Sights & Markings
Front Sight
Forward aiming reference, often integral with a base or block.
Also called
- bead
- blade
- front sight base
- post
Arms it fits
Documented parts
In stock now
Names recorded
Identification
Notes on the front sight are still at the bench
Identification notes are written one part at a time, from pieces Butch has had in hand — so this section fills in as he works through the vocabulary rather than all at once. If you are trying to identify a front sight you already own, he answers those directly at butch@butchsantiquegunparts.com.
Vocabulary
Other names for the front sight
The same component has been called different things by different makers, manuals and trades. Each term is printed with whatever is recorded about where it comes from.
- bead
- blade
- front sight base
- post
Fits
Front Sight by model
Will it fit
No interchange recorded yet
Butch Schoeller writes these notes only from parts he has handled. A blank section means nothing has been checked yet — not that everything fits.
From the bench
Availability
Nothing of this type is listed at the moment. Most of this catalog is one-of-a-kind, so stock turns over item by item rather than being restocked — posting a wanted listing is the reliable route, and aggregated requests are what tell Butch which parts to make next.
The reference
Documented examples
1808 North Flintlock Martial Pistol Front Sight
1808 North Flintlock Martial Pistol
1816 North Flintlock Pistol Front Sight
1816 North Flintlock Pistol
1836 Waters Johnson Flintlock Pistol Front Sight
1836 Waters Johnson Flintlock Pistol
1841 Mississippi Rifle Front Sight
1841 Mississippi Rifle
Austrian Weapons Front Sight
Austrian Weapons
British Brown Bess Flintlock Musket Parts Front Sight
British Brown Bess Flintlock Musket
British Enfield Musket Parts Front Sight
British Enfield Musket
British Military Pistol Parts Front Sight
British Military Pistol
British Sea Service Flintlock Pistol Parts Front Sight
British Sea Service Flintlock Pistol
Canadian Rifle Parts Front Sight
Canadian Rifle
Corbeav Flintlock Pistol Brass Stock Hardware Set Front Sight
Corbeav Flintlock Pistol Brass Stock Hardware Set
Corbeav Lock Parts Front Sight
Corbeav Lock
Dutch Beaumont Rifle Parts Front Sight
Dutch Beaumont Rifle
French Corbeav Flintlock Lock Kit Front Sight
French Corbeav Flintlock Lock Kit
J. H. Hall Parts Front Sight
J. H. Hall
Krag Rifle Parts Front Sight
Krag Rifle
L. C. Smith Shotgun Parts Front Sight
L. C. Smith Shotgun
Mauser Parts Front Sight
Mauser
Remington Rolling Block Parts Front Sight
Remington Rolling Block
Rolling Block Rifle Parts Front Sight
Rolling Block Rifle
Sharps Carbine And Rifle Parts Front Sight
Sharps Carbine And Rifle
Spencer Rifle And Carbine Parts Front Sight
Spencer Rifle And Carbine
Swiss Rifle Parts Front Sight
Swiss Rifle
U.S. 1817 Common Rifle Front Sight
U.S. 1817 Common Rifle
U.S. 1855 Harpers Ferry And Springfield Front Sight
U.S. 1855 Harpers Ferry And Springfield
U.S. 45 70 Trapdoor Springfield Front Sight
U.S. .45-70 Trapdoor Springfield
U.S. Krag Rifle Parts Front Sight
U.S. Krag Rifle
U.S. Martial Pistols Front Sight
U.S. Martial Pistols
U.S. Military Flintlock Musket Parts Front Sight
U.S. Military Flintlock Musket
U.S. Military Percussion Rifles And Muskets Front Sight
U.S. Military Percussion Rifles And Muskets
U.S. Model 1816/21 Flintlock Musket Front Sight
U.S. Model 1816/21 Flintlock Musket
U.S. Model 1835/40 Springfield Musket Front Sight
U.S. Model 1835/40 Springfield Musket
U.S. Model 1855 Rifled Musket Front Sight
U.S. Model 1855 Rifled Musket
Winchester Parts Front Sight
Winchester
Check it yourself
Sources
Period and institutional material relevant to this entry. Listed so it can be checked, not as decoration — nothing here has been through expert review yet.
- 1.Ordnance March-April 1924: Vol 4 Iss 23Internet Archive · 1924
- 2.Report of the Adjutant General of West VirginiaWest Virginia. Adjutant General's Office; West Virginia. National Guard · [Charleston, W. Va. : The Adjutant General · West Virginia University Libraries · 1913
- 3.Ordnance July-August 1925: Vol 6 Iss 31Internet Archive · 1925
- 4.The manufacture of optical glass and of optical systems; a war-time problemUnited States. Army. Ordnance Dept; Wright, F. E. (Frederic Eugene), 1877-1953 · Washington, Govt. Print. Off. · University of California Libraries · 1921
- 5.Handbook of the 6-inch howitzer matériel, model of 1908 and 1908 MI with instructions for its careUnited States. Army. Ordnance Dept · Washington, Govt. Print Off. · University of California Libraries · 1917
- 6.The Manufacture Of Optical Glass And Of Optical SystemsOrdnance Department Of Usa · Internet Archive · 1921
- 7.DTIC ADA438182: Provisional Machine-Gun Firing ManualDefense Technical Information Center · Internet Archive · 1917
- 8.Description of the Colt's double-action revolver, caliber .45, model of 1909 : with rules for management, memoranda of trajectory, and description of ammunition, September 10, 1909United States. Army. Ordnance Dept · Washington [D.C.] : G.P.O. · University of California Libraries · 1917
- 9.Provisional manual for ordnance field serviceUnited States. Army. Ordnance Dept · Washington : Govt. print. off. · Cornell University Library · 1920
- 10.DTIC ADA501877: The Coast Artillery Journal. Volume 65, Number 1, July 1926Defense Technical Information Center · Internet Archive · 1926
- 11.The manufacture of optical glass and of optical systems : a war-time problemWright, F. E. (Frederic Eugene), 1877-1953; United States. Army. Ordnance Department · Washington : Govt. Print. Off. · Getty Research Institute · 1921
- 12.Ordnance January-February 1930: Vol 10 Iss 58Internet Archive · 1930