Rear sight almost falling out

length_of_pull_1 · Nov 22, 2019

Hi everyone! I have a SAR B6 in 9mm that the rear sight is too loose to stay put. It may have been bumped, but certainly not dropped (it rode on the seat next to me for a road trip). The next time i took it to the range it was throwing lead off to the left, and I noticed the sight has slid over in the dovetail. It was loose enough to tap back to center with the slide of another gun and after I did that, it proceeded to move again with the next magazine full. When I got it home I realized how loose it was and thought I would try to blue Loctite it. The fit of the sight in the dovetail is still tight enough to push all the Loctite out but not hold the sight in securely. I have an ongoing conversation with SAR USA, but haven't heard anything to effect of this being a warranty issue (the gun is just about a year old). Does anyone have a good idea to tighten up the fit of the rear sight so I can shoot the thing again? Thanks in advance!

Kp321 · Nov 22, 2019

There are a couple of ways to fix this problem: Tighten the dovetail with a couple of center punch strikes on the flat bottom of the cutout or use "wicking" LocTite. Or both.

#1buck · Nov 22, 2019

You can also very gently peen the surface of the metal fore and aft of the dovetail with a brass hammer. I would do this or the center punch method at the bottom of the cut. I would not use Loctite.

BBBBill · Nov 22, 2019

Did you flush the dovetail with acetone or alcohol before applying Loctite? Any oil will prevent proper cure and bonding. Certainly sounds like a warranty issue to me.

skeeterfogger · Nov 22, 2019

Get another sight a bit too wide and hand fit it. Any peening or adhisives can fail.

SGW Gunsmith · Nov 22, 2019

If you dimple the bottom of the sight itself with some good enough hits from the punch to raise up several dimples of metal, those dimples will help raise the sight a bit higher enough in the slide dovetail to keep it from drifting either right or left. That process has worked for me many times on rear dovetail sights that became loose from adjusting for windage many times.
If you plan on using the same cartridge loads ALL the time, then I could understand doing the Loctite thing to make the setting more permanent. Or, you might consider installing a set-screw through the fixed rear sight. Turning the screw down will lift the sight up and hold it in place, yet still remain somewhat adjustable.

243winxb · Nov 22, 2019

Put a shim in the bottom of the dovetail. Hammer sight in. I use aluminum foil at the correct thickness. Trial & error fitting.

Blue68f100 · Nov 22, 2019

I would remove the sight and clean everything up. Then you can get a good idea as to what shim thickness is needed, like 243winxb. If it has some tension the green wicking Loctite will work well. It's a high strength adhesive that will hold it only if all the surfaces are clean.

Rear sight almost falling out

length_of_pull_1

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