Garand Qs

[eighteenninetytwo]

Took my Garand to the range on sunday. Two questions arise, and bear in mind I'm a newbie to these beasts:

Firstly firing from a bag at 100 yards with the rear sight as low as it will go it's grouping about 2 inches high of the X on an 8 inch black. So impact is at least 6 inches higher than POA. Can I change the front sight blade for different sizes (a higher one) and if so where do I get them?

Secondly I attached a P07 sling (as as per regulations and recommended usage methods) and tried firing off hand with sling for support. I didn't notice any increase in stabilty over just shooting without, in fact my shooting was actually worse than without. Just where exactly should the sling support and where should my hand be on the forearm to get maximum extra support. I tried lengthening it and shortening it and having the loop higher and lower on my biceps. Any advice from off hand garanders welcome.

[stevie]

At 100 yards, adjust rear sight up 6 - 8 clicks and see how that works (I think anyways) been awhile since i played with mine.

[hybridatsun350]

What is your sight picture? You want the black to be like an apple on top of a fence post. With the front sight being the "fence post".

You don't usually use a sling for off-hand shooting. The sling is used in sitting and prone positions, and you will notice huge improvements in those positions if the sling is set-up properly.

Have you seen this? http://www.archive.org/details/Rifle...1_Rifle_Part_1

[CSDGuy]

At 100 yards, you should be about 6-8 clicks up on the rear sight. Also make sure that the front sight is centered in the peep sight... then line up on target with a 6 O'clock hold. You want the same sight alignment and picture every time you shoot. If you're lining up the sights so that the front sight is too high in the rear peep sight, you will shoot high. Of course, it's also possible that the front sight is/was filed down so that it's actually too low. That will raise the point of imact.

As to recommended sling placement/usage, somewhere out (on youtube?) there's some old WW2 training movies that have been converted and posted for people to watch. It shows the shooting positions and how to use the sling. If you can find someone who teach you/show you in person how to use the sling, that's far better than the video.

I found a couple pictures of how the sight alignment and picture should appear. If you're doing this and your rifle is still shooting above the desired impact point, you probably then need a new front sight. You just order one from wherever carries it.


Proper sight alignment


Proper sight picture.

[eighteenninetytwo]

My sight picture is dotting the i, or apple on a post or whatever it's called and is identical to above. Surely putting the sight 6 clicks up will make the POI even higher? I think the clicks are 1/2 inch at 100 yards are they not - so it would be 3 inches higher than it is now. I can't think that the round would fall enough in 100 yards to make that a far zero so I'm thinking i'll ave to replace the front sight blade. Any recommended suppliers folks?

[hybridatsun350]

Unless you have a National Match rear sight than your clicks are going to be 1" at 100 yards. Dialing more elevation in is only going to make your problem worse. You may have to get a new front sight.

This seems like a good price, http://www.e-gunparts.com/product.as...ductSKU=408360

[ocabj]

Shoot center hold.

To shoot the M1 and M14 in standing, hold your trigger elbow high (chicken wing), about parallel to the ground. This will ensure you're holding the 'pistol grip' area as high as possible to obtain a straight pull with your trigger finger.

Example:

[eighteenninetytwo]

I never even thought of that - good tip thanks. Just by sitting here at my desk (getting weird looks because of a chicken wing arm) I can see that the angle of my trigger finger will pull either up or down to the right dependent upon the angle of my arm.
Center hold? as in top of teh sight blade is on the center of teh black? I tried that when I started shooting a few years back, but my eyes simplye aren't good enough.

[TRICKSTER]

Try this.

Here is a US Army zero target for the M1/M14 as well as the orginal M16.

For the M1/M14 or other rifles without high front sights, use the X above the black box. Set sights at 300 yards and adjust until a three-shot group is over the X. The correct sight picture is achieved when the little white cut-out is visible between the front sight and the black box.

The squares are 1/2", so you may have to adjust your printer to get it to print the correct size.

http://forums.gunboards.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=144084&d=1232128227

[ocabj]

as in top of teh sight blade is on the center of teh black? I tried that when I started shooting a few years back, but my eyes simplye aren't good enough.

Center hold is actually the go to sight picture for aging eyes.

Can you see the front sight post clearly? If so, how fuzzy is target black when you're focused on the front sight? If it's just mildly fuzzy, that's fine. If the target black appears so light that the black almost disappears, you may want to consider corrective glasses.

[eighteenninetytwo]

Hell I already wear glasses - hence the lasik suggestion. Black gets fuzzy enough that I can't tell whether the blade is directly below it so I have to pause, refocus and ensure that it is.

[eighteenninetytwo]

What distance is the official army target for zeroing at?

Also is there a 300yards setting on eth elevation adjustment of the garans - I never looked at the figures, just set it as low as possible. (bear in mind I'm a newbie to this american gun thing)

[TRICKSTER]

What distance is the official army target for zeroing at?

Also is there a 300yards setting on eth elevation adjustment of the garans - I never looked at the figures, just set it as low as possible. (bear in mind I'm a newbie to this american gun thing)

Just like is says, 25 meters


Check these links for more info:

http://www.biggerhammer.net/manuals/garand/sight_r.htm

http://www.biggerhammer.net/manuals/garand/sighting.htm

[ocabj]

Hell I already wear glasses - hence the lasik suggestion. Black gets fuzzy enough that I can't tell whether the blade is directly below it so I have to pause, refocus and ensure that it is.

Shoot line of white. Once you acquire sight alignment, bring the front sight post into the black and lower it just below the black until you get a small line of white. Focus on the front sight middle tip, hold line of white, pull the trigger clean, follow through.

As far a standing, you should try to use center hold. I find it much easier to shoot standing with a center hold because it allows you to accept your wobble much better than in 6 o'clock, and you can make a more accurate call.

The reason being is that with a center hold (point of aim = point of impact), if you break the shot with the tip of front sight post anywhere in the black, the worst it's going to be is a 9-ring and you can easily call it. If the tip of the post was a bit far from center, you can have a good indication that it's a 9. If you see the tip of the post some midway between the center and the outer edge when the shot breaks, then you have an idea that it's a solid 10.

But standing with a 6 o'clock hold, you can bleed the tip of the post into the black and not be sure how much you floated into the black and have an inaccurate call. Sure you know it'll be higher than you wanted, but how high? Accurate call is critical to accurate shooting. If you can't make an accurate call, you won't be able to make the proper adjustments.

That's not to say you can't make an accurate call with a 6 o'clock hold, it's simply harder to do in standing because of larger wobble effect. I can make good calls with a 6 o'clock hold in sitting and prone, but the more stable position allows for it.

[marathonman]

I have the same problem and this issue is being raised in the CMP forums

http://www.odcmp.org/new_forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=71205

I have not yet tried to remove wood from my stock. Another suggestion I had was to grind down the rear sight aperture. I have not implemented either suggestion yet.