Out Of Sights

[ithacaartist]

I can give you a start, Eric. The numbers are gradations in hundreds of meters. The say that the 800 meter mark is a bit "optimistic". I guess you'd push the button in to slide the keeper up to however many yards away you thought you were from the target, then start blazin' away. Before 1917, they were adjustable with the proper tool with two prongs on the end which fit into the two holes in the "snake-eyes"-head screw. I forget if this is for windage (side to side) or to fine tune the elevation, but I'm leaning toward elevation. Yeah, that's it--and the front sights of the earlier ones adjusted from side to side, using the same tool. With this combination, you'd be able to dial it right in. IIRC, the fine-adjustable business was phased out towards the end of WWI. Perhaps it was found by that time that one didn't usually have time to diddle around with fine-tuning the sights during combat!?

Stay tuned and somebody will probably add more details, dates, etc.