Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles How well do shooters shoot with standard metal sights?

If I there is no scope on a Savage 99, how well can the rifle be expected to shoot with the standard metal sights. Same question for any V-type rear sight and front post.

My Win_94 30-30 shoots very well with the stock sights, 1.5" groups at 100 yards wasn't uncommon.

The stock sight graduations can be tricky to use; because you'll most likely need to hold-over or under also.

The bullet doesn't know whether the rifle has a scope. Don't tell it and it won't know.

XL5 makes a good point! The accuracy is dependent on the shooter. Lots of factors within the shooter. Obviously, vision is much more important with irons than with a scope.

The rifle doesn't either. I have a Brno #3 that my BIL nd I put 250 rounds through one weekend on a single target. 100 yds 1.5". That was with rear aperture front post off of bags. At 100 rounds the target was 1". That is consistancy.

My 375 H&H with wide V rear and post front has shot 1" at 100 with my brother at the controls. My eyes are less good,as are my skills but the same results are easily attained at 50 yds for me. Iam sure the rifle would shoot smaller with a scope because of the vision aid, not because the rifle is more accurate.

My 94 will do 4" 100 yd groups, but the trigger is awful. I have never missed game with it though, so it is plenty accurate for intended use. Only the Brno is a target rifle.


Randy

When I was younger I was good for 1.5-2Moa with a marlin 336 and I could get near 1 moa with a peep sighted bolt gun. That was at age 20.

At 46,things are considerably worse. Somewhere about 3-4 moa with my 358 BLR using a peep. Still fine enough for a deer at a 100yds, but as I age more and more of my time is spent with a scope.

I'm just getting back to shooting irons after many years of shooting only glass.Recently purchased a Marlin 444 to practice up until my Shilo 45/110 arrives.Hope Sharpsguy posts because Bill could shoot a hat off your head at 600 yds!!

Shot this a couple weeks ago at our deer camp...

As I get older, I seem to shoot open sighted rifles les and less. On the occasions when I do, I am usually a little surprised at just how well good open sights work. Over recent years I have change some of my hunting rifles over to Quick Release scope mounting systems to provide for easy access to open sights in the event it becomes necessary. Had rough falls, drops & horse incidents on enough hunts that the idea finally made sense, and the QR systems convinced me they were reliable and repeatable.
Got a Chipmunk 22 that comes out for some of the younger grandkids. It's capabilities with a basic peepsite setup is a regular reminder of just how good open sites can be.
I might have some advantage in that I still shoot handguns pretty regularly, all with open sights.
The real issue anymore is very early, very late & in brush, that scope just help me see better. Having said that, a pretty significant percentage of game that I have taken, could have been taken every bit as well with open sights. I don't have a history of very many real long shots as I am mostly a wood hunter.

I have 2 30-06s that will do 1.5 at 100yds. On is a 1917 Enfield with original battle sights. The other is a Rem. 1917 with a Lyman peep sight. Oh I forgot my O3A3 with original peep will also do 1.5. Yes you are right the driver is an important part of the mix.

I was shooting honest 2" groups at the range the other day with my 20" Alaskan 375 Ruger using irons and Hornady factory 270's. That was benching it of course. The Alaskan sports an "express style" iron sight with a fairly large front bead (IMO). The gun is plenty accurate with irons and I could probably do better with more practice and handloads.

It's up to the shooter, some do real well with them. I'm not one of them which is why I like a relatively high powered scope.

I'm a big fan of the receiver mounted aperture and front sight post. I'd have no problem shooting at deer out to 200 yards with that kind of set-up or elk at 300.

For me, about 4-5 inches at 100 yards. Can't see any better than that with my "coke bottle" glasses.

My eyes kill me with std open sights, can't hardly focus on both. I can do quite well at 50, but at 100 I'm pretty satisfied with 2-3" groups even though the rifles are capable of much more.

There's a whole lots of difference between the "buckhorn" sights that are standard on a 94 and a good ghost rings set of peep sights.
I watched a Army team of shooters using M14a with the (supposedly) issue peep sights competing in a 1000yd match and the range officer told me that when those shooters got their "medicine" right, they could shoot possibles at that distance.

front sight tip and stock weld!

peep sights are the way to go IMO, as others have said

noKnees nails it. I can only add that at 46 I could still see the sights fairly well at least compared to being 56. A lot of folks really under estimate the ability of well regulated open sights. On the other hand many of todays manufacturers put pretty poor sights on their rifles if any.

Shot a really nice doe in late season last year with my Thompson Center Renegade. It has a buckhorn rear sight and brass bead front which isn't the best. I was shooting round balls and Goex black powder. She was right at 100 yards and front sight pretty much covered her chest. At the shot all I could see was smoke. When the smoke cleared she was still standing there so I assumed I'd missed. Started reloading and about halfway through she toppled over. Turned out to be a perfect double lung shot, didn't even know she'd been hit. Even though it was only a doe it ranks right up there as one of my finest trophies.

+1 love peep sights. First centerfire had a peep for starters.

About a year ago picked up a beutified 1952 Rem 722 300 Savage bolt rifle with a Redfield peep and a silver front bead. Worked up a load and stopped fiddling when one grouped 4 shots dime size at 100 and nickle size at 200 using a 24x target scope. (Folks at the range just shook their heads in dismay when they saw my rig with a red rag taped atop the comb for use with my Japanese LOW-built Tasco target scope!) Put the peep back on, as it has a drop at the comb and is perfectly suited as such. Haven't been very serious about it but with a smaller Marbles brass-ringed insert I am approaching 1.5" for 3 shots at a hundred and its become my favorite firearm and is a pleasure to carry afield. Target style, specifically, the aiming point, seems very important for consistancy. Per the OP's question, can't do much with open sights generally. OT