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Stuart:
No need to apologise for contributing to a discussion on iron sights. You have raised a very valid point, one that Ross Seyfried published an article on years ago, although in your case I believe you would be better-off with a platinum insert, so it will still be there after you have pushed through a brushy gully!

Coming from a highly successful pistol-shooting background, Seyfried realised that the standard pistol 'iron' sight, consisting of a deep square notch and flat-top blade, operates like a peep-sight. The shooter does not focus on the rear sight, just the front sight. The wide deep rear notch is there simply to provide a light-gap on either side of the front blade, in the same manner as an aperture sight.

Seyfried set this sight up on an early Remington .416 rifle from memory, and guided in Africa with it for several seasons.

OK, so why not just 'go the whole hog' and fit an aperture? The pistol-style irons look more traditional in their position on the barrel I guess, and are a bit of a hybrid in that they can still be used as a precision sight by bringing both the front and rear sights into focus, if you have time.

Anyway, I shoot pistols myself, and quickly recognized the merit of this sighting system. Although I have never fitted-up a rifle that way myself, I have always kept it in mind, and it may suit other posters here as well as yourself, Stuart.

PS: to get the best out of this system, you would need to widen and deepen the rear notch on that Martini I reckon. The depth could be 3 or 4 times as deep although I realize the sight body might not permit this. Ideally it should be wide enough to permit a light gap in the order of 1/3 to 1/2 the width of your front blade, on either side.
Anyway, food for thought......

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Exactly!

I don't remember Seyfried mentioning this but it is true and the WIDE rear notch flat topped front post is as I said the best I've found. To say that the rear sight is used as an aperture is really pretty close to the truth.

Why not an aperture?

I know all the standard "truths" about how an aperture is the fastest of all irons to use, etc, but I have found that for me in very poor light it is unreliable. I'm not certain why. Since it isn't "looked at" it shouldn't be an issue, but it is nevertheless. Is my eye not centering because it doesn't have enough sight to subconsciously see? I have no idea. I prefer the big billboard rear with a big wide notch and a thick, front post.

I generally do not like permanent sight inserts; permanent lines, dots, triangles or whatnot. They may be fine for use in Africa or Australia where the background colors generally stay the same, but for me I do not like to be tied to one type or color. I prefer to add my own as needed, if needed which is not all the time.

My iron-sighted rifles are genrally used in, as I mentioned, bad weather. In driving rain, common typing "White Out" on a degreased front blade serves perfectly to make the thing stand out against the background. For snow though, the black sight is preferable. Other colors can be used depending on the background of the terrain.