tight enough to successfully get out to long range targets.

Oh, and the "sticker shock" of buying quality sights? That's gone. I spent another $100 today and ordered an MVA Magnum Eyedisc for it! https://montanavintagearms.com/product/sights/mva/eye-discs/

To quote my mentor's text to me today (that'd be 4570):


That's OK. It's what we do. And I'll say again: What a difference a sight makes!

Click to expand...

Nice! I put a Lee Shaver "economy" mod-range soule sight and the same front globe on my Pedersoli Sharps. Really worth it for my needs. I've still got some work to do getting a load developed for 500yds, but it's a hoot.

My dad's CPA Stevens .40-65 has the MVA with the Hadley. Really great sights and would've been my choice if I was shooting more than I do.

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

Horseman308 said:

Nice! I put a Lee Shaver "economy" mod-range soule sight and the same front globe on my Pedersoli Sharps. Really worth it for my needs. I've still got some work to do getting a load developed for 500yds, but it's a hoot.

My dad's CPA Stevens .40-65 has the MVA with the Hadley. Really great sights and would've been my choice if I was shooting more than I do.

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

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I have the MVA mid range with the Hadley eyecup on my Shiloh Sharps 40-65. I don't think you can go wrong. I know that j8064 will have his 45-70 tuned in pretty quickly. We shoot quite a bit and I don't think there is anything that I enjoy shooting more than the Sharps. I do keep good company and that helps.

Horseman308 said:

... if I was shooting more than I do.

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The Hooligans can help you with that......

Come join us any Sunday morning & we'll help you get your rifle shooting as you like it, as well as sharing our rifles & pistols that have already proven themselves.

4570inMD