I have the same frustration. Yes my main hunting rifles have scopes on them...but all of them have irons as well. A rifle without irons just feels wrong to me. Granted I have a few that are scope only, but really that is solely due to lack of availability. And to be honest it pushed me off getting a PAL for about 3-4 years after I was 18 because there were no new guns with irons that I could afford or find as I couldn't afford a gun and scope together at the time. It was one or the other.
Frustration.... What Ever Happened To Iron Sights???
- Thread starter mlehtovaara
- Start date
I'm not just frustrated trying to find decent irons, but try find decent aperture sights on a bolt gun. The ZKK601 had a nice pop up peep, but it's not adjustable, on a side note apparently CZ now offer them as a custom option. NECG has some decent units but they're not integral to the rifle and I would imagine easily lost at the most inopportune time. Williams are ok but not exactly slick and rugged. Something like the M14/Garand would be perfect, or like the Wilson BUIS but smaller and built in. Can't believe there's not more demand for them.
XS sights has something that intrigues me. An aperture sight built into the rear scope base, weaver style. They only make them in the rem 700 pattern which also fits on howa/weatherby vanguard and a few others... Then you just need to get a front sight put on. If it works well is seems like a great way to go, but I haven't heard of anyone using it.
vagrantviking
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- High River, Alberta
Buy the gun you like and put some decent sights on it.
(IE. http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/foru...sight-Mauser-Springfield-White-Systems-Target).
Most that come stock are junk anyway.
(IE. http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/foru...sight-Mauser-Springfield-White-Systems-Target).
Most that come stock are junk anyway.
I always took a back up rifle on hunting trips. It was to used in real heavy snow fall, which tends to mess up the scope so bad I can't see. I was also on the trip in case my main rifle/scope got damaged or if someone else needed another rifle.
I chose a Mauser action because it is simple, strong and 100% reliable. I put a Williams Foolproof on it because I really like to use a peep sight for hunting. The barrel is a Rem 700 barrel in 7-08. Since it came with a rear open sight, I left it on and zereod the rifle with the open sight, too. Then I made a mark on the sight base and slid the open sight down, out of sight. It is now a back-up to the peep.
It never got used. Was not needed. Too bad. It looks good, handles well and shoots well. It is on EE I think. At $450 it would meet your price constraints.
I chose a Mauser action because it is simple, strong and 100% reliable. I put a Williams Foolproof on it because I really like to use a peep sight for hunting. The barrel is a Rem 700 barrel in 7-08. Since it came with a rear open sight, I left it on and zereod the rifle with the open sight, too. Then I made a mark on the sight base and slid the open sight down, out of sight. It is now a back-up to the peep.
It never got used. Was not needed. Too bad. It looks good, handles well and shoots well. It is on EE I think. At $450 it would meet your price constraints.
I know what you mean. I have an unwrapped Lee Enfield No4 Mk2 with the original sights, a browning lever, a 45-70 rolling block and a 308 Weatherby Carbine - all with iron sights. I put a simple 6X scope on the 308 and a 3x9 on my 30-06. I also have a Burris E1 on my 243 coyote gun. The reason - precise accuracy at 300 yards - no guess work, the target is clear and I can easily select my precise location I want the bullet to strike. That cannot occur easily with irons. My Enfield IS my new favorite hunting rifle - but up to about 200 to 300 yards.
For shorter ranges, irons are great, particularly for closeup work. Tradex has some really nice rifles, but you can also buy a rifle and have a gunsmith put sights on it for you - which has already been recommended. That way, you can customize exactly what you want rather than accept some of the junk made for the rifle. I had a BLR which I quickly dispatched the those useless cheapa$$ rear sights.
For shorter ranges, irons are great, particularly for closeup work. Tradex has some really nice rifles, but you can also buy a rifle and have a gunsmith put sights on it for you - which has already been recommended. That way, you can customize exactly what you want rather than accept some of the junk made for the rifle. I had a BLR which I quickly dispatched the those useless cheapa$$ rear sights.
x2
Check Zastava mauser rifle on Trade Ex site.
http://www.tradeexcanada.com/category/product-category/hunting-and-sporting-arms-new?page=5
Check Zastava mauser rifle on Trade Ex site.
http://www.tradeexcanada.com/category/product-category/hunting-and-sporting-arms-new?page=5
... and while you're there, check out all the used Husqvarnas... good quality mauser 98's in 30-06 & 8x57. Since you just want a knock-around gun the ugly beechwood stocks won't matter.
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
Normally I would direct the OP to Tradex, but in this case Ganderite provides the best answer with a full stock rifle yet, and a choice of aperture or open sights in an affordable package. I wouldn't look further.
I know exactly what you mean, I went into my LGS to find either a bolt or pump action rifle fitted with iron sights. The employees basically looked at me and said buy a scope and get used to it. Like no ****, I have plenty of optics and am very well hearsed in how to use them, I want irons because the majority of my shots on deer are under 100 yards in the middle of the bush. Guess I'll stick to the good old SKS.
- Location
- Ottawa origanally Muskoka
90+% of guns were iron sight back in the day, manufacturers did not drill & tap for scopes.
Then affordable scopes became available and consumers started to switch over. To accommodate this trend, companies started to drill & tap for scope mounts.
More presently still scopes were not just affordable but now mass produced on a grand scale by everyone and his uncle,and the are bigger and more powerful than ever. To accommodate this manufactures even sell rifles with scopes and/or rings already on the gun and since big scopes will function best when closest to the bore and unobstructed by an iron sight the irons were omitted.
Now for the most part only high end "collector grade" rifles or antiquated designs with history behind them have iron sights.
But you can still buy after market and get a gun smith to drill and tap for irons.
Then affordable scopes became available and consumers started to switch over. To accommodate this trend, companies started to drill & tap for scope mounts.
More presently still scopes were not just affordable but now mass produced on a grand scale by everyone and his uncle,and the are bigger and more powerful than ever. To accommodate this manufactures even sell rifles with scopes and/or rings already on the gun and since big scopes will function best when closest to the bore and unobstructed by an iron sight the irons were omitted.
Now for the most part only high end "collector grade" rifles or antiquated designs with history behind them have iron sights.
But you can still buy after market and get a gun smith to drill and tap for irons.
- Location
- The Conservative part of Ontario
Only because busted scopes don't show on the outside.
Me, I've never broken an "iron sight" but have seen two scopes fail in a hunting career of more than 40 years. If you look at that statement you can see that both are pretty tough.
Like the OP, it bugs me that they rarely put open sights, or even peep sights on rifles now days, but add to that the sights that are out there are very rudimentary, not meant for use as a primary sight.
Buying a new rifle today, regardless of the crap on the barrel, I see myself replacing it anyway. Peep and post is to me the best arrangement for a hunting rifle. Unless you are coon hunting at night.
I shot irons at 500yds in the service 20 years ago, well. Those ofPeople do not want to learn to REALLY shoot. They want a scope, a known distance, a bench to rest it off of and then call themselves marksmen
For my range's themed shoots they hold every year...the amount of people that cannot hit DVD sized cases at >100 yards is laughable but quickly becomes sad when a course is a "non optics" one.
I run into this ALL time, I LOVE irons and like scopes. What I love best tho is irons AND optics as long as the optics are set up in a way that does NOT block my view on the irons at any time. So obviously I go without optics more times then not.
ARs have nice irons on them if you get one with a carry handle and a front post...but they are MUCH to scary for use off the range I am afraid.
us over 40 can't see like we used to. Perhaps you will
be less scornful when you are in the same position.
If you are busting off iron sights, you sure don't have any respect for your firearm. It takes a good beating to damage most iron sights in any way, far more than it would take to bust optics.
If I want iron sights, I make sure the rifle has a stock meant for that, it needs a lot more drop at the comb than modern stocks have as they are meant for a higher sight plane to be used with optics. It looks like the Bavarian might have a proper stock for iron sights, but little else does these days.
If I want iron sights, I make sure the rifle has a stock meant for that, it needs a lot more drop at the comb than modern stocks have as they are meant for a higher sight plane to be used with optics. It looks like the Bavarian might have a proper stock for iron sights, but little else does these days.
