Sight pusher for Kahrs. Tritium globes dim. Need replacements.

[saltydog452]

If anyone has had any difficulty removing Kahr sights, particularilly the front, I'd appreciate knowing what sight removal/adjustment tool that you found helpful.

I guess I could beat on them and drive them out, but questions remain about finish damage and driving in new Tritium sight set.

If you have had personal experience removing factory Kahr sights, I would appreciate knowing how it was done.

[muggsy]

Installing the new sights shouldn't be a problem since you fit them to the dovetail. It would be far cheaper to pay a gunsmith to remove them than to by a quality sight pusher that is up to the job. A good quality sight pusher can cost upwards of $100 dollars or more.

[wyntrout]

I bought a cheapie Sight Pusher online for about $60. It's still easy to screw up a pistol with that. Remove from left side to right side and install from right to left side.

My post on the Sight Pusher:
http://www.kahrtalk.com/showthread.p...ghts-Orange-FS

Kahr dovetails are very tight and though some report driving the sights out with punches and a hammer, you could damage the slide and the sight. All force should be applied to the lowest part of the sight base. Too high and you can damage the glass Tritium vials and kill the glow!

The slide should be held firmly in a non-marring surfaced vise or the pusher. I use thick fiberboard... the separators from a wine case... to cushion the slide. I also pushed or installed slowly and made sure that the bearing part of the pusher didn't contact the slide grooves or the wrong part of the sight base.

I bought the Glock version of the Sight Pusher and made it work on the Kahrs. I was able to do several sights without any damage, though the instructions for some sight installation leave out a lot of proper steps and care out of the instructions. The XS Big Dot instructions only said remove material from the bottom of the sight base... nothing about some from the sides of the base. At one point i had to remove material from the underside of the tube part of the front sight because it was impacting the top of the slide and about to rip the front sight from its base!

I'll try to find the link for one of my posts about this.

This is not an easy procedure to tackle. Most guys would be better off sending their slide to Kahr or Trijicon for installation

Trijicon will re-lamp THEIR sights only for a pretty low cost. After 12+ years, I had my K9 re-lamped by them and it cost me about $8 to ship them the slide. They re-lamped the sights and returned the slide for $54... about $18 a lamp!

My post on that:
http://www.kahrtalk.com/showthread.p...4742#post34742

I'll post this and then go find some links to add in an edit.

One YouTube video on front sight installation:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...&v=do8sHBDfIGk

Old post:

I was perusing the Kahr.com site and ran across a pdf instruction sheet for installation of night sights. The file is available for download here:

https://www.kahr.com/Night_Sight_Ins...structions.pdf

It's pretty simplistic... DO NOT USE A PUNCH TO REMOVE THE FRONT SIGHT... or the rear... and removal is from left to right using a non-abrasive sight press.

Kahr emphasizes NOT using a punch and NOT pushing on the posts of the sights, to preclude damaging the delicate glass vials holding the Tritium gas. Any pushing of the sights should be done as low as possible on the BASES with great care taken to NOT damage the dovetails or the sight/slide finish.

Any sizing adjustments should be made to the sights, not the dovetails... with the exception of deburring the entrance edges of the dovetails.

I copied and pasted the page here and edited/corrected the layout, as it did not paste in normal layout.

I hope this is helpful. I've used a minimal press to change and install sights, BUT... I don't recommend anyone do this. It would be best to let real experts do night sight installation. Saving $30 or $40 won't seem like such a great idea if you damage the sights and/or your pistol!

If you don't have a "Non-marking sight press", FUGEDDABOUTIT!

Wynn

"Night Sight Installation Instructions

Tools required:

1.Non-marking sight press

All of the following steps should be done with care using a non-marking, non-abrasive sight press. All work should be completed by a certified gunsmith. Please read and understand all instructions before attempting to install sights.

DISASSEMBLY OF FIREARM:

1. With the pistol pointed in a safe direction, remove the magazine and ensure that there are no rounds in the chamber. Visually inspect to ensure that the pistol is completely unloaded.

2. Remove the slide from the pistol.

3. Remove the barrel and recoil spring assembly from the slide.


REMOVAL OF THE EXISTING FRONT SIGHT:

1. DO NOT USE A PUNCH TO REMOVE FRONT SIGHT. THIS WILL DAMAGE BOTH THE SIGHT AND THE SLIDE.

2. Place the slide in a non-marking non-abrasive sight press designed to hold the slide in a fixed position.

3. With the muzzle end facing away from you, press the sight (from the base only) from left to right out of the dovetail. *

DO NOT press on the post section; this will damage the sight and or the slide.


REMOVAL OF THE EXISTING REAR SIGHT:

1. DO NOT USE A PUNCH TO REMOVE REAR SIGHT.
THIS WILL DAMAGE BOTH THE SIGHT AND THE SLIDE.

2. Place the slide in a non-marking non-abrasive sight press designed to hold the slide in a fixed position.

3. With the muzzle end faced away from you, push the rear sight from left to right out of the dovetail. Be careful not to scratch or damage any part of the slide.


INSTALLATION OF THE NEW FRONT SIGHT:

1. DO NOT USE A PUNCH TO INSTALL FRONT SIGHT. THIS WILL DAMAGE BOTH THE SIGHT AND THE SLIDE.

2. Place the slide in a non-marking non-abrasive sight press designed to hold the slide in a fixed position.

3. With the muzzle end facing away from you, press the sight (from the base only) from right to left into the dovetail. *DO NOT press on the post section; this will damage the sight and or the slide.


INSTALLATION OF NEW REAR SIGHT:

1. DO NOT USE A PUNCH TO INSTALL REAR SIGHT. THIS WILL DAMAGE BOTH THE SIGHT AND THE SLIDE.

2. Place the slide in a non-marking non-abrasive sight press designed to hold the slide in a fixed position.

3. With the muzzle end faced away from you, push the rear sight from right to left into the dovetail. Be careful not to scratch or damage any part of the slide.

DISCLAIMER NOTICE:

Failure to properly install this sight on your Kahr pistol may result in personal injury, death, damage to the sight system, or damage to your firearm.
Kahr Arms is not responsible for any damages as a result of the installation of this sight system.
Accordingly Kahr Arms factory warranty will void due to improper installation and or damage to the firearm."

Last edited by wyntrout; 11-27-2013 at 03:06 AM.

Here's where I installed the XS Big Dots, but the instructions made no mention of any procedure to remove burrs from the dovetails or the base of the sights. The 22 minute video does mention this, I believe.

http://www.kahrtalk.com/showthread.p...night%20sights


Wynn

[wyntrout]

I added a bunch of links to the previous post.

Wynn

[wyntrout]

With my P40, I wasn't happy with the Big Dot's rear low-vee sight and eventually replaced it with a two-dot Trijicon. It's not a match and doesn't quite shoot to the normal point of aim, but I've learned to shoot passably for defense with this combination. I wanted the Trijicon HD Night Sights, but they probably won't make them for the Kahrs.

The Big Dot is really too large for the normal-sized 2-dot rear sights. For defensive shooting and close range these work for me, but they are not for fine target shooting and small groups. I don't believe in those anyhow. Small groups leisurely shot in paper targets don't really mean much when your life's on the line... think "your hair's on fire and you're up to your ass in alligators." If you aren't moving and ducking to keep from getting shot WHILE returning fire, you're the stationary paper target. The adrenaline dump and severe physiological effects come as a big surprise to most people.

And... I don't know how I digressed to defensive shooting from sight installation!

Wynn

[RRP]

At the risk of sounding like Muggsy, let me say that if one has to ask how to replace sights, they probably should hire a professional to do the job.

Sights can easily be damaged, especially tritium sights. This is not the place to try to save 40 bucks.

[wyntrout]

That was kind of the gist of my post. Beware of "saving" $30 or $40 and ruining sights or the slide dovetails and/or finish! Horror stories and posts abound on this subject.

Wynn

[RRP]

That was kind of the gist of my post. Beware of "saving" $30 or $40 and ruining sights or the slide dovetails and/or finish! Horror stories and posts abound on this subject.

Wynn

Yeah, but I did it in fewer words, even if it sounded a bit abrasive.

My opinion on this isn't necessarily directed to the OP of this thread. It's general advice, since this topic comes up so frequently.

[muggsy]

At the risk of sounding like Muggsy, let me say that if one has to ask how to replace sights, they probably should hire a professional to do the job.

Sights can easily be damaged, especially tritium sights. This is not the place to try to save 40 bucks.

Sounding like Muggsy is a no risk proposition.

[CJB]

I had zero, and I mean ZERO difficulty removing sights on the PM45 and PM9.

Old key elements apply. First - a solid, and I mean SOLID vice. I have a bench that weighs about 80lbs, and the bolted to it weighs about 45lbs. Its got 8 inch jaws. I use some hardwood sheets to hold the slide between the jaws. Brass punch... make sure its got good edges, not lipped or rounded. And I fairly light hammer.... I use a smallish hammer and rapid taps.... the sight will move as long as the slide is not bouncing around at all.

[b4uqzme]

One of my earliest posts was on this very subject and Wynn saved my a$$ that time too. I hired a gunsmith and don't regret it at all. I've done all my others with no issues but not Kahrs. I tried a couple of test taps on my K40 and it was clear they were gonna fight back. Money well spent.

[muggsy]

I had zero, and I mean ZERO difficulty removing sights on the PM45 and PM9.

Old key elements apply. First - a solid, and I mean SOLID vice. I have a bench that weighs about 80lbs, and the bolted to it weighs about 45lbs. Its got 8 inch jaws. I use some hardwood sheets to hold the slide between the jaws. Brass punch... make sure its got good edges, not lipped or rounded. And I fairly light hammer.... I use a smallish hammer and rapid taps.... the sight will move as long as the slide is not bouncing around at all.

It sounds like you are experienced in repairing things mechanical and have a good working knowledge of gunsmithing. Most people aren't and don't.

[marshal kane]

That $100 for a decent sight mover is about right on. Mine, bought from SIG for a P226 came in at about $105. When I adjusted the windage on my rear sight, it wouldn't budge at all. I kept adding more and more turns until I heard a blood-curdling "POP" sound and I just knew I broke something. Turns out it was just the rear sight breaking free but I aged 10 years at that moment. A bit of advice: When a manufacturer puts the finish on a slide, it can be with the sights attached so any chemicals used in the finishing solution can work its way under the sights and form a bond between the two parts. That was the only time I used a sight mover and if I was to do it again, I'd go find myself a good gunsmith.

[wyntrout]

Loctite Red or something similar could have been used, too. Sometimes that's advisable when installing sights... AFTER you're happy with the position! If they're REALLY tight, you don't need the added security.

I've had the "SNAP" or "POP", too!

Wynn

[OlympicFox]

I tend to agree with the others that suggest having a pro install sights rather than botching up the sights. Well, OK so the local pro scratched the slide on my $3500 Nighthawk.

Since I generally upgrade/change the sights on most of my guns, I popped for the MGW Sight-Pro sight pusher. They offer two shoes to adapt a limited number of Kahr models, but nothing for my K9. The shoe for the S&W M&P Shield fits well enough to service the rear sight, although the rear cover has to be removed from the slide. The shoe needs to be milled or filed very slightly to allow it to slide into position for the front sight. Looks like I'll be good to go with a new set of TruGlo TFX sights.