S&W 686 Front Sight / Red Ramp Question

[Big Dave]

Hi Guys,

I'm curious why the red ramp does not go all the way up the front sight. It stops about 1 mm or so below the top of the site causing me to shoot high.

In other words, with my old eyes and a black target (no contrast) it's hard to line up the black top of the front sight with the rear sights. The top of the orange makes a natural sight picture but I will shoot high.

Why did S&W stop the red ramp short?

I'm thinking of painting the top of the ramp red? Is that a bad idea? Is this an issue for anyone else? What do you guys do?

Note: I had a hard time taking photos of the site picture. These are more or less to give you an idea of the red ramp...

Here's a photo of the 686 after a an hour at the range.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Wildshot]

That is very Interesting. The front sight on my 686 is different. The red is much closer to the top and when I sight down the barrel, I can't see the black at the top at all. If it helps you shoot better, go ahead and paint the top of the sight red. Also, they do get dirty after an hour or 2 on the range.

 

[Big Dave]

What the hay? Man, that's interesting.

Let's hear from some other 686 owners. Is mine the only like like that?

Thanks,
Dave

 

[Dfariswheel]

That's a factory defect.
You occasionally see this on ramped front sights of all brands.
All it takes is a slight mis-positioning of the cut and you get this.

You see the same thing with three dot sights. If the dot on the front or the dots on the rear are off slightly, the alignment is off when using the actual sights or when using the three dots.

The fix here is to remove the insert, cut the dovetail slightly higher and re-cast a new insert.

 

[buddah4snow]

Maybe it's a simple-minded suggestion but if you're shooting high all the time why not simply lower the rear sight a little?

 

[MrBorland]

The fix here is to remove the insert, cut the dovetail slightly higher and re-cast a new insert.

The sight is pinned, so wouldn't a simpler fix be simply to replace the sight? And so long as you're doing that, maybe replace it with a true target (Patridge) or combat (fiber optic) sight. That red ramp, IMO, doesn't do either very well.

Looks like you could use a shim under that hammer, too.

 

[Big Dave]

Thanks for the info guys. Factory defect??? That's lame.

Since I'm not very handy I have 2 options:
Send back to S&W and see if they will cover under warranty (1999 purchase).
Or, have a gunsmith install a new / better front site for punching paper / plinking.

Which would be the best front site for target practice / plinking? Also, I'm at the point where I need reading glasses...if that matters.

Do you guys suggest changing out the back or keeping those the same?

I appreciate the help.
Dave

BTW, I did lower the site today all the way and it's about right. The gun always shot so poorly (left and high) that I blamed it on the Hogue stock. I rarely shot it. Then after I changed the stock and I was still having a hard time with it I broke out the screw driver to adjust the sight. I'm surprised how far off it came from the factory. Anyway, now that's it's shooting better I like it. I was ready to sell it off for peanuts yesterday.

 

[HighValleyRanch]

Wow, you must really be a super shot to be able to tell the difference of 1 mm!

I don't believe that many people can hold that steady, and at anything under 20 yards, you aren't going to really see that much difference between holding 1 mm off.

Simplest solution is to adjust your rear sight to point of aim of the top of the red insert, and file the top even with the insert and reblue or blacken it.
1 mm is hardly anything in the sight picture especially with the longer barrel.

With my aging eyes, the blur of the front sight is around 3 mm!

 

[mete]

It's a simple pinned sight so you should be able to change it with minimal skills !! S&W has a number of different ones.
You could do yourself a favor and get a plain black sight . The red insert sight gives you two sight pictures !! One in the shade and the second in sunlight .What's the difference ?? Two clicks at 50 yds !The red sight in the sun glows so you instictively lower the sight so you can see the target.

 

[riomedinamike]

The red sights worked great for me when I was in my teens and 20's; now that several decades have flown by I need a different sight to shoot well. My preference is a gold bead front sight with a plain black rear sight with more width than the factory.

I've learned to perform the rear sight conversion myself and you can get all the parts you need at Brownell's or Midway.

I believe there is a video on the Brownell's website that shows how to do it; I also believe they have one about replacing the front sight as well. You have a later model S&W with the visibly pinned front sight, and again you can do that pretty easily by yourself.

But then again, as previously mentioned, the rear sight is adjustable for a reason, to put the bullet where you want it to go, with your stance, eyes, grip, hand strength, height, etc all affecting bullet impact.

Good luck.

 

[Big Dave]

No, I'm not that good of a shot but something about that red ramp throws me off. I think I'll black the whole thing out and try that.

Anyway, I just want something simple.

Thanks,
Dave

 

[Big Dave]

Could you guys give me the names of some good gun smiths who work on S&W revolvers. I'll have them put in some new sights and do a trigger job on it just for the heck of it. I haven't been into guns for quite a few years and that will be cheaper than buying a new gun.

I'm in Lafayette, Louisiana for a few days. If there is anyone around here I could drop it off or mail it to them. Thanks a lot.

Dave

 

[FlyFish]

Wow, you must really be a super shot to be able to tell the difference of 1 mm!

I don't believe that many people can hold that steady, and at anything under 20 yards, you aren't going to really see that much difference between holding 1 mm off.

Simplest solution is to adjust your rear sight to point of aim of the top of the red insert, and file the top even with the insert and reblue or blacken it.
1 mm is hardly anything in the sight picture especially with the longer barrel.

A change in sight alignment of only 1 mm with a 6" barreled revolver would move the bullet impact approximately 3.5 inches at 20 yards.

 

[Dfariswheel]

BIGDAVE

One of the very best places to have the work done is the S&W factory Performance Center.
They can do just about anything you want.
Since they run a big shop, you won't have to wait a year or two for it to get done, and they have a no "BS" warranty.

 

[Big Dave]

Flyfish, thanks for putting some numbers to the front site being off. That's about what it seemed like. I'm not the best shot around...but 1mm off makes me look like a really bad shot.

Anyway, I shipped the gun off to Clark Custom Guns to deal with the front sight and anything else they suggest to make it a sweet shooter.

Thanks for the help,
Dave

 

[Big Dave]

Yea, thanks for the info on S&W. That would have been a good option I was not aware of. I was a bit in a rush and did a search on smiths in Louisiana and Clarks came up with some favorable press... So, they will get it tomorrow.

Later,
DF

 

[Big Dave]

I was wondering what sight options you guys would suggest for plinking, accuracy, just having fun...

Click on the link below and scroll down to the "Sights" section. Those are my options...
http://www.clarkcustomguns.com/revserv.htm#action

Do the gold dots or fiber optics help out with accuracy? Or, are they more of a combat type of thing to help with speed?

Thanks,
Dave

 

[drail]

No one who seriously shoots targets uses a colored front sight. You would do much better using a flat Patridge sight in black. As someone else mentioned any colored sight viewed in sunlight will glare more on the side the sun is hitting it. The only use for a colored sight is for low light conditions or for speed shooting with a fast but less accurate sight picture. S&W used to offer Patridge sight blades as an option and as an available part. Contact them and see what they have. It is easy to change them on a pinned front sight. A flat blade with a small brass bead is easy for your eyes to pick up and align and doesn't give the glare problem that colored sights do.

 

[foghorn leghorn]

colorblind

you know, it's really a personal preference thing to me. I wouldn't say that nobody does anything a certain way, and that's correct, it's not up to anyone but the operator.
When I bought my SP 101, I specifically ordered an extra sight blade, for a whopping 3 dollars.
I was going to put a white bead on the ramp to help my eyes, being 57 and colorblind,
I need a little help in low light conditions. In fact, I'll go as far as to say that my
Glock's night sights are less effective than the white outline that Glock and S&W use in the factory rear sights. You will never know what another person sees though their eyes, or how well.

I never got around to tweeking that Ruger sight, but won't hesitate if I ever start to carry her, which will take an act of congress here in occupied Illinois.

I am a serious shooter, but if I caught flack for my accessibility augmentation for my disability, I'd be finding a whole bunch of stuff to nitpick them for, and there is most assuredly always a bunch with an issue like that.
I've seen retired couples build pretty elaberate milk crates on wheels to bring their gear down to the range, I just prefer if you are going to modify your firearms, make sure you can revert it back factory, for the next owner.

cheers...

thanks for reading....


Happy New Year!

 

[Big Dave]

Thanks for the excellent advice guys.
Dave