I think the supermoon that folks are talking about has affected me. On the other hand not every target was this good.

S146XXX

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Dennis

Can't argue with results like that! Nice shooting.

I see an earlier owner of the gun must have been a serious target competitor. He beveled the top of the front patridge sight to catch overhead illumination and reflect it back toward the shooter's eye. From the rear that would still look like a post, but the top portion would be a little brighter than the bottom half and would really stand out compared to the black vertical surface of the rear sight.

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David Wilson

Thank you, David, I had never been aware of such a modification. So in the pre-match rituals when folks are blackening their front and rear sights from a carbide lamp (ok, or from a spray can), the user of this gun would just wipe the carbon from the bevel? Cool.

I had a M27 converted to .44 Special using a 6 1/2" 1950 barrel. That Patridge sight tended to chew up my holsters, so I did a ramp job similar to the front sight shown.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

As an old - and I do mean old - Bullseye shooter, I would think such a modification would cause the the impact position to vary with the position of the sun. You want the front sight to stay a uniform brighness regardless of sun position and brightness. I guess everyone has their own ideas but most guns designed for bullseye shooting have undercut or straight Patridge front sights.

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Dick

"As an old - and I do mean old - Bullseye shooter, I would think such a modification would cause the the impact position to vary with the position of the sun. You want the front sight to stay a uniform brighness regardless of sun position and brightness. I guess everyone has their own ideas but most guns designed for bullseye shooting have undercut or straight Patridge front sights. "

Thats what I remember from when I bullseye shot too.
But I used a S&W M41, S&W M19 6" & a Colt Goldcup.
Was best with the Goldcup...
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I understand the point about undercut vertical surfaces on target sights, and I am not about to argue with the preferences and policies of experienced bullseye shooters. But it strikes me that the modification to this front sight essentially makes a ramp out of it -- not a rejected configuration in the target shooting world.

Somewhere I recently saw a photo of a McGivern bead front sight in which the upper portion of the protruding bead had been beveled back toward the blade in which it was inserted, presumably to catch more light. I hadn't seen that before, but understood the asserted reason for the modification.

I imagine target shooters undertook a variety of sight modifications looking for an edge in competition. Some would want to lighten their front sights, others darken them. Shooting in open sun is probably different from shooting under cloud cover.

Gil, I understand your observation, but I would think simple leather preservation could be achieved with a much smaller bevel or even a bare rounding over at the top of the vertical face of a Patridge blade. A cut as pronounced as this one is would seem to me to be about accuracy, not easy extraction from a holster.

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David Wilson

The 1950 .44 Target HE is one of my favorites too.

circa 1955 S139941

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Memory of Randy Freas-Rimfired

Interesting background for your photo Mickey!

Here is my 1950 .44, a few years back with a 25 yard target. My fav .44 for sure.

gunfish-

Was that factory ammo? What? Have you tried the 200 grain lead SWC-HP from Federal? Not sure they still make it.

They seem to shoot better if you cut the barrel to 5".

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No life story has happy end.

SaxonPig:

Very Pretty as well ! I have always loved that one !

Jerry

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.38/44 Outdoorsman Accumulator

DCW,
Please don't forget, McGivern was NOT a target shooter, to the best of my knowledge he never entered an event or a Pistol Match anywhere, he was an exhibition shooter, believe me when I say there's a BIG, BIG, difference between putting on a show and shooting a 95 on a target with one hand at 50 yds.

In the real target shooting world this mod would get the shooter nowhere. And would be rejected in the target shooting world, at least by a decent target shooter it would be.

Target shooters of the time that revolvers were being used for target shooting used Patridge front sights for one reason and one reason only, because it helped them win events more so that any other type of front sight, rck281 has it correct and must be a target shooter or at least was a target shooter at one time.

Further more target revolvers were / are never carried in a holster, at least not by top target shooters, so I would think that the mod was not made for target shooting, probably made for carrying in a holster for hunting.
Regards
H. M. Pope

Texas Star, I used some cowboy type LRN I got at a show.

As for the front sight, I think target shooting was not what this gun was used for. It shows holster wear on the barrel and on one spot on the cylinder down to metal like it was carried some.

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Dennis

That's about what I figuered, it would be just about impossible to do any type of precision target shooting with a front sight that would enhance shine or glair, in a standard 90 shot match the shooter would probably end up with such eye strain that in the end he would end up with a headache.
H. M. Pope