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I have been attempting to remove a front express sight (set screw type, removed for effort) from an 1892 Winchester using a heavy brass punch and mallet with the gun in a vise. I have had no luck, even after using penetrating oil and some mild heating techniques. Any ideas I might try?
Make sure the set screw is loosened, Drive it from left to right. Might want to try Kroil, it’s by far the best penetrating oil. Clamp the barrel in the vise (using soft jaws) as close to the sight as practical so vibration and flex is minimized. Try a small brass hammer instead of a mallet. REMEMBER, you can and will damage a steel sight with a brass punch. I prefer aluminum, it’s much more forgiving. Best of luck!
Erin
My best luck has been to lay the rifle on the floor right side down with a piece wood (1×3) block under the barrel with the sight centered over the wood. Be sure to put a pad under the rifle, but not the block. You want it solid. Use a piece of 1″ square hard wood as the drift. The wooden drift may break a few times, but eventually the sight will come out with out damage to the sight. Be patient, I have used several recut hickory drifts at times. Roger
The more rigid you can hod the barrel the more of the impact will be transferred to the sight. I use a vise with leather around the barrel. Just holding the barrel tight can make all the difference. I have removed hundreds of sights this way. Brass will damage the sight so go easy. You need a steel hammer. Wood and Nylon are very forgiving to the sight but may not transfer enough of the blow to the sight if it being stubborn.
THIS ALL STARTED WITH JUST ONE GUN!
Try a hammer rather than a mallet. As a friend once told me. Don’t force it use a bigger hammer.
Oldgrayguns said
Try a hammer rather than a mallet. As a friend once told me. Don’t force it use a bigger hammer.
Problem with striking a heavy blow is the tendency to glance off the sight base & maybe strike the barrel itself. Brownell’s sells, or used to, a kind of clamp that attached to the barrel & used a screw to force the sight out; always wanted one, but thought they cost too much. On the same principal, I modified a small C-clamp to do the same thing, but not as easily. Have been looking for it, but as this was many yrs ago, can’t find it. What I remember doing is cutting off the end of the screw with its movable flange, & grinding the cut end to a smaller size to hit the sight base without touching the barrel. Even a small C-clamp can apply great pressure, which is smooth & continuous, unlike striking with a punch.
FWIW I’ve used a home made “sight pusher” made from a 1-2” length of 2” square steel tube with a 3/8” fine thread hole drilled and tapped on one side. Then I use some hardwood or aluminum blocking to position the bolt aligned with the sight and an aluminum block to contact the sight (just stuff from the scrap bin, I suppose brass would work too).
Soak with Kroil and begin applying pressure by turning the bolt. Continue to turn the bolt and soak in lube and let it penetrate. I will often leave it overnight and come back and see if it will move. Rinse repeat.
I suppose it’s similar to the tools that Brownell’s sells.
Steve
WACA Member. CFM Member. NRA Lifer.
supergimp said
FWIW I’ve used a home made “sight pusher” made from a 1-2” length of 2” square steel tube with a 3/8” fine thread hole drilled and tapped on one side. Then I use some hardwood or aluminum blocking to position the bolt aligned with the sight and an aluminum block to contact the sight (just stuff from the scrap bin, I suppose brass would work too).
Great idea, but why not use a smaller bolt, say 1/4″, to engage the sight base directly? If the end of the bolt were rounded, polished, & greased, it wouldn’t leave much of a mark on the sight; certainly less than pounding on it with a punch!
Honestly, I used what I had and wanted a fine thread bolt to engage more threads and allow for finer movement. 1/4″ would work although I don’t know if I would want the bolt tip to press directly on the sight.
But, yea, if I came across a 1/4-28 bolt first, I probably would have used that.
Steve
WACA Member. CFM Member. NRA Lifer.
Are you sure someone didn’t use Loctite. That requires heat to soften. T/R
TR said
Are you sure someone didn’t use Loctite. That requires heat to soften. T/R
I wish you guys would figure this out. LOL. I have tried it all and still can’t budge the sight on my 66. I always use a brass punch and a brass hammer and since I have a lot of scrap wood I cover the barrel with wood to protect it. Had to buy a new punch since it has been flattened and re ground so much.
If I were to buy a sight removal tool which one would work best on our rifles?
Chuck said If I were to buy a sight removal tool which one would work best on our rifles?
Best check Brownell’s catalog–I’ve misplaced mine, but remember the cost as being over $50. But Supergimp’s idea seems pretty easy to construct, if you’ve got the right tap. I’d modify it to have 2 screws–one to clamp the device to the brl, the other to push out the sight.
Ok, I finally got the sight out. I soaked the sight in penetrating oil for more than a day, put it in a padded vise and heated the area around the dovetail, and then used a brass hammer and heavy brass drift punch. It took some solid wacks, but finally came out.
Thanks for your insights.
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