Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa Dgr sights

I'm building a 458 on a Mauser action. This rifle will only have steel sights.

The rear sight will be a large apperature and the front will be ???

Some people like black bead, others gold and still others desire a black post.

What do you say?

Thanks

I love a small gold bead, keep it clean and it will radiate/reflect any available light.

I like the 3/32" white bead from NECG.

Gunner

Brownells has 1/16" flat face brass sights that they call gold. Is this what you're talking about? If not, any advice? Thanks much for your advice.

Background for concern: I was practicing with a lighter cartridge rifle, but the front sight kept fading out and only with great concentration was I able to shoot accurately, 7 out of 10 into 2" at 50 yards. But the others were out 7" or 8". Thus my concern. I don't want to have to squint and take an elaborate amount of time to squeeze off a shot. I'm hoping to quickly bring the sight on target. Again, thanks - dead serious.

No Sir, I'm speaking of any small 'round' gold or brass bead, to me, shooting animals with irons in thick or open country a brass/gold colored bead has always lent well to a clean contrast between sight/animal/brush.

Plus, these colored sights will reflect any available light making for more precise shot placement, I'm speaking more from the experience of shooting Sharps and Lever rifles at game and steel targets [black in color] from 50 to over 500 yards.

I have a larger white bead on my 505 Gibbs bolt rifle, I had to go with it because it afforded the height needed to get my groups zeroed at 25 and 50 yards, I did NOT want to file my rear quarter rib express sights then have them re-blued.

Other thought was, anything I ever shoot with 600 gr Woodleigh softs or solids will be big enough and close enough that the [fat] front bead wont matter at all in it's "clean sight line" hindrance.

Most of my iron sights are on lever actions, falling blocks, or old slide actions. My larger cartridge rifles (bolt actions) 338, 375 & 416 have factory irons plus scopes. The 458 will be iron only. I hadn't worried to much about the sights on these larger rifles other than that they were sighted in. But I happened to be shooting a Remington 141 and the black front sight was not working well for me in low light. Which caused the concern.

After reading your comments and with some reflection I'm thinking of replacing the front sights on all the hunting rifles. The ones I use for punching holes in paper (good light conditions) not so much. Thanks for your advice.

This. My Double, in addition to a similar sight as described above, has a flip up warthog tusk ivory bead. I hardly use it. the gold bead does everything I wanted it to do.

I hunted with a pre64 SG 375 for 30 years and much preferred the blade [sourdough] front sight. It's not a huge inconvenience to try both.

I'd go with this. You're not shooting squirrels or long distance. When things happen fast at close distances, having a big bright front bead will get you on target faster.

At my PH's request, I took the 1.75 - 6 Leupold off my .416 when we did the final stalk on my bull elephant. I had an NECG express rear with a red fiber optic front on it. At 18 yards, with the bull looking straight at me, the morning sun was directly behind his head. I couldn't even see the front site. Luckily the rifle fit me well and I was able to just instinctively point it like shotgun and get the job done. Looking into the sun and realizing that I couldn't seen the front site was about the longest three seconds of my life!

I have always found a simple post the most rugged and easiest to find in all conditions

Always preferred a sourdough or rounded post over a bead on apperatures but like a bead on VERY shallow V fixed rear. Are these fighting sights?

The thing about a DGR is that they can be

Your choice of an aperture rear sight is a wise one,go fairly big on the hole size.
Also the 3/32" white bead up front will work well.I used this sight combination on a .450 NE double to ruin the life of a Cape buffalo in 2013.Shooting from about 60 yd. was easily done! Good Luck!

I prefer a soudough with an aperture rear sight. I have used this one.

http://www.newenglandcustomgun.com/...%20Patridge%20Front%20Sight#.WAkuEeArKM8

and this one.

http://www.newenglandcustomgun.com/...mp;ST=CZ%20Patridge%20Sight#.WAkuauArKM8

I also have an old Redfield sourdough on an 8x57 Mauser.

Phil

On a Kodiak hunt, I suspect rain is common, but what about light/darkness? Does black work for you in low light? Or?? If I could come up with the jingle and went hunting with Taj or you, what would you recommend?
I'd have the stock shaped so that the rifle would point like a shotgun and would put several hundred rounds down range before I'd go on a possible dangerous hunt.


Thanks for your valued advice.

I know both Taj and I prefer the simple, rugged patridge front sight and on his 416 Rigby he set up for use in Zambia he even had a winged rear peep WELDED in place.

If you baby your rifle a bit you can certainly get by with a fine bead . I have one on a few of my nice 30-06 rifles but find that for most uses a relatively heavy post is both easier to see and shoot with

I like a big concave white bead. Diameter depends on barrel length. Concavity keeps light from reflecting only on the sun side of the bead, misleading your eye. A flat-faced brass insert on a stout blade (per Sourdough) is another favorite, and sturdy. I like sights stout enough to use without a hood.
.... WvZ

I've used the brass and also the white for the front sight. As I've gotten older they've become harder to see in some cases.

I now use the fiber optic inserts whenever possible,

NECG

My Krieghoff .470 came with the optional "see through" sights. The front is a large fiber optic orange/red bead which gathers light well. The rear is the outline of a rear sight, with most of the rear sight metal removed, so you just have the outline of the rear with an red/orange line leading up to the vee notch. The advantage is that the rear sight does not block your view of the animal, as you are actually "seeing through" the rear sight. Simply nestle the very visible front bead in the rear notch atop the red line and squeeze. These are the fastest open sights I have ever used, and the most practical. While likely not as rugged as the classic solid sights atop a rib, I have fired several hundred full charge loads through that rifle and it has accompanied me on six (6) DG safaris with no issues.

I believe they are made by Recknagel in Germany, but am not sure. You can probably contact Krieghoff to verify that.

Sorry I can't post a pic, but that is way beyond my technical ability.