Hi all. I just bought an 1885 Browning in 45-70 with octagon barrel and it has factory sights on it,but I dont like them. My old eyes cant see the front blade too well. So has anyone replaced or upgraded thiers ? I have no clue what hieght or sizes I need. I would prefer a bead front and a semi v notch rear. Any help ? Thanks.

It's a 3/8" dovetail on the front and there are many options. Mine has the factory peep site on the tang, and Lee Shaver aperture sight on the front.

Chris.

Thanks,mine's got no tang though. I'll need a front and rear replacement sight for it.I'd hate to scope it and ruin the lines,but that may happen.

I put on Leupold mounts and an 1.5x5 scope. Dont get no better than that.

I have a winchester in 22-250 I bought used that didn't come with iron sights. I mounted a nikon 4.5-18 by 40 mm. With the bdc reticle and can drop coyotes I can't even see with the naked eye

You may like the combination I have on my .454 1885: Williams 5D receiver sight (mounts to the scope mounting holes) and Lyman 20 aperture front sight (you can interchange inserts for different front sight configurations). You could also mount a bead or fiber optic front sight if you prefer. The smaller Lyman 17 looks better on the rifle, but I found that with the long barrel of the 1885 the Lyman 20 is a much better match (centers beautifully in the aperture of the Willams receive sight). I also picked up a low-light aperture for the Williams 5D. See included image.

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Red that's a beautiful gun. I didn't know I could mount on my scope mount holes. It seems I need to do some research. I don't know were to start though. My 1885 will need to be dovetailed for the front sight. Can any gunsmith do this. I'm not willing to have my gun damaged by some fly by night joker. Also how accurate are you out to 100 yards with that set up

Thank You Red Pepper. That looks and sounds just what I'm looking for.

Thanks, GulfcoastHNTR. I would get a competent gunsmith or a good machinist to make the 3/8" dovetail cut. It's probably not hard, but you don't want someone to make a crooked cut on your rifle. I've only shot my .454 at 50 yards so far, but it's certainly capable of sub-inch groups at that range. My .45-90 now has the same sight setup, and with well-matched ammo is capable of 100 yard minute of angle groups (doing my part, of course!).

Glad to help, ratgunner. Here are the links for the sights from Midway USA:

Rear sight:
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct...tnumber=637595

Front globe sight:
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct...tnumber=511517 (or search on "Lyman globe sight")

I just noted that the 1 review on the Lyman 20 globe sight wasn't favorable, but I have two of these sights on two rifles (the .454 and .45-90), and I think very highly of them.

That is a nice gun! I just bought a new winchester 1885 in 45-70 that looks identical to yours.
I called Williams today because I am leaning towards the FP1885 peep sight instead of a tang sight.

Question: after you mounted the williams did the original front sight not work or you wanted to upgrade it? I believe mine has a marbles front sight.

For just normal target shooting (100-200 yards) and hunting up to 200 yards what set up would recommend (front and rear) without ruining the lines of the gun?

Thanks!

Hi Snuff789! Congratulations on an excellent new rifle.

I upgraded the front sight because I'm particularly fond of the aperture front/aperture rear sight combination. You should be able to use the standard bead front sight without any problems.

As for the sight combination you asked about, that would really depend on your tastes. For me, I like the combination I'm using. I think the smaller Lyman 17 Globe front sight looks better than the Lyman 20, but on those long 28" - 34" barrels, the Lyman 20 seems to be a better match for my eyes. A Vernier tang sight looks really neat, but I found with my .45-90 that the way it interfered with loading and with thumb placement was kind of annoying to me. If you like the looks of the front post/bead sight, the stock sight will probably work quite well for you.

Thanks much! Mine has a 24" barrel so I am not sure if the Lyman 17 would zero well with the Williams FP or if the 20 would be a better choice. Either way it sounds like a very practical set up. No need in having a gun that won't hit the target!

Take Care!