Tang Sight for Marlin 1881

[aak]

Hello Marlin lovers,
I bought a very nice Marlin 1881 caliber 40-65
I would like to add a Tang sight. I do not want to drill holes in the rifle, so what would you suggest?
There are two screws, maybe I can use there holes?
Thanks!

[gamekeeper]

Welcome to the fire aak, help will arrive shortly....

[Pete44ru]

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Welcome, aak - The two screws in the upper tang are the rear tang screw (near the rear end of the tang) and the factory D/T'd & plugged tang sight base prep - so the hardest part of your quest is to locate a tang sight that has a base that will fit the measurement between the 2 holes (C/L-to-C/L).


The original factory option tang sights were:

Marlin Improved Graduated (tang) Peep Sight,
Marlin Improved Vernier Mid-Range (tang) Peep Sight,
Marlin Improved Vernier Long-Range (tang) Peep Sight,
Lyman No 1M Combination Tang Sight,
Lyman No 2M Tang Sight.

There are sometimes correct Lyman tangers to be found, but are hard to find & VERY expensive today.

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[Ysabel Kid]

Welcome to the fire!

[Griff]

Aye, welcome to THE Forum.

[model55]

The holes are 8-40 pitch I believe and I think a tang sight from a 1893 can be modified to work .The originals I've seen posted sat back so there was no interference from the bolt but the sight I have does interfere. It was from a 1893. Wish I could remember who told all this.

[marlinman93]

The holes on most early Marlins were 8-40, but not until the late 1880's. The 1881 and Ballard rifles used 9-40 tang sight holes, and you can get those screws from MVA. A 8-40 will work, but wont be a close fit, and you don't want to tighten the 8-40 screws too tight or risk stripping them out.
You also need a very specific sight for the 1881 Marlin, or the breech bolt will hit the sight staff when you work the lever. It needs to be a code letter M for a Lyman or a code letter M7 for a Marbles. Another option is the Marbles "Special Flexible Base" tang sight that relocates the staff back over the rear tang screw. Then it can be a SM7, or SM6 or SM5. The last two being for the 1895 or 1893 Marlins, but with them being this style will work great on an 1881. But the Special Flexible Base are almost as tough to find as a regular Lyman or Marbles for an 1881.
This is the SFB Marbles on my Husqvarna Type 33 Roller.



My 1881 Marlin Flues rifle has a midrange vernier Ballard sight on it, but the breech bolt does touch the staff when working the action. Since it's been on there forever it has a shiny mark from years of contacting the staff.

[marlinman93]

Hello Marlin lovers,
I bought a very nice Marlin 1881 caliber 40-65
I would like to add a Tang sight. I do not want to drill holes in the rifle, so what would you suggest?
There are two screws, maybe I can use there holes?
Thanks!

PS-Your caliber is NOT .40-65, but it is .40-60 Marlin. The two are very close dimensions, but the Marlin uses a slightly smaller bullet diameter. So you'll need to slug your bore and determine bullet size. Then you can use .40-65 cases and dies to reload with the correct sized bullet for your 1881.

[aak]

40-60? I got used brass 40-65 with the gun.
How is that possible?