Mounting front blade sight on a SS Barrel?

KA3N · May 14, 2001, 01:45 PM

Looking for advice…

I have a Winchester 1300 Stainless Marine with a bead front sight.

I’d like to put an MMC front blade sight on my barrel (along with the rear ghost ring sight).

I asked Vang Comp if they could silver solder it on, but they indicated that they have never soldered a stainless steel barrel before. (but they had no problem with the Remington Marine Nickel-plated barrel)

Looking at this picture of the MMC sight…

... Do you think it would be a good idea to:

1. Epoxy the sight to the barrel.
2. Drill through the sight from the (angled) sides and then into the barrel.
3. Countersink to recess the screw heads.
4. Mount it with 6x24 screws, (Either one or two on each side) using red Loctite on the threads.

I’m not a gunsmith, but I think I can handle drilling and tapping. My only real concern is finding the exact alignment on the barrel before starting.

Dfariswheel · May 14, 2001, 09:58 PM

Before I started drilling, I'd try silver bearing soft solder. Note: this is NOT silver solder, just a hard soft solder with 3% silver content. Unlike standard soft solder, this stuff is a good match for stainless and won't tarnish. It's also gives a sturdier bond.
When used with the proper flux, I've soldered a number of sights onto stainless and carbon shotgun barrels. The solder is available at most hardware stores, Wal-Mart, and Brownell's.
The flux, is the key. I use "Stay-Clean" brand for stainless and monel. You should be able to get a suitable flux at any refrigeration supply house. Just make sure that it's a soft solder flux for stainless.

I roughen the area on the barrel where the sight will go, and roughen/remove the blue finish on the bottom of the sight. I use a flex shaft/moto-tool and burrs for this.
I flux and heat the barrel and 'massage' a small amount of solder on the rough area with an old screwdriver. I do the same to the sight. After positioning the sight on the barrel, heat it up until the solder just melts, hold the heat for a moment longer, and then allow to cool. Scrub down with hot soapy water and an old tooth brush to remove flux, and oil.
I've had a Remington 870 parkerized with rifle sights
applied this way, and no problem for many years/rounds.

DML · May 14, 2001, 10:46 PM

I'm pretty sure that a MMC front sight could be hard soldered to your barrel, but there are a few things to consider. The front sight would not be stainless and would have to be blued or parkerized after soldering. It may or may not look very good. The finish of your barrel will be damaged somewhat.

You might think about the band front sight that MMC makes. They make it in stainless or nickel plated and it would match your barrel. They also make a nickel plated rear sight.

LPA makes a very nice band front sight, but I don't think they have a plated one yet.

May 14, 2001, 01:45 PM	#1
KA3N Member Join Date: July 5, 2000 Location: Bucks County, PA Posts: 39	Looking for advice… I have a Winchester 1300 Stainless Marine with a bead front sight. I’d like to put an MMC front blade sight on my barrel (along with the rear ghost ring sight). I asked Vang Comp if they could silver solder it on, but they indicated that they have never soldered a stainless steel barrel before. (but they had no problem with the Remington Marine Nickel-plated barrel) Looking at this picture of the MMC sight… ... Do you think it would be a good idea to: 1. Epoxy the sight to the barrel. 2. Drill through the sight from the (angled) sides and then into the barrel. 3. Countersink to recess the screw heads. 4. Mount it with 6x24 screws, (Either one or two on each side) using red Loctite on the threads. I’m not a gunsmith, but I think I can handle drilling and tapping. My only real concern is finding the exact alignment on the barrel before starting.

May 14, 2001, 09:58 PM	#2
Dfariswheel Senior Member Join Date: May 4, 2001 Posts: 7,478	Before I started drilling, I'd try silver bearing soft solder. Note: this is NOT silver solder, just a hard soft solder with 3% silver content. Unlike standard soft solder, this stuff is a good match for stainless and won't tarnish. It's also gives a sturdier bond. When used with the proper flux, I've soldered a number of sights onto stainless and carbon shotgun barrels. The solder is available at most hardware stores, Wal-Mart, and Brownell's. The flux, is the key. I use "Stay-Clean" brand for stainless and monel. You should be able to get a suitable flux at any refrigeration supply house. Just make sure that it's a soft solder flux for stainless. I roughen the area on the barrel where the sight will go, and roughen/remove the blue finish on the bottom of the sight. I use a flex shaft/moto-tool and burrs for this. I flux and heat the barrel and 'massage' a small amount of solder on the rough area with an old screwdriver. I do the same to the sight. After positioning the sight on the barrel, heat it up until the solder just melts, hold the heat for a moment longer, and then allow to cool. Scrub down with hot soapy water and an old tooth brush to remove flux, and oil. I've had a Remington 870 parkerized with rifle sights applied this way, and no problem for many years/rounds.

May 14, 2001, 10:46 PM	#3
DML Senior Member Join Date: November 24, 2000 Location: Aridzona Posts: 257	I'm pretty sure that a MMC front sight could be hard soldered to your barrel, but there are a few things to consider. The front sight would not be stainless and would have to be blued or parkerized after soldering. It may or may not look very good. The finish of your barrel will be damaged somewhat. You might think about the band front sight that MMC makes. They make it in stainless or nickel plated and it would match your barrel. They also make a nickel plated rear sight. LPA makes a very nice band front sight, but I don't think they have a plated one yet.