[Badger Arms]

RIFLE RIFLE, Rifle, rifle, rifle

Okay, why does anybody use these sights? I'm not sure that there is any advantage to the buckhorn style over the standard straight style or perhaps a peep or other form. Please enlighten me.

And for the moderators, I am referring to RIFLE sights attached to a RIFLED barrel on a RIFLE. Said rifle fires a projectile by the combustion of gunpowder in a metalic cartridge down a tube with CUTS IN THE SIDE which spiral. These cuts are also called RIFLING and therefore have relevance to this thread. These sights also happen to bear a resemblance to a certain mountain in Alaska. :scrutiny: :uhoh: :rolleyes:

[Triad]

Because that's what was on the rifle when they bought it? :confused:

I think a better question would be "Why do the makers put them on rifles?" I suspect the reason for that is cost. Buckhorns are probably the cheapest route you can take and still have a useful sight.

I think it would be neat if someone built a single skyscaper on the other side of that mountain :D

[Kaylee]

dude, you're in the clear. :)

I'm not to partial to the stock buckhorns on my 336, but the Cowboy Action folks I know have some pretty swoopy-cool buckhorns on their leverguns. The horns are long and thin enough, and curve around enough, that they're almost a proto-ghost ring sight.

THOSE are some pretty darn cool sights -- at least as quick as ghost rings, and just as precise. Combined with the little open-circle front sights it gets right hard to miss.

I tend to suspect that such are the original "buckhorns" and what we're saddled with now are a cost-cutting variant thereof. I could easily be wrong on that point though. Anyone know for sure?

-K

[Badger Arms]

One moderately useful variation is the Ashley Outdoors 'express' sight. This ballances a ball at the bottom of a shallow 'V' type rear sight. This places the front bead in the center of the target and makes a tritium front dot very useful. I think this is a fairly natural system. The buckhorn still perplexes me for the reason that it's not natural. The notch in the rear sight tempts me to place the bottom of the 'V' in the center of the target. The horns then block out more of the target area.

http://www.aosights.com/images/sa_03.gif

[Dr.Rob]

Well until someone shows me how to gage elevation on post and hole sights, buckhorns will still be my favorite. Looking OVER buckhorns at close (ie really close) range is akin to shooting a shotgun, put the front sight on it and bang.

There really is no mystery to it. And the idea of replacing good adjustable sights with something as crude as a "ghost ring" just doesn't feel right to me. (seeing as how the trend has been to make the ring bigger and bigger... something which doesn't lend itself to long range accuracy)

To each thier own.

[cracked butt]

I had a win 94 and found the sights to be almost useless. I put on a williams peep sight and it made a world of difference- easier and faster to aim, and made accurate shooting possible. I've shot alot of different types of rifles with iron sights and even greatly prefer the much maligned "vnotch-barleycorn" sights of mauser 98's to the crap that tends to end up on lever rifles.

[Detritus]

what most makers now call "buckhorn" sights, are actually SEMI-buckhorn sights. and in fact even then most shouldn't even be called that, having two bumps on teh outside corners of the rear blade does NOT a "buckhorn" or even "semi-buckhorn" make.

true buckhorn sights look like the pieces of animal anatomy they desribe, and are the one's in use by Kaylee's friends. they sweep up, around and over with an opening at the top of the sweep. think of a slightly thick sided ghost ring that thins toward the top then has a chunk or notch, cut out at the apex of the ring. then put a slight notch in the bottom for the bead on the front blade (or other front sight structure) to "rest" in. its a sort of cross between a peep and a "regular" sight.

(the following is how the usage of this sight type was explained to me, i am a devotee of peep-sights, tang and receiver peeps in particular, and don't use one so don't hold me to it)

the large semi enclosed opening helps you get the front sight in a fairly good alignment quicker, then you settle the bead into the notch, or adjust your sight picture accordingly to fit your need.

a semi-buckhorn whacks off the upper 1/3-1/2 of the "horns" and is what MOST of us have used/seen from the factory over the years on our lever rifles. they're easier/cheaper to produce, more astheticly pleasing to many, and b/c of the reduction in size/ projection from the barrel, not as easy to damage, or knock out of alignment. like, i am guessing, most of my fellow shooters (of my generation) that, grew up with rifles equipped with either scopes or peep sights. i find semi- and full buckhorn sights to be a bit slow and cumbersome to use. adn my wife who has tremendous difficulty with dealing with more than two focal planes at once (with a standard iron sight there are three, rear sight, front sight, target) they are dern near impossible.

[Kharn]

Could someone post a pic of 'buckhorn' sights? I'm not quite sure what they are (and am thus totally confused).

Kharn

[JohnBT]

http://cap-n-ball.com/thunder/sights.htm

The last section contains rear sight descriptions with pics.

John

[iamkris]

I use a set of full buckhorn sights from Marbles that I put on my Rossi 92 for Cowboy Action Shooting. They are extremely quick and accurate for rapid target acquisition and as mentioned above, the eye naturally centers the front sight in the "ghost ring" that is formed. Plus they look dramatic.