Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors Aperture Sight Idea for Post Miilion FW

I have been wanting to mount a receiver sight on my cut checkered tang safety featherweight. Finding a Williams F-99S has been a challenge. Although it has great adjustments I also don't really like how big the sight is on the gun. I was looking for a sleek low profile receiver sight.

I have a XS low weaver backup on order but while I was waiting I started looking through my sights box. I had a XS winged rear sight for a Marlin 1895. The inner sight portion is smaller than the non-winged sights.

Hmmmm...... How to mount this on the savage without altering the sight or the gun. I think I found a solution. I took a spare Weaver #14 rear scope base and started filing. There are much better craftsmen on this site than me but with a file and a few hours work(no power tools) I cobbled together something that I believe will work and is small and sleek on the FW. I still need to lower it a bit (more file work and dress it up(you can see where my vise put a few dimples in the base)but I proved proof of concept to myself. I thought some might like it here.

[img]https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/galleries/14348483#Post14348483[/img]

If you put some copper pads on your vise jaws there would be no dimples.

Mike

Good work, but aren’t you going to need a really tall front sight?
A Lyman 57SB would look better, use your front sight, and be a LOT less work. Well under $100, too.

I would like to find an 57SB or williams but they seem to elude me. Everyone I've bid on goes for over $150. It will just take time. I'll eventual connect with one. I was just bored today and saw the XS. I didn't want to alter the sight and the curve and angle of the tang make some interesting challenges. The weaver base already has the correct screw pattern and curves so I thought I would just flatten it down. I'm working on getting the front of the adapter under 1/16". I really like the size and style of the XS and wish they would make one for the 99. It's a set and forget sight. I may even get an extra XS 1895 sight and modify if I really want a challenge. No adapter just the sight sitting on receiver. I'd have to grind the angles and curves or build in curves with bedding compound. The pin on the Marlin is larger than receiver holes. I think it's an 8-40. Not sure. I would have to take it off and insert a smaller rear pin that fit the hole. We'll see how it performs. At least it got me out of Christmas shopping with the wife and kids.

That's pretty ingenious. I like the idea, good old yankee ingenuity....even if you are in Texas.

I've got the front edge just under 0.050" now. May try for 0.030". I also brought the nose down a bit to make sure it is flat horizontally and parallel with the barrel, It the earlier photos it wasn't quite level. Its slow work with a file trying to keep it flat and the small parts have a lot of sharp corners and edges that wear your fingers out. Beats the hell outta sitting round watching TV. After I lowered it I thought about getting out my dovetail file and dovetail in the weaver base for the XS slide & aperture. I don't think I want to drill and tap the windage screws. Need to figure out how to adjust windage and secure.
Maybe a friction screw from the back of the sight.

I need some educating. I went to the XS website but didn't see that they still make a rear sight for the Marlin 1895. So what does the bottom of your sight look like? What holds it on the Weaver base and what is the side screw for? I see that they make a couple versions that clamp to Weaver/pica-tiny bases but assume they set to high...?

Rick

Sorry about the misinformation. That XS sight is for a Marlin 336 not 1895. I have had both and got them confuse.
Link to XS Marlin 336 Sight

The 336 XS sight has the same hole pattern as the Weaver #14 rear Scope base. I filed the weaver base down flat. The XS has a screw in the front hole that goes through the base to the receiver. The XS sight has a 8-40 pin in the rear that is not threaded. It just sits in the rear hole of the marlin to keep it from walking around. This pin will fit in the rear hole of the weaver base. It doesn't go all the way through.To keep it from walking around on the savage receiver I screwed a 6-48 filler screw into the receiver and left it proud. It sticks up into the left over room in the rear sight base. Hopefully you can understand how it goes together from the pictures. The side screw is a windage screw. There is one on the other side also. Opposing screws. You loosen to adjust height and windage and the tighten.




Well, I got to shoot the combo today. Just like a couple of members on here said it shot high. I installed a .450" front sight and with he rear aperture bottomed out and it was still 2-3" high at 50 yards and 6-8" high at 100 yds. That's the tallest sight that I had available and I'm not interested in going any higher. If I didn't have the height of the adapter it would still require a fairly tall sight(.450 or greater).

A machinist could probably remove enough material from the bottom of the sight to make it work but that is beyond my capabilities. Maybe if you made a shorter sight body but it would be hard to get the windage screws installed. I'm sure there are several members on the campfire that could do this with their eyes closed but I'm not one of them.

I was a fun project and any time I get to mess with my 99's is a good time. I guess my aperture sight shooting of 99's will have to be handled all the time with my 99F TD in 30-30. It ended up with a Redfield receiver sight sometime in it's former life before I acquired it. It's a hoot to shoot. Was hoping to do the same with the Post Million FW in 300 Savage. Maybe me and a Lyman 57SB will connect in the future.

I have a 57SB but there's no way it's going anywhere for way less than $100!

Nice approach. But, it's a post-mil and as such has little collector interest (boy, that'll get some feathers ruffled!)- I would've simply drilled and tapped the tang for a pre-mil aperture sight.

You might give that a second thought? think - tang safety.

Hah! Got me. What do I know about post-mils- I never owned one!

Alternatively how about one of those Lyman sights that screws to the LH rear side of the receiver?

Would this one set too high, also? Might be about the same as what you have now.

https://www.xssights.com/Detail.aspx?PROD=993847&CAT=8534

We will find out. I ordered one and it should be this week. I think it still might be too tall.