Front sight taper?

[Eutycus]

Believe me I am no gunsmith but I do like to tinker.Many years ago I bought a Stevens Youth Model 15-A. for $20.00. I decided to "cut it down". I shortened the barrel and filed a groove for the front sight and cut off part of the stock. But I filed kind of crooked. The sight is not level and it's out of kilter.It's probably good enough for a .22 and some rat shot. One of my next projects is (finally) to possibly try and straighten out the front sight. To take the old one off I need to probably tap it out. Do they have a slight taper and need to be punched out in one direction?

 

[5whiskey]

Generally no, it should punch out from either direction. Tapered dovetails are possible, and I'm sure there is one out there somewhere, but I dare say 95%+ aren't. Machining a tapered dovetail is much more complex, there are almost no advantages, and there are disadvantages (lack of adjustment being the main one).

 

[PO2Hammer]

I’m not a gunsmith, but I believe some of the old guns had tapered dovetail slots and were designed for in and out on the right side, but my memory is fuzzy.

 

[The Happy Kaboomer]

Most quality guns have tapered dovetails..............Instruction are given on which way to tap(or use a pusher) out & back in........I think S&W is right to left looking from the rear of the slide.

 

[Eutycus]

So I got a 50 50 shot at getting the correct side if I used the right side. It's just a cheap little .22. It'll probably wind up in the rafters of my back porch loaded with snake or rat shot.

 

[Eutycus]

So which is it? Right to left or left to right to remove the old sight?

 

[PO2Hammer]

I bet more knowledgeable folks will be awake in a few hours if you can wait, but I would bet out to the right when viewed from the shooting position.

 

[Eutycus]

I bet more knowledgeable folks will be awake in a few hours if you can wait, but I would bet out to the right when viewed from the shooting position.

I am in no hurry, this gun has been "messed up" for over 30 years.

 

[Show Me]

Generally yes the sight it's self can be tapered. Lyman and Marbles are marked and can be seen on the bottom.
A magnifying glass will help identify which way it was tapped in as the metal will be disturbed. Plus they may have left a punch mark.
I remove left to right

 

[Varminterror]

Not ALL sights are arranged as such, but traditionally, sight grooves are parallel, but the sights themselves are tapered to be driven into the groove from left towards right, as viewed from the chamber end. Going into the rifle towards the port, and out of the rifle by drifting away from the port.

Again, not all sights have a taper to the dovetail, but those that do almost unilaterally are wider on the left than the right, made to be drift in left to right, and drifted out right to left.

 

[Eutycus]

If the sights themselves are wider on the left, right to left would be the correct direction to use for removing?

 

[Varminterror]

If the sights themselves are wider on the left, right to left would be the correct direction to use for removing?

Going into the rifle towards the port, and out of the rifle by drifting away from the port.

drifted out right to left.

 

[Show Me]

Yep , I'm looking over my sight collection and the new Marbles front sights I brought up install from the right. Very noticeable.
Three new folding rear sights are parallel. So they don't matter.
All my other sights have been in and out and adjusted bunch.
But you can tell which way tight ones went in with magnification .it will raise metal.
When their wore it simply dosent matter.

 

[Eutycus]

I forgot to add that I cut down and shortened that rifle years ago for a nephew who was 10 or 11 at the time. It fit him well back then but he's 45 now with shoulders way bigger than mine. And I got a "kid's gun" now. But it aims pretty good for having a crooked sight and a very short stock.One handed with rat shot it handles kind of like a pistol.I may just leave it as it is.It has memories.