Problem with front sight - Citadel 1944 .45 acp

[dwsintxs]

Citadel 1944 .45 acp with 5" barrel

I purchased this gun new last year, have taken it to the range maybe 10 times. a few months ago, I noticed the front sight was wiggling around, loose. I brought it home and put it back in place, and it felt secure, but the next weekend at the range it was wobbling around again and fell out.

There doesn't seem to be any screw set or way to stop it from moving around, so I used a dab of super glue on it, and took it back to the range to shoot, and once again, the front sight was loose and almost fell out again.

I am relatively new to guns, and this was my first gun purchase.

I have no clue what to do about it. Send it back under warranty? Replace the sight? I can see no way to tighten it, so I am frustrated with such an odd problem.

[J Wilson]

You need to find someone (probably a gun smith) with a front site staking tool.You could also have it silver soldered,but it mite mess up the finish.

[ghostrider]

depending on how much you want to spend, the better option IMHO is to have a gunsmith mill a dovetail in the slide and install a better sight.

http://www.10-8performance.com/products ... ights.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Oldgringo]

...or just JB Weld it in place.

[Excaliber]

Having a gunsmith use his staking tool on it is the easiest, quickest, and cheapest. It will likely cost less than it would to ship the gun back under warranty, and would take a gunsmith all of 5 minutes to do.

Having the slide milled for a new front site is a very solid, long term solution, but the cost will negate much of what you saved by buying a Citadel instead of one of the more costly brands.

I would go with the staking - that's the method the gun was designed with, and when it's done right it's solid and won't come loose. The "done right" part is what didn't happen at the factory.

[Sidro]

I believe the Citadel pistol has a dovetail sight, so that means the sight is undersize or the dovetail is cut wrong. If I remember they are Novak style sights. Contact the manufacturer about this problem.

[Pawpaw]

I believe the Citadel pistol has a dovetail sight, so that means the sight is undersize or the dovetail is cut wrong. If I remember they are Novak style sights. Contact the manufacturer about this problem.

Looking at the pictures on this page, I believe you are correct.

[MoJo]

If the front sight is a dovetailed sight the fix is so simple to be almost silly. Take a center punch and dimple all under where the sight will be. Check that the sight won't go into the dovetail if it is loose dimple the bottom of the sight. Then, degrease both the sight and the dovetail channel and, with some red Lockitite in the dovetail tap the sight into the dovetail. A vise will help hold the slide still so you can drive the sight in. Without a vise have someone hold the slide or clamp it to a work surface with a C clamp. I use either a brass or aluminum drift to drive the sight with a small hammer.

If your sight is a GI style with a staked tenon you'll need a specialized tool and a lot of luck. I have the tool and have unsuccessfully attempted to install and reinstall a GI front sight. I would advise going to a gunsmith and let them re-stake your sight.