PU 3.5x22 - an optical sight that has been tested by time

Optical sight PU model 1942 for the Mosin sniper rifle, mounted on the Kochetov bracket with a base, as well as for the Tokarev SVT sniper rifle, in addition, it is excellent for the SKS carbine and other types of long-barreled weapons.

Excellent for Mosin rifles and carbines, KO-91/30, KO-44 and other modifications based on the Mosin rifle.

Also, with the help of modifications, it will fit on many other rifles and carbines.

The PU optical sight is a fully functional Soviet-made rarity.

Buying an original PU sight means touching history and becoming the owner of a compact device of excellent quality and rare reliability.

How a simple sight became a legend

Not many sights are as famous as the PU 3.5x22. The popular name “PeUshka” has become memorable since the Second World War. The sight replaced the PE and PB sights, the design of which turned out to be too complex for mass production. And the experience of the Soviet-Finnish war of 1939, in which the Soviets lost to the Finns, showed that the accuracy of the fire is no less important than its density. The new PU sight was not a successor to previous sights, but became a sight of a completely new design.

Interestingly, during the war the Germans were so impressed by the PU that they based their ZF4 optical sight on the basis of this sight, which was most often used on the Gewehr 43/Karabiner 43 sniper rifles from Walter. The idea of ​​mass producing a sniper scope was stunning to the German military. Before that, they had to outfit snipers with what were essentially high-quality sporting scopes that were both expensive and hard to come by. The temptation to have a compact and easy-to-manufacture optical sight soon forced them to create a copy of the launcher for mass distribution among the troops.

Rifle FG 42 Fallschirmjägergewehr 42 with ZF4 sight

The PU sight was intended for use with the SVT-40 self-loading rifle, which, in turn, turned out to be demanding on maintenance and sensitive to temperature conditions. Moreover, it is more complex to manufacture than the Mosin rifle, which has been in service since tsarist times (since 1891). Instead of the SVT-40, modernized in 1930, the Mosin rifle continued to be mass produced during wartime. For the PU 3.5x22 sight, it was necessary to urgently develop a bracket for mounting the sight on the high wall of the Mosinka receiver.

Sniper Fighter Scope

The Red Army met the beginning of the Great Patriotic War with two main types of optical sights. The PE sight (Emelyanov sight), produced since the 30s, complemented the PU sight, originally developed for installation on the SVT sniper rifle, and then installed on the “three-line” rifle.

At the beginning of the forties, PE and PU were very good optical sights. However, according to a number of users, these sights had one significant drawback - the low information content of the aiming reticle. Meanwhile, not all fighters, even after graduating from sniper school or other similar courses, could instantly determine the distance to within a meter in any situation, take the right lead, and so on. And manipulating the mechanism for entering corrections took time, albeit a little - but sometimes it became the difference between: “the target is visible - the target is hidden.” These problems, in particular, were formulated in a letter from a higher school teacher of the NKVD of the USSR, Honored Master of Sports P. G. Shugaev.

Sight reticle PE and PU serial sample

“The sniper scope that exists on rifles Model 1891 and SVT has very serious shortcomings that make it difficult to quickly and accurately use it in a combat situation. Before making a well-aimed shot, you need to spend a lot of time on:

— determining the distance to the enemy;

— precise installation of the sight;

— calculation and placement of the aiming point on a moving target.

A large loss of time on fortune-telling calculations to determine the distance using the base of the sight or by eye, inevitable errors when installing the sight (backlash of micrometric screws), errors when moving the aiming point - constantly create uncertainty, confusion among snipers and good shooters and, as a result, a large number of misses that frighten the target... We need a sight that would allow us to turn a million good shooters into fighter snipers.”

Class at sniper school

As a solution to the problem, the author of the letter proposed his own version of the sighting reticle - with eight front sight lines, from 100 to 800 m. The width of each line corresponded to the width of the human figure at a given distance. To the right and left of the central front sights there were additional points for firing with anticipation at a walking or running enemy. According to the letter, preliminary shooting with the participation of the head of the sniper teams in Mytishchi was successful - targets were hit 4-5 times faster than with conventional sights.

In addition, Shugaev also proposed increasing the magnification of optical sights to 5x, installing a rubber eyecup and a removable solar hood.

At NIPSVO KA, the sight designed (and also manufactured) by Shugaev was tested in September 1942. For the conversion, Soviet PE and “American Winchester” were used (as it is called in the report; it is not possible to establish the exact brand today). An examination of the sights showed that they are suitable for shooting, but have significant clouding and blurring of the reticle lines. Such defects greatly reduced the visibility of the target through the sight. However, it would be difficult to expect anything else with the artisanal method of production. As Shugaev himself wrote: “In eight months, I, the giver of this, was forced to become a photographer and, although not entirely clearly, I managed to produce a second working model, ready for testing.”

American optical sight of the Winchester type, mounted on the Springfield 1903 rifle. Presumably, a sight of this type was tested at NIPSVO in 1942.

The sights were tested by shooting at four groups of targets set at a distance unknown to the shooters. Out of 48 shots, a shooter with a gross optical sight achieved 28 hits, with an experienced (modified PE) - 30. At the same time, the experienced sight also allowed him to achieve a higher rate of fire - 3.2 rounds per minute versus 2.5 for a gross PE. But the shooting with lead ended differently - one hit with an experienced one and three with a gross one. As noted in the conclusion, this was a consequence of an erroneous calculation of the warning points. During the shooting process, it turned out that the size of the distance bars of the rangefinder sight did not correspond to the declared width of the target (50 cm) and gave an error of 1–1.5% of the distance. However, even with this, the error was no more than 50 m - whereas “by eye” the shooters made mistakes when choosing a distance of 75–100 m.

Sight reticle proposed by P. G. Shugaev. The width of each of the eight lines corresponds to the width of the human figure at a given distance (from 100 to 800 m). Additional points located to the right and left of the central front sights are intended for firing with anticipation at a walking or running enemy

Shugaev's idea was far from the only proposal of this kind. At the end of 1942, the NKV plant No. 357 developed and tested the PU-4 sight. A distinctive feature of the new sight was the presence of a rangefinder and sighting reticle. The aiming marks covered the range of distances from 100 to 1100 m. Additionally, for a distance of 400 m, markings were applied to take a lead on a moving target. Comparative tests of this sight with a conventional gross launcher at NIPSVO took place in November 1942. The shooting was carried out from sniper “mosinki” with a Kochetov bracket and cartridges with a light bullet.

PU-4 sight reticle. Aiming marks cover a range of distances from 100 to 1100 m. For a distance of 400 m, markings are applied for taking a lead on a moving target

Two sights were sent to the training ground. A preliminary inspection showed that the first had no defects, but the second, with a slight shock, had a free rotation of the rangefinder reticle. Of course, it was pointless to shoot with such a defect, and therefore only the first sight was tested. Problems began even at the stage of bringing the rifle to normal combat. The NIPSVO report states the following: “The alignment of a rangefinder sight differs from the alignment of a bulk-made PU sight in that the position of the optical axis of the sight in the vertical plane is adjusted by moving the bracket by adjusting two stoppers, and in the horizontal plane by additional filing of the bracket platform or by placing a plate from paper.

The alignment was carried out on a Zeiss machine. Alignment of the rangefinder sight in the field is impossible, because it requires a machine, special tools and material for lining the bracket platform. Even alignment with a machine and tools is rough, time consuming and can quickly render the brackets unusable. Consequently, in order to ensure normal alignment of the rangefinder sight, it is necessary either to leave the adjustment drums on the sight, or to construct a bracket with devices for alignment. Aligning the sight with the help of devices on the bracket will be rougher and the installation of the bracket will become more complicated.”

The result of the tests can hardly be called unexpected - the gross sight gave 23.3% of hits, the experienced one - 11.7%. At the same time, among the advantages of the experimental sight, testers Fr.

Examples of using the PU-4 sight reticle when aiming at different distances

Unfortunately, all other items in the test report were a list of shortcomings. In addition to the alignment issues described above, the testers also found it necessary to note the following:

“a) A large number of strokes makes it difficult to guide the choice of stroke when aligned with the target, which leads to errors.

b) When aiming, it is necessary to align the middle of the stroke, which reduces the accuracy of aiming.

c) Aiming the rifle at the target is ensured for targets with a width of 50 cm (human chest) and 20 cm (human head); accurate shooting at other targets, for example, viewing slits, is not ensured by the sight, because it is difficult to align the middle of the stroke with the target.”

It was also noted that it was impossible to accurately aim in conditions of poor visibility (twilight, bad weather) - thin strokes became invisible against the background of the target.

PU sight reticle “with Lyre-shaped rangefinder scale”

Around the same time, they tested another option for improving the standard launcher, proposed by the same plant No. 357 - a sight “with a rangefinder scale in the shape of a lyre.” This time the shooting was carried out from a self-loading rifle mod. 1940 (SVT). Alas, this NIPSVO report cannot be called optimistic. The testing site employees conducted the test.

Soviet snipers with SVT-40 rifles

Another experimental sight was the PU-42. In the test report, it was described as follows: “The PU-42 optical sights submitted for testing differ from the bulk-made PU sight in that instead of hair-shaped crosshairs, they have glass plates with a reticle printed on it (the aiming scale is located inside the optical system , the presence of rangefinder scales), in the focus of the eyepiece there is a fixed diaphragm with indices for aiming scales, the mechanism of aiming angles has a fundamentally different design and there is no lateral correction drum.”

PU-42 sight reticle

And this time, of the two experimental sights sent, one turned out to be out of use - the increased diameter of the sighting coupling did not allow the shutter of the sniper “Mosinka” to be fully opened. Therefore, one sight was tested again. Also, during inspection, the testers stated: “the reticles of the experimental sights are made roughly, unclearly and have a lot of dirt on them.”

The main complaints, as last time, were about the alignment of the sights - “impossible in field conditions.” As for the rest - accuracy, rate of fire, number of hits on targets - the experienced and standard scopes turned out to be almost equivalent. In addition, after 35 shots, the diaphragm in the tube began to rotate - this was observed in the optics as a knocking down of the sight settings. The malfunction was eliminated by the designers present at the test site. The implementation of rangefinder scales was considered unsatisfactory. The testers stated that “the length of the gaps is so unrealistic that it made it impossible to use rangefinder scales to determine distances to the target.”

As a result, the PU-42 sight was found to fail the test. The test site report recommended that it be modified and equipped with a bracket that would allow alignment under all conditions. If everything had worked out, then already in 1943, Soviet snipers could have received a new optical sight with a rangefinder scale, allowing them to quickly and reliably obtain the distance to the target. However, alas, history does not know the subjunctive mood - such a sight appeared in the Soviet army 20 years later.

PU sight on Kochetov bracket

Despite the apparent simplicity of the bracket mechanism, Kochetov came up with a bracket for a rifle, the design of the receiver wall of which did not imply the installation of a sight, since it was not parallel to the barrel. The design of the bracket is such that the sight is set to zero using the original hinge clamp, which is adjusted with screws (vertically) and by filing the thickenings of the bracket or placing tin spacers (horizontally). Therefore, the installation of the Kochetov bracket can be carried out literally in the field. Here, for comparison, we suggest you familiarize yourself with how to install the side bracket on the MC 20-01 with your own hands.

A modern analogue of the Kochetov bracket from the oil refinery

Why do you need a PU optical sight?

Why was a PU optical sight needed? The original with Kochetov’s bracket can still be found on the market, since this development has fully justified itself and has managed to prove itself well. Initially, this sight was designed to equip Tokarev self-loading rifles, which were more complex and technically advanced than the Mosin rifle, but later the USSR command had to abandon this for two reasons.

You can buy a PU sight for Mosin (original) today for the reason that during the advance of the fascist occupation forces, the Soviet Union had to hastily curtail the production of the SVT-40, which was based at the Tula Arms Plant. A defense enterprise located dangerously close to the front line could be defeated by a sudden airstrike or captured by a decisive assault - both options led to the weakening of the industry of the USSR and were therefore unacceptable.

In addition, in practice, the SVT-40 turned out to be not very accurate for sniper shooting. Accuracy over long distances was often too low. In addition, the Tokarev rifle was much more capricious to handle and required repairs much more often. The Mosin rifle returned to production lines, but its old sight of the Emelyanov system had already been discontinued - and so the adapted Krasnogorsky PU sight appeared, ported to the three-ruler using the well-known Kochetov bracket.

The PU optical sight (original) with Kochetov’s bracket made it possible to combine a new, technically more sophisticated and convenient sighting mechanism with an old, reliable rifle. To secure the product relative to the rifle, it was only necessary to drill four holes in the receiver on its left side to secure the sight with two pins and two screws. Due to the massive design of Kochetov’s bracket, the Krasnogorsky PU turned out to be somewhat heavier than the old PU or PU for SVT-40, but in all other characteristics it was in no way inferior to them.

Currently, you may need to buy a PU sight for Mosin (original) both to create a historically accurate MMG or SHP copy of the Mosin rifle from the Great Patriotic War, and for practical use. The product is fully operational and can be used for hunting or sport shooting in tandem with any weapon suitable for mounting this sight (VM, SKS and other rifles and carbines).

Original oil refinery side bracket

The most common carbines in Russia are those with side mounts - based on SVD and AK (Tiger, Saiga, Vepr). Most of them are factory equipped with a dovetail strip for the side bracket. Therefore, when the question arose about reproducing the PU sight (more on this later), the Novosibirsk Instrument-Making Plant produced the corresponding AL6.130.383 brackets with an original patented oil refinery quick-release latch. Such a bracket allows you to remove and install the bracket without shifting the mid-point of impact (Maksimov proves this fact in real conditions). In addition, as many Saiga and Tiger owners note, when the PU 3.5x22 sight is initially installed on this bracket, the reticle set to “zero” looks exactly along the aiming line of the open sight.

The whole truth about diopter sights

Despite its venerable age, the “hole sight” remains a universal, lightweight and reliable hunter’s assistant.

This article is addressed to those who cannot imagine a rifle without optics and consider the diopter sight on it to be a kind of reins on a motorcycle. In field conditions, a diopter sight still has a number of advantages. Among all mechanical sights, the diopter sight stands out for its minimal front sight alignment time and highest accuracy, and when shooting at short distances, this sight is only slightly inferior in accuracy to optics.

In addition, the diopter sight is durable, all-weather, and the rifle on which it is installed will weigh at least half a kilo less than a weapon equipped with optics.

Shooting with a diopter

When I was eight years old, my uncle Edmund gave me a single-shot .22 caliber rifle. I proudly showed off the weapon to everyone around me; at the same time they patted me on the head, called me lucky, and said about the rifle that although it was small, it was nice. Some, however, pointed to the rifle's diopter sight and regretfully remarked: “You can't see a damn thing through these things.” I sneaked a peek through the rear sight and saw what they had in mind. How am I supposed to line up the front sight with the target while looking through such a small hole?

Uncle Edmund explained my mistake to me. He indicated that it was necessary to place the cheek against the front of the comb of the butt, then the eye would be very close to the rear sight hole. Then I learned that you need to look not at the hole, but through it, and you need to bring the front sight under the target. As a result, the shooter will see clear images of both the target and the front sight simultaneously.

However, there was too much free space around the front sight, and I thought that in order to align the front sight with the rear sight, the hole in the latter should be smaller. Uncle Edmund assured me that the existing hole, the diameter of which seemed so large, was sufficient.

When my father and I got out to the shooting range, I was immediately convinced that Uncle Edmund was right. I looked through the lens and moved the front sight under the can, which tumbled every time I pulled the trigger. Well, or almost every time.

Advantages of a diopter sight

Uncle Edmund knew that a diopter sight provided a number of advantages in the aiming process.

The eye cannot focus on near and far objects at the same time. That is why it is impossible to clearly see the target, the front sight and the rear sight of an open sight at the same moment. For clarity, perform a simple experiment: hold your index finger 30 centimeters from the eye you are aiming with and close your other eye. Try to align the tip of your finger (it plays the role of the rear sight) with an object located a few meters further (it plays the role of the front sight). When the eye is focused on the finger, the object will be blurry, and as soon as the eye is focused on the object, the finger will be blurry. Add to this a target located fifty meters (or more) away, and the result is that vision is forced to struggle with an insoluble problem.

However, if we do not try to focus our eyes on the rear sight, but instead just look through it, as is the case with a diopter sight, the observed image will be much clearer. This can be demonstrated by straightening your arm and pointing your fingertip (front sight) at a distant object (target). If you look at the fingertip and the object at the same time, they will be more, although not completely, clear. This example illustrates that the depth of the space sharply displayed by the eye increases when viewing distant objects.

When someone looks through a scope for the first time, they are always surprised by the amount of free space around the front sight. Maximum brightness is concentrated at the center of the hole, so the eye naturally aligns itself and the front sight there. It takes force to force the eye to look anywhere other than the center of the hole.

When aiming through the diopter, the depth of field also increases. Repeat the experiment by pointing the fingertip at the object, located 30 centimeters from the eye. This time you should look through a small hole made in a piece of cardboard, which must be brought as close to the eye as possible. The image will be less blurry than before. This occurs due to the fact that a small hole cuts off the scattering rays of light reflected from the object. However, when the hole narrows below a certain diameter, the image clarity will decrease.

However, what hole is too small? It depends on how far the diopter rear sight is from the eye. A hole of a smaller diameter will provide a clear image if the rear sight is mounted on the neck of the stock or cocking unit, but the rear sight located in the front of the receiver should have a hole of a larger diameter. I measured the hole diameter of a number of diopter rear sights I have. Most rear sights mounted on the neck of the stock or in the rear of the receiver had a 2.4 mm diameter hole, which is excellent for most types of target shooting and hunting. The rear sight of an unknown manufacturer with a 2 mm hole is located just ahead of the cocking unit of my hunting version of the Krag rifle of the 1898 model in .30-40 caliber. This reduced diameter hole, located 5 centimeters from my eye, provides a clear image of the target at one hundred meters.

One fall I took this rifle out to the prairie in hopes of shooting an antelope. In a bright open field, enough light passes through the rear sight hole to clearly distinguish the front sight against the background of the antelope. After several days of hunting, I noticed a male and several females grazing in a low area, allowing me to sneak within shooting range. Time after time I placed my Krag in front of me, then crawled towards it. Eventually the antelope appeared between two yucca trees. She saw the wobbling parts of my body that the grass could not hide, and froze.

I took the Krag and released it from the safety, my elbows sank into the soft prairie soil. The male stood alone, a quarter turn towards me. The fly stopped on his shoulder. I slowly squeezed the trigger and the rifle fired. The male remained in place - I missed.

I sat down and drove another cartridge into the chamber. The antelopes began to gallop, the male bringing up the rear. The fly slid in front of the male, and after the second shot he staggered. When he stopped, I hit him again.

The diopter rear sight and front sight worked great on these shots between 100 and 150 meters. The reason for several shots was my less than ideal shooting skills.

I equipped my .50 caliber New Englander muzzle loading rifle from Thompson/Center with an entirely similar diameter. The diopter rear sight mounted on the neck of the butt positioned its hole 5 centimeters from my eye. This distance was large enough to not have to worry about the risk of the rear sight hitting the eye from recoil, especially when shooting up at a high angle. The rifle provided accuracy of 51 and 76 mm when shooting at 100 meters, so I decided to try it on deer hunting.

The area in which I hunted was a grassy, ​​high-mountain valley surrounded by aspen trees, with thickets of fir on the northern slopes. On the morning of the first day I discovered a ridge hidden by the shadow of trees. I noticed a male deer with four tines on his antlers standing in the shade near the edge of the trees. The small diameter of the diopter rear sight and the black color of the front sight made it difficult to catch a deer in my sights, and I squinted for a minute, trying to make out the unclear image. Eventually the deer came to the illuminated area. There was just enough sun to show the black fly against the deer, and I took him down with one shot at 80 yards.

When I returned from that hunt, I unscrewed the rear sight and put it on the shelf. Since then I have only used a 4.8mm rear sight. Both the target and the animal look much brighter and more visible in low light when the rear sight has a larger bore diameter.

However, for some time I wondered how much I had to sacrifice accuracy by doubling the diameter of the hole. I ended up shooting several groups with rear sights of both diameters. The difference in spread was less than an inch.

So, how accurately can you shoot with a diopter sight? To determine this, I shot several rifles equipped with diopter sights. A Remington 521-T rifle in .22 LR, equipped with a Lyman 57 diopter rear sight and a black narrow rectangular front sight, when fired in groups of five shots, gave a spread of 11.5 mm at 25 meters and 21 mm at 50 meters when firing Winches-ter Supreme cartridges. The .30-40 caliber Krag rifle I used to shoot the antelope produced 43mm at 100 meters. Several groups shot with 10.7 gram Sierra bullets produced a spread of 76 mm.

The Lyman rear sight mounted on my Winchester 94 rifle provided an interesting comparison. The rear sight of this .30-30 caliber rifle has a shield with a 2mm hole that can be rotated down; the remaining rear sight hole will have a diameter of 4.2 mm. By loosening the rear sight elevation mechanism, you can raise the entire rear sight and aim using the rifle's original open sights located on the barrel. When shooting with a small diameter diopter and a round brass front sight, the spread is 64 mm at one hundred meters. When moving to a hole with a larger diameter, the spread was 89 mm. Shooting with open sights also gave 89 mm.

The specified spread values ​​are likely to correspond to the true accuracy of the rifles, even if they were fired with an optic.

The absence of a scale on the rear sight of the Krag rifle greatly hinders when zeroing or switching to another type of ammunition, since the adjustment is made approximately. This fortune telling process can take anywhere from 6 to 12 shots. I often wondered if I had used up enough .30-40 ammo to buy a rear sight with a precision adjustment mechanism.

Unlike this rear sight, the Lyman 57 model mounted on the Remington .22 caliber rifle was equipped with a scale and adjustment mechanism in quarter MOA increments. A predetermined number of mechanism steps accurately switches the rear sight for both standard bullet velocity target ammunition and high velocity hunting ammunition.

Sights from Merit

Merit Corporation manufactures a variety of accessories to facilitate accurate aiming when using scopes and open sights. The Merit Iris Shutter Hunter and Merit Iris Shutter Target discs are designed to replace the rear sights of Lyman, Redfield, Williams and other rifle scopes. Merit discs are equipped with a 12-blade diaphragm that opens and closes without changing the point of impact of the bullet. By simply turning the dial, you can adjust the aperture to achieve the brightest image possible under varying lighting levels. Hunter disk number 4 allows you to adjust the hole diameter from 0.05 to 4 mm. Target and Master discs numbered 3 are intended mainly for pneumatic and small-caliber target weapons.

Their hole diameter can vary from 0.6 to 3.2 mm. The Master disc is identical to the Target model and differs only in the addition of a light protection visor. I used a Hunter number 4 disc with a 1-man 66 scope on a Winchester 94 in .375 Winchester, and a L to man 57 scope on a .22 Remington rifle. On the day I decided to shoot the disc-mounted rifles, the weather ranged from bright sun to low clouds. I adjusted the disk opening to get the brightest and at the same time extremely clear image in constantly changing lighting conditions. The .375 caliber rifle produced a spread of less than 76 mm at 100 meters. The Remington rifle provided accuracy of just over 25 mm at 50 meters. In addition, Merit makes a Lens disc, equipped with a cavity to accommodate a lens of prescribed diopters for shooters with reduced visual acuity...

The Merit Optical Attachment is intended primarily for short-gun shooters, but I have found that the device provides a clearer image when shooting open-sight rifles. The Optical Attachment device is installed on glasses (prescribed by an ophthalmologist or safety glasses) using a suction cup. The disc, equipped with a hole with an adjustable aperture, can be removed from the line of the eye when shooting is finished. With a slight turn, the hole diameter changes from 0.6 to 4 mm.

Even with high visual acuity, it is difficult to simultaneously concentrate on the front sight and rear sight of an open sight. However, when aiming through the Optical Attachment, the depth of field is significantly increased due to the attenuation of the light flux passing through the hole. The principle is the same as that of the eye pupil or camera diaphragm: the narrower they are, the greater the depth of the sharply displayed space. The Optical Attachment has really helped me see the open rear sight of a muzzle loading rifle more clearly. I simply turned the device's aperture until the image was as bright and extremely clear as possible.

Varieties of flies

To optimally match the lighting, the target and the shooter's vision, front sights have been developed in a variety of shapes and colors.

The Daisy Model 99 air rifle I shot as a kid came with a round front sight that could accept a variety of inserts. At first, my favorite option was the diopter insert. All I had to do was catch the target in the center of the hole and pull the trigger. This worked great on round paper targets. However, when I tried to aim at a sparrow at a long distance, it fit entirely within the boundaries of the hole, and when the distance was short, I saw only feathers.

I replaced the diopter front sight with a rectangular, flat top one. This front sight made it possible to aim more accurately. However, I was always annoyed that a significant part of the target was blocked by the front sight, and in order to see the target, I had to bring the front sight under the target. I eventually switched to a round front sight on a thin base. I aimed the circle at the part of the target I wanted to hit - both at short range and at long range (well, long - for an air rifle), and the thin base of the front sight only slightly overlapped the target or the space surrounding it.

I've been a die-hard fan of round flies ever since. One option I like is a thin plate with a cylinder on top with the round end facing the shooter. However, the choice of front sight is determined by the shooter’s personal preferences and shooting style.

I recently visited the Cody Small Arms Museum, located on the grounds of the Buffalo Bill History Center in Cody, Wyoming. Most of the target rifles I saw in the museum were equipped with front sights. For the rest, the front sight was a ball on a thin base or a thin plate with a flat top. Most hunting rifles had a rectangular front sight with a flat top. Few rifles were equipped with a front sight in the form of a thin plate with a black, white, copper or brass ball.

If shooting takes place on a sunny day, then the black front sight will be clearly visible against the background of a target of almost any color. However, animals prefer to hide in the shade of the forest, and prefer to move in the diffused light of the first and last rays of the sun. A black front sight with a brightly colored insert, or one made of ivory, gold, brass or copper, reflects enough light to distinguish it from the game and its dark surroundings.

The brass round front sight on my Winchester 94 rifle is easily visible in low light. Recently, there has been a tendency to install light guides as front sights, displaying a bright colored spot on the target. However, some of these light guide flies create a blurry halo that distracts the eye. I recently installed a TruGlo front sight on my .30-30 rifle. So far, this is the brightest and fastest sighting option for a fly when hunting in thickets. Wait and see.

Whatever the type of front sight, it is necessary to look around the entire image observed in the sight - right up to the moment of the shot. If you concentrate your gaze on the front sight for too long, your vision becomes tired and when the aiming point moves, a false image of what the shooter saw appears, which momentarily overlaps the true image.

At my disposal was a Winchester model 54 carbine, produced in the thirties of the twentieth century. The caliber was .30-06, and there was a Redfield rear sight on the rear of the receiver. The rifle honestly produced an accuracy of 51 mm at 100 meters, and I loved hunting with it. However, in a moment of sanity, I sold it.

This rifle was especially good for elk hunting in remote areas. The diopter rear sight weighed no more than 100 grams, so the rifle remained light and compact. No matter how fierce the November blizzard in the mountains was, the rear sight mounted on the receiver was ready for action. A slight blow was enough to remove any snow that had gotten into the rear sight hole, and all that was needed to keep the scope dry was a wipe with an oily rag at the end of the day. The rear sight took hits as I made my way through the windfall. When I fell hard on a slippery slope, I checked the scale, making sure that the sight was not knocked off.

When the elk appeared in the thicket, the sight hit the eye line at the same time as the comb of the butt met the cheek, and the round gold front sight stood out clearly against the fawn elk hide.

John Haviland

Modern replicas

In the early 2000s, it was easy to find PU 3.5x22 sights on the market from storage, of which a huge number were produced and mothballed at one time. However, the original optical sights have run out and the market is flooded with numerous fakes of Ukrainian and terrible quality made in China. We still recommend paying attention to the price: the suspiciously low cost of a used sight should alert you. However, a high price is not a guarantee of the originality of the PU.

Since 2004, the Refinery began producing a replica of the sight as close as possible to the original: even the mounting diameter corresponded to the wartime standard - 26.5 mm (PU 3.5x22).

A significant difference was the thickness of the mesh (0.1 mm instead of 0.2 mm), which is now made not from wire (which required a certain skill), but is applied to the glass. The new sight has a better anti-reflective coating, making the image visible through it lighter and more contrasting compared to the original PU.

Photos from the website Maksimov.su

It seems that, unlike their colleagues from the Refinery, the designers of the Vologda Optical-Mechanical Plant did not set themselves the goal of making an exact replica. Therefore, their sight, although outwardly strongly reminiscent of the PU model of the 40s, is much lighter: 250 g versus 400 g for the PU and 580 g for the Refinery, and also has a modification with diopter adjustment. In addition, the reticle of the Vologda sight is thicker than the Novosibirsk one (like the original PU). Therefore, the Vologda PU with diopter adjustment is of the greatest value for hunters: for hunters with good eyesight, an optical sight usually only complicates shooting offhand, and most requests to us for a scope begin with a description of incipient vision problems...

VOMZ Pilad PO 3.5x20 C

VOMZ Pilad PO 3.5x20 with diopter adjustment

Modern sights are made for a mounting diameter of 25.4 mm, so the Novosibirsk Instrument-Making Plant modified the sight by grooving on the objective part. The sight was called PU 3.5x22-1.

Now the sight can be installed on any type of weapon using “double” rings or brackets from the TochPribor design bureau:

for “Los-7,” “Leopard”

for “North”

for “TOZ”

for “Los-9”

for “Sable”

for “IZH-94”

3 advantages of using PU 3.5x22-1

MAKSIMOV.SU

Modern hunters can no longer imagine a rifled weapon without an optical sight with a 50 mm lens,

having a cost comparable to the price of the rifle itself.

Undoubtedly,

Such a psychological attitude is formed by a properly structured advertising strategy of leading optics manufacturers. There is no doubt that for a number of sport shooting hunts (we will not touch upon military use here), a good scope is simply necessary.

It's quite obvious

that the skills of the average hunter in shooting with an open sight are not comparable to the skills of the Kyrgyz hunter Jura from the novel of the same name by Georgy Tushkan. But do we always need a powerful, heavy “lens” on a rifle in hunting conditions? And are there modern options in the “cheap and cheerful” style?

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Not forgotten old

After liberalization

gun legislation in the early 1990s. Domestic hunters found themselves in possession of a large number of not only new-made conversion products, but also old army weapons.

Majority

“riflemen” got by (and get by) just fine with the standard sighting devices of their weapons. Those who needed an optical sight for one reason or another made do with sports scopes, PSO-1, and, of course, old launchers, by hook or by crook.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

And then

A stream of weapons and optics has poured onto store shelves, capable of satisfying the wishes of the most demanding hunters. It would seem that the era of antique weapons and ancient sights is gone forever. But it only seemed so. Having quickly “fed up” the achievements of technological progress, lovers of old military weapons again turned to the products of the past.

And very quickly

previously useless “old junk” became rare and expensive. If you remember, everything that had anything to do with military antiques very quickly disappeared from the niche of available goods.

Military optics

has become a special destination for lovers of military history. Old PU sights have become not only collectibles, but also highly sought-after optics for practical use. And not only on old rifles mod. 91/30 and SVT-40, but also on a wide variety of firearms and pneumatic weapons.

History of the PU sight

In October 1941,

Due to the evacuation of the Tula arms factory, production of the sniper version of the SVT-40 was discontinued. The resumption of production of the three-line rifle in Izhevsk, using factory equipment evacuated from Tula, began in the fall of 1941. The army was in dire need of sniper weapons.

Sniper version of SVT-40

They began to reassemble only in the spring of 1942, so only three-line sniper rifles were supplied to the active army, on which PE sights were installed from unused factory reserves. It became obvious that it was necessary to take urgent measures to normalize the situation.

There was a war going on.

The country has fully mobilized. “Everything for the front, everything for Victory” is not an empty phrase. And only the competent distribution of human and material resources always leads to Victory in a modern war. People must be trained, equipped and ideologically prepared, production must be transferred to the production of the most technologically advanced products and weapons.

That's why

and the optical sight for the newly modified three-ruler (“Mosinka” model 1942 fully falls under the “modified” version - there were more than enough changes in technology) was chosen according to a simple principle: simpler, cheaper and more reliable.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Eventually,

Already in the spring of 1942, the most difficult year for the country, a completely logical and, at that time, the only correct decision was made: to adapt the already existing “SVT-shny” PU sight to a three-line sight.

The matter remained with the bracket.

It was clear that all the previous mounts were unsuitable due to their excessive complexity and as not suitable for installing the launcher specifically on the Mosinka. In just a month, designer D.M. Kochetov in Izhevsk developed, created and successfully tested a new bracket, designed specifically for installing a launcher on a three-line model produced in 1942 - with the so-called. "high wall" of the receiver.

In September 1942

The SVT-40 sniper was discontinued. It was decided to focus on the release of a sniper version of the three-line rifle with a PU sight on the Kochetov bracket.

According to the results of rigorous tests,

In service with the Red Army, an aiming system was adopted under the tricky index 56-8-222A, usually referred to as the “7.62-mm sniper rifle model 1891/30.” with bracket arr. 1942 and a PU sight.” This device became our most popular sight, produced until the end of the war and deservedly recognized as one of the most successful examples of optics for military weapons in the world.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Bracket Kochetov arr. 1942

is a vertical base structure milled from steel. Actually, the bracket consists of a base attached to the thick-walled receiver of a Mosin rifle with two locked screws and two powerful pins, and the bracket itself.

Kochetov

calculated the original design of the bracket, which made it possible to install optics on a rifle that was not initially adapted for this: thanks to the ball joint, the bracket could be roughly adjusted “idle”, both horizontally and vertically. Vertical adjustment of the bracket is carried out by screws located in the thickenings of the base, and horizontally by filing the tabs on the shank of the bracket or placing thin metal plates.

Interesting design of bracket rings

— the sight tube is inserted into the rings from the back, only on one side and tightly clamped with three screws on top. Powerful design. There is not even a hint of openwork or economy of metal. Moreover, it was not a hunting sighting system that was created, but a combat sighting system. For a full-scale war, in conditions of incredible tension of all the forces of the country.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Kochetov coped with a difficult task perfectly.

He was able to most optimally adapt a “foreign” sight that was not suitable for the three-line, in the shortest possible time creating a completely reliable and, at that time, the most technologically advanced bracket, the installation of which required only a chisel, a drilling machine (or a hand drill), taps, a hammer and a screwdriver .

PU in the 21st century.
History of the development of the PU 3.5x22 sight
Tri-rulers with PU

on the Kochetov bracket in Russia and to this day are actively used by both hunters and “paper” shooters.
A sight with a bracket can be bought without any problems (if only there was money: a kit can cost up to 15 thousand rubles, without a guarantee of functionality) and installed on any “mosinka”, even with a pre-war and even a faceted receiver. There would be a desire. Sight PO 3.5x22 produced by the refinery
in the early 2000s.

There were a lot of PUs with brackets on sale, and they were quite inexpensive back then.
But the reserves of old sights in the bins of the Motherland turned out to be by no means limitless. And of the launchers available, only a small part of them were objectively flawless in technical terms. Sight PO 3.5x22 produced by Oil Refinery
Remkomplekt

It is currently very difficult to get access to this sight, and repairing the launcher is also difficult. The popularity of antique optics is confirmed by the appearance of fakes (mostly of Ukrainian origin). The need to produce a high-quality replica of the famous PU became quite obvious.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

In 2003

The Novosibirsk Instrument-Making Production Association received an application from a foreign company for the supply of devices that closely replicate PU sights.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Such a sight

called “PU 3.5x22”, was developed by designer Nina Vasilyevna Khomenko and optician Natalya Borisovna Tikhonova back in 2004. The sight was intended to equip three-line rifles, a significant number of which were available abroad after the Second World War, including in personal use use.
Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

To the developed sight

and the bracket for mounting on a rifle was required to have maximum external resemblance to the original. Taking this into account, the PU 3.5x22 sight and Kochetov bracket with base (AL6.130.385 and AL6.130.382) were reproduced from original production samples from the Great Patriotic War, preserved in one of the organizations in Novosibirsk.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

When developing a sight,

as in the original, such construction materials as steel of various grades, optical glass (“Kron”, “Flint”) and, in small quantities, aluminum alloy were used.

Constructive difference

Novosibirsk sight from the original is the introduction of a reticle into the optical design, the lines of which are applied to the glass using photolithography. In the original, the reticle is made of wire “hairs” from an alloy with the strange name “constantan” (according to the documentation) with a diameter of 0.2 mm (by the way, the cleanliness of the processing of the tip of the thinnest aiming “needle” (0.03 mm) in military-issue PU sights is surprising and admiration).

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Interesting

fastening these “hairs” in the device - they were “caulked” into the slots of the carriage. The work of aligning the wire was very painstaking; it was carried out exclusively under a microscope. Many military launchers were assembled by children, this must be remembered. In addition, instead of oxidizing, the body of a modern sight is painted with powder enamel.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Unlike the original,

The PU 3.5x22 sight has a modification with a mounting diameter of 25.4 mm (the original has ? 26.5 mm). In addition, the crosshair lines can be of different thicknesses (0.2 mm and 0.1 mm).

Speaking of sights,

created on the basis or in the likeness of the original PU, one cannot help but recall the product of the domestic Vologda optical-mechanical. So, the Novosibirsk sight differs from the Pilada in its body diameter (26.5 mm versus 25.4 for the 3.5x20) and its larger eye relief - 72 mm versus 65 mm. In addition, the body of the Refinery sight, like the original, is made of steel. That’s why it has a large mass (400 g versus 250 g for “Pilad 3.5x20”).

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Vologda 3.5x20

has a modification with a diopter adjustment of the eyepiece ±4 diopters, the PU 3.5x22 does not have such an adjustment, because The task was to reproduce the sight of the 1940 model as much as possible.

As we remember,

the original PU was installed on a wide variety of military, sporting and hunting weapons. Based on this, in 2006, refinery designers developed the AL6.130.383 bracket, designed for mounting a sight on a conversion hunting weapon, developed on the basis of the Kalashnikov assault rifle and having a dovetail-type side mount.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Wherein

The design uses a bracket from the NSPU night sight (this is exactly the lower part of the bracket that is mounted to the weapon), widely used for installing sights on various weapons, including the SVD sniper rifle.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

The bracket consists of two parts:

— the bracket body itself, made of cast aluminum alloy with anodic oxidation; — a bracket for mounting on a weapon with a dovetail seat.

Sight PO 3.5x22 and bracket for it manufactured by Refinery

Part of the parts and mounting screws of the bracket

are made of steel and have a zinc coating that protects against corrosion when used in difficult conditions. To ensure the strength of the connection between the bracket and the body, the screw heads are not recessed (due to the small thickness of the mating parts). The factory-guaranteed resource of the 3.5x22 PU is 3000 rounds.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Introduction to PU 3.5x22

According to statistics from the Ministry of Internal Affairs,

Izhevsk Tiger carbines in our country are second only to SKS and small-caliber rifles in popularity and distribution.
Thanks to the presence of a standard side rail for the optical sight bracket, the “Tiger” can be equipped with both the “original” PSO-1 from the SVD rifle and any similar optics. Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Installation

The use of “conventional” sights is difficult due to the lack of a reliable, lightweight, inexpensive and easy-to-use side bracket. Yes, there are a number of small-scale or one-piece products from Russian craftsmen, but in general this does not help the situation.

Various kinds

Chinese (as well as American) crafts are not convenient and reliable in operation. What if a hunter needs an acceptable daytime sighting system in all respects, suitable for installation on a Tiger?

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Come on

Let's try out a product from Novosibirsk. At the same time, we will compare the sight and bracket produced by the oil refinery with the original PSO-1 - the standard SVD sight. The comparison criteria are simple - price, weight, dimensions, picture quality and operational reliability.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Difference in weight of sights

(with bracket) turned out to be insignificant: PSO-1 - 578 g, and PU from the oil refinery - 580 grams (as mentioned above, the weight of the PU sight itself is 400 g). But the dimensions differ and very significantly: the length of the PSO is 27 cm, the PU is 17 cm. The PSO has a declared multiplicity of x4, the PU is x3.5.

Difference

multiplicity for hunting at distances up to 200 m is not critical. The field of view is greater for the PSO - 6 degrees, versus 4.5 for the PU. The eye relief is slightly greater for the PU - 72 mm versus 68 mm for the PSO.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Seat diameter

Novosibirsk PU is identical to the original - 26.5 mm. The refinery engineers did the right thing - the ability to use old sights on a modern bracket will be appreciated by many owners of Tigers and original launchers.

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery

Scope Tube Installation

Fitting into the split ring of the bracket requires some skill, but is not particularly difficult. Everything is quite simple - loosen the tightening screws, widen the bracket ring with a screwdriver, insert the sight into it, and set the “vertical” reticle.

Left

tighten the tightening and locking screws (for additional fixation of the sight tube from turning, 2 screws with a sharp end are provided in the bracket ring; harsh, but reliable).

Sight PO 3.5x22 manufactured by Refinery, bag-case

After the initial alignment of the sight reticle

vertically, I installed the rifle in the cleaning machine and aimed it with an open sight at a small target. Then I looked through the scope (the reticle was set to “zero” from the factory) - the aiming mark was looking straight at the target!

Sight ate software 3.5x22 produced by the refinery, complete set

Maybe,

that this is a coincidence, but the exact manufacturing of the complex is also noted by a number of familiar users who have a 3.5x22 PU on the AL6.130.383 bracket as an sighting system on Tigers and Saigas (for reference, the “PU-1” marking on the bracket remains from the previous mold of the bracket, on the basis of which this PU mount was developed).

About,

how the Novosibirsk launcher behaved when firing, how convenient it turned out to be, whether there was any displacement of the STP when removing and reinstalling the sighting system on the weapon - this will be discussed in the final part of the article.

Continued here

Sight PO 3.5x22 produced by the Tiger refinery

Sight PO 3.5x22
from oil refinery on KO91/30M

Sight PO 3.5x22 from the
Saiga-MK

The article was published in the magazine “Master Gun”, January 2014.

Further evolution of PU - PSO (PO)

Following the same concept of low cost, mass production and use in various military units, a sight was developed for the SVD rifle - PSO (a separate article has been written about this sight). It has a more advanced rangefinder reticle, illuminated reticle, and a monolithic side bracket. At the same time, for most hunters the options are unnecessary. When choosing a scope, many hunters compare the PU with the PSO (its civilian analogues, the PO and the Belarusian POSP). Below is a comparison table, and draw your own conclusions.

Characteristics of the PU sight and its analogues

A complete table comparing the characteristics of PU sights and its analogues is available at this link.

About the markings and meaning of the technical characteristics of the sight

It is quite important to fully understand the differences between the different types of rifle scopes available. To do this, you need to understand what the characteristics of a riflescope mean, and how differences in characteristics can affect the very purpose of a given scope model.

You can find out more about this in the article - “How an optical sight works”

The technical characteristics of a sight are always indicated by two numerical indicators. Ultimately, these two numbers indicate the scope's magnification (or magnification) and its ability to gather light. The first number in the standard markings is the scope's magnification power; the second is the diameter of the objective (entrance lens) of the optical sight. These two values ​​have a pretty big impact on what your scope will be good for.

Let's give two examples:

Example 1 –

A fixed magnification optical sight (that is, the magnification is not adjustable) labeled 4x32.

Example 2 –

optical sight with variable magnification (magnification can be adjusted) marked 3-9×32.

The scope in example 1 has a 4x magnification power, which means that an object viewed through the scope will appear as if it is 4 times closer than when viewed with the naked eye. For example, if you look at a roe deer that is standing 50 meters away from you through a 4x32 scope, it will look as if it is only 12.5 meters away (50 divided by 4).

The scope in example 2 has variable magnification, which means that the magnification can be adjusted by changing the image magnification from 3 to 9 times (and any value in between).

However, it is worth considering that high magnification scopes will allow you to see further and examine targets in more detail, but will be less effective in low light conditions, and will also noticeably narrow your field of view. And the higher the magnification, the narrower the field of view will be, all other characteristics being equal.

The second number used in the scope designation indicates the diameter of the scope's objective lens. The objective lens is located at the front of the scope, farthest from your eyes and closest to the objects you are looking at. The diameter of the optical objective lens in Example 1 (4×32) and Example 2 (3-9×32) is 32 mm.

The diameter of the lens lens largely determines how much light your camera can collect.

In most cases, scopes with an objective diameter of around 40mm are sufficient for use in most lighting conditions and provide a completely adequate field of view.

As a rule, larger diameter lenses are recommended for use only when using high magnifications (14 –

36 times).

The diameter of the objective lens largely determines how much light your riflescope can collect. The larger the diameter of the objective lens, the more light the riflescope will collect. More light means a brighter image, especially in low light conditions.

However, it is important to remember that the larger the diameter of the objective lens, the larger and heavier the optical sight will be. You should immediately decide what is more important to you - the ability to use an optical sight in low light conditions, or the ability to walk over rough terrain without clinging to branches and snags with a hefty, fragile telescope mounted on your carbine. However, if you are going to shoot mainly at a shooting range or shooting range, the last point is much less important for you.

So, a large diameter lens is:

1. Bright, light visible image.

2. The ability to view the target at dusk or early in the morning.

3. Wide field of view at the same magnification (remember, the higher the magnification, the smaller the field of view).

But at the same time:

1. More weight.

2. Large dimensions.

3. Greater vulnerability of the structure.

It is believed that a scope with an objective lens diameter of 40 mm will be sufficient to provide a sufficient field of view and a bright “picture” under normal conditions. You will need a larger diameter lens if you are using a high magnification scope (14-36x).

conclusions

It is difficult for us to draw a conclusion and recommend any of these sights, since the tasks for which a PU sight (or its analogue) is purchased are very different.

For hunters with poor eyesight, we can recommend the Vologda P3.5x20 with diopter adjustment: its thick reticle, like the original, allows you to aim at short and medium distances at large game. Its mesh adjustment drums are covered with protective covers, and the price is almost half that of the Novosibirsk analogue. However, Vologda sights cannot be installed on pneumatic spring-piston guns and under a powerful rifle cartridge.

The Novosibirsk analogue of the PU 3.5x22 is as close as possible to the original WWII sight, right down to the mounting diameter. Originality requires its own bracket(s), which essentially can only be used with this scope.

For greater versatility and compatibility, you can use the PU 3.5x22-1 optical sight with any standard 25.4 mm rings.

To make it easier to find all analogues of the sight, choose and buy the model you are interested in, we have prepared a complete list of PU 3.5x22 optical sights and replicas.

If, for some reason, you are looking for a Soviet-made sight from storage, we can only recommend checking the seller by all available means, since you can easily run into a Chinese fake.

Peculiarities

• high reliability and wear resistance
• low weight - no more than 400 g without bracket
• very compact dimensions
• convenient magnification x3.5 for short and medium distances
• collector's value, original USSR
• the outer diameter of the sight tube at the mounting location of the bracket is 26.5 mm (the body for Mosin is only at the front, for SVT along the entire length)

WITHOUT MOUNTINGS

• working PU sight without mounts. Bracket, base and caps not included

WITH BRACKET WITHOUT BASE

• PU sight
• Kochetov bracket, original. The sight is mounted on a bracket, with the help of which the launcher can be placed on a base with a fixing bolt for a Mosin rifle. Or you can organize the mounting yourself. Base and caps are not included.

WITH BRACKET AND BASE

• PU sight
• Kochetov bracket, original. The sight is mounted on a bracket
• base with bolt for attaching the bracket to the weapon, no screws or pins

WITH BRACKET, BASE, CASE AND CAPS

• PU sight
• Kochetov bracket, original. The sight is mounted on a bracket
• base with a bolt for attaching the bracket to the weapon
• screws and pins for installing the base, original
• leather protective caps, original
• standard PU case, original

The bodies of the PU sights for SVT and PU for the Mosin sniper rifle differ in the diameter of the part of the sight between the adjustment drums and the eyepiece. The sight for the SVT has the same tube diameter of 26.5 mm on both sides of the correction drums, and the sight for the Mosin has a diameter of 26.5 mm only on the front part, on which the Kochetov bracket is attached (between the correction drums and the lens). This must be taken into account when choosing a sight for installation on modern brackets.

PU - Short sight was created in 1940 as an optical sight for the sniper modification of the SVT-40 (Tokarev self-loading rifle). Then it was successfully used as a sight for the legendary SVM - Mosin sniper rifle (7.62-mm sniper rifle model 1891/30 with a bracket model 1942 and a PU sight, index GRAU 56-V-222A), paired with which forever went down in history, as well as in cinema and photography, and in computer games. The design of the sight turned out to be so successful and in demand that this optics was installed on a lot of other weapons, and the production of sights continued in the post-war years. In addition, copies of the PU sight are still produced and are in good demand; copies are produced by the Refinery (Novosibirsk Instrument-Making Plant). This sight is not a copy, it is 100% original, made in the USSR! As evidenced by all the necessary marks. The supply is limited, there are fewer and fewer Soviet sniper optics left, so buying an original PU sight means purchasing a high-quality, functional rarity, suitable also for modern weapons.

Using the GERMAN No. 1 type reticle of the PU sight to determine the distance to the target.

Distance is usually determined in mils (mil) - this is 10 cm per 100 m. In the reticle of the PU sight, the thickness of the lines on the reticle is 2 mil, that is, any object or target with dimensions of 20 cm at a distance of 100 m in the sight will correspond to the thickness of the lines. In addition, there is a “base” (the clearance between the horizontal lines), which is equal to 7 mil, that is, at a distance of 100 m it will correspond to 70 cm, which is comparable to the width of the growth figure, but somewhat less. It is generally accepted that the shoulder width is 50 cm, that is, 5 mil.

Thus, by comparing the dimensions of the object that we see in the sight and imagining its real size, we can approximately calculate at what distance it is from us. It is on this simple principle that the rangefinding properties of the PU sight reticle are based.

Buying an original PU sight means becoming the owner of an indestructible, lightweight and compact low magnification optic, perfect for most tasks.

Complete with the Kochetov bracket and the base without additional modification, the PU sight is intended only for installation on the Mosin sniper rifle; installation on other types of weapons will require mechanical processing to fit and attach the Kochetov base.