Kentucky rifle sights

[Diggers]

A while back I posted about the sights on my Pedersoli rifle being way off, shooting so low I had to aim above the target even at 25 yards.

I ordered a shorter front sight from track of the wolf to fix this problem. Actually I ordered two, the first one's base was just a bit too small and would just slide right though the dove tail. The second was a bit too big and i had to file it down a little to fit, but it fits. Odd how there doesn't seem to be any real standard.

I went to the range yesterday to see how it worked. I shot at 50 yards, the first shot was right in line but about 5 inches low the next 3 were in the same ball park. I ended up taking off about 3mm of the sight to get the POI right at the top of the sight at 50 yards. It was actually a pretty enjoyable process.

I then started messing around with the patches. I've been using .01 patches in my .50 cal with 65 grains of BP. I realized that these patches are being badly burnt so I ordered some .015 cotton and some .018 pillow ticking patches to try. I was REALLY surprised at how much harder to start the .015 patches were, I had to actually hit the short starter a couple of times to get the patch/ball started and then pretty much beat it down the barrel with the range rod. These patches didn't burn through but they do make it tough to load. Forget loading it in a barrel with more than 2 shots through it with out a good cleaning afterward.

I honestly couldn't tell the difference in accuracy between the .01 patch and the .015 patches. I was shooting from sitting leaning on my elbows, there was enough wiggle in me that way to move things 2 or 3 inches at 50 yards. I'll need a rest for future tests.

Overall a very fun BP range day.

 

[razorback1010]

I shoot .495 bullets wrapped in .018 (pillow ticking) or .020 (cotton) patches. Like this, I just need to press hard on the starter to get the bullet in and then a firm pressure on the rod seats it. No mallet is ever used. As for the precision :

this group was obtained at 50 yards, standing position.

 

[Diggers]

Wow that must be pretty tight. I slap it in with my hand not a hammer but then it didn't slide down the barrel. I really had to ram it down with the range rod maybe 6 inches at a go.

So do others here have to this in their rifles or is that kind of odd?

 

[razorback1010]

My barrel is .502, the bullets are .495 so with a .015 patch I would merely match the diameter of the barrel. With .018 or .020 patches, I need to apply a moderate pressure to force the bullet in the barrel and I guess I'm just at the right tightness. As for fouling, I shoot without any problem 15 shots in a row, using wonder lube patches.

 

[arcticap]

My barrel is .502, the bullets are .495 so with a .015 patch I would merely match the diameter of the barrel.

The patch thickness actually needs to be doubled before adding it to the ball diameter because it wraps around both sides of the ball.
Thus .495 ball + .015 patch + .015 patch = .525 total ball diameter with patch which is larger than the stated bore size of .502.

Every barrel has rifling of a different depth and the patch also compresses to some extent which affects how tight its fit will be.

 

[razorback1010]

Oops ! Bad maths from my side I forgot to add the other side of the patch. Another precision, my barrel is .502 at the top of the rifling and .535 at the bottom which explains my choice of bullets and patches.

 

[Diggers]

Humm, OK. Another thing I noticed is the .010 patch is a lot less stiff than the .015 patches. I'm wondering is the .01 patches are made out of something different that is less resistant to burning?

.010 patches I found were really a mess pretty much looked like burnt lint. The .015 patches were still in fine shape with a nice dark (not burnt) circle where the ball was.

Maybe the lube used? They were made by different makers.

 

[Cosmoline]

I've found that adjusting load levels makes a difference in accuracy, though more so with smoothbores than rifles. Just experiment with a range of combinations of patch, ball and load. You can use smaller balls with more patch or larger ones with thinner patches. Loading a tight fit can be a real challenge and that's one reason I much prefer shooting smoothbore flinters. They're nothing but fun, and no busted ramrods.

The second was a bit too big and i had to file it down a little to fit, but it fits. Odd how there doesn't seem to be any real standard.

A properly sized sight should need to be filed down a bit. That ensures enough tension to stay put.

 

[Diggers]

A properly sized sight should need to be filed down a bit. That ensures enough tension to stay put.

Seems so Cosmoline. Its just odd to me the base comes in SO many slightly different sizes. So slight that measuring the groove on the gun still results in guess work when ordering a size. There was .365, .370, .375, .380 (which fit my gun) and so on.

Glad I found one that would fit on the second try.