Sighting in my M14

CanuckShooter

CanuckShooter

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I tried following the standard 8 to 12 clicks from the bottom for elevation on the rear sight of my M14, but it was shooting WAY low.... I finally found it, and zeroed it but I don't know what to think....

I had to go up 24 clicks from where the aperture bottoms out for a 100 yard zero. This is a HUGE difference from the 8 to 12 clicks I have been hearing about.

I mean, it's shooting really nicely now that I have found the zero. Hit a few shots within 2 inches or so @ 100 yds... but still... even at 25 yards it's about 25 clicks from the bottom.

What's up with that? Maybe my front sight is not the right height? I have no clue...
 
First off start your sighting in with 147gr ball at 25 yds. Once zeroed at 25 yds you should be pretty close at 100 yds. First line of sight for that round is 25 next is 100. You can use range tables to check this out. If you use a heavier cartridge ballistic arc will be off by at least an inch.

You can download Point Blank free of charge. "Google" it or "Ask" for it.

Doesn't matter what you aim at, the bullet travels in an arc so it crosses two lines of sight in relation to your point of aim.

The front sight is fine as long as you are centering the target.

The Norinco rear sight can be finicky. I would replace it with a USGI Garand. (no mods, fits perfectly and not all that expensive)

You'll figure it out, that's the most fun you can have with your rifle.Make it better. And "Save your money" for M14 stuff
 
If you are using the ammo you intend to use in the long term, your front sight is too high. Reduce the height gradually, it's tough to put back on.
Turf's advice about the Garand sight is good, if you intend to shoot with your irons a lot it's a very worthwhile investment.
 
Now if you are really serious about shooting with iron sights as they exist on your rifle, go back to the range with your ammo combination and an 8" mill bastard (file).

Sandbag your rifle and start stroking the file to reduce the height of your front sight. Try a few strokes and fire a shot or 2. Either file the sight down some more until you are about 12 kliks from absolute bottom. This is a trial and error method, but it works.

The reason I say 12 kliks is because once I filed my USGI sight down to 6 kliks from absolute bottom then I ran out of IMR4895 powder. I switched to W748 ball powder and my front sight was way toooo low, I could tell because my rear sight was bottomed out. Whoops. My shots were still tooooo high.

Luckily, back then in 1989, we could buy USGI bolts for $ 35. Front sights were only $ 2.00. USGI trigger groups sold for $ 45 at Toronto Gun Shows. We could buy all kinds of USGI Winchester, TRW barrels for under $ 99.00.

Cheers,
Barney
 
the_big_mike said:
i downloaded pointblank, but whats the velocity and whats the bullet coeff for .308 fmj 147gr?
Click to expand...

You can go to the home page of any of the ammunition mfgs and get your bullet weight, muzzle velocity, and 100 yd velocity. Using those figures, Point Blank can calculate the ballistic coefficient.

Some ammo sites even provide the BC.

For example: Winchester 308 FMJ 147gr Muzzle velocity 2800 FPS BC .415
Federal American Eagle 150gr Muzzle velocity 2820 FPS
BC .456
 
Thanks guys, I am going to try filing down the sight for now like Hungry says to where I am zeroed at 100 at 12 clicks.... might even replace the front sight and rear with usgi... but first we'll see if I can swing an ARMS18 mount lol
 
I see that my front sight is ramped.... should it be like this after I am done filing it, or should it be flat on top?

Thanks
 
Try you best to maintain that angle as you file downwards, sloped toward the muzzle end. The reason it's sloped away from you is to provide the clearest sight picture possible. That's what I learned from my NRA High Power coach.
 
Thanks for the advice, and just out of curiousity... how tall are all of your front sight posts so I can have an idea, a ballpark kinda on how much to expect to take off.. seems like ill be taking off quite a bit since i need DOUBLE the amount of clicks to get mine sighted in at 100...
 
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