What does a sight radius increase do?

[Jim Watson]

Sight radius matters to the shooter.
I had a G19 and a G17, have shot G34 and G26 but now own a Plastic M&P and wish it were a Pro or 9L.
I have most of the 1911 family, GM, Commander, and OACP.

I can shoot the longer guns better, they are more (operator) accurate. I, for one, do not find them slower on the draw or transitions.
But not so much better that I would wear one all day. Seat bump would be a major annoyance.
The G19 is widely recommended for good reason.

I use fibre optics for competition where the light is usually good and the targets clearly defined.
But the color-around-tritium you have is more versatile in differing lights. I have one factory gun and a couple of nail polish jobs to give that sight picture.

[feudist]

Thanks for the thoughtful answers, gents.

[feudist]

With a practiced index, will the finer sights like Dawson(for example) yield better groups at distance?

[EJO]

Specifically the difference between a Glock 19 and a 34, assume the same sights for each.

This for a police patrol duty weapon. Current setup is a Gen4 19 with the orange Trijicon HDs. I am considering the Dawson fiber optic front(.100-.110).

Is there a practical increase in precision? Or is this P.I.I.?

BTW, I have 56 year old eyes and my new glasses let me see my front sight very clearly, for the first time in several years.

Not looking for an excuse to buy a new gun, I've been buying ammo and shooting instead.

I have used a Glock 19, 17 and 34 at some point in my career. For me I've found the Glock 17 to be the sweet spot. I found the grip on the 19 to be a tad too short and I don't have large hands. I wear size medium gloves. The Glock 17 grip is more purchase to grab which works better for me on a fighting pistol. I also found the 19 to be a little less accurate when compared to a 17 or 34. Having said that I did not find the 34 to be that much more accurate over the 17. So for me I settled on the 17. This is for patrol use and for my application, yours may be different. The 17 is what I feel most comfortable with if I have to fight and I don't have my long gun.

Now for UC work or training days I do carry a Glock 19. Off duty is normally a 26. Different tools for different situations...

[NH Shooter]

With a practiced index, will the finer sights like Dawson(for example) yield better groups at distance?

As long as your eyesight allows for a sharp sight picture, yes. As long as you can hold the pistol steady enough to take advantage of the more precise aim, yes.

Wider front sights with a larger rear notch allow faster alignment but generally at the expense of precision, especially if there is too much light in the rear notch on the sides of the front sight. My 5-inch PPQ came with a .120" front blade and a .180" rear notch, which didn't work for me.

Unfortunately, sight configuration is very user dependent so it will take some experimentation. For my PPQ I'm now using the 10-8 rear sight with a .140" U-notch and their .125" serrated front with tritium insert. The combination seems a good balance between speed and precision for me.

[TiroFijo]

IME, the G17 is a bit easier to shoot accurately than the G19, but the G34 only yields minimal accuraccy increases, mainly with deliberate, slow shooting. The G17 fits my hand better than the G19, so it is difficult to isolate the influence of sight ratio.

Grip size and fit to the hand are also important, as is personal preference and technique. Some people seem to be less sensitive to short sight ratios than others. I tend to shoot short barrels very well, even plink wiht snubbies at 100+ m.

[Bucky]

IME, the G17 is a bit easier to shoot accurately than the G19, but the G34 only yields minimal accuraccy increases, mainly with deliberate, slow shooting. The G17 fits my hand better than the G19, so it is difficult to isolate the influence of sight ratio.

I know it's a generalization, but as I like to explain it, the extra sight radius of the 34 helps me make the really tight critical competition shots that you'd never take in a real world scenario.

[GunRacer]

I've tried a few different combinations over the years. In my experience, you have to balance handling with accuracy. For example, 6" 2011s have nice sight pictures, but tend to "wobble" and suffer from muzzle dip. Some light 5" pistols have that issue too-- my M&P Pro comes to mind. It really depends on the platform. As a general rule, however, I believe that shorter pistols recover better than longer ones. I settled on service length models with thin front sights (.90-.100).