Replacing sight on my pistol

Bowdog · March 30, 2019, 06:52 AM

Just letting off some steam. I have a Ruger American Pistol Compact in 9MM. sent it to Ruger for retro fit. (recall)I also sent a set of TFX sight that I got from Ruger .com. Ruger would not replace the sight. I got a call from customer service stating they do not replace after market. So I pick up a Fisher sight remover tool. It does not work. Slide just keeps turning in jaws. Tried a punch and hammer no luck. I do not have or know of a gunsmith with in an hour drive of me. Last guy messed up a sight install. So I won't use him again. So at this point I can not remove sights. I did order a 1 ton arbor press and using some wood and a C- clamp I think I can secure the slide and use some brass punch head to push sight out. Don't know if it will work until the press gets here. If I only had a gunsmith worth anything instead of make believe smiths. I would not need to do this. If anyone has any ideas just jump in.

Bill DeShivs · March 30, 2019, 04:32 PM

Idea- leave the sight alone.

stinkeypete · March 31, 2019, 11:13 AM

Ideas?
Penetrating oil is one idea. Heat is another. What’s the worst that can happen with an arbor press? Oh yeah... don’t screw up.

The other idea is take off the slide and mail it to a reputable ‘smith. It’s not the frame, so you can pop it in a usps small express mail box, $8.00 and she’s shipped.

It’s not supposed to be that hard, so maybe it’s time to get a pro involved.

Big Shrek · April 2, 2019, 10:52 PM

All a sight pusher really is, is a directed specific style of vise and screw.
Take slide off gun. Place in padded vise. Use a Punch and precisely WHACKIT!
That usually gets them out.

Some sights are meant to Go in One Direction Only...
the cut is made so that as the sight slides in, it is pinched and held.
The only way to get it out, is to push it back out the opposite of how it was installed.
If you Micrometer each side of your slide cut, it will show which side is the big side to go OUT on.

The OTHER thing folks do is use Blue Loctite...and sometimes RED...
Blue's not so hard to get out, but the red...ugh.

And don't forget the bubba's who use Gorilla Glue...or think that SuperGlue is a condiment

And if the Above doesn't work...Don't worry, hope is not yet lost!

If it's a plastic sight, you can simply cut it into pieces with a razor.
Main thing there is CAREFULLY cut it or you'll mess up the finish on your gun.
And use a vise so you don't end up cutting yourself in the process.

If it's a metal sight...those get a bit more difficult...
however, you can still use a band saw across the beam to relieve pressure.
Use a vise holder. No free-handing unless you wanna kill your finish.

March 30, 2019, 06:52 AM	#1
Bowdog Senior Member Join Date: March 16, 2010 Location: East Tennessee Posts: 112	Replacing sight on my pistol Just letting off some steam. I have a Ruger American Pistol Compact in 9MM. sent it to Ruger for retro fit. (recall)I also sent a set of TFX sight that I got from Ruger .com. Ruger would not replace the sight. I got a call from customer service stating they do not replace after market. So I pick up a Fisher sight remover tool. It does not work. Slide just keeps turning in jaws. Tried a punch and hammer no luck. I do not have or know of a gunsmith with in an hour drive of me. Last guy messed up a sight install. So I won't use him again. So at this point I can not remove sights. I did order a 1 ton arbor press and using some wood and a C- clamp I think I can secure the slide and use some brass punch head to push sight out. Don't know if it will work until the press gets here. If I only had a gunsmith worth anything instead of make believe smiths. I would not need to do this. If anyone has any ideas just jump in.

March 30, 2019, 04:32 PM	#2
Bill DeShivs Senior Member Join Date: April 7, 2006 Posts: 10,981	Idea- leave the sight alone. __________________ Bill DeShivs, Master Cutler www.billdeshivs.com

April 2, 2019, 10:52 PM	#4
Big Shrek Senior Member Join Date: August 6, 2009 Location: NorthWest Florida Posts: 1,358	All a sight pusher really is, is a directed specific style of vise and screw. Take slide off gun. Place in padded vise. Use a Punch and precisely WHACKIT! That usually gets them out. Some sights are meant to Go in One Direction Only... the cut is made so that as the sight slides in, it is pinched and held. The only way to get it out, is to push it back out the opposite of how it was installed. If you Micrometer each side of your slide cut, it will show which side is the big side to go OUT on. The OTHER thing folks do is use Blue Loctite...and sometimes RED... Blue's not so hard to get out, but the red...ugh. And don't forget the bubba's who use Gorilla Glue...or think that SuperGlue is a condiment And if the Above doesn't work...Don't worry, hope is not yet lost! If it's a plastic sight, you can simply cut it into pieces with a razor. Main thing there is CAREFULLY cut it or you'll mess up the finish on your gun. And use a vise so you don't end up cutting yourself in the process. If it's a metal sight...those get a bit more difficult... however, you can still use a band saw across the beam to relieve pressure. Use a vise holder. No free-handing unless you wanna kill your finish. __________________ Marlin Specialist Calico Specialist A gun should be a tool in the hands of a deadly weapon, not a deadly weapon in the hands of a tool.

March 31, 2019, 11:13 AM	#3
stinkeypete Senior Member Join Date: July 22, 2010 Location: Madison, Wisconsin Posts: 1,292	Ideas? Penetrating oil is one idea. Heat is another. What’s the worst that can happen with an arbor press? Oh yeah... don’t screw up. The other idea is take off the slide and mail it to a reputable ‘smith. It’s not the frame, so you can pop it in a usps small express mail box, $8.00 and she’s shipped. It’s not supposed to be that hard, so maybe it’s time to get a pro involved.