New guy with a No. 8 and PH 5C - how?

Grouse Man

Grouse Man

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Even though I've fired off millions of rounds of ammo, I've never competed nor previously used a real competition-style peep sight. I was earlier blessed with a gift from heaven; an Enfield No. 8 Mk I target rifle, complete with a Parker Hale 5C rear sight. (Yes, I know it's calibrated for .303 Mk VII ammo.) Now I need to learn how to use this sight properly. Mind you, I'm still not thinking competition at this point, just learning and shooting for personal satisfaction. I've only experience with sporting-style open sights and scopes, so this is a learning experience for me.

The aperture has a dial with six different sized openings, from tiny down to molecular. How do I determine which size aperture to use? Brightness? Target size? Something else? When I sight, I've got everything lined up concentricly? :redface: (concentrically?) :( in a concentric fashion. :) I'll also focus from target to rear sight and get a zoom-zoom kind of look at it, if you know what I mean. Should I be shooting at a particular target size at a particular distance?

I understand the sight is 1 click for 1/4" elev/windage at 100 yds, correct?

The front globe sight only has the one insert. Should I find more inserts, or is generally a 'pick one and forget about it' deal?

Trigger is currently two-stage, 3 lbs. Very crisp. I know how to change to single stage, but it needs a custom drift pin first.

Presently I'm just going through which ammo groups tightest. All shooting is at 50 yards, and when it finds ammo it likes, I can get one ragged hole. There IS a big diff in group size with different ammo.

Any tips and ideas would be greatly appreciated.
 
Which hole in the rear sight? Pick the hole that give the best definition of the target(usually very small) but depends on the light conditions. For the front appreture you need to see about the same amount of white as you see black. It is easier to center a small black target with alot of white then with too little white around the outside. Get a set of inserts from about 2.8 to 4.6 you can get clear inserts or steel with a crossbar. This should cover everything from 50m to 1000 yards. With different size targets you will need a set of inserts. There are about 3-4 bucks each or less, and you can get away with .2 increments. ie 2.8,3.0,3.2 up to 4.6. Again target size a light conditions and your eyesight will dictate what size you need.
Forget about the .303 calibrations, use the other side of the scale that is in minutes. lossen the screw that holds the scale plate and set your zero where you want.
Your focus point when you sqeeze the trigger should be on your front sight.
Keep the 2 stage trigger, it is not all that hard to get along with it, just some practice. Many long range target rifles have 2 stage triggers and the limit for target rifle in min. 3.5 lbs trigger pull.
If you can stretch out the distance to 100 yards of more it will give you a better idea of what the ammo can do.
Hope this helps.
 
Thanks. I'll try some larger targets out at 100. The ones I currently have I think are for 25 yards.

I found no difficulty with the 2-stage. Find the target, pull 1st stage, then focus, trigger the 2nd.
 
Grouse Man said:
Thanks. I'll try some larger targets out at 100. The ones I currently have I think are for 25 yards.

I found no difficulty with the 2-stage. Find the target, pull 1st stage, then focus, trigger the 2nd.
Click to expand...

The amount of black Vs. white in the front sight is most important. You can shoot a 2 inch black dot at 25 yards with about a 3.4 insert. As I stated earlier too much white around the target is better then too little. Depending on the light conditions, sometimes it is better to frame the whole target in the insert.
To prove this to yourself use different size targets at the same distance and you will find the groups will improve with more white around the aiming mark.
You can even take the insert out and shoot through the tunnel if the target is too big.
 
The basic basics,

Rear hole size: stop it down until you see "worms" floating and then open one size, don't change it once you start a target.

Clicks: Assuming you know how to read a vernier: Start left of zero, turn clockwise (right) until you come to zero and then count the clicks untill it reads 10 minutes and divide for the answer, it could be from 1 to ~10 clicks per minute.

Leave the trigger as a two stage. It's like that for a reason. Don't f_ck with succsess (wish I could spell).
 
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