Hi and thanks everyone,
It was a fun project but I have to admit, it is not my best work. Juggling multiple projects and teaching Maria as she works on hers, kind of put me off my usual order and set of procedures. I forgot to take care of details that should have been done much earlier in the process and I simply got distracted from my usual due diligence on everything before applying stain and finish. I have to focus and cannot be pulled away at important points in the process. That said, the rifle looks a lot better to me in the flesh than in photos, and the owner is ecstatic about it. That is the main thing. I still need to shoot it and finish writing the owner's manual for it.
Tom, the front sight is mounted in a dovetail just like normal rifle sights so the owner can adjust windage with both the front and rear sights. The front blade is tall and will almost certainly be filed lower as he works up his load and zeros the rifle in. I usually mortise front sights in fowler barrels:
![](https://i.ibb.co/qpLb4TX/blued-barrel-muzzle.jpg)
![](https://i.ibb.co/GC4Zhpk/barrel-finishing-10.jpg)
However, this gun gives the owner options for adjustment. One detail, however, the barrel wall thickness is pretty good at the muzzle so I set the dovetail in fairly deep. That helps with round barrels because only the top portion of the curve forms the dovetail. The deeper you can cut it, the more metal on metal contact you have between the sight base and the barrel.
dave