painting rear sight marks on M1 Garand

D

DarthNul

New member
I picked up an M1 Garand from the CMP recently, and while looking for info about rear sight dis-assembly I came across:

http://www.civilianmarksmanship.com/striphtml/detailstripsight3.html

and I really like the way the rear sight markings were much more readable on the rifle in those pictures because they were painted bright white.

Is there a technique for doing that successfully with such small details? I'm not interested in doing the serial number and other receiver stampings, just the elevation and windage scales.

I've found a bunch of youtube vids for filling in (much) larger details on pistol slides etc, but that didn't work so well with the tiny numbers on the Garand sights.

Should I use acrylic enamel paint, bright sight paint, or something else?
 
Armorers and gunsmiths use Lacquer-Stik from Brownell's.
This is paint in a solid stick form.

To use scrape the end with a knife to expose fresh material.
Degrease the parts with alcohol to remove oil and grease.
Rub the stick into the lettering until it's completely full.
Use a dab of lacquer thinner or mineral oil on a paper towel to remove the excess, leaving the lettering filled.

Allow to dry a few hours then lube the area to prevent rust.
This is a permanent fill but can be removed with lacquer thinner and a toothbrush.

http://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-t...color-fill-sticks/lacquer-stik--prod7778.aspx
 
The entire thing is a peace time Army NCO quirk that really has nothing to do with anything but making the rifles sort of pretty in the weapons lock up. If you're into that kind of thing. However, any paint that will not dissolve in regular solvents will do. Testor's model paint, for example. Paint on, wipe off excess.
 
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