[BamBam-31]

I have a Springfield Loaded that groups a bit to the right. At first, I thought I was me, that I was holding the gun skewed or something, but it keeps doing it for me AND my buddy (and he's a darn good shot). I've concluded that the sights are off.

How would I go about adjusting them? They're Novak's, if that makes any difference.

Thanks in advance. :)

[444]

You buy a set of brass punches and drift the sight in it's dovetail by tapping the sight with a brass punch and hammer. Obviously you use the brass punches so you don't mar the finish of the gun. The brass will make the metal yellow, but it comes right off.

[bountyhunter]

Two ways:

1) If the rear sight is a drift adjustable sight, you can try to move it by smacking it with a punch (often doesn't work and tears up the slide). Or go to a smith who will have a sight pusher. You push the rear sight in the direction you want the point of impact to move to. If you know exactly how far the group is centering to the right and at what distance, the amount of movement of the sight needed is easily calculated.

2) You can file the slot in the rear sight to widen it, effectively moving the "center point" where the front blade will be when it is centered in the rear notch. That can be kind of tricky if you don't have a good set of jeweler's files or aren't good at fine work. Bear in mind, that will increase th width of the "light bars" on each side of the front blade when sighting.

[444]

"Often doesn't work, and tears up the slide"
:confused:

That hasn't been my experience. I am not the most experieced person in the world, but I have done it quite a few times including on a loaded Springfield with Novak sights. If you are tearing up the slide, you are using way too much force. Yes, a sight pusher is better, if you own one. Taking it to a gunsmith would be a hit or miss affair, how does he know how far to push it ? If it isn't going to be right on the money, then why move it at all ?

[Zorro]

Then again. You might just as well find a load that shoots to the point of aim an go with it.

:)

[Standing Wolf]

Bear in mind, that will increase th width of the "light bars" on each side of the front blade when sighting.

The older I get, the more I appreciate wider rear sight notches: it's easier to see light than dark.

[CWL]

Those too cheap to buy a punch can use a wooden dowel.

[railroader]

Since your shooting right you will need to drift the sight to the left. If you don't have a padded vice get a buddy to hold your gun solid on a piece of carpet so you don't scratch it up. Mark the slide with a pencil so you can see when the sight moves when you are whacking on it.. When it does move shoot it from some kind of rest so you can get a decent group. If it is still off smack it some more and shoot it some more untill you get it. Good luck. Mark

[Gordy Wesen]

I use a wooden dowel too. Like the guy says: "smack it some more and shoot it some more untill you get it." If it has a set screw be sure to loosen it first.:D

[clown714]

CAUTION!

don't use a punch on night sights;)

clown

[E357]

Assuming you have a 5 inch slide with a 6 inch sight radius. And I am sorry for the Math about to come.

X is the amount to want to move the sight left.

so

X / (sight radius) == (new impact position) / total range

so at 50 feet (600 inches) if you want to move one inch:

x / 6.0 == 1.0 / 600

or x = 6/600 or X = 0.01 inches

You move the sight 0.01 inches to the left

I think that's correct.

Elliot

[BevrFevr]

Thank you for the math E357. That should save me alot of grief.

On my pistol there is a place where the front of the rear sight meets the slide where it was hit with a steel punch to pinch the sight tightly in place. This was done at the factory. CZ75b.

My question is... After I drift my rear sight do I need to re tighten the sight with another tap to the slide?

Also would the process be made any easier if the slide was hot or cold?

-bevr

[doctorhumbert]

I'd use white Nylon sight punch sold by brownells ($3~4). Make sure frame is secured in the vice, and tap it with hard mallet. Indoor range I go to had a vice so I could do this easily without paying anyone.

[Handy]

I have come across sights on more than one occasion that couldn't be moved reliably with anything but a brass punch - softer punches would only knock the sight great distances, but wouldn't tap in a fine adjustment.

My brother came up with a good alternative: he installed metallic sights in his Glocks by whacking them in place with the soft plastic handle of a cheap screwdriver - essentially using it as a mallet with no punch. Worked well, no marks.

For a vice pad, a leather belt works well. Might not want to use your favorite, but the leather is big and thick enough to protect the slide from even a sharply checkered vice.

[jmbrowning]

Growing up I had a major problem trying to adjust my iron sights. I would take a rifle shooting perfectly low on a target and turn it into an excellent sod tiller by cranking the point of impact even further down.

Easy way to remember which way to move the sights relative to which way you want the point of impact to move.

FORS

Front sight movement is Opposite to the change in point of impact.

Rear sight movement is Same as the change in point of impact.

Lemme tell you, remembering FORS is a lot easier than cranking the front sight on an AR six revolutions with a cartridge instead of a sight tool!

[bountyhunter]

"That hasn't been my experience. I am not the most experieced person in the world, but I have done it quite a few times including on a loaded Springfield with Novak sights. If you are tearing up the slide, you are using way too much force."

I've tried to "drift" exactly two sights in my life, one was on a Beretta 92 and the other was on a Browning HP. On the BER, I put the slide in a vise and beat on the side of the sight with a punch until it was so flattened the side of the sight I was hitting was 2X taller than the other side. IT NEVER MOVED.

On the HP, I was finally able to get the sight out but had beat it flat sided in the process. In both cases, gunsmiths were required. Many guns have sights which simply can not be moved.

[Handy]

Well yeah, if you use a punch made of a harder material then the sight. Brass is the hardest punch material you use on a gun, unless you're staking something.

Sometimes you'll get a sight that won't move. You'll know this because the punch begins to deform.

[SteelyDan]

I usually just heat up the barrel and then bend it in the direction of the sight...:)

[bountyhunter]

"Sometimes you'll get a sight that won't move. You'll know this because the punch begins to deform."

YES. And that is the point where you switch from the brass punch to the steel one, thinking it HAS to move then. And when the sight is beaten lopsided and still won't move, you take it to a gunsmith. I was installing a new rear sight anyway, so I didn't care what happened to the old ones. It's just interesting how the gun makers call them "drift adjustable" when the truth is Superman couldn't move them.

[BamBam-31]

Thanks for the replies. I was wondering if I had one of those immovable sets of sights. :D

Before this thread, I used a brass punch on the rear sight (after removing the set screw) while the gun was laid out on a piece of carpet. Wouldn't budge.

Last night, I marked the rear sight with a pencil, wrapped it in an old belt, and carefully placed it in a vise. Same brass punch, different results. I tapped the rear sight over a bit with little effort.

As for which way, I only get confused when I think about it. When I don't, it actually makes a lot of sense. I don't have any kind of device to measure exactly how far I tapped it over, so I guesstimated using the pencil lines. Time to go to the range to find out, eh?

Thanks again, folks. :)