Are you referring to the small front aperture?! I was never able hit anything using that aperture. However, the large front aperture was perfect for me for shooting standard 50 yard bullseyes as a teenager. My Dad used to use the sight with two small aperture inserts plus the amber aperture.Originally Posted by farscott
I used to regularly shoot prairie dogs at 100 with an open sight CZ 22WMR. I think 150 or so is not unrealistic at all for good, clean hunting shots with irons.
His write-up is the first time Ive seen the use of the step elevator for the rear sight correctly described. I didnt know about it until reading The Winchester Book by George Madis. Winchester had 3 different elevators for different cartridge classes for the same rear sight. The pre-64 (post-saddle ring carbine military style "ladder" sight) rear sights had a small movable slide with screw holding it in place in the rear face of the sight to fine tune the sighting in so the steps worked right, post 64s had two small screws holding the rear sight on the base and did the same thing, but I think by then even the factory had forgotten how the sights were used in earlier days.
“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.”
― Theodore Roosevelt
I can hit with the small aperture really well when paired with a decent peep rear. Probably because I get to focus on the target and just look through both the rear and front sight. That is easier for my eyes than having to focus on the front sight as my eyes do not have to change focus.
I had no idea how open rifle sights were supposed to work until reading his article, it makes sense now!
One thing he touched upon, and had been mentioned to me by old timers in the past, is the concept of fine and coarse bead, meaning how the front sight is held in relation to the rear V or U notch. It was described to me as a coarse bead (meaning sight picture, not necessarily a bead sight) was the front sight held higher in the notch, a fine bead was the bead or blade held in the bottom of the notch. It never really made sense to me, I always held the top of a bead or blade even with the top flat plane of the rear sight, even with the top edges of the V or U. and the point of impact was the tip of the front sight regardless of type. Its the same basic way we used aperture sights, so why do it differently? Some people apparently also "drive the dot" or "drive the bead" on game with bead sights, but that also doesnt register in my brain, as it covers up something I want to see.
“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.”
― Theodore Roosevelt
That. The OP was seeking info on humane kills. Some folks have more ethics in that regard than Elmer Keith did.
I have several Brockman tuned Pre-64 model 94 rifles with aperture sights, and they are 100-200 yard rifles all day long in decent light. I also have multiple Marlin 45-70 16 inch carbines with aperture sights and have shot many sub 2 inch groups at 100 yards with them.
Likes pretty much everything in every caliber.
"The mean distance at which the deer were shot in the study was 132 yards. It was found that deer shot at 125 yards or less were normally recovered, while those shot at 150 yards or more were much more likely to be missed or wounded."
https://www.chuckhawks.com/scdnr_deer_study.htm
"Two hundred yards is the limit for an average shot and 300 for a very good shot. Four hundred is a chancy proposition even for the best riflemen, and we would all do a lot better if we got a lot closer."
https://www.fieldandstream.com/scien...g-range-shots/
Karl Malcolm, a wildlife biologist with the U.S. Forest Service in Albuquerque, worked for 10 years as an animal control sharpshooter at several sites, and killed hundreds of deer and turkeys with a .243 Winchester and copper bullets.
“I remember driving to jobs, knowing I had to 10 days to kill 50 deer,” Malcolm said. “In one job, I took 52 shots to kill 50 deer. Those aren’t hunting conditions. It’s not about fun or dealing with ‘buck fever.’ There’s no excitement or nervous anticipation.”
Malcolm shot with a bipod at 40 to 125 yards, often from atop a truck’s roof, and was very choosy in his shots.
https://www.themeateater.com/hunt/wh...ch-deer-tagged
Does anyone know what weight bullet the step sights were designed to work with, 150gr. or 170gr.? On the same note, which weight bullet is most popular to use on white tail deer?
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