Luger rear sight problem(?)

[PRD1]

I just acquired a 7.65mm Luger pistol in fair-to- middling condition overall, and with a bore which is tired, but shootable (and it shoots/groups fairly well, all things considered). However... it groups a good foot low at ca. 15 yards. I could shorten the front sight, but would rather not. The rear sight, however, is of a configuration unfamiliar to me: it is very low and rounded, rather than raised in the form of a blade some distance above the rear toggle section, and the notch is fairly shallow. It does not appear that the rear sight/toggle have been altered, but the apparent difficulty with elevation causes me to wonder whether the rear sight and toggle segment are correct in this pistol. All the numbers appear to match in the pistol, and the only proofs are commercial - the receiver ring appears to have been 'scrubbed' and the pistol refinished early-on, and 'Made in Germany' appears on the right side of the upper receiver. I guess this may be a post WW1 rebuild, but am not familiar enough with Luger pistols to do otherwise than guess. I want to shoot the pistol, and don't think the collector world would be offended by my doing so, due to the overall condition of the gun, but think the current sight regulation is objectionable.
The actual thrust of my question is whether the rear sight and toggle section are correct for this pistol, and whether replacing that part with a standard P08 part might solve the elevation problem. If so, where might I best look for the replacement? I have dealt with Ralph Shattuck in the past, but, sadly, he is no longer with us.
Any assistance would be appreciated.
PRD1 - mhb - Mike

[nukem556]

well, if you dont want to alter the front sight, and the back already has been (from your description, someone had to have ground it down), your only choice is ammo....if you load the 110gr M1 carbine bullet at around 850-900fps it should shoot a good bit higher....the slower heavier bullet is still in the barrel longer under recoil and will shoot higher, to some degree or another.....worth a try, if you reload

[PRD1]

Thank you. I do reload, and was aware of the possibility of using a heavier bullet to somewhat overcome the excessively low POI. However, what I'd prefer to do is replace the rear toggle segment with a standard P08 type, which should help solve the problem.
The original rear sight may have been ground down, but, if so, it was probably done in conjunction with a rebuild, judging by the appearance of the remaining finish on the various parts, and it is not apparent that there ever was a P08-type rear sight on that toggle segment: the existing rounded rear sight is very neatly done. And, of course, the question remains as to why the original type rear sight might have been altered in the first place, as the existing arrangement makes for a pretty miserable sight picture.
It is a puzzlement...
PRD1 - mhb - Mike

[DavidJayUden]

I vote that you either carry the front sight high or replace the sight blade with a lower one. That can be un-done, filing on the rear sight can not.
But that's just mny $.02.
dju

[Neil Young]

Mike:
Can you post a photo of your rear sight so we can see what you are talking about. I've tried to use my imagination, but I come up with some wild pictures. Thanks.

Neil

[PRD1]

I am unable to post pictures (lack of equipment and experience).
Perhaps a better description would help:
I've compared my unaltered P08 to the problem child, and the best way I can describe the appearance of the questioned item is by saying that you could achieve the effect by rounding-off the original rear sight so that its base was level with the humps at the rear of the upper receiver, then milling off the top rear-end of the toggle from about the location of the P08 sight blade, about 1/8" deep, leaving a 'step' in the back of the toggle, and filing a V-notch in the top of the remaining hump to form a rear sight.
Whatever was done to the toggle in the gun appears to have been part of the original assembly, since the remaining finish on all parts is a rust blue, and with similar amounts of wear from handling. The alteration of the toggle, if such it was, was neatly done before finishing the parts, so it appears original to the gun, rather than a later modification. What I can't fathom is WHY such a thing would have been done at all, since it results in a badly mismatched height combination between front and rear sights.
And for David: since the problem is an already too-short rear sight, filing on it would not have helped, while replacing it with a standard toggle and rear sight might well solve the problem. No solution I can think of involving the rear sight as it is now, short of making and attaching a new, taller rear sight (which I could do, if I have to), would solve the problem of excessively low POI.
Surely someone must have a spare rear toggle section?
Thanks for the interest and input.
PRD1 - mhb - Mike

[nukem556]

Mike...check with memeber Lugerdoc, or search Gunbroker's pistol parts page....they sell rear toggles on there all the time

[Neil Young]

From your description, it almost sounds like a sight notch cut into an artillery rear toggle link. That's probably not what it is, but I told you my imagination did some wild things.

Good luck.

Neil