A litle more info. Here's a pic of the 2 main types of prewar elevation knobs. The taller one is the target version and the shorter one has been reblued, the portion with the division lines is always left in the white from Lyman.
Here's another pic showing the 2 types of elevation click detents. The earlier style is on your left while the later style is on the right. The earlier sights used a spring-loaded ball detent in the main elevation slide that clicked into the holes you see in the knob's bottom. The later sights used a wavy O-spring (2 different sizes!) with internal ears, that clicked into the radial grooves seen in the knob on your right. Both of these styles also used the early elevation screw that was captive at its bottom end.
Next up is a pic of the 2 styles of Lyman clicker springs. The wavy O-spring on your left came in 2 sizes and they are not interchangeable (prewar/postwar), both sizes are for the elevation adjustment only. The oval 3-hole spring, also wavy, is for the windage and is common to several other Lyman models in addition to the 48. AFAIK this spring's design remained the same throughout all 48 production.
Repair of the prewar 48 is complicated by the fact that, although the parts may look interchangeable from the outside, frequently they differ internally either in screw pitch or spring size/design. Both elevation and windage screws, for example, were made with left-hand AND right-hand threads at different times in the sight's production!
As you can imagine, the windage knob and screw are almost always the first casualties of any dropping-type accident.
I'm always seeking Lyman sight parts for repair and restoration of these old sights, both the model 48 and their various tang peeps. Will buy/trade for yours or sell/trade you mine. Also Lyman tong loading tools, dies and parts.
Regards, Joe
