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Thread: rear night sight question -- one versus two dots

  1. #1

    rear night sight question -- one versus two dots

    For many years, I have run a tritium front with a Heinie or Warren one dot/bar tritium rear. Recently, I was handling one of my wife's Glock pistols with HD sights in the dark, and felt the two dot tritium rear sight was more usable. I now see that Warren offers a Glock rear sight with two tritium dots as opposed to just one.

    What are your thoughts on one versus two tritium dots for use in dark conditions?

  2. #2
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    I can use either, but prefer sights with a rear that's more dim than the front.

  3. #3
    I prefer none, and have worked extensively in low light with both one and two. If not two, then I would go with 1.
    Just a Hairy Special Snowflake supply clerk with no field experience, shooting an Asymetric carbine as a Try Hard. Snarky and easily butt hurt. Favorite animal is the Cape Buffalo....likely indicative of a personality disorder.
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  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by nyeti View Post
    I prefer none, and have worked extensively in low light with both one and two. If not two, then I would go with 1.
    Nyeti, not sure whether you like none, one or two? Is there a typo in there, or am I just not following.

    To add some more info, I definitely don't like two bright rear sights that draw your eye to the rear sight rather than the front sight. However, when transitioning from light to dark, when my eyes have not adjusted, I am having trouble seeing the rear single dot on my Warren/Heinie well enough to quickly get any benefit from a rear sight.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by GJM View Post
    I am having trouble seeing the rear single dot on my Warren/Heinie well enough to quickly get any benefit from a rear sight.
    Is that a function of the dot color, quantity, or brightness?

  6. #6
    We are diminished
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    I've run zero, one, and two extensively.

    Zero -- not for me. Too many variable lighting conditions where it won't let me get an actual usable sight picture even though I can/have identified the target.

    One -- doable, and my choice for years. The single dot aligns only your horizontal so you can get a lot of vertical spread. Tim was one of the first people I know who really started talking about this years ago.

    Two -- what I choose now if the option is available. The idea that the rear sight is "busy" may certainly be true and perhaps I'd be Galactic Champion of All if I used a plain black rear, but I don't notice the dots when shooting under half-decent lighting. When it gets dark enough that I actually need the glow to aim, getting visual verification of alignment along both the vertical and horizontal is a boon.

    When possible, I prefer the rear dot(s) to be dimmer and a different color than the front.

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by JV View Post
    Is that a function of the dot color, quantity, or brightness?
    Perhaps all!

    I just went into the closet with a G17 with Warren rear one dot and Heinie trit front, a 2000SK with Trijicon green front, dual yellow rear, and the Glock HD (all green). When my eyes are not adjusted, I have a difficult time seeing the Warren rear dot well enough to get any reference from it. The HD rear sights seem almost too bright, while the green front/yellow rear Trijicons look fine.

    If the two dot Warren rear sights were dimmer than a tritium front, but offered more reference than the single dim rear, it would be ideal.

    This is a different scenario than my eyes fully adjusted, where I can see the single rear.

    Any of this making sense?

  8. #8
    We are diminished
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    Quote Originally Posted by GJM View Post
    If the two dot Warren rear sights were dimmer than a tritium front, but offered more reference than the single dim rear, it would be ideal.
    The only 3-dot Warrens I've got were custom made for my 1911s but I believe that's how he does all of his rear sight lamps (smaller/dimmer and yellow instead of green).

  9. #9
    Member VolGrad's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ToddG View Post
    Zero -- not for me. Too many variable lighting conditions where it won't let me get an actual usable sight picture even though I can/have identified the target.

    One -- doable, and my choice for years. The single dot aligns only your horizontal so you can get a lot of vertical spread. Tim was one of the first people I know who really started talking about this years ago.

    Two -- what I choose now if the option is available. The idea that the rear sight is "busy" may certainly be true and perhaps I'd be Galactic Champion of All if I used a plain black rear, but I don't notice the dots when shooting under half-decent lighting. When it gets dark enough that I actually need the glow to aim, getting visual verification of alignment along both the vertical and horizontal is a boon.

    When possible, I prefer the rear dot(s) to be dimmer and a different color than the front.
    I'll echo all of this.

    I started with 3 dot. As I immersed myself into shooting sports and defensive training I dabbled with single dot rears and no dot rears. For a while I was a big proponent of all black rears. I still feel that way if I could definitively say I'd never need to get a sight picture in low/no light. Can't do that so I have gone back to 3 glowing dots.

    When it's an option I prefer the rear ot be dimmer & have no outline and for the front dot to be a different color. Ideally, I'd go green tritium up front with yellow on the rear. I can live with all green if that's my only option.

    I finally got Ameriglo night sights installed on my Shield. It's nice to have that little baby glowing in low/no light finally.

  10. #10
    Member JHC's Avatar
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    Of the Warren and XS two dot sets (XS is actually a dot and bar, but two reference points), the old style Trijicon 3 dot and new HD three dot, and front tritium only which I've had on guns, I find the HD sets the most desireable. The rears do not appear to me to compete with the front for prominence. And if they did they could be easily filtered with some ink.

    The night shoot with Hackathorn, I used front tritium only and I did not enjoy it at the 7 and 10 yard line.
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