New Marlin 1894c / prob with rear sight

[_n4z_]

Tried to post this up at Marlinowners.com, but for some reason I cannot get registered there.....

So I have taken my new Marlin 1894c(.357mag) to the range twice now, and think i have a problem. POI is 5 inches right of POA @ 50 yards. I bumped the fron sight to the right in hopes of remedying the issue, but no luck. Still hitting 5 inches to the right.

Close inspection of the rear flip up buckhorn has me thinking its installed not quite parallel with the rest of the barrel. Actually looks canted in the direction which would cause what I am experiencing. Outside of bumping the from sight, which I have already done, there is no windage adjustment.

Any ideas/input on how to proceed?

Just hate having a new rifle that is so far out of wack.

[Bear 45/70]

If it is not straight, I'd send it back to Marlin. They will fix it for free if what you say is true.

[meanc]

I don't know if you realize this or not, but you can adjust the rear sight to the left.

Go ahead and recenter the front sight again, then move the rear sight a tad to the left.

[_n4z_]

your suggesting I drift the rear sight to the left?

[deerwhacker444]

yep, drift the rear sight the way you want the bullet to go. In this case to the left.

[AJMD429]

Tried to post this up at Marlinowners.com, but for some reason I cannot get registered there.....

...they're just not as nice as we are...

Close inspection of the rear flip up buckhorn has me thinking its installed not quite parallel with the rest of the barrel. Actually looks canted in the direction which would cause what I am experiencing. Outside of bumping the from sight, which I have already done, there is no windage adjustment.
Any ideas/input on how to proceed?
Just hate having a new rifle that is so far out of wack.

I don't like the factory open dovetail sights that come with any guns, including Marlins. I like either of these sights on a Marlin (...unless I'm going to scope it):

The view through the Williams WGRS (aperture removed for 'ghost ring' mode)




The Williams FP 'side-mount' http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.e ... mid=712881
I put it on a Puma (mounts as well on Marlins - really easy if they're already side-tapped from the factory!)




The view through the Williams FP is great (aperture also out for 'ghost ring' mode). I didn't try to put a Firesight on the Puma due to the type front sight it has.




My XLR had a similarly crooked rear sight, which at first made me think the front sight was off, but after careful measurement I realized the problem was really the rear sight. On this thread - http://www.levergunscommunity.com/viewt ... =1&t=12887, I described it (got some good commiserating and advice, too!).

Although I didn't 'fix' the sight, but rather scoped that particular 'crooked-sight' gun, it DID work out ok -
http://www.levergunscommunity.com/viewt ... rlin+sight

My gunsmithing skills are marginal - http://www.levergunscommunity.com/viewt ... &sk=t&sd=a - but even I managed to replace the silly open/dovetail sight with a decent Williams FP.

[El Chivo]

your sight probably got bumped somewhere along the line.

Drift it carefully to the right until it falls out, then install a Williams Foolproof Receiver sight in the scope holes and forget about the original sight.

[TedH]

Yep, drive that original sight out left to right, replace it will a dovetail slot blank and put a Williams WGRS on the back of the receiver. You will probably need to install a taller front sight as well, but in the end it is well worth the effort and expense.

[J Miller]

_n4z_,

Welcome to the forum.

One step at a time.

Center both the front and rear sights. Then shoot a group. If the bullets are hitting to the right of your point of aim, move the rear sight to the left. Always move the rear sight in the direction you want the bullets to go.

It always amazes me when someone comes on board with one problem and instead of getting help with that problem he gets comments by other posters that they don't like what ever it is he's having problems with and recommendations he replace half his gun with parts that make the others happy.
Gads ................

_n4z_ sorry for the rant, I woke up on the wrong side of the world today. It's Monday again.

Always remember, with iron sights move the rear sight in the direction you want the group to go. Move the front sight the opposite direction you want the group to go. I know it's confusing, but that's the way it works. That's why we center the front sight and adjust the rear sight. It's easier that way.

Now, to verify if the sights are on the barrel crooked, or the barrel is indexed crooked, make sure the gun is unloaded, turn it around and look down the barrel from the muzzle end. You'll be able to see if the sights or barrel is crooked much easier. If so then the best course of action is to send it back to Marlin and have them make it right.

Joe

[TedH]

Geez Joe, the gentleman received the proper advice about his original concern. What's wrong with making suggestions to improve his rifle and/or shooting???

[J Miller]

Geez Joe, the gentleman received the proper advice about his original concern. What's wrong with making suggestions to improve his rifle and/or shooting???

He didn't ask for suggestions on other sights, only how to fix the existing ones.
At least that's how I read it.

Joe

[TedH]

Ok then, lets restrict our conversations here to only answering specific questions.

[AJMD429]

It always amazes me when someone comes on board with one problem and instead of getting help with that problem he gets comments by other posters that they don't like what ever it is he's having problems with and recommendations he replace half his gun with parts that make the others happy.
Gads ................

But see, it's a PLOT; if I can get him to be unhappy with what he's got, maybe he'll sell it to me cheap, then I can put the kind of sight I want on it... On the other hand, if he wants to swap for a peep sight, then maybe I can talk him into buying that extra one I have laying around.

...either way, I win! He's just a 'newbie', so it's ok, isn't it...?

[/humor off]

Sorry, but I just wrote a tax check so big that we had to max out our homeowners loan to pay it, and will be eating beans and rice for the next year. So I had to be silly.

Seriously - if you like open sights, all the other advice will work well. Try peeps if you haven't, or before you go and replace the rear sight with anything else. There are better OPEN sights as well, some for the dovetail mount and some actually for back on the receiver.

I just think most guns come with crummy sights, especially those little drift-adjusting rear ones.

[_n4z_]

Wow, thanks for all the info, and advice.

For Joe, initial groups were shot with sights centered. Sorry I didn't give you guys the entire story. I've been shooting irons for a good 30 years, and learned the peep from Uncle Sam in the 80's. An easy way to remember which goes which way is "front always follows the holes", if you've got windage up front.

Also, I was a Levergun member years back, but when the server change thing happened quite awhile back, my name got wacked. Just never re-registered. ...Probly was a different name too.

This is my third Marlin, but the first I've had issue with. A 925 .22lr, a 336 (30-30) and now the 1894c. I guess I've been lucky having never had a rifle be so far off at 50 yards, just starting out. Elevation yes, but windage... Not 5+ inches.


Receiver sight was already on the upgrade list and I may just go ahead and bump it up on the schedule. I took the rear sight all the way off just about an hour ago, but could not really see any cant to the dovetail cut in the barrel. It is a rough cut though, not as smooth as could be. The sight itself looks OK too, until the flip up part is reinstalled and then it looks a bit off.

Got a shop right around the corner here. Might check and see if they have any Marlin specific reciever sight/ghost ring set up tomorrow. Hate sending such items off in the mail.

[J Miller]

J Miller said:

_n4z_ sorry for the rant, I woke up on the wrong side of the world today. It's Monday again.

Sorry guys.

AJMD, So sorry to hear about the taxes. Uncle Sammy is gonna ruin us all.
Feel free to be silly, buy beg or trade for what ever you want.

I'll just go soak my head in Hoppe's for while.

Joe

[JustaJeepGuy]

Well, at least you'll smell good.

[AJMD429]

Well, at least you'll smell good.

If you tap out the rear sight, take a piece of square material narrow enough to fit in the dovetail, lay it on a smooth countertop, then lay the gun upside down on top of it so the bar stock or whatever you use is in the dovetail; you'll see right away if the dovetail is seriously off, because the buttstock will stick up at an angle instead of straight.

Of course if you go to a receiver sight, who cares...

There is another thread on "fancy peep sights" going right now - worth checking out too.

I usually use the Williams FP's; get the side mount one if your Marlin is side-tapped (most aren't), and the top/scope hole mount one otherwise. They also make the one that is without 'clicks' - the "5D" and it is a bit cheaper but more of a pain to get finally or precisely sighted in. The one I have on my Guide Gun is a different model, more compact, but also only adjusts with a screwdriver; it also requires a higher front sight. Several of the Williams FP models come with a couple different front firesight blades as part of the kit for around $60 total.

[El Chivo]

they don't like what ever it is he's having problems with and recommendations he replace half his gun with parts that make the others happy.

hey, if I was going to do that, I would have suggested a tang sight which would be MY personal preference, but I restrained myself.

If he is aware of other sight options then likely his stock rear sight would be in his tool box. As it turns out, he already knew about the options, but we didn't know it.

Suggesting beyond the actual question is the same as "thinking outside the box" which may not be welcome but then again, may be valuable. That's one thing I liked about the forum when I was getting started, the extra suggestions really helped me.