Sighting in

[pilgrim]

  Red Badger, was sort of thought that when the sight becomes loose, that one  takes a small hammer and a punch and piens the top of dovetail to tighten the sight in place.  If I am wrong, Please someone jump in and help, Thanks

[flintboomer]

Pilgrim is right, if it was shooting where you wanted it to shoot before then you need to get the sight moved back to where it was and stake (center punch) it in place so it won't move around. This might take a little shooting and moving of the sight to be sure it is where you want it bebore you stake it in place.

[mongrel]

I had been replying to Jim's post and got sidetracked by something else. Pilgrim and Flintboomer nailed it. If the sight is loose, now, to the point it won't reliably stay put to dial in your point of impact, lightly centerpunch the top barrel flat just ahead of each front corner of the sight -- just enough it'll stay put. Establish POA relative to your sight picture, and when you call it good, punch the same spots you did before, a bit deeper this time, and maybe at the rear corners of the sight to be sure.

I always instruct the buyers of my rifles to leave the sights completely alone until a tight-grouping, effective load or two has been worked up, THEN drift and file and whatever else to dial the group to dead-center. While both sights can be drifted in their dovetails, drifting for the sake of adjusting for one load after another is comparable to the old TV show M*A*S*H, when Frank Burns was temporarily in charge and insisted the entire camp be moved across a road, simply because, as he kept stating, "MASH means MOBILE!" Yes, it did, and yes, the sights can be drifted if need be, but just as it's foolish to move an entire Army camp for the sake of movement, moving the sights needlessly is, well, needless, and plus the fact does more harm than good due to the metal wearing each time there's a shift and eventually one or both sights working loose. Establish accuracy, THEN regulate the sights.

I realize, Jim, that in your case the sights did a shift without your being aware of it, so I'm not implying you contributed to your problem by fiddle-farting with them. However, the one did come loose, and the fix is the same regardless of the cause of the problem.

I'd also stake in the front sight while I was at it, just as insurance -- after everything has been re-regulated.

[Dogshirt]

Nudge it where you want it and hit it with a center punch to tighten things up,

[DandJofAZ]

Dog Shirt,,,you say same thing with less works...never work around our campfire...we like long winded explanations...that way we have an excuse for getting comfused....