P38, P1, P4 Front Sights

[flyrod40]

My P4 shoots about 4 inches low at 50 feet. The front sight is marked with the number 2. Does anyone know what number front sight I should get to raise the point of impact those 4 inches?
Thanks in advance.
George

[MGMike]

I can't answer your question exactly, but the following might be helpful:

There were five sizes of front sights for the P4, numbered 1-5. The height of the blade (not including the dovetail) in millimeters:

No. 1 = 6.8
No. 2 = 6.5
No. 3 = 6.1
No. 4 = 5.7
No. 5 = 5.4

Lowering the front sight will raise the point of impact , so you need a No. 3, 4, or 5.
Which one will require you to do some math.

Just a suggestion: before you go changing sights, let somebody else shoot the gun and see where they hit. And if you are using handloads or 147 gr. bullets, first try some standard 115 gr. factory ammo.

M

[searcher451]

MGMike: This is terrific information; thanks for sharing it. Do you know if the P4 sights that you reference here apply to the P1 and the post-war P38 models as well? The information would be a more than servicable Sticky, as this question comes up from time to time.

[MGMike]

Two different forms of front sight were used on the P.38 and P1, the early thin blade and the late wide one with a white dot insert. The P4 uses the latter, and they are numbered the same.

There were seven sizes of the early thin blades, and they do NOT follow the same numerical order or measurements of the later type. Note that the basis of designation is different. The numbers below correspond to the tenth of millimeter.

(unmarked) = 6.7 (millimeters)
0 = 7.0
2 = 6.2
4 = 6.4
5 = 6.5
9 = 5.9

This data came directly from a Walther spare parts list.

M

[flyrod40]

Originally Posted by MGMike

I can't answer your question exactly, but the following might be helpful:

There were five sizes of front sights for the P4, numbered 1-5. The height of the blade (not including the dovetail) in millimeters:

No. 1 = 6.8
No. 2 = 6.5
No. 3 = 6.1
No. 4 = 5.7
No. 5 = 5.4

Lowering the front sight will raise the point of impact , so you need a No. 3, 4, or 5.
Which one will require you to do some math.

Just a suggestion: before you go changing sights, let somebody else shoot the gun and see where they hit. And if you are using handloads or 147 gr. bullets, first try some standard 115 gr. factory ammo.

M

First of all, thank you very much for the information. Yes, I have had several people shoot the gun and it shoots very low. To further confirm that, I purchased a 9mm laser bore sight which also helps to show my low point of impact. I am using 115gr PMC FMJ ammo. I've got to really think about my math though. I wonder if Walther has any info on which sight is supposed to be on at a certain distance?
Thanks again,
George

[MGMike]

If it were me, I'd just "see" more of my front sight and be done with it.

M

[searcher451]

That's great stuff, MGMike. Thanks for sharing your expertise and resources with the forum. This will no doubt help the next person who experiences something similar.

I personally prefer the both-eyes-open, big picture, point/aim method for the Walther pistols and generally pay little attention to the sights, be it with the PP, the PPK/S, the P38, the P1, the P5, the 88C, or the P99, all of which are regular range visitors. I couldn't currently tell you whether the sights on any of my pistols are on-target or off-, but I shoot well enough with all of them.

[MGMike]

Well, I do use the sights. But in this case, instead of having the front and rear sights even across the top, the sight picture would show the front sight sticking up a bit higher. A little practice will demonstrate how much higher it needs to appear, and it's not hard to remember -- even for me.

M

[BluesBear]

G'day Y'all.

A trick I have used over the years when I have a too tall front sight is to get a roll of 1/8" Post It brand correction tape.
(I colour it orange with a highlighter but my buddy leaves it white.)
I wrap a small strip horizontally across the front sight. In essience I now have a nice orange ramp front sight.
By reapplying the tape, (it usually will only stick once or twice) I can quickly find the right point of aim.

I'd then measure the distance from the edge of the tape to the top of the original sight, of in the case of the Walther, the distance from the top edge of the tape to the bottom of the dovetail. Then you'll know what height blade you need to get, or how much to file off the one you have.

I originally tried cutting small pieces of masking tape but, for me at least, I find the Post It tape much easier to work with since you can just tear off a short strip with your fingers.

I hope this helps.

[juno]

Thank you.

That explains my unmarked front sight.

Mine shoots about 4 inches low as well, and has the L marked rear sight which doesn't help with lateral placement either.