Beretta 92FS sights and cleaning

[radpipe]

I picked up a beretta 92FS Inox with the original sights on it, which I'm having trouble aiming with. Can anyone recommend better sights and a good place to buy?

Also, there's some grime (or worse) that I can't seem to get off. Any advice on cleaning/buffing?

Thanks.

 

[BCRider]

No idea on the sights other than to ask why they are harder for you than other handgun sights. The sights on my blued model are a touch smaller for the notch and have a slightly narrower front blade compared to some other handguns. But not by a lot. I've seen some which are positively tiny.

For stains on the metal try some various solvents along with an old tooth brush. The Inox 92 has a matte finish. It's matte because it was bead blasted or chemically etched to give the surface a rough sort of pourous surface. But grime can lodge in the dips between high spots. Using a solvent which dissolved and floats the grime away is the best option. A tooth brush or a 1/2 inch wide paint brush with the bristled cut off to about 1 inch long to scrub with will aid in dislodging the grime.

Unless you want to change the finish to a brushed or shiney finish do not go anywhere near it with any stainless wire brushes or any sort of "polish". Stainless is pretty tough, but it's not THAT tough. Rubbing anything steel or other harder metals or abrasive such as Scotchbrite against the Inox surface will affect the texture of the surface and leave a noticable mark. Using any sort of polish such as Mother's mag wheel polish or Flitz or generally any product that has the white and milky look of such polishes will over time wear away the finish and leave the gun more shiney. The thick creamy white look of such polishes is a sign that it contains the same white abrasive polishing compound as used for shineing metals to a mirror like finish.

The best way to keep your Inox looking like new is do not set it down on anything harder than wood. And even then if the surface feels gritty from sand and the like having been pressed into the surface over the years I'd suggest you bring a small towel of your own to spread out before setting the gun on the towel.

I know that all this sounds overly protective. But it's a funny thing that the matte finish on stainless is actually quite delicate. A hard surface such as other steel items or even brass items pressing and rubbing against the matte surface can burnish the high points of the surface and heavy a shiney looking sort of mark. Such marks are impossible to remove since they are the high points of the metal having been pushed down and made flat.

 

[strider007]

I picked up a beretta 92FS Inox with the original sights on it, which I'm having trouble aiming with. Can anyone recommend better sights and a good place to buy?

Thanks.

Replace the rear sight with a black and white one, and give the same treatment to the front...paint the ramp black, and then paint in a white dot. Use enamel, or other durable paint that will hold up to the solvents.

 

[Lodi]

If you can elaborate on the "trouble", it may help to point you in the right direction.

~~~~

The 92's use a wider notch in the rear sight. The wider notch allows more light to show on either side of the front sight. As a military/combat handgun the intended targets are man-sized, we tend to shoot paper and want smaller groups...and it can be more difficult to maintain proper sight alignment while shooting.

 

[radpipe]

Unless you want to change the finish to a brushed or shiney finish do not go anywhere near it with any stainless wire brushes or any sort of "polish". Stainless is pretty tough, but it's not THAT tough. Rubbing anything steel or other harder metals or abrasive such as Scotchbrite against the Inox surface will affect the texture of the surface and leave a noticable mark. Using any sort of polish such as Mother's mag wheel polish or Flitz or generally any product that has the white and milky look of such polishes will over time wear away the finish and leave the gun more shiney. The thick creamy white look of such polishes is a sign that it contains the same white abrasive polishing compound as used for shineing metals to a mirror like finish.

Is there any particular problem with making the whole gun all shiny? Just curious.

The 92's use a wider notch in the rear sight. The wider notch allows more light to show on either side of the front sight. As a military/combat handgun the intended targets are man-sized, we tend to shoot paper and want smaller groups...and it can be more difficult to maintain proper sight alignment while shooting.

I believe this is the source of my problem with the sights. There is just way too much daylight between the posts. Is this something I will just get used to?

 

[strider007]

I believe this is the source of my problem with the sights. There is just way too much daylight between the posts. Is this something I will just get used to?

You may also be affected by the two different colour sights that you are trying to line up properly. Your front sight is silver with a red dot on it, and the rear sight is black, with two red dots on it. When you're trying to line everything up, the light around the front sight (which you see while aiming through the rear) and the actual silver coulour of the front sight, make it more difficult to properly center and square with the rear. There is not enough contrast between the light and the actual sight (we're still talking about the front sight, here)...this is where you may be having trouble. Try painting the front sight ramp with black paint, and then the dot what ever colour you desire. This may help in overcoming your aiming issue. If you're not sure that it will work for you, use a paint that is "temporary" so that you can remove it if you don't like it.

My 2 cents...