Mounting Williams sights

[Bret4207]

I have a couple of Williams 5D sights to go on a Savage 24 and a Navy Arm SMLE 45-70. I've mounted a LOT of Willams sights and I don't recall there ever being any mounting instructions with them, ie- where and how they intended you to mount them. I've tried the Williams website with no joy. Does anyone recall ever seeing pictures or instructions with the 5D's anywhere? The SMLE isn't such a puzzle, but the 24 looks like it's a "by guess and by gosh" stab in the dark.

 

[Uncle Grinch]

I too have mounted several and remember one of my mistakes. I had a 5D that I mounted on a 93 Mauser and later came across a steel Lyman. It would not fit due to interference at the rear of the base with the bolt handle. I had drilled and tapped the holes too far back for the Lyman to work. I had to put the 5D back on it.

Be sure to leave adequate clearance for other brands of receiver sights.

 

[Jeff H]

Finding top dead center is usually the greatest challenge for me. I'll find it using tools and then eyeball it and determine it's "off." Still developing that skill and there are several common methods out there. I try every one I can find. Takes a while but I get it. If you already have a front sight mounted, that helps a lot.

Once located, I "glue" the sight on with RTV or silicone caulk, leave them alone for a while, a few days even, and pick up the rifle once in a while and glance through the sight. Once I've convinced myself it's OK, I'll spot the first hole with a bit the size of the through hole in the sight base, then start the hole with a stiff center drill. After that, it's a matter of getting a clean hole with the right tap drill. Watching your depth becomes the next challenge if it's a blind hole. Don't be stingy on the cutting fluid and clean out chips often. I remove the drive belt from the spindle on the drill press to use that as a tap guide to start the tap straight. A fat center punch in the chuck rides in the hole in the back of the tap handle. Once you clean the taped hole up, you can mount the sight with that first screw and repeat the above process for the second hole, which is mush easier.

I've omitted some detail here, but if anything about this process interests you, we can fill in blanks. I'm certain there are many here who do this much more correctly than I do, so I'll withhold detail until more competent machinists validate what I've shared - or steer you away from it.

May take me several hours (or days) to set up and mount one, but if I goof, it's a lifetime of embarrassment and irritation every time I look at it. Besides, no one else has a clue how long it took you - they just see a good job.

I believe I got the bulk of that process from a Lyman receiver sight set of instructions. I will have to dig for it, but if I can find it, I can scan/e-mail if desired.

EDIT:
Didn't have to do any digging: https://www.trackofthewolf.com/pdfs/lyman57and66sights/lyman-57&66-sight-instructions.pdf

This one is helpful too, even though it's for a Winchester Model 92: http://www.beartoothbullets.com/print.php?itemnumber=101&table=tips&type=Tips

 

[Bret4207]

Thanks Jeff. I picked up some double sided tape yesterday in anticipation of doing almost exactly what you suggest. The SMLE is a snapper, but that 24 is going to take some trial and errror to figure just where they intended it be placed!

 

[Jeff H]

..........that 24 is going to take some trial and errror to figure just where they intended it be placed!

Yes, and as Uncle Grinch notes, there are a few things to keep in mind. The fore/aft placement requires some judgement, especially if the clip hump is not ground off.

The base for a Mauser receiver sight is located on the right side of the action instead of on top. The fortunate thing there is that the bottom of the old Mauser receivers, in my experience, can be fairly well relied upon as a reference, and a good machinist's square can help there. I only have a drill press, so my setup is more cautious cumbersome but the base can at least be squared to something on the Mausers.

My dad, who retired with 40 years as a tool & die maker many years ago, once did all our D/T'ing on a mill. He has done more of these than I have and always referenced the bottom of Mausers' receivers for this. There may be some variations/versions for which this is not necessarily true, or we may have just always gotten lucky, but the Czech Mausers have always been pretty straight up - quality materials, construction and workmanship.

 

[Bret4207]

Jeff, I'm working on a Savage M-24 22/410 over-under, not a Czech Mauser. Mausers are a relative snap, although I prefer a Lyman 48 or Redfield for a Mauser.

 

[Jeff H]

Jeff, I'm working on a Savage M-24 22/410 over-under, not a Czech Mauser. Mausers are a relative snap, although I prefer a Lyman 48 or Redfield for a Mauser.

OK, then - pony tail moment, meaning that if I had a pony tail, I'd have a handle to use to pull my head out of my butt.

I went off in too many directions since reading the first post and replying to that. Poor excuse.

Try this then: alex@williamsgunsight.com

Alex Sivil. He's a really nice guy and actually helped me with an odd application recently. It was refreshing to get help from someone who actually knows something. They seem to keep him busy so he may not reply immediately.

 

[Bret4207]

Thanks!