Pietta shooting too high? Easy fix.

[LoneGoose]

I just put this information into another guy's thread and thought it would be useful to some other folks. So here it is:

I have a Pietta 1860 that I replaced the front sight on. It is not tough to do, and kind of fun. The sight is pressed into a half-moon shaped slot in the barrel. Kind of like a key slot on an electric motor shaft. Take a brass punch and drift it out, back to front. If you can't get enough purchase on it, put several layers of tape on your barrel and use a cold chisel on the sight. Then get a scrap piece of brass (I got mine from the hardware store) and cut a piece off it that is longer and wider than the sight slot. You might want to leave it long to give your vise or bench clamp something to grip. Carefully reduce the thickness until you can just start a corner into the slot with tight interference. Then shape it so that it is just as long as the slot, and round the bottom edge until it pretty much matches the bottom of the slot. Cut the blank off so that it is a little taller than what you think you need it to be, with the top being square to the barrel. Set the blank on the slot and hammer it straight down until it won't go any farther. You can round off the top now with a file. You will have to test fire and adjust height until you have the height you want. Also, the new sight will be too wide and probably need to be adjusted for windage. Put tape on your barrel to protect it while you file the sight to the width you at the top. The sides will be sloped from bottom to top. While doing this, test fire to see which side will need more material removed for your windage adjustment. Don't try to knock the top of the sight to adjust it. I used a jeweler's file to square off the rear sight notch before making the final tweaks on the front sight. Good luck.

 

[Patocazador]

"Easy fix."

Nothing easy about that as far as I can see. What holds it in besides friction?

I did two on my Ruger Old Army pistols with a piece of 1/8" flat stock that was easier than what you described. Those ROA sights are secured with a pin in the SS versions.

 

[rcflint]

My easy fix is to install dovetail front sight..

 

[Crawdad1]

That's how the sight is fitted to an 1860 Army, swaged into the trough at the front of the barrel, that's it. Good info as Piettas do have a really low slung front blade on their 1860 Armys.

 

[BCRider]

Here's my version along with pictures and my own version of the process down in post #12.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=718779

Patocazador, the press fit, if done right, is more than adaquate to hold the sight blade in place. And as noted it is how all the 1860's were and still are done.

 

[Navy Six]

Thanks LoneGoose and BCRider for the detailed explanation on how to replace that front sight. I finally have the bugs worked out on a pair of Uberti Dragoons that have similar sights which also shoot high. As I want to occasionally use them at SASS matches, I prefer the point of aim to be closer without having to hold low. Was racking my brains on what to do--you just saved me a headache!!

 

[BCRider]

I'm glad our efforts to spread the word paid off. It's great to read that someone used what we all offered.

I don't know about your matches but ours have the odd smaller bonus target out at somewhere around rifle target distances. And it's nice when a fella doesn't need to guess how much hold under to use for situations like that.