Sight Pusher Tool with Heavy-Duty Aluminum Frame and Rotatable Sight Prong

First off, I am not a gunsmith or armorer, so I have limited experience. However, consensus on the inter-webs is that M&P sights are notoriously difficult to remove and replace. I wanted to put night sights on a couple M&P pistols (9L 2.0 and Shield Plus) and to be able to refine their alignment if needed. Bottom line: This tool worked, and did not damage either the new sights or the old ones, which were removed. Rear sight took an uncomfortable amount of force to turn wheel, and resulted in a slightly tender thumb. However, for the price, versatility, and result, I would not hesitate to buy again. Seems sturdy based on heft, but I have not, and will not, use this extensively. M&P 2.0 9L At first, I borrowed a friend's tool (not this tool). It worked for the rear sight, but would not work on the front sight of my M&P 9L 2.0 (5" barrel) because of the geometry of the slide and lack of a notch below the pushing block. Next, I used a brass punch and hammer to get the front sight out and new sight roughly in place. However, as you might expect, smashing something with a hammer lacked finesse and I was having trouble fine tuning the alignment of the new sight at home figured I would not have much luck at the range if I needed to do further adjustment. That's when I decided to give this tool a shot. Because the W Wiregear has that notch/cut-out below the pusher block, it worked perfectly to hold the long slide and nudge the front sight into alignment. M&P Shield Plus Next, I moved onto the Shield Plus. The front sight was relatively easy to remove and replace using the 90 degree side of the block. To hold the slide, there are 4 individual contact points that you screw down. I like that the tool has a series of lines etched in the surface that holds the slide. These lines allow you to make sure the slide is properly aligned (i.e. perpendicular to the pushing block), so you're applying force straight through the dovetail and not at an angle. However, I may have preferred the two-clamping-bar-style (like vise jaws) of my friend's tool in that (1) it did not require fiddling to get the slide aligned, and (2) did not create a pressure point on the thin material at ejection port. With the Shield, one of the pads/feet screwed down onto that thin section of the ejection port, when pushing the rear sight. I made it finger tight and did not try to really torque it down to reduce risk of future issues. Everything seems fine so far, but time will tell whether that area has been damaged or fatigued, and others may not be so lucky (e.g., because they use their ape strength and apply more force than I did). I reversed the pusher block to use the 45-ish degree side for the rear sight. The rear sight on the shield was DIFFICULT. The pusher block has large pushing surfaces, so there was no damage to the sights despite applying a lot of force. I found myself wishing for (1) a good surface to hold the tool while I cranked the wheel (I'd probably try putting the tool in a vise if I were doing it again), and (2) a larger wheel (or a nut that I could throw a wrench on to get more mechanical advantage). It worked, but my thumb was sore afterward from pushing so hard on the wheel's spindle.

This sight pusher has saved me hundreds of dollars and just as much time by allowing me to quickly install and/or properly align factory or aftermarket sights across multiple manufacturers (S&W, FN, HK, Beretta, CZ, etc.). Some sight removals (especially S&W) required a LOT of torque which resulted in multiple bouts of being struck with brass punches/hammers and this sight pusher has held up flawlessly each time. Here are some tips I've learned along the way to help protect this tool and my slides: 1.) Use CLP as needed on all threads of the tool (Helped with fine adjustments and ease of use) 2.) Use additional padding between your slide and the vice knobs to protect your slide finish while ensuring a secure hold 3.) For open-top slides (Beretta), use a small piece of wood to mimic the height of a typical slide (see included photo) If you're thinking of getting this, go for it. It paid for itself after ~2 installs, not including the many instances of zeroing in factory sights that were slightly off out of the box.

I have other site pushers that are brand-specific, like for Springfield Armory. When it came time to change out several sets of night sites on my Sig Sauer pistols I looked at what was available on the market and decided on this one as opposed to the Wheeler. I watched several of the videos regarding this unit and watched people using them to install, remove and adjust sights and felt comfortable buying this one and trying it out. I was indeed surprised; I changed three sets of aging night sights on a P226 and two P229s without major problems. A few notes in no particular order: 1. As with any sight pusher of this type you should always lube the worm gear prior to each use, it will make it much easier to turn. 2. As others have noted the adjustable block that holds the top of the slide down is very dense plastic and should not mar the slide. The pads that hold the slide on each side however are made of steel, so I just cut up an old plastic credit card and slid the pieces between the four pads and the sides of the slide and had no marks when I finished. Please note there are lines milled into the base of the tool so you can see if the slide is parallel to the sides of the tool. 3. As with any dovetail sight swap it doesn’t hurt to put a few drops of penetrating oil on the (old) sights and dovetail and let it soak a bit before trying to push it out. Once the sight is out clean the sight dovetail and lightly lubricate it to help the new sight go in, along with lubing the bottom of the new sight. 4. Before starting this job put your new sights in a Ziploc bag and throw them in the freezer for a few hours; this will shrink them ever so slightly and make them easier to install in a tight slide dovetail. Take the new sights and place them into the dovetail and tap them lightly with a plastic hammer to get them started straight; the sight pusher (when properly adjusted) will do the rest of the work. 5. Be advised that on some slides sights are to be removed and installed in a particular direction; i.e. on Sig P-series pistols both the front and back sights are installed from left to right and removed from right to left as viewed from the rear of the slide. YMMV depending on your make/model of pistol. All in all, this tool is reasonably well-made and competitively priced. If you read the instructions, exercise care and pay attention to the details you shouldn’t have any problems. Besides being able to install and remove sights this tool can also be used for sight adjustments, but be advised in order to do this you must remove the slide from the pistol.

I purchased both the wheeler and the cheaper wiregear to see if there was a difference. The wheeler is definitely built a little better and the details like the knurling were nicer, but the wiregear also worked great. If you want the best go with Wheeler. The details were just better on the wheeler, but if you want something more cost effective that will do the exact same job go with the wiregear. Both made changing sights a breeze, even sig sights. Although I liked the Wheeler better, I still gave Wiregear 5 stars because the price difference makes this a steal.

Update -- This pusher is still a great tool, but I've found that I use the Wyoming Sight Drifter more these days. Much better than a hammer/punch, and better than a pusher in many cases. Original Post I replaced the factory sights on a Beretta 92x and I needed to wail pretty hard with a hammer to break them loose. But because I was hammering on the pusher, not directly on the sight, I never had any fear I would miss and scratch the gun. This tool held everything solid and allowed constant and strong force to be applied as I "tapped" with a punch on the side of the pusher. After some banging the sight broke loose. I had the slide wrapped with blue tape and there wasn't the slightest scratch on it. One small problem, the height adjuster didn't have enough travel to work with the Beretta slide. I had to add a 1/2 wood shim between the slide and the adjuster.

Works great! Removing the rear sight was a breeze. Needed to completely strip a slide for machining work and a new coating. The kit came with soft pads with peel and stick adhesive for the four base plate slide locks. Placed a rag on top of the slide to protect it from the upper plate slide lock. Double check the alignment! The slide needs to be square with the sight pusher. This makes sight removal/installation a smooth and easy process. Make sure the sight pusher is as close you can the slide as possible. You may need to lift the top plate slightly to prevent the sight pusher from dragging on the slide and scratching it.

The sight press is made out of sturdy materials and has an okay fit and finish. It looks to be a quality product. However, none of that matters if it doesn’t work well. The first thing I noticed is the adjustable piece in the center cannot be turned unless you lift the top half of the press far enough up to make half turn adjustments. You should be able to adjust this piece without taking everything apart. The screws used to clamp the slide in place have a cheap stick on rubber pad to cover the steel clamp pads. After the first use, these get destroyed. In order to get enough pressure on the slide to keep it from twisting or moving forward you will squish the pads to the point of ruin. If you chose not to use the pads, the holding screws will ruin your slide finish. Due to the slip and movement in the press, it is impossible to make micro adjustments. By the time you get enough pressure on the sights to get it to move, the slop will overcompensate and spring the sight over… if that makes sense. I see some good reviews on this thing. So perhaps your mileage may vary. For me, this tool is a hard pass, especially for the money. There are much better options available.

It worked just like I needed it too, all be it my def system is the easiest test subject being a g19, with other contoured slides, your milage may vary. But it was reletively easy to use, it was secure, it did not damage any parts...but I did use a cushion for the locking blocks, I cut up a beer box...no lie...it worked great. No complaints of any kind other than...and here's the caveat for mentioned...I wish there were more markings on the actual push block for accurate measurements in small increments, I had to do quite a bit of eye balling and had to readjust a time or two on range day...a bit more adjusting than I thought was needed when sighting in, this would have been minimized if I could have correlated the tool's measurement markings with a center point; that I mark on the slide, and sight itself, then using a flat edge to line them up, taking into account the center line of the bore diameter of course, then this would have given me the best chance at nailing it the first or second time around and improvements that could put this product in the forefront of the market, after all it is a good tool, but it could be great. Having said all that, from the example that I tested I would say that I will recomend this to close friends and would definately buy again although I dont believe I will ever need too, it feels pretty solid. Best of luck. Take care. Peace to all.

Chinamüll!