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Post by Lee Martin on Nov 9, 2020 14:17:11 GMT -5
First shot----aerial water jug----after sighting-in Ruger 03 with fiber-optic sights @ 16 yards. Fluted cylinder is .45 ACP. Fiberoptic sights green, front & rear. Load: cast 225 Truncated Cone over 5.5/Win 231. Sun had just set. Fiberoptic "lenses" made a sight picture possible. Want to thank handgun hunter James from Jersey for sending me these fiberoptic sights. James and I have a continuing conversation on handgunning.  Fiberoptics offer potent extension of shooting light. Prime question: to what distance accuracy? 16 yards held rabbit accuracy, offhand; deterioration @ 24 yards. Shot much closer, aerial jugs are up to the shooter. Cast 225 TC @ 800 fps punches through with minimal shock. Tuger 03 wears RW brass Bradshaw Bisley grip farme with Cocobolo scales.  Triple green dots. Wide angle photo amplifies rear sight. Dots viewed by shooter appear more balanced. Sight picture in photo would throw shots Right & slightly high.  Green filament made for Redhawk. Bulb appears to have a sleeve and anchoring feature.  Fiberoptic front sights of differing design for Redhawk. Both offer better protection than crude, first generation types.   Fiberoptic unit attached to Ruger or Ruger-type sight, via groove for "sight slide." Elevation screw lacks distinct clicks, adjustment by 1/4-turns. Visually clocked adjustments seem to hold.  Focus on front sight. Top of rear sight----as seen here----is not visible during aim.  Accuracy with fiberoptics still depends on prioritizing sight picture. To focus on rear sight invites misalignment.  A scabbard which protects fiberoptic sights is a good thing. Milt Sparks 200AW.  -Lee www.singleactions.com"Chasing perfection five shots at a time" |
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Post by contender on Nov 9, 2020 21:59:09 GMT -5
While many may find that fiber optic sights should never be on a SA handgun,, often it's the better choice for aging eyes to some folks. I like them on some of my handguns.
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Post by bradshaw on Nov 10, 2020 8:47:36 GMT -5
My continuing appreciation to Lee for posting the DB Volume series. Realizing he is so stretched out in Bench Rest.
And Tyrone, aka contender, always on the trail to steer a bullet. It would be easy to grab one or another optic, a tradition started a half-century ago (or more), by men with aging eyes committed to taking a handgun afield after a life with the rifle. But taking a revolver is not the same thing as wearing it. Try riding bike with an optic-equipped pistol. Or, getting on and off a tractor, operating the controls, with the 2 extra inches a reflex sight represents. Wrestling chainsaws and timber.
Iron sights are not obsolete, any more than the handgun itself. I’ve seen a lot of pistols worn as ornaments lately. For this shooter, the handgun is an instrument, its usefulness in proportion to the skill of its user. Brilliant young eyes see nearly any sight well. Eyes over time lose acuity, so we cheat with glasses, and then sights which are easier to see, and by squinting a few seconds to sharpen the front sight at hammer fall.
David Bradshaw
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Post by jfs on Nov 10, 2020 12:55:40 GMT -5
David, I remember buying a S&W 686 with a 5" barrel that had a V notch rear and green FO front and thinking these sights will not be good for accuracy, however, they shot decent 25yd groups. Maybe not X ring, but decent. Now move to the hunting field and install those FO sights on my revolvers for shots 50 and under and have to say they have served my old eyes well.. Much better then black on black for hunting.. My vision is`ent what it use to be and the FO along with w/o rear and front allow me to keep using iron sights in the field... The photo shows a white lined front made for me by Bowen on 5" 44. That along with a w/o rear is another iron sight system that is a big help afield...
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Post by bradshaw on Nov 10, 2020 20:55:23 GMT -5
James.... many thanks. Sounds like my excursion into fiberoptic approaches yours. Fiberoptics certainly work better against flying objects than sights I can’t see. Probably won’t match more conventional irons for acuity out yonder. Yet, by acquiring sights a fraction of a second sooner than sights you have to hunt for, you’re on quicker, and aerial targets just don’t allow time for waving a gun around to make a hit.
Bowen’s white vertical bar I haven’t tried. We see it with some frequency by members of the forum. I know you won’t stick with equipment which doesn’t produce results.
David Bradshaw
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Post by bigbrowndog on Nov 10, 2020 22:04:30 GMT -5
David, try using the FO sights as normal sights when good light is available and then the FO with poor light and see where groups land. Also you can dim down the overpowering luminous quality by using a sharpie marker. It should allow more precise use of the sight and still provide acceptable use in poor light or when speed of acquisition is important.
I’ve been able to shoot acceptable groups out to 100yds for use on medium game, deer/antelope. My Gallagher 500max delivered 5”x4”,...5 for 5 at that distance.
Trapr
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Post by bradshaw on Nov 11, 2020 9:25:39 GMT -5
David, try using the FO sights as normal sights when good light is available and then the FO with poor light and see where groups land. Also you can dim down the overpowering luminous quality by using a sharpie marker. It should allow more precise use of the sight and still provide acceptable use in poor light or when speed of acquisition is important. I’ve been able to shoot acceptable groups out to 100yds for use on medium game, deer/antelope. My Gallagher 500max delivered 5”x4”,...5 for 5 at that distance. Trapr ***** Trapr.... I’m well aware of the subtleties of aligning iron sights under adversity and COCKTAILING the SIGHT PICTURE to steer a bullet. It’s a never ending dance. The hard sight picture developed for bullseye shooting where BULL & BACKGROUND share one plane develops discipline critical to marksmanship. As marksmanship expands to serve targets separate from their background, in varying light, the eye continues to hone the TOP of the FRONT SIGHT like a blade. Persons inexperienced in steel shooting may not realize a bank of 5 silhouettes----due to individual target angle and the angle of the sun----may represent 5 separate planes on which to read SIGHT PICTURE and register front sight. This is at complete variance from bullseye marksmanship and echoes much more----through far more ammunition and repetitions----the work the eye must perform to squeeze the trigger. To give a hint of the strain involved in steel shooting, silhouettes at many ranges around the country might virtually disappear from late morning to early afternoon, or during the first hour or two of shooting, or in late afternoon, or at one side of the range, et cetera. Paint other than black was tried in an often futile effort to make targets visible throughout the day. Some clubs changed from black to white, etc., as the day progressed. But this couldn’t satisfy everyone, nor effectively solve visibility; in any case, the practice was soon stopped by IHMSA. While target visibility often was worst in the Southwest, areas of high humidity added mirage to the visibly challenge as the steel silhouettes grew blazing hot. Scopes would have solved all that. Alas, scopes were verboten, so we shot iron throughout. Optical sights were strictly verboten in the days of silhouette. Give me a bulletproof optic no larger than my iron sights and I’ll use it. In the mean time, field carry around the rough & tumble of saws and equipment insures iron sights are not obsolete. David Bradshaw |
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Post by bigbrowndog on Nov 12, 2020 22:11:58 GMT -5
David we (the iron sight shooters) of 3 gun suffer the same issues as the sun arcs across the sky, what is a wonderfully visible target in the morning, is an indistinct blob in the shadows of a juniper bush come midday, and then altogether disappeared in the late afternoon shade.
I was just mentioning that the black blades of the sight can be used fairly well for accuracy, instead of simply using the glowing orbs. Your reference to Their usefulness or uselessness at distance translated to hunting distance for me,, 75-85 yards, when it probably meant 200 yards on steel to you,
Stay safe my friend,.....Trapr
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Post by bradshaw on Nov 13, 2020 14:31:34 GMT -5
Trapr.... tritium 3-dot sights allow use or the black square post and black window of irons. As my experience shapes, fiberoptic command the eye with a brightness with obscures the black squares. This forces exact alignment of the 3-dot fiberoptics. Shooting 3-dot green yesterday, 20 minutes after sunset, I squeezed 5x5 .45 Colt 330 grain cast, offhand, into the shoulder of a painted pig @ 32 yards. With 4x5 falling into 3.2-inches. Light crashing fast. The 3 green fiberoptic bulbs glowed plenty good. Trying a revolver----with blacks irons----was impossible. I could see the pig because it was painted white. My windage & elevation held as consistent as should hope for. A standard scope cross hair may have been visible, but fine reticles would have long since lost visibility. An illuminated reticle in this dim light acts to close one’s iris, which then darkens the surround.
Tritium 3-dot sights have all-round utility.... until the bulbs die their inevitable slow death. Said to be 10 years, kore often 5-to-7 years.
Must live with fiberoptics at distance to assess qualities of sighting. Meanwhile, for the world of barnyards and pucker brush, I like them. And for those with visual challenges fiberoptics warrant trial.
David Bradshaw
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