Self-Illuminating Night Sight Poll

[RevolverRob]

Curious and trying to figure out where the hive mind is at.

Options:

Night sights on all carry guns.
Night sights on some carry guns
No night sights on any carry guns

—

If you’re running FO those non-Trit night sights. If you’re running TFOs then those are night sights. If you’re using Luminescent sights no poll option for you, get real sights you cheap bastard.

If you’re not running night sights in anything - why not? If you’re running them on everything - why? If you’re inbetween you’re probably limited for sight options, lazy, or both (like me).

[Cypher]

You forgot "Night Sights on the guns I can talk my wife into letting me buy."

I have night sights on my Glock 26 because that's the gun I carry the most and because I predominantly carry it at night.

[CCT125US]

Currently have Trijicon 3 dots on my carry gun. Possibly going back to the 10-8 precision RS paired with Dawson Tritium front on P30.

ETA: I find the feed back from the tritium beneficial.

[BillSWPA]

Night sights on anything I carry with any regularity and that will easily accept them, as well as any home defense handgun.

Almost every near-miss in my life that could have turned into an incident has happened in poor light, with enough light to see and identify the problem, but often not enough to see black sights or even white dot sights.

When I carried a Detective Special, Colt would have installed a front only night sight for about $200. I decided that was more than I wanted to spend for the front sight only. I now know that replacing the insert when it went dim would have likely been difficult given the limited sources of the work.

My two most heavily customized guns are my North American Arms .380 and my Kel-Tec P-32. In both cases, installing some form of night sights was a primary motivation for the work.



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[Darth_Uno]

I have 7 Glocks, and only one has night sights.

3 have RMR’s, which barring an optic failure negates any concerns about lining up sights in a low light situation. The RMR is always visible.

On the “regular” slides, only one (the 48) has night sights, and they came on the gun. Any shooting I’m likely to do is probably going to be up close and fast. I’m not getting in running battles through abandoned, dimly lit warehouses. And I know, now I couldn’t even if I wanted to, but...I wasn’t going to anyway. If your life takes you to such places on the regular, then night sights aren’t a bad idea.

Of all the things you could argue that it’s better to have and not need, night sights aren’t at the top of my personal list. But they work exactly as they claim, so I won’t tell you what you do or don’t need.


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[Duelist]

My 642 has no night sights and isn’t likely to get any, but gets carried a lot anyway. The p32 rarely gets carried at all, but even when it is carried, I’m not motivated to put night sights on it - I’m motivated to figure out better life choices so I can carry something else. It is not likely to get night sights.

We mostly carry Glocks now, and we now own 4 - 3/4 have night sights. The G26 has Trijicon HD I installed after a few hundred rounds with the factory plastic, the 19x has the factory GNS Glock issued with it, and my G42 came used with XS Big Dot night sights. We are deciding whether we actuallyi like the XS sights. If not, both G42s will get something else, and at least the fronts will have tritium. If one of us decides that they do like the XS and the other doesn’t, whoever likes them will keep my gun and the other G42 will get night sights of that person’s choice.

The 642 won’t get night sights, at least not anytime soon, b/c expense and hassle, not b/c they would be of no value. The Glocks are easy and not terribly expensive to change sights on.

My Beretta 92 gets shot a lot, but is rarely carried. It has Wilson Combat F/O for range/match use. Other guns have, like the 642 has, orange painted front sights. The 92 factory sights got that, but the F/O is superior.

I consider them important and desirable, though perhaps not *essential*, and will pay to get them on a carry gun they can reasonably be obtained for. This is one of the reasons Glocks are living at my house: night sights are easy.

[revchuck38]

My primary carry gun is a PX4 full size and it wears Ameriglo CAP sights, so the front is tritium. My "summer" gun is a Walther P99C and it has a red FO front sight because I can't find a big fat front night sight like the CAP for it.

[RJ]

Glock 26.5 with Glock Night Sights. “EDC” w OEM+2 In RCS Perun AOWB.

Pocket carry an LCR in a Desantis Nemesis. Rear black and Front Sight painted traffic cone Orange Nail Polish and a coat of clear.

[NH Shooter]

Full set of Novak tritiums on my 5906, which is a safe queen.

Factory white dots (non-illuminated) on my Walther PPS, which is my regular EDC. But I also carry a handheld flashlight which with a neck or temple index hold, makes the dots very easy to see.

My PPQ has a tritium front sight only, serrated u-notch in the rear. It works pretty well with no flashlight. The tritium front sight also makes the pistol easy to find in the bedroom at night. :-/

My main gripe with a full set of tritium sights on a pistol is the rear glows through my lightweight summer cover shirt which I believe it could reveal my armed status to those with bad intentions. I will not use them on any long gun because there's no easy way to cover them when I might want to remain concealed by darkness.

If someone came up with FO sights that could be illuminated with a pressure switch (like a WML), that might be a good solution.

[Leroy Suggs]

P365, G17.4, G19.5=night sights
G19.4=Vogel FO
J frames -painted factory

P365 is EDC
G17 is bedside
Those two are 95% of my self defense guns use now.

[Larry T]

3 carry guns, all Glock (19, 17, 26). I have Trijicon HDs (least favorite) on the 26, Spaulding CAP Sights (next favorite) on the 19, and Ameriglo Pro I-Dots (favorite) on the 17.

[Bucky]

My preference is night sights on all. Unfortunately, it’s not always feasible.

[blues]

Night sights on all three Glocks...19, 26 and 17.

Painted front sight on 642. When it gets carried at night I have a headlamp on anyway.

(Fiber optic on a 686+ that is rarely if ever carried.)

[BillSWPA]

I should add that when I had my North American Arms .380 and Kel-Tec P-32 modified, Crimson Trace lasers were not yet available for these guns. In both cases, now that the lasers are available and good pocket holsters can be obtained for guns so equipped, if I were doing it again today, I would add a laser and call it good. That is exactly what I did with my Kel-Tec P3AT.



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[BehindBlueI's]

Everything I carry has night sights now that the Shield has them. I've evolved over the years on the usefulness of them, going from "mandatory!!!!" to "meh, nice to have but you can do without them as well." I'm ok with a fiber optic as well. I'm partially color blind, though, and need something that's higher contrast. Black on black sights leave me blind to the front sight on dark targets, even in well lit situations. Since most of the high viz options have a tritium insert anyway, why not? As a bonus, it makes the gun easier to find at night if dropped, stored in a tent pocket, etc. So, aside from a few not-carried guns that have fiber optic sights (or one with a brass insert), everything has night sights. Primarily Trijicon HD orange insert or the closest OEM equivalent.

[Chuck Whitlock]

If you’re inbetween you’re probably limited for sight options, lazy, or both (like me).

Pretty much this.



I consider them important and desirable, though perhaps not *essential*, and will pay to get them on a carry gun they can reasonably be obtained for.

And this here.



My duty/ 99% carry P250c sports factory rear tritium blacked out with a Sharpie and an Ameriglo ProGlo orange front. Retired Glock has orange CAP front/Sharpie'd Operator rear.
Training P250c, K9, CW9, and BHP have rear white dots Sharpie'd and front white dots painted orange. SP101 has orange paint on factory front. I'd like tritium on the other front sights, but it would be a higher priority if I could get them with the orange surrounds instead of white.

[Clusterfrack]

Tritium night sights on all carry guns.

[mmc45414]

I pretty much need the FO in the daytime now, but have TFOs on several, including the primary full size carry guns (M&P 2.0c, SR1911 LWCs). Right now I am mainly shooting an M&P with Dawson FO, but some of that is facilitating things that we do in the daylight that are hypothetically "defensive" scenarios, but are probably more realistically just contests amongst my friends.

Plus I have glued the XS Big Dot onto two of my J-Frames, and the 340 came with the little Big Dot, but that is mainly because it is a visible sight for those guns that happens to be illuminated. Though those might be most likely to come in handy since I often have one of those when I go out to watch the dog shit before we go to bed. Come to think of it, maybe I should get that for the 360...

Off topic, but maybe I should just one by one take every single gun out of the safe, reflect on anything I want to do to that specific gun, and not buy another damn thing for any other gun until I follow through. :cool:

[Poconnor]

I learned that I don’t need tritium sights because after a couple shots at night I can’t see the tritium dot anymore. I don’t bother with them anymore. My carry j frames have crimson trace laser grips. My home defense guns have white lights. If I could get Ameriglo front sights with just orange dots and no tritium I would use them.

[Totem Polar]

NS always ends up being a side effect of upgrading, as opposed to a main effect, for me. Since my eyes are terrible, I’m constantly looking to upgrade sights, eg. the XS big dots on my G42, or various iterations of fat orange front/flat black rear on my other adult-sized Glocks. Since these options are always available with a trit insert up front, why not?

Where things get stuck back in the days of "laverne & shirley" and "starsky & hutch" is wheelguns: my myriad J-frames all suck 50s-80s wind with orange paint on the front blades. Just as soon as Colt came out with a real snub with real sights, I was back on the front NS train for my main squeeze, but only because Colt thoughtfully threw an insert inside that fat white dot and fat rear trough on the excellent Night Cobra.

JME of things. Put me down for whatever vote works with my wheelgunner’s "I’ll take it if it’s available" attitude.

[beenalongtime]

I work into the night, so night sights on most. I don't have them on my LTT Elites, as they are a matching set of range guns, while my Inox 92 and my Centec, both have night sights.
After trying to order Ameriglo's Spartan's, from their 2017 catalog, after they told me they were ready, I had to make my own. My carry PX4's, (one in nine and one in forty), both have had the rears drilled and vials inserted for reasons. Where back up/training PX4's I have the standard Ameriglo's, just haven't installed them (prefer to train with the same thing, just time issues currently).
Full size PX4 has Trij HD's on it, but it was a good deal and a range gun, that I plan on nightstanding. (may have to change them, but priced right to try)
Fiber optic on my revolver and factory 3 dot on my TZ99, because of lack of options.
CZ's are currently being prepped for mod's (TFO's, Mepro and fiber optic on different ones).
Sig has factory night sights.

EDIT to add, they are on my preferred carry gun, but I consider any gun potentially a carry gun, and certainly a training gun, in case roll around on the floor and grab what is available. (still making sure my carry gun, is and continues to be the right choice)

[Darth_Uno]

Everything I carry has night sights now that the Shield has them. I've evolved over the years on the usefulness of them, going from "mandatory!!!!" to "meh, nice to have but you can do without them as well."
That’s a briefer summary of my post. There’s no reason not to get ‘em...but you’re probably fine without unless it’s your job to carry all day every day, to potentially unfamiliar locations.

And if you look up ancient (by internet timescales) posts on 1911forum you’ll see I advocated night sights for everybody. But now I’m ambivalent.



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[revchuck38]

My PPQ has a tritium front sight only, serrated u-notch in the rear. It works pretty well with no flashlight. The tritium front sight also makes the pistol easy to find in the bedroom at night. :-/

Where did you get it? My understanding is that the PPQ and P99 front sights are interchangeable.

[UNM1136]

Didn't vote. I have also gone back and forth on their necessity. I am becoming more comfortable with fiberoptic. With night sights I am almost off of the need for more than a front dot. I blacken the rear dots, anyway, so why spend the money? I am also playing with suppressor height sights in my RMR'd gun, and I am really like a tall, thin front blade..

My current set ups are Smith & Wesson M&P9 with three dot tritium, a M&P9c with a green FO front and rear with the white dots blacked out. A G17.4 with RMR, and suppressor height Straight 8 style tritium sights. My AR has standard sights and an aimpoint, my shotgun a plain ghost ring with a tritium front. My bowhunting in bear country Glock 20 still has the original plastic sight notch protectors in place.

I am not in love with any of those setups, don't feel any is particularly lacking, and am willing to bet my life on any of them.

pat

[blues]

Didn't vote. I have also gone back and forth on their necessity.

pat

I didn't vote either. I went 29 years without but peer pressure (here) won me over.

That said, I like 'em on the Glocks and will continue with 'em. They definitely helped with my low light (sans flashlight) quals with the sheriff's office for LEOSA. With the flashlight they aren't a big deal. (No surprise there.) I predict that the value will increase as I get older but I don't know for sure. I only wear cheaters for indoor reading now.

[NH Shooter]

Where did you get it? My understanding is that the PPQ and P99 front sights are interchangeable.

http://www.10-8performance.com/walther-ppq-rear-sight/

http://www.10-8performance.com/walther-ppq-front-sight/

[theJanitor]

My three carry guns (except for the 642) now bear X300U's, and two of them are equipped with RMR's so no need for tritium. However, the Trijicon kit for the 1911 only come with three dot tritium, and my Wilson EDC X9 has the Ameriglo-type tritiutm/orange front sight.

[SAWBONES]

Along with many others, I thought tritium night sights seemed like a good and necessary accessory when they first came out however long ago that was ('80s).

However, after replacing dimmed-out sight sets (or later, dimmed out front sights alone) over and over and over, and having NEVER found them necessary or even genuinely helpful in dim light shooting practice, I gave up on them altogether.

While I do recognize that there is likely a very particular level of dim light in which they might prove helpful, I decided that the questionable or minor benefit of having them was nowhere near worth the trouble and expense of replacing them every 3-10 years.

All my pistol and revolver sights are now non-tritiated, and have been so for many years.
All of them do have visual aids like front sight white dots or gold beads or fiberoptic rods, though, which suffice quite well for me.

[Doc_Glock]

I don’t know what I don’t known on night sights. Expert opinion seems all over the place. I am personally pretty agnostic about type of sight and or whether it glows in the dark somehow.

I have all sorts of sights on all sorts of guns. All I insist on is that they are zeroed and that I know the zero when I can see the sights.

[gringop]

15 years ago, I just had to have them on all carry guns, front and rear. The carry Kimbers, the BHP, the G19, they all had to have the precious glowing sights.

Now those sights have all lost their luster in more ways than one. When I have been buying sights for newer Glocks, I'll get the Ameriglo Defoors with the small tritium in the front sight only. Because the thin .125 front sight works so well for me, I'm not willing to move up to a bigger front sight to get a bigger tritium dot and I want fully blacked out rears.

I just did a dark, lights out test with my Defoor equipped guns. With non-dark-adapted eyes, in full dark I can see the dot but not ID the target. When I have enough light to ID a human shaped target but not ID the person, I can see the dot well enough to make good hits. When I have enough light to ID the person, I don't need the tritium dot.

With fully dark adapted vision, this may change.

Put me in the "Don't care that much about them anymore" category.

Gringop

[1Rangemaster]

Quite the trip down memory lane...
King-Tappan painted sights on a Colt .45acp, followed by early Trijicon night sights on a duty S&W 4506 in the late 80s.
The majority of GLOCKs have some form of night sight: GLOCK 3 dot night sights years ago, up to the GLOCK BOLD sights which I like very much. Currently an Aimpoint ACRO backed up by Heinie suppressor sights. Warren/Sevigny 2 dot night sights, and “Big Dot” night sight on a snub. I am sentimental about two sets of gold bead sights(front) on a couple of GLOCKs. Quite honestly, the night sight helps me find the weapon in the dark. I really do prefer some sort of highlighting on the front sight, if not using a “red dot”. My personal dream in an “iron sight” would be a gold bead front with tritium tube, and a single tube in rear sight(yellow). No one has said they will build that. I continue to be optimistic about red dots-Aimpoint and Trijicon.
Short answer after all that: some form of tritium if at all possible on one piece of the sights for me, please.

[beenalongtime]

With night sights I am almost off of the need for more than a front dot. I blacken the rear dots, anyway, so why spend the money?

pat


Define blacken the rear? I prefer the vials in the rear to be surrounded by the black sleeves, but on factory pistols, not always an option.

[UNM1136]

Define blacken the rear? I prefer the vials in the rear to be surrounded by the black sleeves, but on factory pistols, not always an option.

Wish I could take credit for it...take a Sharpie (I have always had black on hand, Chuck Haggard has in the past recommended red) and color in the dots on the rear sight. On non tritium sights, like my M&P9c you can get almost a completely black rear sight, while on tritium sights it dims the rear sight lamps just enough that the front sight really stands out. You still have some glow to apply the three dot principle, but your eye is drawn to the brighter, greener, clearer front sight lamp. I find I need to reapply ever year or so.I use this on my issue M&P9, so the gun isn't modded at all. This is the only thing that keeps me from jumping to front sight only...

pat

[That Guy]

My understanding is that the PPQ and P99 front sights are interchangeable.

That is correct.

I have done a fair bit of shooting outdoors in diminishing light. My observations on what works for me:

Orange paint or sight inserts completely disappear from view somewhere around dusk. I have yet to discover which color would be optimal for me.

Not all fiber optic sights are equal. The snap on fiber optic beads Hi-Viz makes for shotguns are surprisingly visible in surprisingly low light.

I lose the ability to see a sight picture much sooner than my ability to see and identify people, see what is in their hands or what they are doing. And of course, seeing where a static cardboard target is, is much simpler than that. Indoors, I remember dry firing in our apartment in the city during daylight hours with the curtains closed and all the lights in the room on. I picked up the tritium dot much quicker during the presentation of the pistol than the rest of the sight, even though the room was fully lit.

So in my opinion, tritium dots on front and rear sights are very useful for the limited time window between day light and night. Tritium front only is not nearly as useful for me, as while I know where the front sight is, I have no idea of its orientation to the rear sight.

Once it gets dark enough one needs a white light to see or identify targets, then this stuff of course no longer matters as you are aligning the silhouettes of the sights against the target.

[JohnO]

Night sights for years were thought to be requirement on a carry gun. However no one really gave consideration to where self luminous sights are actually employable. To say in low light or no light conditions doesn't offer the proper context. Conditions must be too dark to see your sights yet you are still able to positively identify your target. A sliver between where you don't and do need a flashlight for PID.

[CCT125US]

It would be an interesting experiment to have folks post a defining pic of low light. I have observed quite a variation in how people define it.

Sorry for the thread drift.

[blues]

Night sights for years were thought to be requirement on a carry gun. However no one really gave consideration to where self luminous sights are actually employable. To say in low light or no light conditions doesn't offer the proper context. Conditions must be too dark to see your sights yet you are still able to positively identify your target. A sliver between where you don't and do need a flashlight for PID.

Exactly so. Probably a very rare occurence, especially for those outside LE or the military...but it made a significant difference in my own training and qualification scenarios in terms of the confidence that sights were properly aligned in very low light scenarios with faintly visible targets. In fact, that's what prompted me to consider adding them after so many years without.

[That Guy]

It would be an interesting experiment to have folks post a defining pic of low light. I have observed quite a variation in how people define it.


Unfortunately there would be some technical challenges to overcome, since cameras don't see things the same way human eyes do.

[Totem Polar]

Unfortunately there would be some technical challenges to overcome, since cameras don't see things the same way human eyes do.

To say nothing of low light also being relative (to the eye’s current state of adaptation) and not absolute.

[BehindBlueI's]

To say nothing of low light also being relative (to the eye’s current state of adaptation) and not absolute.

That's no shit. My "low light" today isn't my 20 year old eyes "low light".

[Jhp147]

Trijicon on my work guns since 1992. Too much easier for me to see at low-light quals to even question. HDs most recently even on the off-duty gun.. If I could find something the same size & width/dovetail/looks like HD front sights, I'd have them on the fronts of 1911s I've gravitated to in retirement. Always wanted my 642 milled and set up with the front Big Dot but not sure I can justify the expense any more.

[CCT125US]

Unfortunately there would be some technical challenges to overcome, since cameras don't see things the same way human eyes do.


To say nothing of low light also being relative (to the eye’s current state of adaptation) and not absolute.


That's no shit. My "low light" today isn't my 20 year old eyes "low light".

Exactly. I recall taking a class with a well respected trainer. After dinner we met back at the range for the low light portion of the class. It was about 1 hour or so until sunset, and we were informed this was considered low light. The class continued for several hours until what I would consider low light. As has been pointed out previously, words mean things, but those things are not the same to all people.

[jeep45238]

Assuming it's not cost prohibitive (read-dovetail front/rear), I prefer a bright front and subdued rear. Becoming more of a fan of the Hiene Straight 8's for a general purpose.

I doubt it will ever matter for me, as a flashlight makes night sights turn into plain iron sights.

[J0hnny]

Glow in the dark is cool. Radioactive is cool too. I prefer a tritium front with blacked out rear, the capsule of the trit reflects available light and (for me) is a glint for front sight alignment regardless of ambient conditions

[philpac33]

I voted "night sights on all carry guns" but to be specific I have at least a tritium front on all carry guns that don't wear an RMR; those have all black Ameriglos.

[AKDoug]

I've gone to fiber optic on the fronts of all of my defensive pistol and solid black rears. The tritium insert on my desired narrow blade front sight was always getting dirty and required daily cleaning. At the point the tritium was visible, it was too dark to properly identify a target anyway. FO and a WML for me...

[alex]

I'm always changing my sights around but at the moment, and for quite some time, all of my guns have Dawson fibers. I've tried Ameriglo Bold, Agents, Trijicon HD/HDXR, etc and always end up swapping back to the Dawson sights. The only downside of the Dawson sights seems to be that they rust. I'd probably like the others more if they had a set screw like Dawons. Can't really go wrong with any of those options tbh.

[JTQ]

If I could get Ameriglo front sights with just orange dots and no tritium I would use them.
I'd like to have that option as well.

[TDA]

There are some guns that I would carry that don’t have tritium sights on them now, but mostly I’ve got them. All my low light shooting experience has been in IDPA match stage scenarios, where I’ve found the glowing dots surprisingly irrelevant, and maybe even a little distracting, but I still act on the vague intuition that I’m better off having them.

[noguns]

Have a pair of g19s.

Primarily carry the one with Dawson chargers fiber front if I know I'll be home before dark.

If I know I'll be in the dark the other has tritium front.

The one I'm not carrying is always in my trunk so I have options.

[Casual Friday]

I find that tritium night sights, for me, only add to the usefulness of a carry gun and take nothing away, so I personally see no reason not use them.

[TCB]

I really want a serrated front with a F/O tube high in the blade with a large tritium embedded underneath it to illuminate it at night. I don’t know if it would provide enough light to be visible but I’d sure like someone to see if it would work.

[1Rangemaster]

I really want a serrated front with a F/O tube high in the blade with a large tritium embedded underneath it to illuminate it at night. I don’t know if it would provide enough light to be visible but I’d sure like someone to see if it would work.

Depending upon pistol manufacturer, try Viking Tactics. Kyle Lamb, US Army(ret.) is a solid shooter, Instructor and designer.

[TCB]

I emailed Dawson about doing one a few years ago and never heard back...they seem like the only company that have the ability to do a one off or small run of an experimental sight.

[That Guy]

I really want a serrated front with a F/O tube high in the blade with a large tritium embedded underneath it to illuminate it at night. I don’t know if it would provide enough light to be visible but I’d sure like someone to see if it would work.

Tru-Glo makes front sights that combine fiber optic and tritium. They are not serrated, though. The fiber optic is a bit buried in the sight body so it doesn't work as well as a regular, more exposed fiber, when used indoors. Outdoors, I haven't noticed any issues. Low light, it works just like any other tritium sight. Perhaps a bit dimmer? Hard to say for sure without a side-by-side comparison.

[Rex G]

Some of my carry guns have night sights. Some of my carry guns have a tritium insert only in the front sight.

If I am hunting a bad guy, in the dark, I want to be blacked-out. That includes black sights. I hunted plenty of bad guys in the dark, which was a reason I liked to report for duty, with more than one gun. (Now retired, but someone may want to hunt me in the dark, so... I need to be able to hunt him back.) None of this is arm-chair fantasy, thunked-up in my Mom’s basement. Plenty of my rookies started their careers with tritium sights, and as I trained and evaluated during the night-shift phases, I tracked the movements of plenty of my rookies, and other colleagues, in the dark.

I prefer a big, bold sight pattern, whether or not colors or tritium are present. If colors or tritium are present, I demand that the front sight be the much more visible, of the two.

As I have aged, my taste in night sights has changed. I used to passionately hate the three-dot pattern, whether tritium was present, or not, favoring the SIG pattern of a dot in the front, and a dot under the rear notch. My longest-carried duty pistol, 2004-2015, was a P229R with a white square on the rear dot, with a tritium front, and from 1991-1993, I carried a P220, with the then-standard paint, one front dot and one rear square. 2002-2004, I used Glocks with Heinie Straight-8 sights. By 2015, my eyes were ready for good three-tritium-dot sights.

The blue-label Glocks G19 and G17 I bought in the 2013-2015time period were delivered with nice three-dot tritium. My blue-label G19x, however, was delivered with seemingly cheaper three-dot tritium sights, for which everyone at Glock, from the installer to the chief executive, should be flogged.

In some cases, such as revolvers with non-dovetailed, non-pinned front sights, the juice is simply not worth the (financial) squeeze, largely because I am somewhat OCD about having a good hand-held light.