Witness Match with Millett rear sight

[ammodave]

My Match .40 with a Millett rear sight modified to fit in the stock Witness dovetail. I also installed a DIY taller front sight to compensate for the higher Millett rear. I haven't been to the range yet but, if my calculations are correct, it should shoot to point of aim with the taller front sight. I didn't like the oem small LPA rear sight and I didn't want to modify the slide unnecessarily. Everything is DIY with a Dremel tool and needle files.

Edited November 18, 2008 by ammodave

[Jimdoe]

Where did you get a hold of those rear sight? I want one. I know Henning is making one but I don't think I can wait or ill get it again when its out. I've been meaning to replace my oem rear sight and just never have found one without the need of gunsmithing. That looks great.

[ammodave]

The sight is a Millett adjustable intended for a Ruger Mk I but it's far from plug & play. The stock Witness dovetail is approximately .463" wide and .140" deep. The Ruger dovetail is .553" wide but only .090" deep. To make the Ruger work, I first silver soldered a .050" steel spacer to the bottom of the Ruger sight to give it the required height. Then I drilled thru the Millet set screw holes and thru the pad and threaded the holes using a 5/40 tap so the set screws would screw all the way thru both the original Millett sight and the attached pad. After that I trimmed down the overall sight base to the Witness dimension (.463") using a dremel grinder, needle files, and frequent measurements with a micrometer and trial fitting on the Witness slide. After installation the Millet sight is about .13" higher than the oem LPA sight. That means you also will need a taller front sight to compensate for the higher rear. I made my own out of bar stock but I'm hoping to find a serrated or fiber optic sight the right height and add that later.

I looked for other possible rear sights as possible donors but the Ruger was the only one wide enough for the Witness dovetail cut. Most other auto pistols have a rear dovetail cut between .25" and .40". I bought my Millet sight off Gunbroker for about $30 delivered but they're widely available from a host of retailers for $50-$60.

[Jimdoe]

I got a hold a Millet Rear sight from gun broker. After I read your post, I quickly went to gunbroker and sure enough one was auctioned. 30 bucks shipped is a good deal. Just waiting for it to come and start my project. Thanks for the info. Ill let you know/post pic when im done.

[Jimdoe]

Here's my match with millet rear sight. Haven't had the chance to shoot it tho, maybe later this week. The match rear sight measures .08 higher than my limited, so minor adjustment for the front sight later. Rear sight was installed without adding metal and the bottom of the sight. Instead I shaved off a little bit on the slide right in front of the sight in order to fit in. Everything was done with the help of the good ol dremel. Thanks for the info dave.

Jim

[ammodave]

Gotta love the Dremel, the poor man's machine shop. My Hi-Power, S&W 41 and one of my 1911s all have Milletts. It's a good sturdy sight with a proven record of performance and reliability. Nice job!