Trijicon HD XR's [Archive] - M4Carbine.net Forums

Texaspoff

01-28-17, 13:23

Wanted to give my take on the new Trijicon HD XR's. They are virtually identical to the standard HD sights, except the front sight is thinner. I have been running HD on all my pistol since their release several years ago, and for my intended purposes they work great. My only gripe was the overly wide front sight. It made longer distance shots a bit more challenging. Fast forward to today, and Trijicon has helped with that complaint by thinning out the front sight, IE the XR series. I haven't had a chance to shoot them yet, but I don't expect them to be any different that my standard HDs overall. The front sight is noticeably thinner, however it still retains the high glow dot. The front sight is now about the same width as most of the other manufacturers standard front sights, Hienie, Ameriglo, Dawson, etc. From just presenting the pistol I can easily see around the front sight better than the HD which should allow for more precise shot placement at shorter distances, and allow for easier shot placement at further distances.

Now I don't think everyone should run out and replace their HD's with them, but if you are planning on purchasing a set of HD's or replacing and aging set, I would definitely go with these. I would not be surprised if the HD sights are discontinued at some point, because the XR series offers everything the HD does, with the benefit of being easier to use at longer ranges.

A few images of the HD compared to the HD XR's.

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff295/Texaspoff/DSC_0022_zpsr1lytzgn.jpg

G17 with HD's

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff295/Texaspoff/DSC_0026_zpskgzo1ljs.jpg

G19 with HD XR's

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff295/Texaspoff/DSC_0025_zpss63bifap.jpg

TXPO

mkmckinley

01-28-17, 14:22

Thanks for the review and pictures, I've been excited to get a set of these since I heard about them.

Vegasshooter

01-28-17, 19:58

Thanks for bringing these to my attention. Love the HD, but hate how wide they are. Because of that, I won't run them. I've run tons of different sights, and I'm currently using the Frank Proctor WOTG fiber optics. Since these new Trijicons are so much thinner, I may give them another shot. Again, thanks for bringing these up.

Texaspoff

01-30-17, 14:04

I gave the sights a shake down today, ran 200 rounds through the 19. I like these much better than the standard HD's. They work exactly like they are supposed to. I can easily get tight groups up close, much like a target sights, and better groups at distance. Only checked them to 20 yards, but everything was easily placed in the 9 and 10. Running them at speed I can pick them up just as fast as the standard HD's, the yellow/green dot in my case, jumps right out. The thinner front blade makes a big difference, at least in my intended application. I do agree, I wish they were slightly lower, but with the height, they are easy and quick to pick up, and the rear hooks on for one handed drills. I think Trijicon did a good thing by introducing these. Some folks will like them and some won't, same as the original HD's. Now if Trijicon will just make these for the P10, I'll be set.

On a side note, Ameriglo is introducing a set of their sights that are virtually identical t the HD series. I am not sure when they will be released, but as soon as they are, I will try out a set of these as well.

TXPO

richiecotite

01-31-17, 20:05

justand11

01-31-17, 20:27

I love the HD sights but like most had the complaint of the front sight being too wide. A few years ago I ran the HD rear with a warren tactical .215 x .125 white tritium front. I found that the rear notch was too wide to run that narrow of a front sight giving me too much space around the front sight through the rear notch. I noticed I had to slow down and really plant the front dot center and if not there was just too much room for error. I eventually moved on to a totally different sight setup. I always wished they mad a version like these new XR's however I feel they should have also narrowed the rear notch. I would like to get one of these front sights to pare with maybe a 10-8 or warren rear just for the high viz yellow.

justand11

01-31-17, 20:28

Where did you find the info on the ameriglo sights?

Texaspoff

02-01-17, 04:40

Where did you find the info on the ameriglo sights?

Saw a posting about them a while back and I reached out to my contact. The haven't released any info on them yet. GOOGLE Ameriglo FBI sights....

TXPO

w3453l

02-02-17, 20:19

Do you happen to know if they will make the XR sights for the HK P2000/P2000sk?

I was getting ready to buy a set of HD's for mine, but these solve all of the issues I had with HD's.

Big A

02-03-17, 18:14

Do you happen to know if they will make the XR sights for the HK P2000/P2000sk?

I was getting ready to buy a set of HD's for mine, but these solve all of the issues I had with HD's.
I'm no HK expert but I thought the P30 and P2000 have the same sight cuts. They make them for the P30:https://www.trijicon.com/na_en/products/product2_hdxr.php?mid=9

HCM

02-04-17, 22:41

I'm no HK expert but I thought the P30 and P2000 have the same sight cuts. They make them for the P30:https://www.trijicon.com/na_en/products/product2_hdxr.php?mid=9

I believe the P2000 and the P30 have the same front sight cut but not the rear.

RustyKnifeUSMC

02-05-17, 22:34

Very glad Trijicon stepped up and developed these. The wide front sight on the HD's was my biggest issue as many others have mentioned here. Recommended these to a buddy who just got his first Glock ... a Glock 19.

w3453l

02-06-17, 19:28

I believe the P2000 and the P30 have the same front sight cut but not the rear.

Yeah that's what I found too. Worst case I would just buy the updated front sight and keep the older HD rear, if that works.

MadAngler1

02-08-17, 13:32

https://www.trijicon.com/na_en/products/product3.php?pid=GL601-C-600836

It would have been nice if they would have used or offered the option if a more narrow rear notch, 0.14 or 0.125" rather than a 0.169" wide notch in conjunction with the 0.125" wide front sight. I love my HDs and have them on my glocks and HKs. However, I have no plans on upgrading them until the tritium vials go out. If they offer HD XRs with a more narrow rear sight and front sight, then I am game

WickedWillis

02-08-17, 17:10

I am having a hard time telling by the pictures, but did they dull the sharp edge on the rears as well? That's always been my biggest knock on them, and I had heard the XR's were going to fix that.

Coal Dragger

02-08-17, 17:58

Virtus

02-09-17, 08:51

Do have calipers to measure the width?

Is the rear the same size or did that shrink too?

I always thought hd's would be the bees knees with a .125 front and .140 or .145 rear

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You should check out the Wilson Vickers Elite Battlesights. They are .125 front and .145 rear U-notch; I run a green FO front and a plain rear and find them about as close to perfect as I could hope for.

darbywpd

02-09-17, 10:27

Amerigo has been making a version of the HD's for several years. The basic version was the idot Pro. There are now a couple different versions. I was looking at getting the HD's a few years ago and found the Ameriglos, which was half the price of the HD's. The Ameriglo front sight appears to be the HD front sight and they offer a few different rear sights with it.

Hart

02-09-17, 16:07

Virtus, how does that FO front sight do in a not so well lit indoor range, front sight FO still visible, enough?

Virtus

02-09-17, 19:18

Virtus, how does that FO front sight do in a not so well lit indoor range, front sight FO still visible, enough?

It's obviously not as bright and easy to pick up as it would be outside or a very well lit area but it is definitely still visible. If there is enough light to take a shot then I can pick up the FO. The green is definitely better than red in low light in my opinion.

I have an Inforce APL on my G19 and in conjunction with the Vicker's sights I find it to be very effective in low light and have never felt the need for tritium sights.

Hart

02-09-17, 21:49

Thanks, different sight color, different lighting level, different light angle seems to affect these aging eyes. What works in one situation just doesn't work well in another.

w3453l

02-10-17, 16:28

I am having a hard time telling by the pictures, but did they dull the sharp edge on the rears as well? That's always been my biggest knock on them, and I had heard the XR's were going to fix that.

Yes, they did round out the edges.

For the life of me I can't find the article, or review where I saw it. It may have been a thread on TOS or calguns.

ETA: I'm still looking for where I saw the review. I may be mistaking them for the new Ameriglo sights.

WickedWillis

02-10-17, 16:43

Yes, they did round out the edges.

For the life of me I can't find the article, or review where I saw it. It may have been a thread on TOS or calguns.

ETA: I'm still looking for where I saw the review. I may be mistaking them for the new Ameriglo sights.

You're fine man. Thank you. I do remember reading when they announced them that they were not going to be as sharp as the HD's.

Copis

03-04-17, 09:54

I really like the XRs. I recently installed them on a G19. They really help my old eyes. I wonder about the longevity of the luminesce/phosphorus paint. Any ideas?
thanks for taking the time.
Bill

jnr4817

03-05-17, 11:47

I tried searching the google, but didn't find any info on if the front sight will be for sale by itself. All 5 of my glocks have a mix of HD and Ameriglo sights.

MStarmer

03-05-17, 13:51

Well at least Trijicon is getting closer. Now if they could just dehorn that rear sight and sweep it forward like the 10-8 we'd have a winner.

Kevin P

03-05-17, 18:15

Yes, they did round out the edges.

For the life of me I can't find the article, or review where I saw it. It may have been a thread on TOS or calguns.

ETA: I'm still looking for where I saw the review. I may be mistaking them for the new Ameriglo sights.

I have heard from people that have them that the rear sights are not dehorned and are still sharp.

The rear sight is the main thing I don't like on HDs.

556BlackRifle

03-05-17, 18:27

I have heard from people that have them that the rear sights are not dehorned and are still sharp.

The rear sight is the main thing I don't like on HDs.

For me it's the thing I like and dislike most about HD sights. I have them on my G19 and 23 so I thought I'd get a pair for my G43. The sharp corners and edges poked me and snagged my cover garment. This morning I took a file and rounded them off, smoothed a bit with emory cloth and I'm testing now before refinishing. So far, I'm happy with them and plan on keeping them. Funny but on my 19 and 23, I don't notice the same problem. (Got them a few years ago, maybe something has changed......)

ETA: I just checked my G19 and they are not as sharp on the corner points or on the edges. Definitely something has changed.

LoneStarM1A

03-05-17, 22:30

I just put some HD XR's on an M&P 2.0. Carried it for a few days and didn't notice any problems with sharpness or snagging my cover garmet, granted I carry it in a comp-tac MTAC with leather backing.

MStarmer

03-06-17, 09:04

I just put some HD XR's on an M&P 2.0. Carried it for a few days and didn't notice any problems with sharpness or snagging my cover garmet, granted I carry it in a comp-tac MTAC with leather backing.

Carrying isn't so much the issue. Some of the league fun shoots I participate in often have "cold starts", this is where you find out what works and what doesn't. For me personally the HD sights on my PPQ contribitued to both an eye (and hand) opening experience. The taper of the slide drives your hand right into the sharp ledge of the sight. I have since sold that gun partially due to that. I much prefer sights with a level or forward rake like the 10-8 or Heinie style.

RAM Engineer

03-06-17, 11:04

I wish these (and a lot of other sights) weren't "behind the dovetail" style. ie, I with the whole sight was ABOVE the dovetail, not behind the dovetail.

Why? Because I'm getting into Glock MOS guns, and these style sights hang off the read of the slide, since the MOS dovetail is more aft of the normal Glock position.

WickedWillis

03-06-17, 12:17

I ordered a set from Midway for my P30L, should have them today. I will post some pictures of them as soon as they are installed.

LoneStarM1A

03-06-17, 13:48

Carrying isn't so much the issue. Some of the league fun shoots I participate in often have "cold starts", this is where you find out what works and what doesn't. For me personally the HD sights on my PPQ contribitued to both an eye (and hand) opening experience. The taper of the slide drives your hand right into the sharp ledge of the sight. I have since sold that gun partially due to that. I much prefer sights with a level or forward rake like the 10-8 or Heinie style.

Huh. Sounds like that could cause all kinds of problems. Doesn't seem to be an issue on the M&P, drawing cold or not.

MStarmer

03-06-17, 14:52

Huh. Sounds like that could cause all kinds of problems. Doesn't seem to be an issue on the M&P, drawing cold or not.

Just to clarify a "Cold Start" is where the gun is unloaded on the bench, slide forward hammer down and a loaded mag next to it. At the buzzer you grab both, load/charge and fire the string. It will show deficiencies in manipulations and such pretty quickly. Same with malfunction drills, if the gun slices me open every time, something has to change.

LoneStarM1A

03-06-17, 17:42

Just to clarify a "Cold Start" is where the gun is unloaded on the bench, slide forward hammer down and a loaded mag next to it. At the buzzer you grab both, load/charge and fire the string. It will show deficiencies in manipulations and such pretty quickly. Same with malfunction drills if the gun slices me open every time something has to change.

Gotcha, sorry for misunderstanding. It's not someting I've practiced yet with the HD's on.

w3453l

03-07-17, 18:05

I have heard from people that have them that the rear sights are not dehorned and are still sharp.

The rear sight is the main thing I don't like on HDs.

My mistake if that's the case. I was reading about all of the new things introduced around SHOT, especially sights since I've been looking for some for my P2000.

I must have blended some of the material I read on new sights from two different manufactures. I'm still trying to find where I saw the mention of rounded out edges, but can't find it.

I'm starting to think I misinterpreted a statement as "...the new XDR sight have rounded out edges on the rear..."

When it really said, "...the new XDR sights should have rounded out the edges in the rear..."

Hopefully someone here will be able to confirm it for sure.

travistheone

03-08-17, 07:00

At a class over the weekend I failed miserably at 30 yards on steel. Instructor had just installed the HD XR sights, I have yet to upgrade from stock glock sights.

He did not mention or complain about sharp edges.

hotrodder636

03-09-17, 17:20

Please do, looking at these for a P30 and VP9.

I ordered a set from Midway for my P30L, should have them today. I will post some pictures of them as soon as they are installed.

w3453l

03-10-17, 15:59

Just an FYI, I got a response back from Trijicon. Looks like they do not, and have no plans of producing the HD XR's for the P2000/P2000SK.

maca1

03-10-17, 18:15

waiting for a set for my Vp9 from midway...will provide feedback late next week.

evi1joe

03-10-17, 20:09

I have a set for a 320SC coming next week and will report back. I DO think a .150 read would have been optimal.
One reviewer also pointed out that the dots don't line up without aiming low--it's actually one of the FEW negative reports I've seen in an online review:
http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2017/02/ron-grobman/gear-review-trijicon-hd-xr-sights/

RustyKnifeUSMC

03-16-17, 00:55

I've had the HD's on a couple pistols and always thought the front sight was too wide. A buddy just got the HD's installed on a G19. I like them a lot! In fact, just ordered a set for my G26 today.

tylerw02

03-16-17, 05:29

Rears are definitely too sharp. I've stoned mine and rubbed some bluing compound on them.

One other thing I'd change is the dots don't always seem to line up for POI the same as the normal sight picture.

I would love to have a set in Heini Straight 8 style.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

WickedWillis

03-16-17, 21:13

I finally have a few pics of mine from getting them mounted on my P30L. Sorry for the shoddy cell pics;

https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2844/33099920040_902dff54c9_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SqVK3y)20170316_181119 (https://flic.kr/p/SqVK3y) by Willis (https://www.flickr.com/photos/140211446@N06/), on Flickr

https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3674/33099920360_141ddb1fc6_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SqVK95)20170316_180941 (https://flic.kr/p/SqVK95) by Willis (https://www.flickr.com/photos/140211446@N06/), on Flickr

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/761/33099921640_0acb19cf9b_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SqVKw9)20170316_180926 (https://flic.kr/p/SqVKw9) by Willis (https://www.flickr.com/photos/140211446@N06/), on Flickr

https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3805/33355279821_35c780f897_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SPuwBp)20170316_180649 (https://flic.kr/p/SPuwBp) by Willis (https://www.flickr.com/photos/140211446@N06/), on Flickr

https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3671/33442442696_e8659b2874_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SXcg6A)20170316_180619 (https://flic.kr/p/SXcg6A) by Willis (https://www.flickr.com/photos/140211446@N06/), on Flickr

https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3678/33355280511_16b27354c0_z.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/SPuwPi)20170316_180551 (https://flic.kr/p/SPuwPi) by Willis (https://www.flickr.com/photos/140211446@N06/), on Flickr

So my takeaways so far is the front sight is very noticeably thinner, and the rear really is rounded much nicer. No more sharp, stabby edges on them. I put the Glock 19 next to it just to try to show the contrast of the old HD's and the new XR's a tad. I will be able to go shoot it this weekend, so I will give a range report then on how I like them when put into actual use.

maca1

03-17-17, 18:19

just installed a set on a VP9. i've been shooting the standard (non-XR) HD's for several years on other guns, and in comparison, the XR's are easier to shoot tighter groups with, with no noticeable difference in sight acquisition time when shooting presentation drills on a timer.

MStarmer

03-22-17, 10:49

Trijicon ought to just pair it up with a 10-8/Heinie/WOTG rear and be done with it. For $64 shipped to the house I'm sticking with my Ameriglo's for the moment. That rear just shreds anything I come in contact with on the HD's.

Even my WOTG is a little sharp for my liking. Here's a comparision shot of the Ameriglo, 10-8, WOTG and my RMR/Ameriglo setup.
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg68/mstarmer/IMG_1086.jpg (http://s245.photobucket.com/user/mstarmer/media/IMG_1086.jpg.html)

On my Sigs, a stock set of contrast, Trijicon HD's, Gray Guns rear and X-Rays.
http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg68/mstarmer/IMG_1088.jpg (http://s245.photobucket.com/user/mstarmer/media/IMG_1088.jpg.html)

MWAG19919

03-22-17, 11:25

TBH I haven't had an issue with the front sight being too wide. I think a narrower front AND rear set would be nice, but then again these aren't bullseye sights. My biggest complaint about the HDs is the sharp rear sight. I carry appendix, so it is painful to bend down to tie my shoes unless I'm wearing an undershirt or a low ride holster.

Who knows what sight options will be available in ~2025 when the tritium in my HDs burn out, but I'll probably try something different just because. I like the concept of a 2 dot tritium sight, but I digress.