Look Ma, No Scope!

[Michigander]

It has been hot and humid here in Michigan, and I didn't want to bother warming up scopes with my wife's hair dryer before taking them outside. The solution: Shoot iron sights for a change! I have two rifles with factory sights mounted, my recently rebuilt HW55M, and a stock FWB Sport. The HW has aperture sights consisting of a aperture disk rear and a ring insert front, ideal for aiming at a black bull. The FWB sights are a notch rear and a hooded post front, just not as easy for me to line up on the bull accurately. Results at 25 yards were about what one would expect, the HW with its aperture sights is easily minute of squirrel at that distance, while I would want to be closer with the FWB wearing its open sights. But both are viable options for hunting or plinking if you understand your limitations.

If you haven't tried shooting with iron sights in a while, or maybe ever, you should give it a try. It offers a new challenge, and you might be surprised at how well you can do with such basic equipment.

 

[Bob-in-WV]

Really good shooting with irons.

 

[Mossonarock]

The general rule with peep sights is: if you can see it, you can shoot it. There's a reason peep sights are the main sight used on military guns: reliability, accuracy, ease of use.

I wish more airgun manufacturers would put winged patridge sights on their guns for the front sight. That is winged patridge sights like you see on the M1 Carbine.

 

[seven08]

I recently "re discovered" the simplicity and accuracy of good sights on a good rifle. These groups were fired from the bench at 25 yds. with my HW80 .22 using HN 5.54 FTT's. My Leupold scope is out for repair. Hey Leupold...take your time fixing up my scope. No hurry.

I am fortunate in that my 67 year old eyes are still functioning like new. I need no corrective eye ware......yet.

 

[bandg]

Lucky you. At 61, I need reading glasses for close vision and thus seeing open sights clearly enough for excellent shooting is no longer possible. I've shot several gophers recently with opens but really good shooting requires a scope now. I've even gone to an optic on a carry handgun, which I said at an earlier age that I would never do. Famous last words.

 

[MrP]

I have always felt most comfortable with iron sights, probably because most of my airgunning was in the 10-17 year old range, with a flea market pumpmaster 760 and no money for any accessories. 


I recently resumed this hobby as an adult, and old habits die hard. First “good” gun I got was a gamo swarm magnum and the first thing I did was remove the scope and replace with open sights. That gun has no way to mount a sight on the front to a red dot sight seemed the best solution. Don’t really like the reflex sights... somehow having to turn them on and off is annoying.


got a TalonP next. Had a hard time finding iron sights that worked on it... finally used a Mendoza rear sight with a high profile front sight. 


I am stuck with an indoor range so the scope is of limited use. I look forward to shooting with a scope some day to hit things very far away. The idea of having a magnified view of the target is appealing of course.

 

[Jonah]

Put a Williams receiver rear sight on that FWB 124, and it will give the HW55 a run for it's money.

 

[RM1689]

I have always felt most comfortable with iron sights, probably because most of my airgunning was in the 10-17 year old range, with a flea market pumpmaster 760 and no money for any accessories. 


I recently resumed this hobby as an adult, and old habits die hard. First “good” gun I got was a gamo swarm magnum and the first thing I did was remove the scope and replace with open sights. That gun has no way to mount a sight on the front to a red dot sight seemed the best solution. Don’t really like the reflex sights... somehow having to turn them on and off is annoying.


got a TalonP next. Had a hard time finding iron sights that worked on it... finally used a Mendoza rear sight with a high profile front sight. 


I am stuck with an indoor range so the scope is of limited use. I look forward to shooting with a scope some day to hit things very far away. The idea of having a magnified view of the target is appealing of course.

I grew up on a Crosman with iron sights & recently bought a Gamo Maxxim Gen 2 (.22 cal). Terrific gun; I’m just not used to scopes. Where did you find a red dot sight? I’m thinking I’d like to install something like that on mine & remove the scope...old dogs & new tricks. Thanks. 

 

[pdxFrank]

excellent! i keep a couple guns optics-free just for that kinda practice.

 

[bandg]

I grew up shooting predominantly open sights. Always preferred them for small game hunting. Now at 62 I can't use them well any longer. I can still shoot with them under perfect lighting conditions but any lack of light makes them unusable. Seems this will happen to most people with age so getting accustomed to scoped shooting gradually might be a good idea. 

 

[Flintsack]

Shooting iron sights is a lost art. And I don’t see that process reversing itself. My hat is off to anyone who still shoots good groups with iron sites.

mike

 

[RM1689]

I agree that shooting iron sights is a lost art. While my 41-year-old eyes definitely appreciate the scope’s zoom, and I am a reasonably good shot with it, iron sights are what I’ve shot my whole life and I want them on this rifle as well. It’s what I’m teaching my son. 


Can anyone recommend iron sights I could put onto my Gen 2 Maxxim .22?

 

[kingfisher61]

Put a Williams receiver rear sight on that FWB 124, and it will give the HW55 a run for it's money.

What Jonah said!! It's my preference on a 124.

 

[jkingrph]

Put a Williams receiver rear sight on that FWB 124, and it will give the HW55 a run for it's money.

I dug out an old WIlliams receiver sight, with target knobs, and an after market globe sight both of which I have had in my parts box for about 42-43 years , since I had scoped my FWB 124. I took the scope off and installed them and was surprised when I did not have to re zero. I had the gun worked over a few months ago, new breech and piston seal along with mainspring and althoughI I was not shooting at paper but a tin can, it was hitting good. No misses at about ten yards then later the same thing at 25 and 30 yards, all shooting offhand, no rest. It's a lot more fun to shoot like that than from a bench, may not get the tiny groups but more fun watching an old can bounce.

I agree, it seems as though no one learns the art of shooting iron sights nowdays. I again fell into the well, putting a big scope on a new Diana AirMax pro, and this gun is so big and heavy as it does not seem to lend itself to offhand shooting. I have another receiver sight so I may just slip the scope off and give the receiver sight a try, although I may neede to remove the factory rear leaf sight. I also shoot a double aperture with my olf FWB 300s. Doing pretty good for an old guy with cataracts, soon to be fixed, and lots of floaters 

 

[AG72]

I was shooting with my scoped Hatsan 95 .25 yesterday but struggled to keep it consistent in the center of the target, it's an old hunting scope and i think the recoil has damaged it cause the shotgroups went both high then low and left and right, so I removed the scope and zeroed it with polymags @ 25 yards, don't know why i have not done this before cause it is realy fun to shoot a 25 cal open sighted!

 

[jkingrph]

I got my FWB 300s out this morning, shooting off my "bench" which is a not solid metal patio table, for two, kinda small, using a Caldwell combo pistol/rifle rest, plastic so not a real steady set up, With my iron sights I was getting 1/4 to about 5/8 inch groups at a long ten paces, just over ten yards.with a rather brisk breeze. Then got my HW75 and was doing almost as good. I'm going to have to take them along next time I go to my rifle range where I can get a good concrete shooting bench and my good front rest and rear bags set up . May just make it an air gun day.

 

[Michigander]

Well you guys shamed me into taking the scope off my FWB Sport and trying the factory open sights again. I had done pretty well with them before, but with a great deal of effort. I started indoors, and again was having a good bit of trouble with sight alignment. I decided to experiment with the various notch widths available on the rear sight. I first went wider with the 2.5mm notch, and got no improvement. So I tried going smaller than the standard 2.2mm, and found a big improvement in my ability to keep the front post aligned in the rear notch, and also found it easier to align the top of the post with the bottom of the bull. In the end, I settled on the smallest notch, the 1.9mm. Here is the sight in target at 10 meters. Still some vertical stringing, but not too bad.

Today I shot outside at 20 yards, and again found sight alignment much easier with the smaller rear notch. Not a super small group, but very little effort required to achieve this level of accuracy. Just line up the sights and pull the trigger.

I have to say this kind of shooting is a lot of fun compared to being obsessed with "stacking pellets" from a PCP or even a target grade springer. Tomorrow I will finish sighting it in at 20 or 25 yards, then set up my spinners, relax and enjoy some plinking time.

Along with trying a smaller rear notch, another tip for those of a certain age is to shoot with open sights in good light. In bright light your pupils contract which helps sharpen the sight picture similar to the effect from using a rear aperture sight.

 

[deno150]

I’ve got a FWB 124 that Motörhead just repaired. Dummy me forgot to remove rear sight so it was damaged in shipment to him. Now I’m sightless and scopeless. Will be looking for a rear sight assembly and scope suggestions.