Mauser front site Question

jnsn · August 22, 2000, 03:27 AM

On two of my C&R mausers the front site needs to be shifted so far one direction to make it shoot straight that the protective ears cannot be put back on. While looking at the barrel the other day it seemed like the front site post is on a press or pinned on collar , as is the rear site assembly. Can these be rotated to bring them true? I thought I would ask before I try.Thanks

George Stringer · August 22, 2000, 07:43 AM

Jnsn, they are on a "collar". There is a set screw under the blade and in addition they are sweated on. You could rotate the sight a little but it might be easier to either open the rear sight notch with a file in the direction you want to move the sight or replace the rear sight with an adjustable one from Williams. George

Herodotus · August 22, 2000, 08:57 PM

You did not say who made your Mauser.
The original sighting of these rifles was a very precisely measured bit of work.
Richard D. Laws, in his book "Backbone of the Wehrmacht" (1993) notes that according to original Mauser Obendorf documents, The K98k front sights were allowed to be shifted only .2mm either way off center in order to meet specifications. The sights were originally set up with quite precise gauges and jigs.
Your rifle is now quite far beyond this .2mm standard of acceptablity, of course.
It is quite possible that the sights have been knocked out of kilter and repaired in some less than ideal fashion, in which case, rotating them can hardly do any harm. But without the proper equipment, you will probably wind up with a cant that will affect accuracy, especially at long range. You should realize this.
A worse possibility, which I cannot rule out, is that your barrel is bent. Someone in the past might have used it as a crow bar. I am not sure how bent a barrel that would throw off a round to your reported sight setting would be, but I would not ignore this possibility. I have heard of it before.
I do assume that you know that the front sight must move in the opposite direction that you want the bullet to impact. I think that your post implies that you have shot and shifted the sight in steps at the range, that you know from careful, supported shooting that the groups were actually moving in a progression of consistent steps in the direction that you wanted. This is a problem for some.

James K · August 22, 2000, 10:00 PM

Bending a barrel sounds like something extreme, but in fact it is pretty easy. What is not easy to come by is the experience to know just how much to bend. A regular bore sighting device can help. Bending barrels is pretty common in factories, even with modern tooling which turns out better barrels than ever. (With typical "spin" they refer to it as "straightening barrels.")

Jim

[This message has been edited by Jim Keenan (edited August 22, 2000).]

August 22, 2000, 03:27 AM	#1
jnsn Member Join Date: September 30, 1999 Posts: 79	On two of my C&R mausers the front site needs to be shifted so far one direction to make it shoot straight that the protective ears cannot be put back on. While looking at the barrel the other day it seemed like the front site post is on a press or pinned on collar , as is the rear site assembly. Can these be rotated to bring them true? I thought I would ask before I try.Thanks

August 22, 2000, 07:43 AM	#2
George Stringer Staff Alumnus Join Date: October 12, 1998 Location: Earlington KY Posts: 2,299	Jnsn, they are on a "collar". There is a set screw under the blade and in addition they are sweated on. You could rotate the sight a little but it might be easier to either open the rear sight notch with a file in the direction you want to move the sight or replace the rear sight with an adjustable one from Williams. George

August 22, 2000, 08:57 PM	#3
Herodotus Senior Member Join Date: January 19, 2000 Posts: 743	You did not say who made your Mauser. The original sighting of these rifles was a very precisely measured bit of work. Richard D. Laws, in his book "Backbone of the Wehrmacht" (1993) notes that according to original Mauser Obendorf documents, The K98k front sights were allowed to be shifted only .2mm either way off center in order to meet specifications. The sights were originally set up with quite precise gauges and jigs. Your rifle is now quite far beyond this .2mm standard of acceptablity, of course. It is quite possible that the sights have been knocked out of kilter and repaired in some less than ideal fashion, in which case, rotating them can hardly do any harm. But without the proper equipment, you will probably wind up with a cant that will affect accuracy, especially at long range. You should realize this. A worse possibility, which I cannot rule out, is that your barrel is bent. Someone in the past might have used it as a crow bar. I am not sure how bent a barrel that would throw off a round to your reported sight setting would be, but I would not ignore this possibility. I have heard of it before. I do assume that you know that the front sight must move in the opposite direction that you want the bullet to impact. I think that your post implies that you have shot and shifted the sight in steps at the range, that you know from careful, supported shooting that the groups were actually moving in a progression of consistent steps in the direction that you wanted. This is a problem for some.

August 22, 2000, 10:00 PM	#4
James K Member In Memoriam Join Date: March 17, 1999 Posts: 24,383	Bending a barrel sounds like something extreme, but in fact it is pretty easy. What is not easy to come by is the experience to know just how much to bend. A regular bore sighting device can help. Bending barrels is pretty common in factories, even with modern tooling which turns out better barrels than ever. (With typical "spin" they refer to it as "straightening barrels.") Jim [This message has been edited by Jim Keenan (edited August 22, 2000).]