Sight In Suggestions?

The Rossi Model R92, a lightweight carbine for Cowboy Action, hunting, or plinking! Includes Rossi manufactured Interarms, Navy Arms, and Puma trade names.
Post Reply
User avatar
powwowell
Posts: 11
Joined: 15 Nov 2017 06:41
Location: NC

Sight In Suggestions?

Post by powwowell »

My .357 R92 was shooting a bit to the left. I noticed that the front sight was a bit off center, to the right. I drifted it to the left. I had to really whack it, for it to move. The barrel was locked down in my shop vise.

The front sight is centered on the barrel and it now shoots a bit to the right! The manual states to drift the front sight to adjust for windage. Any reason to NOT drift the rear sight?
Nashville Stage
Posts: 175
Joined: 08 Feb 2018 15:20
Location: Nashville, TN
Has thanked: 8 times
Been thanked: 96 times

Re: Sight In Suggestions?

Post by Nashville Stage »

You probably just moved the front sight a little too far. Try splitting the difference & see where that gets you. Small changes have big results, too; if you move where the barrel points by just one degree, it will move where the bullet impacts by five feet at 100 yards, or over a foot at 25 yards.

Drifting a sight in a dovetail can be really imprecise as you've discovered. Instead of using a punch & hammer, try using something similar to an AK47 front sight adjusting tool, which uses a fine-threaded screw to incrementally push the sight. Perhaps someone on the forum has a tool that they like & could recommend?

If the front sight is being too sticky to adjust, the rear sight is another option. You just need to adjust it in the opposite direction as the front sight (for example, moving the rear sight to the left will shift the bullet's impact to the left). The amount of adjustment is the same; one sight isn't more precise than the other.

Of course, another option would be to supplement or replace the stock sights with adjustable sights. Let us know how it turns out.
dlidster
Posts: 146
Joined: 21 Aug 2015 07:52
Location: IA
Has thanked: 27 times
Been thanked: 91 times

Re: Sight In Suggestions?

Post by dlidster »

The sight radius on a 20" Rossi 92 is 16.5". That means a movement of either the front or rear sight just .005" will move the point of impact 1" at 100 yards. I find it easier to think and work at 50 yards. This means moving the sight .01" to move the POI 1" at 50 yards.

Here's my technique. First, for cosmetic reasons I like to have the front sight centered in its dovetail. I move the rear sight. I begin by putting a short strip of masking tape on the barrel just under the forward point of the rear sight. Then I carefully make a dot with a sharp pencil directly below the point on the front of that front sight. This dot is going to be [very] roughly .01". Now I have a reference to see how far I'm moving the sight with each tap. And, if things go badly, I can return to where I started.

You'll be amazed by how little you have to move a rifle's rear sight to move the POI a significant distance.
User avatar
powwowell
Posts: 11
Joined: 15 Nov 2017 06:41
Location: NC

Re: Sight In Suggestions?

Post by powwowell »

Thanks to Nashville Stage and dlidster. My rifle has a 16" barrel. I've centered the front sight on the barrel. It was a hoss to move! The rear sight was much easier to move. That's where I'll do the final adjustments. I've marked the former position of the rear sight, as suggested. It will be toward the end of the week, or the weekend, before I can check it out.

By the way, this rifle cycles, 158 grain, .38 Special rounds perfectly. Now that I've said that, It will probably start giving me trouble?
Post Reply