Rear Peep sight options for Marlin 94

[osteodoc08]

I have a Marlin 1894 in 44 mag on the way, pre safety and am wondering what my rear peep sight options are for it. Recommendations? I've never rear peep sighted one before. Pictures would be helpful. I'd like to have adjustment capability as well. Thanks.

[sghart3578]

I have a Skinner peep on my 357. Well built, easy to mount and accurate.


124175

[osteodoc08]

I have a Skinner peep on my 357. Well built, easy to mount and accurate.


124175


Excellent. Is it adjustable for windage and elevation?

[Airman Basic]

Williams Foolproof has been serving me well for many years.
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/198988/williams-fp-94-36-receiver-peep-sight-winchester-top-eject-94-55-63-64-65-9422-marlin-36-336-444-44-magnum-93-1895-1895g-and-sears-centerfire-aluminum-black

[pietro]

.

Almost every receiver peep sight for the Marlin 1894 utilizes the two rear-most scope mount (plugged) holes atop the receiver.

Those top-mounted peep sights, because the peep aperture sits much higher than the open/iron barrel sight's "line-of'sight", usually require a new/different front sight blade that's commensurately higher than the issue front sight blade - usually about .10" higher, +/-.
(The issue sights are removeable/replaceable via simply tapping/drifting them out, towards the loading port side of the rifle)

When a receiver peep sight's installed, the issue rear bbl ope/iron sight will block the sight picture, inless it's removed & replaced with a slot filler blank (about $6 - order one when the peep & front sight is ordered).

Most receiver peep sights (except for a Williams FP) are "set-'n-forget", and the best of the bunch is www.skinnersights.com (http://www.skinnersights.com) and www.xssights.com (http://www.xssights.com) - both companies can set a buyer up with the appropriately-taller front sight, as a "set", but the rear barrel sight dovetail slot filler blank will needs be ordered separately, from the likes of www.midwayUSA.com (http://www.midwayUSA.com) , www.brownells.com (http://www.brownells.com) or http://www.williamsgunsight.com/

The need for a different height front sight blade will also afford you the opportunity to change the front sight type to another type you may prefer, Like a Gold, Ivory, or Fiber-optic bead - all available in 1/16"- fine or 3/32"- coarse diameters.

Here's a Williams Gun Sight setup:

http://www.williamsgunsight.com/gunsights/images/63331fp94seset.jpg

Here's a Skinner, available in blued or stainless steel, or brass:

http://www.skinnersights.com/images/1894picture.jpg?657

The XS Sight is here, in their catalog pdf (click & scroll):

https://www.xssights.com/uiimages/10045/2014XSSProductCatalog.pdf


.

[Airman Basic]

Never changed the front sight on my old Marlin. The Foolproof works fine with the stock gold bead.

[imashooter2]

Beware of sights that attach via the rear scope base holes and claim they fit both the 336 and 1894. Yes the holes are the same distance apart and the sight will screw on, but the 1894 receiver is shorter and the sight will hang off the back and interfere with hammer manipulation. I have a WGRS on mine, but I drilled and tapped a new hole in front of the existing pair to make it fit.

http://home.comcast.net/~imashooter2/pictures/wgrs1.jpg

[imashooter2]

Here are pictures of the condition I described above with sights that "fit" both the 1894 and 336...

http://home.comcast.net/~imashooter2/pictures/WGRS1894.jpg http://home.comcast.net/~imashooter2/pictures/FPsight1894.jpg

[W.R.Buchanan]

Lyman 66LA older steel version. If your gun is a Pre Safety model then it is probably drilled and tapped on the side of the receiver for this sight.

I have Williams sights and as a set and forget type of sight they are fine. The Skinners and XS sights are also set and forget type sights.

If you are going to use the gun for shooting Short Range Silhouettes or any place where you need repeatable adjustments then the Lyman is the way to go. If set up correctly you can use the sight as a back up for a scope by simply removing the upper slide assembly and then replacing it when needed. It's zero won't change.

Unfortunately you will need to get one off Ebay as the current version of the sight is made from aluminum and is not very good. The older version was made of steel and is a far superior product.

Expect to pay anywhere from $100-150 for a clean one.

Randy

[EDK]

He mentioned...in another thread...that it is a pre-safety 1977 gun. It should be drilled for the "older" side mount LYMAN or WILLIAMS receiver sights. I use mine as woods walking guns, so "set and forget" works for me, BUT an all steel vintage LYMAN 66 LA is my choice IF I can find one reasonable.
The 1976 gun I found last month has the old style ejector....does not have the third hole in the receiver.

[justashooter]

lyman all the way...

[dragon813gt]

Skinner
http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa39/dragon813gt/Firearms/A3121523-882F-4CD8-9C08-4B9BB1196ED9-8997-000006F3C7119101_zpsea9a0a54.jpg (http://s198.photobucket.com/user/dragon813gt/media/Firearms/A3121523-882F-4CD8-9C08-4B9BB1196ED9-8997-000006F3C7119101_zpsea9a0a54.jpg.html)

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa39/dragon813gt/Firearms/7DD280AF-E3B9-4D85-90DB-BDC72A685BFA-2609-000001932A05D742.jpg (http://s198.photobucket.com/user/dragon813gt/media/Firearms/7DD280AF-E3B9-4D85-90DB-BDC72A685BFA-2609-000001932A05D742.jpg.html)

This is a 336 but they make an Express version for 1894s that cover most of the receiver.

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa39/dragon813gt/Firearms/32781EB4-945A-442B-B02A-DB9AD6B40485.jpg (http://s198.photobucket.com/user/dragon813gt/media/Firearms/32781EB4-945A-442B-B02A-DB9AD6B40485.jpg.html)

[sghart3578]

Excellent. Is it adjustable for windage and elevation?

Yes. Adjustable in both directions. It works great.

[Wind]

Hey there Doc -- I'm a big fan of the Lyman 66LA AND the Marbles standard tang sights. They offer far more elevation options than a Skinner. I am however a huge Skinner blade front sight guy. A crisp square topped post offers the best in accuracy in my opinion. Here is a Lyman on an 1894...

124195

And here is how a Marbles would play...

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Here are a couple of Marlin 94's working on a 500 yard dinger. Both are using tang sights.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUGeOJ8evpY&list=UUNvs-eikNypaitinLHGw9tA


Hope this helps. Best regards. Wind

[Scharfschuetze]

This topic comes up quite often, so I guess most of you, like me, are always looking for a better way to shoot these old rifles. Having used M14s, M16A1s & A2s as well as M4s with apeture rear sights and a post or blade front sight for more than a few years, I really developed a liking for the sights on them. I've generally upgraded my lever guns to give me similar sight pictures and the Lyman, older Redfield or top of the line Williams aperture sights. With the addition of a blade front sight or a Lyman Model 17 front sight, I'm a happy camper and targets many hundreds of yards distant are in serious jeopardy.

Here are a few Marlins and Winchesters with Redfield or Lyman aperture rear sights. The Marlins have Lyman 17 front sights while the Winchester 94 and 64 have blade front sights. With the Lyman 17 front sight, I prefer the medium width blade or post front sight, but it comes with an assortment of blades and aperture inserts. As noted and demonstrated above, with good sights these rifles are usable way beyond what is normally considered "normal" for them.

These sights are adjustable over something like 45 to 60 MOA in elevation and can be zeroed quite easily for any weight or velocity of boolit. If you record the setting for each load or range, you can return to it ricky tick and get first round hits without having to fiddle around. Unlike many other designs, they also allow for a wide adjustment in deflection and it's quite easy to keep up with the wind's effect when shooting at long range or zeroing for different boolit styles.

[FergusonTO35]

I have a Williams 5D with Lyman 1/16 bead front on my 1894 and 336T and love it.

[historicfirearms]

I really like the design of the Skinner sights, except for the large SKINNER banner that he puts on them. The old ones didn't have that large logo. I would buy a few of his sights but I hate large billboards of advertisement. It's kind of like a lifted 4X4 pickup with a giant Browining Buckmark sticker in the back window, HEY LOOK AT ME, barf!

[Rodfac]

Skinner makes a first rate sight that mounts low and looks great on any Marlin, but....it's not very practical if you want to use several different loads through the gun. Adjustment for windage and elevation works well for one do all load but not if you need to make changes on a daily basis. For a handloader like myself that really hunts only during the fall deer season, but likes to tinker with different bullet and load combinations, a click adjustable receiver peep sight as made by Williams (their Fool Proof is a good sight), or Lyman makes for a better choice. They mount on the side of the receiver and are a little clunky looking, but offer ease and precision of sight changes.

Another option is one of the tang mounted peeps, tho again, windage is a matter of shimming the base in most cases or driving the front sight one way or the other. Marbles or Lyman does make one that has windage adj. built in but again, like the Skinner, it has no click adj. for precise changes.

HTH's Rod

[Dan Cash]

Here are pictures of the condition I described above with sights that "fit" both the 1894 and 336...

http://home.comcast.net/~imashooter2/pictures/WGRS1894.jpg http://home.comcast.net/~imashooter2/pictures/FPsight1894.jpg

Learn something every day. Did not know that late 94 Marlins were not drilled and tapped on the side of receiver for receiver sights. Mine is a post safety but is drilled.

[imashooter2]

Learn something every day. Did not know that late 94 Marlins were not drilled and tapped on the side of receiver for receiver sights. Mine is a post safety but is drilled.

I'm not sure when they stopped. My 1988 30AS is drilled, but my 2001 1894C is not. Another minute off the assembly line I suppose...

[upr45]

I have a pair of 1894's - a 357 & a 44. They both are hunting/fun time rigs. They have XS sight ghost ring setups with scout rails, the 357 has a Burris when it wears glasses, the 44 a Leupold(glasses are off probably 80% of the time). They are fast & accurate enough for what I like to use them for. I do have a Williams on a 35 rem waffle top that is also fast & accurate(not drilled & tapped on top). If I was to put on a peep on a top drilled & tapped Marlin today it'd probably be a Skinner. A good friend has one on his 1895 & it is so sweet! My next lever will definitely get a Skinner.