Norinco JW15A 13" - Sight Options

[JimV]

This is a nifty, accurate little gun that could really use better sights.

In keeping with the handy, utility gun concept, my ideal solution would be a Skinner peep sight. However, I don't know if Skinner ships to Canada and then there is the matter of raising the front sight. A compact scope would also be good, but the eyepieces of any scopes I've tried tend to obstruct the bolt handle. And the short mounting rails limit the amount of fore and aft room. Right now I've got a Bushnell Banner mounted. It fits, just barely, but is way too big for the gun. Maybe some kind of pistol or scout scope? I would also like to avoid ridiculously high rings.

If anybody has one of these rifles and has found a good sight solution I'd like to hear about it. Many thanks.

 

[johNTO]

I wanted better irons for my "Backpacker" and even considered cutting a dove tail in the receiver to extend the sight radius. In the end I mounted a Simmons 22mag fixed 4x scope with low rings (IIRC) and the bolt just clears. I'm happy with the set-up.

 

[supernova]

Yes, Skinner ships up here and its only $12. I highly recommend them. And if the reciever has a dovetail rail, Williams makes a universal rimfire/airgun sight. WGRS 54 fits dovetails and has all the Williams options from various open sights, peeps and fiber optics. Front sight is easy to figure out if a post is all you want. Buy one taller than you need and file it to fit. Or use tape to make a front sight, trim to required height, measure and order your front sight.

 

[MrFlagellipo]

My father just put a cheasp tasco red dot on his... he love it !

 

[JimV]

Thanks for your comments, guys, they were very helpful. I've decided to go the Skinner Sight route. My concept here is a really rugged little gun that can be tossed around. I think the peep sight fits the bill. It looks like the eyepiece of any scope, unless it's mounted really high, is going to be closer to the bolt handle than I want. I don't know whether replacing the front post will be easy or not, but I guess I'll figure that out. Will post the results later if anybody is interested.

 

[supernova]

Remember, dovetail sights drift in from right to left and drift out from left to right as viewed from behind the gun looking down the sights. They are tapered so if you ham fist it out the left side you'll end up with a gaping hole to hold your sight. There's an easy fix for that too but they're never quite the same after. The sight hood will drift off towards the front of the rifle. A block of wood and a small hammer works well. A brass drift is what you want for drifting the sights.

 

[JimV]

Supernova, thanks for your advice. It had never occurred to me that this kind of dovetail was tapered and I will file that information away for future reference. In this case, though, it may not apply. The front sight ramp doesn't have a dovetail. There is a screw, but I think that just secures the hood. I'm not sure how the ramp is attached to the barrel. No sign of a pin either. Solder or some kind of locktite? I'm thinking if the ramp can't be easily removed it may be possible to build up the blade somehow.