Adjusting Sights on GP 100**Updated with Sight Specs**

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Homerboy

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I have a 6" GP i got a few weeks ago. I was hitting high and left so I went to adjust. I had installed the Hi-Viz front sight already.

I know to turn the front sight screw right to bring the hits down. I have gone right as far as I can go, and it's better, but still hitting high.

I have turned the windage sight screw clockwise and that moves the sight blade to the left, so the hits are now going more right. Again, much better, but it looks so uneven in the sight base.

All shooting was done single action from a pistol rest.

Something I'm missing? I have a feeling the Hi-Viz is too high which is why I can't bring it down any further. That sucks because it's such an improvement over the stock sight. The windage being so far left just looks wrong to me.
 
What distance are you shooting, and how high are you hitting?

You might look into Dawson Precision sights. I have one of their fiber optic front sights on a GP100. It's very nice.

ETA: My experience with Ruger revolvers with adjustable sights, is that the barrels are not always clocked as well as I would like. So some of my rear sights are off to one side or the other.
 
10 yards. With it cranked all the way down I’d say 1.5-2” high. Next time I shoot it I’ll measure it. It was cold today. Might get out there again on Friday.
 
I have a Security Six that uses the same rear sight as a GP100 that hit high with the sight all the way down with my preferred load. I removed the rear sight blade, sanded it down a bit and painted where I had removed metal, then reinstalled the blade. Worked perfectly. The blade comes out fairly easily, reinstalling was more difficult but still not a big deal.
 
.308 Norma said:
Maybe, but it might be "something I'm missing" - if your front sight is too high, your gun is going to print low. Or am I not understanding what you meant?:)
Click to expand...


Then I guess I explained it wrong I'm not great with sights. The HiViz sight on the front is .350" tall, according to their website. I haven't touched that sight. I was hitting high so I was adjusting the rear adjustable sight. I turn the elevation screw clockwise to bring the point of impact down. I have turned it as far as it goes. It is still hitting high. An improvement over what it was but at 10 yards the shots are hitting high.
 
Oh, okay. I thought you were talking about adjusting the front sight - which, unlike the rear sight, needs to be moved in the opposite direction you want your point of impact to move. Thanks for clearing things up for me!:)
I probably can't help much, but have you tried different ammo? It's kind of counter-intuitive, but it's been my experience that lighter, faster bullets from a revolver usually print lower at close range than heavier, slower bullets. Which has been a pain for me at times because I like messing around with heavy for caliber bullets in my revolvers.
 
.308 Norma said:
I probably can't help much, but have you tried different ammo? It's kind of counter-intuitive, but it's been my experience that lighter, faster bullets from a revolver usually print lower at close range than heavier, slower bullets. Which has been a pain for me at times because I like messing around with heavy for caliber bullets in my revolvers.
Click to expand...

Excellent point! If you decide to change the front sight, you should do some testing with your preferred ammunition first.
 
WrongHanded said:
Excellent point! If you decide to change the front sight, you should do some testing with your preferred ammunition first.
Click to expand...

Thanks, guys. I'll check out Dawson. Hate that I bought the HiViz and it's gonna go to waste.

My ammo is going to be pretty much exclusively my reloads. 158 grain plated SWC bullets over Hp38 powder.
 
Homerboy said:
I have a 6" GP i got a few weeks ago. I was hitting high and left so I went to adjust. I had installed the Hi-Viz front sight already.

I know to turn the front sight screw right to bring the hits down. I have gone right as far as I can go, and it's better, but still hitting high.

I have turned the windage sight screw clockwise and that moves the sight blade to the left, so the hits are now going more right. Again, much better, but it looks so uneven in the sight base.
Click to expand...

If you are hitting left then you need to move the rear sight blade to the RIGHT not the LEFT. You need to move the rear sight the direction you want the bullet impact to move. And if you are hitting high then lower the rear sight. It sounds like you have done that and ran out of adjustment. In that case you will need a taller front sight. Did you try shooting the gun with the factory front sight? If so did it shoot to point of aim? If it did then you need a new front sight thats the same as the factory sight in height. And maybe get an experienced shooter to shoot your gun and see where he is hitting. Its not always the gun.

A friend wanted me to shoot his SA 1911 45acp. He was hitting way right and had the rear sight tapped halfway out of the dove tail. I tapped the rear sight back to center and put the very first shot dead center of the bullseye. Then I put another 7 rounds all around that first bullet hole. I gave him back his gun and the target and told him its not the gun. It was his shooting and that he needed more practice.
 
Homerboy said:
10 yards. With it cranked all the way down I’d say 1.5-2” high. Next time I shoot it I’ll measure it. It was cold today. Might get out there again on Friday.
Click to expand...
Not far enough. Sight clicks are 3/4" each at 25.
 
Ratshooter said:
If you are hitting left then you need to move the rear sight blade to the RIGHT not the LEFT. You need to move the rear sight the direction you want the bullet impact to move. And if you are hitting high then lower the rear sight. It sounds like you have done that and ran out of adjustment. In that case you will need a taller front sight. Did you try shooting the gun with the factory front sight? If so did it shoot to point of aim? If it did then you need a new front sight thats the same as the factory sight in height. And maybe get an experienced shooter to shoot your gun and see where he is hitting. Its not always the gun.

A friend wanted me to shoot his SA 1911 45acp. He was hitting way right and had the rear sight tapped halfway out of the dove tail. I tapped the rear sight back to center and put the very first shot dead center of the bullseye. Then I put another 7 rounds all around that first bullet hole. I gave him back his gun and the target and told him its not the gun. It was his shooting and that he needed more practice.
Click to expand...


I understand and was confused when I adjusted it. I am trying to move the impacts to the right. According to a diagram I downloaded from S&w, to move the rear sight to the right I should be turning the screw clockwise. I did that is it different for a Ruger?
 
Homerboy said:
I understand and was confused when I adjusted it. I am trying to move the impacts to the right. According to a diagram I downloaded from S&w, to move the rear sight to the right I should be turning the screw clockwise. I did that is it different for a Ruger?
Click to expand...

I don't remember but you can download the manual from the Ruger site. It shouldn't take but a couple of seconds to figure out what direction to turn the screw. Turn the screw to tighten and I think the rear blade will move to the right.
 
Ratshooter said:
I don't remember but you can download the manual from the Ruger site. It shouldn't take but a couple of seconds to figure out what direction to turn the screw. Turn the screw to tighten and I think the rear blade will move to the right.
Click to expand...

theres part of problem. Windage anyway. On a Smith, you turn clockwise to move right. On a Ruger, it’s counterclockwise.


same direction with elevation though. Clockwise should lower point of impact. I’m bottomed out on that one.
 
Regarding your rear sight windage adjustment:

I prefer to think of moving the sight to align with bullet impact. What I mean is this. Shoot a group from bags, and keep the sights pointed at the bullseye. Now move your head until the front sight is sitting on the group you shot (without moving the gun). Now look at the rear sight, and see that it's not lined up. Whatever direction it needs to go to make it line up....is the direction it needs to go. :D

Also the windage screw (if I remember correctly) is a standard direction thread. Righty tighty, lefty loosey. Turning it clockwise will make the screw go in farther. If the screw goes in farther, the sight blade will be pushed the same direction.
 
OK I went and checked my GP and my Security Six. They both work the same way. Turn the screw clockwise and the rear sight moves left. Counter clockwise and the sight moves to the right.

To move your group to the right turn the screw like you are going to loosen it. Simple and took just a couple of seconds to figure out.
 
Well, here is what I do: I set my rear sight at about mid height, which generally makes me print a mite high. I then file the rear sight blade down instead of lowering the sight. Then when I'm pretty well on target use the elevation screw for fine adjustment. In this way I still have plenty of latitude if things go sour in the future.

And, for whatever its worth, I don't like to shoot from a rest or sandbags while sighting in as shooting off hand often times prints differently due to the recoil differences.

Bob Wright
 
Homerboy said:
Thanks, guys. I'll check out Dawson. Hate that I bought the HiViz and it's gonna go to waste.

My ammo is going to be pretty much exclusively my reloads. 158 grain plated SWC bullets over Hp38 powder.
Click to expand...

Seriously, remove the rear sight blade and sand it down, it’s free only costs you maybe 20 minutes of your time and you get to keep the front sight you like.
 
Homerboy said:
I have a 6" GP i got a few weeks ago. I was hitting high and left so I went to adjust. I had installed the Hi-Viz front sight already.

I know to turn the front sight screw right to bring the hits down. I have gone right as far as I can go, and it's better, but still hitting high.

I have turned the windage sight screw clockwise and that moves the sight blade to the left, so the hits are now going more right. Again, much better, but it looks so uneven in the sight base.

All shooting was done single action from a pistol rest.

Something I'm missing? I have a feeling the Hi-Viz is too high which is why I can't bring it down any further. That sucks because it's such an improvement over the stock sight. The windage being so far left just looks wrong to me.
Click to expand...

You say: "I know to turn the front sight screw right to bring the hits down."
Do you mean REAR site??

Had the same deal going on with my 6" GP100
Rear site bottomed out, still hitting high.
I filed the top of the rear site blade down...
You can file the notch deeper too, if you like, I didn't though.
Replacement blades are cheap and I have several "spares".
worked for me,
:D
 
Last edited:
Tilos said:
You say: "I know to turn the front sight screw right to bring the hits down."
Do you mean REAR site??

Had the same deal going on with my 6" GP100
Rear site bottomed out, still hitting high.
I filed the top of the rear site blade down...
You can file the notch deeper too, if you like, I didn't though.
Replacement blades are cheap and I have several "spares".
worked for me,
:D
Click to expand...


Yes. The rear sight. I never touched the front sight.
Take the rear sight out and file along the top? Wouldn’t it be likely it wouldn’t be even?
 
Homerboy said:
Yes. The rear sight. I never touched the front sight.
Take the rear sight out and file along the top? Wouldn’t it be likely it wouldn’t be even?
Click to expand...
It depends on your filing skills, I file it at an angle, lower in the front to get a knife edge on the rear edge, for a nice crisp site picture.
You can file, measuring both sides as you go to keep it parallel/even, using the appropriate size file, even a needle handle file.
Here's a front site Ruger sells for the GP100, should be the right height, is this the sight have?
https://shopruger.com/GP100-Lite-Wave-Front-Sight-Set/productinfo/80630/
:D
 
Tilos said:
It depends on your filing skills, I file it at an angle, lower in the front to get a knife edge on the rear edge, for a nice crisp site picture.
You can file, measuring both sides as you go to keep it parallel/even, using the appropriate size file, even a needle handle file.
Here's a front site Ruger sells for the GP100, should be the right height, is this the sight have?
https://shopruger.com/GP100-Lite-Wave-Front-Sight-Set/productinfo/80630/
:D
Click to expand...
My filing skills are non existent. I’d butcher it if I tried.
I don’t have that sight. I have the HiViz sight.
https://www.amazon.com/HIVIZ-GPLW01...s&qid=1587613297&sprefix=ruger+gp100+s&sr=8-1



First review in it says it changed the hold the shooter has to use and he’s bottomed out and it’s still aiming high. He likes the sight enough (and I do too) that he’s ok with lowering his home a bit. Also, I’m used to shooting by covering the bullseye with my front sight. The owners manual says to use a six o,clock hold which should bring it down as well.
 
Last edited:
On a Ruger, it’s counterclockwise.
Click to expand...
Ruger revolver sights follow the right hand rule for both windage and elevation screws. Make a fist with your right hand but leave the thumb sticking out. Point your thumb in the direction you want the point of impact to move and the fingers of your fist will curl in the direction that you should turn the screw.
 
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