Adjustable sight suggestions for a Series 80 1911

[Bruce Cartwright]

Call me weird, but I think that is a cool sight.

I'd D&T a set screw in that rear, cut a dovetail up front for a brass bead front sight and call that one good to go!

It looks correct for the age of the gun too.

Maybe have Wayne Novak do a stipple (versus checkering) on the front strap and be done.

Lost River:

As to stippling, I decided to do my own. I am of Scottish descent (meaning I am thrifty) and figured I'd save some money doing the work myself. I prefer stippling to checkering because for folks who really carry guns, eventually you bang up/beat up the checkering. I did some research and found a punch and started working on an FN High Power. I later did a Government Model. The results turned out well and I didn't have to spend a bunch of money or send my guns away for an extended period of time. The hardest part was doing the first strike. After that I was pretty easy. One thing I learned was that the size of the stippling indentations can be altered by using a different size hammer.

If you visit with our mutual friend in Salmon this month, I'll show you the work.

Bruce

[HeavyDuty]

Heavy Duty:

Wayne Novak's shop in Parkersburg West Virginia has cut front and rear dovetails for me in the past. They did a FN High Power for me. I just sent the slide in with directions for what I wanted done. I had them leave the front sight extra tall so I could cut it down to match the loads I wanted to zero the gun for. I assume, but have not confirmed that they re still offering the service. I am not sure they offer the service for Bomar Sights (They used to). That said, Novak offers an elevation adjustable rear sight that fits in a standard Novak rear dovetail. In fact the Colt Competition Government Models come standard with that sight. Hopefully that helps.

Bruce

I just looked, it appears they only mill for their own sights now. I’m not sure what I think about the sight picture they offer for this gun, I really want a big, flat serrated blade. But it’s definitely a possibility.

[HeavyDuty]

You can try these guys for installing sights.

https://clarkcustomguns.com/gunsmith...s-scope-bases/

They are offering a low cut, this is definitely an option. Thank you!

[HeavyDuty]

From reading, apparently the LPA cut is a little simpler than the Bomar cut - it skips a tapped hole. I also saw hints the LPA mounts lower on a Series 80. I’ll keep researching, at this moment subject to change I’m leaning toward a LPA cut Dawson.

Great info, people - thank you!

[HeavyDuty]

Just ran across this on EGW’s site - a useful chart. They also go into detail about some of the differences:

https://www.egwguns.com/1911-dovetails

[DamonL]

I remember now that the cut they make for a Series 80 vs a Series 70 gun is slightly different. I think the Series 80 firing pin safety requires the sight overhang the rear more.

[Jim Watson]

Wilson makes a no-dovetail adjustable sight, looks like a Bomar but mounts into a "pocket" that they say is simpler to cut than a dovetail. $210 installed. FO front sight is another $80.

Does Dawson install their own sights?
I have seen hints that they would work on guns but they don't show gunsmithing on their www.

[JHC]

Why do you want an adjustable sight?

Short of shooting substantially different types of ammo frequently (switching from say factory 230gr FMJ to say 185gr light loads) there isn't a whole lot of reason to use and adjustable sight.

If you do, a buried and protected Bo-Mar (Kensight now) would be the way to go.

I have Kensight's "Novak" style adjustable rear on two SA Operators now. Reason is that I want the POI just above the front post at 25 yards. One had POI 5-6" high and the other's POI was down behind the tritium dot somewhere. A POI 4-5" below the top of the front post at 25 yards.

https://stores.kensight.com/kensight...blade-860-639/

[HeavyDuty]

Wilson makes a no-dovetail adjustable sight, looks like a Bomar but mounts into a "pocket" that they say is simpler to cut than a dovetail. $210 installed. FO front sight is another $80.

Does Dawson install their own sights?
I have seen hints that they would work on guns but they don't show gunsmithing on their www.

That is exactly what I’m looking for! Back in the day I always wanted the old “buried” cut Bomar that was clean like this.

[theJanitor]

Bomars on S80's can't be set low like on a S70. I'd stick with an adjustable that fits in a novak cut. Don't get me wrong, as two of the very best 1911's I've ever owned were s80 with bomars, they just hang back a bit.

The raised rib on the Enhanced model will make the sight look lower, so what you'll see is the sight moved back a little

Also, If you think that you might want to replace a bomar with a fixed sight, some fixed sights will be incompatible with a "deluxe" bomar cut.

The wilson sight was developed by Ned Christiansen, IIRC