SMITH & WESSON J-FRAME
High-visibility sights
Important info; please read!

Thanks for your interest in the Bowen Classic Arms high-visibility sights for your Smith & Wesson J-frame revolver. These sights will work on virtually an J-frame, fixed-sight gun. Some integrate better than others. Some, such as the M940s, may require a dovetailed front sight due to the wide, steel rib. We’ve done several M49s and M649s to good effect though there is a flat aft of the sight due to the hammer shroud configuration. While some installations are tidier than others, we’re not building show pieces. The goal is to install sights you can see and utilize in a clutch. The information following will help you maximize their effectiveness.

Tricky Little Devils:

While this discussion is not meant as a treatise on the tactical necessity of hitting what you are aiming at, back-up revolvers have not always been viewed as precision weapons. Never-the-less, there are instances where it is advantageous to have a precisely sighted gun. J-frame revolvers are as precisely made and fitted as their larger brethren and are possessed of considerable inherent accuracy. The trick is getting a grip on this hidden performance. Obviously, a set of sights you can see is key. But this is not the only element.

J-frame revolvers are notoriously difficult to shoot consistently because of their diminutive grip frames and grips, short barrels and low weights. It is not uncommon for two shooters using the same gun and ammo to shoot perfectly respectable groups centered inches apart at even close ranges. This is neither the fault of the gun or the shooter. Every shooter has his own style, hold, interpretation of the sights, ammo and so on. Consequently, it is critical for the owner and primary user to review regulation once the gun is received and make adjustments accordingly to give the best results. Before contemplating sights, it is imperative that the owner test several sets of grips and install the most suitable before installation and serious testing of the sights. Ammo selection is also critical since fixed sights must be regulated for one load. Once done, serious sighting can begin.

Since the owner isn’t usually around for the installation and regulation of these sights, it falls to the folks at Bowen Classic Arms to regulate the sights as best they can…for themselves. We can usually get the regulation pretty close. However, for all the reasons mentioned above, our results may well differ from the end user’s. Happily, the basic design of these sights means that any subsequent adjustments are simple to make and do not usually require the participation of the pirates at UPS or FDX.

Regulation:

To a limited degree, initial windage adjustments can be made on all-steel guns by reclocking the barrel to move the front sight. Unfortunately, this is not always easy to do with such a short sighting radius and can be a frustrating exercise. Turning steel barrels on alloy-frame guns is simply risky and can result in receiver damage so is best avoided. Late-model all-frame guns with composite alloy-shroud barrels cannot be windaged at all because the barrel clocking is permanent—barrel and receiver positioning is set by a pin between the two components. In short, windage is near impossible on these guns.

Accordingly, the Bowen Classic Arms J-frame square-notch sights are available in two left and right off-sets yield about 2 and 4 in. changes at 20—25 yds. If windage is more than an inch or so off, then we can get closer. All you need to do is return the sight on the gun in exchange for the proper off-set version. Remember, choose the off-set in the direction you wish to move the group: if the gun shoots left and point of impact needs to be moved to the right, select the right-offset version.

From the installer’s perspective, elevation is simpler to adjust. Once the new blade (serrated or white-line style) is pinned in place, the gun is shot and the blade cut to proper height for regulation. We try to supply each gun with an extra fitted blade in case our regulation shoots too high and requires a taller blade to fix. Again, if regulation is off, all we need are the fitted and unfitted front sight blades and a target showing point aim and actual point of impact (and marked for range) in order to make the proper adjustments. If the gun shoots low, the existing blade can be cut but we’d still like to have both blades.

Shooters involved:

All you need in order to remove the front sight is the .050 allen wrench supplied with the gun. Simply unloosen the lock screw and slide the sight off to the rear. Please note: we deliver these sights installed without Loc-tite applied. If you are satisfied with the regulation on the gun as you receive it, apply blue Loc-tite not only to the lock screw but the tang of the sight as well. This installation is very secure but it won’t hurt to seal the joint between sight and receiver. If time and money are no object, we can produce a rear sight from blanks that will yield exact windage, based on trigonometric computations for the exact off-set needed made from owner-provided targets. Cost is usually about $75 or so per sight.

The front sight blades are, however, a bit trickier to remove and reinstall. Steel-barrel guns will typically have a blade retained by one or two .055 diameter steel pins. Removing these can be a pain in the ass. You will need a padded bench vise to hold the gun, the proper cup-point pin punches (ava. from Brownells) and a small hammer to run the punch. This exercise takes care and patience as it is all too easy to have the punch slip off the pin and divot the barrel. If you are uncertain about this, contact your local gunsmith. Alloy-barreled guns use roll pins which are far easier and safer to remove but still may call for local gunsmith intervention.


Tritium Installations:

Tritium low-light sights are extremely popular for self-defense and law-enforcement weapons so we've adapted this technology to our J-frame sight installations to increase their utility and flexibility. Tritium installations usually do not add but 2-4 weeks to our usual deliveries of these sight installations.

The J-frame rear sight is exceedingly small and compact, something we do not wish to compromise. There is not much room within the sight body to install tritium dots and bars in ways that will satisfy the NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Commission) which requires that a certain amount of protective metal surround the tritium vials. There is room for only a coupe of installations. Our prefered version is a dot just beneath the square sight notch to be used in conjunction with tritium dot front square blade. In the dark, just stack the two dots in a sort of a figure eight and you'll have it. In the alternative, we can also offer a trtium bar beneath the sight notch. We do not recommend this variant since our installer will not guarantee (nor then can we) the installation against breakage or other failures. Further, in conditions too light for the tritium to be efffective but too dark to use the regular sights, the bar is totally lost while the dots with their white surrounds show up very well.

The standard two-dot (one front, one back) installation adds $125 to the cost of the usual installation.


Pricing and costs:

The basic SW04 sight pkg. with square-notch/white-outline rear and white-line front blades is $295 installed and regulation to your choice of ammo. Add $50 for steel barreled guns.

In view of the uncertain nature of sight regulation on these little guns, we do not view adjustments to regulation as warranty work and must assess a modest fee to rework sights. Typically, cutting/reshaping fitted front white-line/serrated sight blades, rematting, rebluing and repainting where indicated, is about $30--$35. In some cases, we can modify tritium-dot Express Sight Systems front blades to adjust for elevation. Custom square notch rear blades to adjust for windage start at about $75.

Precise regulation of J-frame high-visibility sights is not as troubling as it may sound. More often than not, the initial regulation is fine. However, if not, Bowen Classic Arms will make a concerted effort to assist in your efforts to perfect the regulation for you. It will take a bit of work on both ends but there may be a situation some day where it will have been more than worth the effort. Feel free to contact us at (865 984-3583 with questions and for assistance.