Iron sights and moderator.

stele82

New Member
I just bought a Sako 85 Bavarian with iron sights, but I guess I would like a moderator after a while.
Do any of you guys have a moderator on a rifle with iron sights?
Please post a pic if you have..
Not sure if I will have the barrel cut behind the front sight, or have the frontsight moved back on the barrel.
 
Firstly your one of the rare people nowadays who wish to use the Iron sights but I can understand your desire on this. Now looked up the rifle on the web and it's difficult to say for sure but it looks like it might be possible to cut the front of the ramp back and get a thread for a muzzle mounted moderator. Not knowing how the fore sight is mounted, screwed on or sweated on cannot say much about moving it. As I was intending to fit irons to my 280 AI project and have it possible to use with a moderator or brake I was toying with a few ideas about having a keyed removable foresight beign retained by the moderator/brake or a threaded cap. That's as far as I got I'm afraid :oops:.
 
Most moderators used today are `reflex` types which come back along the barrel and have a bush contoured to fit the barrel at their breech end.
The older type make the rifle much longer, more cumbersome and affect the forward balance.
You may have to have the foresight re-set if you opt for the older type.

HWH.
 
Just had to have the foresight taken off both my Sauer and BSA. Though they don't look as pleasing it does mean I can actually use them, because I have to moderatored rifles for the FC. I was told i could have them set back at a later date, but dont think it'd look right or be as accurate. Personally i think its either or, but not both

Scrun
 
I believe I read somewhere that Steve Kershaw has made a thread protector with a front sight on it.
So if you want to use the rifle with a moderator and 'scope fine but if you want to use it with just iron sites and no mod then that is the way to go.
 
I believe I read somewhere that Steve Kershaw has made a thread protector with a front sight on it.
So if you want to use the rifle with a moderator and 'scope fine but if you want to use it with just iron sites and no mod then that is the way to go.

'tis on my Blaser old boy. Kershaw is pretty tidy.

The stainless end cap has now been sprayed black with some Hammerite matt black barbeque paint of all things. I just keyed the stainless steel with some fine sandpaper and gave it three coats. It actually matches up quite well. Just means the rifle keeps it's good looks if I travel abroad piggy bashing minus the mod.

Moving the foresight back along the barrel behind the threads will work, but it does not look the best.

Kershaw actually indexed the threads so when screwed up tight the foresight is vertical. I haven't proven it yet, but I reckon it is good enough to use at close ranges on pigs where you might want to take the scope off.

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Nice.............................. although to be honest having met Steve and been to his workshop a few times I am not surprised. As I said my thought was a small key to locate the sight in the right spot and vertical and have the threaded cap retain it.

As for muzzle mounted rather then over barrel "Reflex" type I believe there are still several makes that do this muzzle mounted type. The "Husher" is one that springs to mind. A quick web search threw this up:-

Ase Utra NS-3S North Star moderator

Finland seems to be at the cutting edge of technology when it comes to the manufacturer and design of firearm’s moderators, with Ase Utra (AU) being amongst the top names. In the UK they stand out as one of the few companies who only offer muzzle-mounted cans with their Jet-Z, Compact and CQB and S Series models.

So there you go and I'll bet there are others too.
 
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Thank you for good feedback!
Very nice solution you have there Claret! Thats close to art:)
Guess most of todays moderators build a bit back on the pipe... Hmm.. Have to tink about this one..
Almost sad to cut of the fron sight;)
 
I'm not understanding this talk of cutting back the barrel as the front sight is easily removable, as is the rear.

The fixed leaf rearsight, and the adjustable foresight & ramp are the same as those fitted to the Tikka Lefthand models M595/M695/T3. Righthand models come with clean barrels - no iron sights - so most UK shooters are used to this idea.

For some reason Tikka and Sako think that left-handed shooters were visually challenged, or hadn't yet discovered the modern telescopic sight so they drilled and tapped the barrels for those models, and attached these defunct bits of iron. This little bit of extra trim was maybe part of their justification for charging a 10% premium for their left hand versions. :-|:-|

Removing them was always (groan) the first job as soon as I got a new rifle back home. Each sight had 2 bolts fixing it to the barrel .... then you had to stump up for sets of Tikka plug screws to fill in the holes left over from the sights you'd paid extra for ..... and never wanted in the first place. As it is I now have umpteen sets sitting uselessly in a drawer.

Check this out, Sele. I'm certain this is the case.

The Bavarian is available with both iron sights on the standard length 22" barrel, or with a shorter 20" barrel without sights.
 
I had the front sight on my sauer 202 moved back behind the thread when I had it threaded, and i can actually use the iron sights over the moderator as I use an ase utra jet z which is 5mm lower than the sight plane!

Work was done by Neil mckillop in Basingstoke, and he did it for me on two Sauers and I would highly recommend him!
 
I'm not understanding this talk of cutting back the barrel as the front sight is easily removable, as is the rear.

The fixed leaf rearsight, and the adjustable foresight & ramp are the same as those fitted to the Tikka Lefthand models M595/M695/T3. Righthand models come with clean barrels - no iron sights - so most UK shooters are used to this idea.

For some reason Tikka and Sako think that left-handed shooters were visually challenged, or hadn't yet discovered the modern telescopic sight so they drilled and tapped the barrels for those models, and attached these defunct bits of iron. This little bit of extra trim was maybe part of their justification for charging a 10% premium for their left hand versions. :-|:-|

Removing them was always (groan) the first job as soon as I got a new rifle back home. Each sight had 2 bolts fixing it to the barrel .... then you had to stump up for sets of Tikka plug screws to fill in the holes left over from the sights you'd paid extra for ..... and never wanted in the first place. As it is I now have umpteen sets sitting uselessly in a drawer.

Check this out, Sele. I'm certain this is the case.

The Bavarian is available with both iron sights on the standard length 22" barrel, or with a shorter 20" barrel without sights.

Hmmmm perhaps I could relieve you of those old bits of obsolete iron?

I also wonder why you do not see a proper DG rifle without a good set of regulated irons on it?

Now I know Thar and Brian think I am a dinosaur but I was in the process of sorting out proper sporting aperture sights for several of my stalking rifles.
 
I have a BSA .222 Stutzen on Guntrader that has iron sights and Third Eye Tactical Spartan end mount can. Really neat and effective. Have a look at the pics.
 
It's amazing what you learn from this site.

That .222 appears to be a beautiful example of the first action made by BSA ... is it the 'Royal' line? ... which I've only read about, and never seen in the flesh. Nor did I imagine that fullstock stutzen models could ever be moderated.

Thanks for the link. What a piece of work! :lol::D
 
It's amazing what you learn from this site.

That .222 appears to be a beautiful example of the first action made by BSA ... is it the 'Royal' line? ... which I've only read about, and never seen in the flesh. Nor did I imagine that fullstock stutzen models could ever be moderated.

Thanks for the link. What a piece of work! :lol::D

Sorry to burst the bubble Sinistral but that's a CF2 which was the last od the BSA rifles which only came in the long size. This is one of the early ones, note the modified Mauser full length extractor:-

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Sorry about the focus my camera was out of operation so borrowed mothers and I don't get on with it very well.

I thought at first I had found a .222 Hunter :cool: but in fact it's the Regent model :oops: of 1956 vintage I am not aware they offered these in stutzen (full stock format) but if some one ordered them then BSA would have made them so until one turns up I'll say once again as far as I am aware they only made half stocks. This is the European version the US version had a stock more aimed at that market.

The Hunter then Regent after the line up became the Royal line (Regent, Viscount, Imperial, Emperor) came in three action lengths. The Later Majestic then Monarch in two and the last CF2 (Centre Fire 2 model) came in just one length.

Hope you like it..

I'll send a long a PM about the sights.
 
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