Sighting in problem

[Mike Lyons]

I’ve got my rear sight filed down so low that I’m now looking through the tang bolt slot and I’m still shooting high 4” high at 50 yds.  Needless to say,  I’m putting a new rear sight on it.    I didn’t want to make a taller front sight because it’s already ungodly tall. The thing shoots a great pattern.  What are options? That target was the 25 yard one before I went to 50 hoping it would drop.  It didn’t.  It went high an additional 2 inches. 

[Stoner creek]

Add to or make a taller front sight.
She’s grouping purty!

[yellowhousejake]

What does your sight picture look like?

Are you shooting from a rest or offhand?

DAve

[J.E. Moore]

That is a nice group for sure. Barrel might have a little up sway to it. I'm sure you done looked about the stock and made sure it wasn't pushing it up, them long barrels don't take much to flex em. Where about was you resting it while you was shooting ? Near the entry thimble (balance point)?

[Mike Lyons]

I was shooting off hand at 25.   I put a taller front sight on and it did the trick. Thanks Wayne.  Looks stupid,  but it shoots good now.  I’ve put a lot of shots through it today.  She got rode hard and put away wet.  That zornes lock is a dream. The sight picture is horrid.  It’s going to take some getting used to.  By the time I’m leveling the front sight,  I’m about to lose the rear sight.  I wonder if an octagon to round barrel would be better on these Lehighs?  Either that or I went too far forward with the rear sight.  If I went back any further,  the front sight would have to be even taller.  Maybe the front sight should have went closer to the muzzle.

[Stoner creek]

My sight picture concentrates 98% on that front sight. I pretty much use the rear sight for elevation at the very beginning of the sighting in process and then only briefly. It’s tough for older eyes to get a clear picture of both so I don’t!

[yellowhousejake]

Either that or I went too far forward with the rear sight.  If I went back any further,  the front sight would have to be even taller.  Maybe the front sight should have went closer to the muzzle.

Putting the rear sight further forward was the correct thing to do. You can get the sights nearer the same focal plane that way. How you shape the rear sight depends on what you like to see. Some prefer a shallow groove, some a vee, some a notch (deep and wide or shallow and narrow). You can experiment with pieces of tin or brass sheet cut to shape and superglued on the rear sight blade until you find a design that suits you.

Nice rifle, great groups.

DAve

[Mike Lyons]

I don’t think I’m communicating it correctly.  The entire rear sight disappears because of the architecture of the rifle,  not my eyesight.  Luckily,  with a tall front sight,  I’m able to catch a tiny bit of the top of the rear sight.  Any smaller front sight,  my rear sight is covered up by the tang.  Hope that makes sense.

[smallpatch]

Mike,
You've reach that point that every builder eventually comes to....... bending a barrel.
As the master Don Getz used to say..... ya gotta bend em straight.
My first Lehigh was the Busty Brunette bu Mr Allen Martin.  It was just the opposite of yours, and shot about 4" low.  I filed the front Patridge sight down as far as I could .  I emailed Al, and my phone rang almost instantly, Allen screaming..... don't file that sight!!!  What should I do?...... bend the barrel!

I did..... first try, shot to point of aim, and still does.

[Mauser06]

Small patch beat me to it.   No reason to NOT have sights that function properly and look proportional.   Put the sights where you like em and bend the barrel to hit where the sights shoot. 

The others have valid points...pressure points in the stock or the rest (sounds like you shot completely free hand no bags or rest so that'd eliminate that). 


I just went through it with my turkey gun.  I could have had a rear sight offset a good bit and shot center.  I centered the sights and bent the barrel. 

[Hungry Horse]

I have a silly question. How often do you target shoot at 25 yards? I almost never shoot at such short range. So why not try some shots at 50, or a hundred yards before you start bending the barrel. I would be reluctant to screw around with a barrel that shot that well.

Hungry Horse

[45-110]

Your target looks like you would be zeroed for 100yds, which by my standards is perfect. I cannot recall the last time I bothered shooting at 25 yds for recreation, and seldom shoot 50 yds either. Its just the nature of the our region I guess in Montana, where distances are the norm.

[Mike Lyons]

I plan to hunt squirrel with the rifle and figured 25 yards was a good starting point.  I don't plan to shoot squirrel at 100 yards with a 36 caliber although, I would like to know what the rifle will do at 100 yards.  The monthly shoot that I participate in has offhand at 25 and 50 and bench at 50 and 100.  I was thinking 25 was a good starting point to get the rifle centered horizontal before dealing with centering it vertical at longer ranges.  My big issue is the swamped barrel is putting the rear sight below the sight plain if the front sight is small. 

Looks like I'll be bending a barrel for the first time tonight after I am perfectly sure which way to bend it.  I want it to shoot low, so it seems I would bend it up in the middle.  The method seems high tech.  I'm trying to figure out if I want to do the trampoline method, C Clamp method, fork in tree method or the whack against the telephone pole method.  All seems to be acceptable methods. 

[Hungry Horse]

Be super careful, it’s pretty easy to crimp a swamped barrel. They always want to bend in a very small area.

  Hungry Horse

[Mike Lyons]

The trampoline method worked like a charm.  My sight picture is perfect now.  I sat it on 2x4’s and bounced on it until it bounced off the floor.   Straitened it right up!!!  Thanks for the help everyone.  Wish I Tried  that before making a new front sight and filing my rear sight.   

[smallpatch]

Mike,
Glad it worked out.