Mike
I have never seen a SASS or CAS event, so I will not shoot in one in the near future. Would like to see one though. I usually shoot by myself or with my girlfriend. It would be nice if the rear sight had an eye-cup and was windage adjustable and fit into the existing holes in barrel. But that would be probably be asking to much. Would be great if it also was period correct and/or match the rifle more.
This is from a post I did over the SASS Board
As I have stated in the past the current sights that come with the Wesson & Harrington 1871 Buffalo Classic 45-70 are NOT Period Correct for the design of the rifle. The important words here are Period Correct.The current
modern and ugly Williams peep sight on the rear over the receiver is not SASS or CAS legal to use in any of their matches.
Basic Rule for Long Range Side Match Competitions
Rear sights must be either open iron sights mounted on the barrel or origanal tang mounted or stock wrist mounted peep sights. Long range rear barrel mounted sights of flip up ladder type may use peep-hole drilled the sliding of the sight leaf. An example of this is the various sights used on Springfield Trapdoor Rifles.When I had conversations with James Garrison who at that time was CEO of H&R 1871 we discussed this in length, should H&R 1871 decide to make standard sights available on future models and that would be to put
Period Correct sights on both models. That SASS and CAS legal
Period Correct sights be the
ONLY sights available for the Buffalo Classic and Target Model. At this time no sights came with the Buffalo Classic or Target Model rifles and we discussed at length the best sights to put on both of these rifles.
Its really the pits when someone buys a Buffalo Classic or Target Model and then shows up at a SASS or CAS match only to find out that because their new pride is sporting that
modern and ugly Williams none period correct sight that they can't shoot with it.
The only options that you have for SASS matches for long range side matches:
1) Smith Enterprise Buckhorn Ladder Sight
2) 1873 Springfield Trapdoor sight w/o windage
3) 1879 Spingfield Trapdoor sight with windage
4) Vernier Soule Sight and front Globe (click on product line)
Lee Shaver Gunsmith Lee
Shaver can inlet a tang into the wrist for these.
Or you can order differant period correct barrel mounted buckhorn or ladder sights including the Smith for $10.00 cheaper other Buckhorn Sights are much cheaper at
Buffalo Arms Sights Before the Smith Buckhorn Ladder Sight was available with that base it now has, you would have to have a dovetail cut into the barrel and then you could use any of these other sights you see at Buffalo Arms.
Now if you can also order sights through
Brownells Sights Its funny how the differant places that stock the Smith sights are cheaper than the price listed at Smith Enterprises for there own products.
All the above sights work very well with a Silver Blade sight that can be pruchased at any muzzleloader supplier for approx $6.50
As my Gunsmith told me, "Jon you have more money tied up in trying out differant sights, than the rifle is worth" Its called being resposible to the members of what we had at that time the
Buffalo Classic Shooting Society and I was in charge of it. So I found out then and know NOW what will work best for sights on the Buffalo Classic. There are those that purchase the Buffalo Classic strickly for its coolness factor and never shoot a match wether it be Cowboy Action or otherwise, and they are perfectly happy with the current sights that come with the Buffalo Classic now.
But if you want to shoot SASS or CAS, your gonna have to make sight changes and that is the truth of it.
Now for mounting these sights, the best place that I found was to copy where sights are mounted on the old style rifles such as Sharps, Rolling Blocks and the 1884 Wurfflein Breech Loading Rifle. I always had the best accuracy groups from mounting the sights 6.5" out on the barrel. Even the current modern H&R Handi-Rifle in 45-70 has the barrel sight out 6.5" from the Breech because it is better for sighting etc. This is why the Smith Buckhorn Ladder sight comes with that upraised base. By mounting the Smith directly over the chamber breech you are putting that buckhorn sight higher than it should be, and much closer to your eyes. I found by doing this while testing sight placement that my first Williams full buckhorn sight blured away and it did not work well, then I started with all the rest and settled on the 1879 Springfield Trapdoor sight with windage with the ladder marked up to 1500 yards.
The one thing I forgot to mention, if your tired of that Kentucky windage you can get a
Beech Combination Front Sight w/windage .450" DT since the Smith sight has no windage.
Yep, new holes to be drilled and tapped by your Gunsmith. But if you like that Smith sight mounted over the chamber thats your call.
Also JPH45 asked
Montanan, Could you describe the events the SASS groups use the NEF's in? BPCR will not allow them, but there is a groups of SASS shooters that get together each month about 40 miles from me. I've been to a match, but just can't quite get into the "how fast can your SAA (or likeness) go pop. Perhaps I am coming at it from the wrong angle.
Each
SASS Match that you attend will have differant staged areas. Most times each match you go to will have the stages set up differantly each time, so it keeps you on you toes. All I can tell you is go to the link for
SASS and you can read all about what SASS is. Yep, most BPCR silly-wet matches will not allow the Buffalo Classic but there are some that don't care and WILL allow you to shoot it. SASS and CAS will as well as the
Quigley Match and others like it will because they just want you to have fun shooting BPCR.
Now how fast can you shoot a single shot rifle.... I won several side matches competing up against lever guns. They were firing 3 and 4 shots to hit the steel target... the Buffalo Classic would nail it in one. The Buffalo Classic would shine on the Long Range side matches and in alot of events where there was a guy shooting a Sharps... it could go head to head with em.
