Quote:
Originally Posted by TTSH
Not sure if anything I'm going to say is going to be helpful... but back when I was looking to replace the factory adjustable sights on my Model 5906, I was able to find the Millett adjustable rear sight but couldn't find the Millett front sight anywhere. I finally gave up and I just live with the factory adjustable now.  Sounds like you are in the same situation, albeit for a different reason. My 5906 factory rear sight was a bit messed up from the day I bought the gun. In your case, you are looking for a different sight picture altogether.
On that certain large auction website that rhymes with "payday", there is currently a mystery Millett dovetail-type front sight, possibly for an S&W, that might work for you. The seller doesn't know what he has got but there is lots of info and dimensions posted on it. It is blaze orange, a color that doesn't work well for me but apparently works well for you. Could be a crazy long shot but you may want to check it out.
BTW, sight picture has never been an issue for me. Some are certainly better than others but even with my aging eyesight, there is no one sight picture that works better or worse for me. I'm able to do reasonably fine with them all... although your standards for accuracy may be a lot higher than mine.  |
Thanks for the reply.
Up to 15 years ago I shot bullseye, local completion, regularly. Having shot formal "bullseye" competition it is difficult to accept anything less than tight groupings. I have a Ransom Rest with the 52/39 S&W adapters, Colt 1911, High Standard and a few others, for this very reason.
I'm just now retiring and plan to shoot regularly, whenever I can. Time and preparations, testing different sight arrangements, different rounds at different distances in different guns is just the beginning. I have only attended formal bullseye matches but never shot in a National competition. Those rules are much more strict.
With the factory plain white dot sights I can get them all "in" but with no specific pattern. It is more problematic at an in-door range where the back lighting is either awful or non-existent.
At an outdoor range, it is much less of an issue.
Also, it takes me more time to more carefully aim 3 dots while with the Millet white outline rear and orange keyway shaped front, I pick up the alignment quickly and accurately. Almost as good with the factory rear white outline with front red/orange front insert. I pull a tight, consistent, grouping.
With the old full black iron sights I keep losing my alignment with black front, black rear and black NRA bullseye target. If 6 O'clock hold, good. Dead bullseye hold, not good. With a white target background, I'm good.
I did find on a few front Millett 3rd Gen dovetail sights I needed for the 5906s.
Now that the 39 and 39-2 are getting up there in value, I'm not about to start machining off the front sight to pin in a new Millett front again to match the Millett rear which is much higher than the factory lollypop or fully adjustable rear sights. This same configuration (integral front with easily replaceable rear) on the 39 or 59 is a snap to install.
I also purchased a few sets of S&W factory rear full adjustable 39/59 S&W sights a few years back when a member had some for sale, but again, they are all black.
The factory S&W rear (fully adjustable) lays low to the frame, designed to work without altering the factory integral front sights.