Which Fiber Optic ?

[boats]

Looks like the rule is going to be changed, nobody at our Club has ever shot with a Fiber Optic. Few of us have had them on IDPA pistols that's it. However it is the time for experimentation and no doubt sight picture is the limiting factor with aging eyes and Iron sights.

Straight out of the Brownell's catalog what should we order to test one Marlin 39 A. Will keep a 2nd 39A set up with it's 17A and very small post and bead insert as control.

Boats

[PhxShooter]

The only problem with the commercially manufactured fiber optic sight is that most use a 0.060 diameter rod which is then held in place by a couple of maybe 0.015 thick metal bands. That ends up covering most if not all of the target. The manufacturers used to make smaller ones but they weren't financially successful. Some hunters thought they "looked" too fragile so they were afraid to put them on their hunting rifles. In reality for hunting, a 0.060 rod is probably fine cuz you're not going to make too many shots at a ram sized animal at 200 meters with your lever gun. That sight is fine for a mule deer at 50 - 100 yards. We, however, do need something for that small ram at 200 meters or its little cousin at 100 meters. I've been told that Marble and perhaps HiViz would be willing to make a smaller sight if there is enough demand. Again, that's just what I've been told. I haven't talked to them myself.

You're now left with a few choices with what's currently available, from my point of view;

1. Put on the smallest fiber optic sight you can find, cover the target and when it disappears squeeze the trigger.

2. Again with the smallest FO sight go to a 6 o'clock hold.

3. Make your own.

[boats]

Thanks for the info

Size of the rod is what I am trying to get my head around. Am using the smallest post and bead in a Lyman 17A set now. Think it's .04 and lets me pick a spot on the Ram. Only problem with it is focus, when my eyes get tired or like yesterdays match low light late in the day.

We were shooting our Club swinger match, all rimfire rams 40 of them. close to 4 pm it was real difficult to focus the little post. Opened the rear aperture all the way up for more light which caused the front to go fuzzy. F/O might have been easier to see but if you blot out the whole target no way to pick your spot. Match with club rules not regulation Silhouette can use anything you want and guy that shoots it the best uses a large aperture circles the whole animal. Back when I shot BPCS always used apertures, which are not legal CLA.

6 0/c holds might be good for some shooters but not for me. Never liked them in Service rifles. Would rather blot out the whole critter than use bottom hold.

Making your own is not a bad option, you can buy F/O rod outside of normal shooting supplier sources. IDPA shooters that are hard on Rod buy it by the yard. Don't know the available sizes however.

Only way to tell is to test, am going to get one of Brownell's .6 rod sights and give it a try.

Boats

[ppkny]

Boats, I bought a Tru-Glo with a .06 rod and it's way to big for smallbore. The problem is it covers the entire animal to the point were you can only guess where it actually is on the animal. You could use a 6 o'oclock hold but I perfer that the dot is on the animal. The problem you'll have with a smaller diameter say a .03 or .04 is that it can only be .75 long which will limit the light gathering capablities. I'm working on some very small steel dots on the top of a even smaller rod still mainting the tracional post and bead.
Here's a picture of the Tru-Glo.
ppkny

[boats]

That's what it seems to me too. .06 would be too big. What did the guys lobbying for F/O's use anyway, was it .6 rod ?

Boats

[Tlee]

Two years ago I experimented with one on my smallbore gun for a little over a year. IIRC, I built mind using .018 or .020" fiber. I simply superglued it into a slightly larger hole I drilled in one of the Lyman wide posts. I used a post or a bead on my pistol cartridge and CLA gun for the same period. While I could definitely see the front fiber optic sight better than a post or bead, my scores didn't improve with it. This tells me my misses were NOT because I was having problems seeing the front sight.

Although I can understand some folks' inability to see well with them, I used a post all last year due to the rule change and haven't missed the fiber. I probably won't try the fiber again unless I start having problems focusing on the post.

my .02,

-Tim

PS - I found a 3/4" long piece of fiber optic to have plenty of light gathering area for the fiber dot to contrast well with the target, even with over half of it being inside the Lyman hood.

[ppkny]

Boats. I don't understand what you mean by .6 you keep referencing. The size rod that all the manufactures are selling is .060 inches in diameter.
ppkny

[boats]

Typo,

Said .06 Diameter early in the post .6 later

Boats

[Tlee]

This place has it from .010" all the way up to .5" (yeah a half inch diameter). I used the .5mm (.020") green stock... $2.40 for 36":
http://www.fiberopticproducts.com/danis ... scentfiber

Or, Brownells has it for $4 for a 6" piece at:
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=3886 ... EMENT-RODS

-Tim

[boats]

I have a spare Skinner Sights front blade. Fits the 39A ramp dovetail. Think I will put it in the mill and cut to the right height then thin, on top just a bit of grove to hold a small F/O rod super glued on. Make the whole thing fit under the Marlin's regular front sight hood.

Might look at .5 mm see how it compares to my small post and bead. Have some Allen wrenches that size to use for comparison. Can clip off the end of one of the Allen's to try before ordering F/O rod. In theory once the base is made you could switch F/O's easily

I don't expect it to be a good solution, but you never know.

Boats

[ppkny]

Tlee, Thanks for the info. I may do some experimenting with some post designs to hold the smaller rods.
ppkny