Tang sight for Uberti 1873

[cassog]

I'm looking to put a tang peep sight onto a Uberti 1873 special sporting in .45 Colt calibre.
Any recommendations anyone?
Also, would the standard front sight be OK to use with said tang, or would I also have to replace that?

By the way - big thanks to TedH (and others) who pointed me in the direction of 13g Unique for an indoor (short-range) target load for the .45-70.
Tried it last Friday with some cast 350 grainers. Single hole groups at 25 yards!
I've also ordered some Trail Boss to try out as per Borregos' suggestion. Should be with me by the weekend.

Take care everyone.

[bdhold]

If you can live without windage adjustment, Uberti sells their own very nice replicas of Lyman and the original Marbles
http://www.uberti.com/store/Sights-c2/
Your rifle should already be tapped to fit these. (note that their Lyman sight comes with a front globe)
Their folding Beech sight is nice, and offered for a very good price.


I have a Chaparral, and I installed a current Marbles with windage adjustment and the Uberti Beech front sight

I also replaced the buckhorns with a level - mine is a Lee Shaver, but Uberti also offers these.

note also that Midway has a nice parts reference page for the Marbles parts
http://www.midwayusa.com/midwayusa/Appl ... _Chart.htm
The Marbles improved sight base allows interchange of long- and short-range tang sights.

[jnyork]

I have the current Marble's on mine. I replaced the front sight with a Lyman 17a but you dont have to, you can still use the issue front sight.

[Irascible]

I put a Marbles std (no interchangeable post) on mine it works fineand it has elevation and windage adjustments. It came with the wrong thread on the long screw and I had to call them for another. It came no charge.

[Chuck 100 yd]

I have a Marbles on mine also. Works great!!

[cassog]

Thanks for the advice guys. Think I'll go for the Marbles with windage option - really looks the part on Bulldog's gun.

Take care all.

[bdhold]

it shoots nice, too.
first time out with subsonic 125-gr cowboy loads, I was grouping 2-1/2" at 100 yds.
been too busy, but planning to reload some 130-gr. .241 BC up to 1400 fps, which will keep them hypersonic out to 150 yds.
Hoping to improve on that group.
the other side:

[Irascible]

I think that bulldog's sight is the one with the interchangeable posts. The elongated rear hole and the knurled locking nut are the clues. The one without the interchangeable posts will save you money and is good for any distance you'll be shooting a '73 at.

[bdhold]

actually, no, it's the standard - I don't expect to shoot this rifle beyond the range of the sight

[Irascible]

Sorry, mine must be an older version. The rear hole on mine is only a single hole. Whichever, they still work well and look "proper".

[bdhold]

So K, bro.

[COSteve]

...130-gr. .241 BC up to 1400 fps, which will keep them hypersonic out to 150 yds.

Not quite that fast. Hypersonic is generally considered to be speeds above mach 5 which translates to around 5,500fps. Your 130grn bullet should remain supersonic just over 150yds.

...I don't expect to shoot this rifle beyond the range of the sight

You'll find that your tang sight will give you adjustments out to over 450yds when using 158grn 357mag loads. My modern Marbles does it for my 24" rifle.

[Chuck 100 yd]

COSteve , You beat me to it !! But I think we all knew what he meant.

[bdhold]

You'll find that your tang sight will give you adjustments out to over 450yds when using 158grn 357mag loads. My modern Marbles does it for my 24" rifle.

If you will list some 158-gr loads that will do this and keep the cup pressure below 23,000 psi, I will happily take notes.

yep, supersonic - I type fast. (seriously fast, hypersonic - 120 wpm and don't even think in letters)

[bdhold]

another toy - I bought a Hadley eye cup (luckily, I have a couple of tang sights that accept the same 10-32 threads, so I can move it between these rifles as I choose)
http://www.buffaloarms.com/browse.cfm/4,3425.html

this one is a Lee Shaver, came from Buffalo Arms, 9 apertures, from 0.029 to 0.089
The thing will really spoil you.
As you dial through the apertures, it's just like dialing the f-stop in a good SLR camera. For any light condition, you literally dial in the aperture that gives you the best compromise between contrast and focal resolution, and see the results in real-time.

[jnyork]

I have the Merit adjustable disc in mine with the rubber eyepiece. It really dials in the focus on that front sight for me, I'm almost 70 and can see the front sight as clearly as ever.

[bdhold]

I have the Merit adjustable disc in mine with the rubber eyepiece. It really dials in the focus on that front sight for me, I'm almost 70 and can see the front sight as clearly as ever.

I looked it up - available in 10-32 thread and even more like the aperture on an SLR camera. Very nice.

[cassog]

Thanks again to everyone who posted.
I have ordered the Marbles sight and am awaiting delivery.
My '73 has a 24" barrel and is chambered for the .45 Colt.
Now does anyone have any pet .45 loads that would work well in such a rifle?
Powders I currently have are Unique, 2400, H4198, Trail Boss and Vectan BA9.
Head would be a cast 250g SWC.

Thanks in advance.

[COSteve]

Deleted

[bdhold]

pretty much everyone agrees that cup pressure is the load-limiting factor on 1873 replicas - these rifles are black-powder design and have a long spindly bolt.
All the manufacturers rate them for "commercial ammunition" and prohibit the use of "+P" .38 loads, and 40,000 psi cup pressure is right out.
But backing up, limiting cup pressure in your loads to 20,000 to 23,000 psi seems to be agreed on by everybody for 1873 replicas.
So a slow burning powder that will limit the cup pressure and get you acceleration down the barrel is the way to go.
At that point, decide on a max velocity based on your bullet.
The hardest lead alloys? 1400 fps is a good upper limit (though some people are pushing this, too).

The approach I'm taking is starting down around 15,000 psi with a published 4227 load, and easing up the powder to get 1300 to 1400 fps with a little bit lighter lead bullet (which also keeps the pressure down)
H110 is certainly heading in the right direction, and your load is obviously very effective with your Rossi.
Thanks for the info and the photo - that's a pretty rifle.