Some 6 months ago I sent my R8 barrel with open sights and without thread through my Blaser dealer to Blaser Germany for them to retrofit an M15 thread and move back the front sight. Because of a dealer to Blaser missunderstanding the barrel came back with a new thread but with open sights removed and original holes sealed. I asked Blaser Germany if they could still retrofit open sights at a later time and they replied no problem, free of charge, just send us your barrel and we'll retrofit the open sights. In the end I didn't do it since I feel nowdays a barrel without open sights is a bit more flexible in regards of mounting moderators and clip on devices.
The dealers are sometimes reluctant to work on Blaser barrels as they are considered especially hard to work on because of the very tough steel used. Blaser Germany with their experience and their machinery is a different matter offcourse.
