Contender fiber optic front sight help

[kir_kenix]

So my 10" .44 ate another scope yesterday morning. That makes 3 scopes in 7 years. Decided to just go back to irons as most of my .44 shooting is at steel targets (or game) inside of 100 yards. Dug around in my junk drawer for a front and rear sight set...and that's when my problems started.

I have a spreadsheet detailing sight combinations for various Contender factory heights for each chambering in each barrel length. I need a 'medium' rear and a 0.635" front blade. I came up with the rear, but I didn't have a tall enough front sight.

Thought i could cobble together a low rear and a 0.595" front. Unfortunately, even with the rear cranked all the way down, it's still 5" high at 30 yards with a mild load; 250 grain boolit over 8gr of unique. My math says I'm still going to just about run out of elevation with the 'proper' 0.635" blade. That doesn't give me a ton of wiggle room for different loads with different boolit weights. This barrel shoots great, but the muzzle exit hole isn't perfectly centered on the OD and I think its magnifying the problem.

So I'm looking for some advise from some of the old silhouette shooters out there. I'm planning on calling TC today...but I'm not holding much faith anyone there will actually have an answer.

I'd like a fiberoptic front and open rear for hunting. The tallest fiber front TC lists in their catalog is 0.530 for their muzzleloaders. This sight looks like it could be usable
https://www.brownells.com/rifle-part...rod105359.aspx
but I'm still worried about running out of adjustment with a 75 yard zero. I might be able to graph a s&w pin in tenon...but they are mounted at an angle and I'm not sure they will line up very well. I haven't found a taller ramp that won't require surgery to avoid overhanging the muzzle.

I would prefer not to go to a Lyman style peep in the rear or the Bomar on a rail to make up the difference in height.

There has to be some simple aftermarket fix out there. If somebody here has run into this issue before I'd really appreciate a nudge in the right direction.

[NSB]

Your mild load is making you shoot high. In handguns when you shoot reduced loads they shoot higher, not lower. A fiber optic sight isn't the best choice for shooting good groups. I shot silhouette for years and also shot three gun matches for several years. I never, repeat NEVER saw anyone shooting precision groups with fiber optics. For shooting steel/silhouette type shooting go with a blade front sight. Adding a rail for the rear sight makes it shoot even higher, not lower. Maybe you can add some height to the front sight by drilling and tapping and inserting a very small screw. They you can put some solder on it and shape it the way you want it to be....that's just a thought. Or, call Numrich and see if they have a sight from a TC barrel for sale at the height you want or even too high. You can always trim it down. Post an ad on here for "want to buy" .Good luck.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

Just asking but what scopes keep getting broke I have had a 2x Leupold scope on my 14" 44 mag for years it came off a 10" 44 mag and it was on that for a few years too and i bought it used

maybe this will help https://www.eabco.net/ScopeRib-III-S...r_p_14038.html scroll down on the link

[kir_kenix]

I do understand that the mild load part...I would like enough elevation for light .44's to top end magnums, depending on what I'm shooting. .44 just has such a wide range of boolit weight and velocities to contend with. I know fiber optics aren't as precise, but they sure are nice when I'm launching a boolit at game/vermin around dusk or dawn. I mentioned silhouette shooters simply because it's a contender and you guys probably have more experience messing with them than I do. Point well taken though. I didnt think about asking numrich for a sight off of a barrel from their inventory.

And luckydawg...I've now broken a 2x Leupold, a 2x Burris and a 3x tc Lobo. Leopold fixed it no questions asked...its riding on a 30 herrett now. The Lobo from the scope drawer expired yesterday. I think sitting on the dash of my tractor kills them just as much as radically adjusting elevation frequently and recoil. It gets hot, then the ac kicks on...then it rumbles about, occasionally gets shot at a yote or other pest.

I saw that rib with the bomar rear sight. I know they are popular with the silhouette guys, I just dont know how practical they would be for a guy like me. I dabble in idpa, steel challenge, prs, benchrest, and f class already...dont think I'm really wanting to jump into another game. I just want a reliable sighting set up that allows me a wide range of adjustment and is still practical to hunt/bang targets with. Though I guess $140 is cheaper than a quality scope.

[contender1]

I'm not going to be any help with the fiber optic part except to say that look in the Brownells catalog to see if a front sight is available that can be modified to fit you needs.

But I also have several Contender barrels,, & most of my barrels wear scopes. I've never had any issues with heavy or mild loads,, never broke a scope etc.
So to that end I'll politely ask a few questions.
What type of scopes have broken?
What type of scope mounts have been used?
What are your loads like?

For decades many folks have used Contenders & Encores,, as well as other handguns with heavy recoil, all scoped, w/o an issue. Maybe there is a problem that isn't scope related????

[bosterr]

I had a Contender barrel that shot too high as well. If yours is the newer model that has the front site that's held on with a screw, you can shim it any amount to get the muzzle down. I used a piece of plastic milk jug, but pop can aluminum may be a better choice. I had another barrel that I forgot what caliber it was that I filed a radius under the rear site where it contacted the barrel to get it down just a little more. It was touching the barrel before the site made contact in the site channel. I agree with NSB, fiber optic may help for hunting, but not so good for targets. So much of the fiber optic bead will cover your target. Both me and my son had the newer Bushnell new style "XLT's" go bad. Mine on a Smith 629 .44 and his on a Contender .44. The older "Trophy's" held up great as well as Leupolds.

[kir_kenix]

But I also have several Contender barrels,, & most of my barrels wear scopes. I've never had any issues with heavy or mild loads,, never broke a scope etc.
So to that end I'll politely ask a few questions.
What type of scopes have broken?
2x leupold, 2x Burris, and 3x tc lobo
What type of scope mounts have been used?
The tc Lobo that I broke yesterday had it's own silly mount that attached to the rail on its scope. They are not renowned for their strength...its just what I tossed on the barrel when my last failure occurred. I only run 1 piece leupold bases with the twist in rings or tsob bases on heavy recoiling pistols. Pretty sure it was leupold 1 piece. First screw (closest to muzzle) is d&t 8x32, other 3 remain 6x48. It was stripped by previous owner and I did that. Low power loctite all base screws.
What are your loads like?
Yesterday I shot close to 300 rounds waiting for the seed guy. Maybe 80 of those were 312gr boolit over 15.5gr of 2400. Pretty darn stout. Rest were a mixture of plinking loads...250 Keith over 8 gr unique or a below max load of h110.


For decades many folks have used Contenders & Encores,, as well as other handguns with heavy recoil, all scoped, w/o an issue. Maybe there is a problem that isn't scope related????
I will respectfully disagree with you somewhat on that. Contenders in .444, 45/70, .375 win, and most of the jdjs have been shredding scopes for decades. It's part of why we have so many good ones around today. In my case...I dont think recoil is what kills them.
I farm and I frequently take a contender with me in the cab of the tractor with me. Too big for a holster, so they usually sit on the dash. I'm pretty sure it's the vibration and heat cycling that does the most damage to them. Plus I frequently run the elevation pretty drastically to compensate for different loads. I should never have mentioned scope failure in my original post lol. I think alot of people have had scope failures on big bore pistols though. Even bosterr had 2 fail in the next post.

[NSB]

Here's my best suggestion for you based on owning many contenders Encores for years.....put a red dot on the gun. I use mostly Burris FF3's and Venom Vortex's. Both will hold up to the most punishing recoil on any gun. I've mounted the Burris on a full power 44mag revolver and a 45-70 rifle. Either one has a lifetime guarantee and are extremely precise, even for long range shooting. I've posted pics on here before of groups fired out of my 45-70 at just over 100 yards (actually 114 yards, my deck to backstop) and I can keep five shots under 1.7" at that distance. I personally never liked scopes on handguns and I've owned a few over the years. Just too hard finding the "view" if not positioned perfectly and I got tired of chasing cross hairs. Just something to think about.

[kir_kenix]

Well I called TC...they were not helpful. Pretty much what i expected, though. As soon as they found out it was pre-S&W ownership (10" barrel, so that dates it I guess) they told me i would need to contact Williams Gun Site, who I guess makes all of their sites currently. They weren't rude about it, but they can't even verify information from 'the old days.'

William's was super helpful though. Guy talked over everything with me find something that I think will work. Going to shorten my sight radius about half an inch unless I d&t some new holes. Oh well. Cheap too...i think it was under $25 shipped. Appreciate all the suggestions and PM's for help. I'll update this when I get it installed.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

I just came across this

[megasupermagnum]

It might take a few tries, but what about bending 1/8" or similar steel to match barrel contour? Then cut, grind, and drill to make a spacer under your current sight. You would probably need longer screws too. If you can tig weld, its nothing to build up a metal front sight, and file to the height you want either.

[kir_kenix]

Luckydawg13 that is a pretty darn cool sight! Looks a bit goofy, but I kind of like it. I'll have to look to see if the see-all ever shows up on Ebay used. I'm always game to try something new.

Megasupermagnum: I thought about fabbing one up from scratch. I have a couple of milling machines and a small lathe...but honestly ramp front sights are just so darn cheap. I would end up going through 2 or 3 generations before I got something built I was satisfied with...and that's alot ot time. I just couldn't believe how many hoops I had to jump through to find something suitable. Very little on the web for aftermarket front sights suitable to the medium contour contender.

Lots of hooded front sights or competition rear base/contraptions. I cant believe I'm the only guy out there that's run into this issue...and I had 8 or 9 combinations worth of take off sights to try and make something work. I would think this would come up fairly regularly considering how popular contenders are.

[ShooterAZ]

I use the Burris Fastfire 3 on some hard kicking handguns and have had no problems at all, great little sights. However if you go that route for the tractor, you'd want to keep it cased so it doesn't get full of dust. I have a number of Contender barrels with Leupold scopes, and never had one of them fail. I have had to send a couple of rifle scopes back to Leupold, but those were my fault for either dropping it into a jumble of rocks, or getting bucked off of a horse when it saw a snake. Leupold has been great about either repairing or replacing my damaged scopes.

[contender1]

Ok,, well understood now.
Let's start with an easy item to help.
I FULLY understand farming & having a dash gun in the tractor. A simple padded gun rug can help reduce the vibrations & such encountered when it's riding like that. Maybe try one???
Even good quality scopes (like the ones you've used,) are not built to withstand sideways vibrations & such movements as experienced on the dash of a tractor. Especially the Lobo set-up. As you well know,, they are not the best for heavy recoil. But your other mounts all are the same types I use.

And it sounds as if going to open sights is the better option. Along with the suggestions from Williams,, you may be on the right track to a cure.

Your issue is a bit more unique than I first thought. But the riding on the dash of the tractor explains a lot. Good luck in fixing things to your satisfaction!

[kir_kenix]

So I finally got around to mounting the fiber optic. Sorry I didn't give an update. I shot it for the first time yesterday and it does indeed give me plenty of elevation adjustment.

Well, it works...but it is ugly. It is retained by only 1 screw and it sits about 1.25" from the end of the barrel. I'm not super happy losing that much sight radius. If it was a 14", it would have been no big deal...I'd just chop the barrel. I think I'm going to d&t a new sight hole next time I have the mill set up.