Do you consider night sights a necessity on a carry gun?
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Do you consider night sights a necessity on a carry gun?
Yes, all of my carry guns have Trijicon HD sights installed on them.
No they’re not a necessity, because you should be carrying a handheld light, which will either illuminate or backlight your sight picture and target.
What is more important is a set of sights that zero properly on your gun with your chosen carry / duty ammo, and that they work for your eyes and level of acceptable accuracy / purpose.
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Considering that all my carry guns have night sights I suppose my answer is "yes."
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In truth no, but all my handguns have them.
In my own limited testing, if you could identify a target, you could at least make out the silhouette of your gun and get on target. But they can help be more precise in lowlight.
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Absent a red dot, yes.
With increasing age comes an increasing reluctance to use a weapon light in many situations - the proverbial bullet magnet effect. Night sights on all my weapons. YMMV
john
Mine all have NS so I cant say otherwise. But with a flashlight , if you have it will work. But why chance it. They are cheap and everywhere.
PB
I think when they came out we all had to have them. Most of my defensive handguns have them but I think now we have lights and I also think that 25 years ago we were training to be able to hit the target and the main focus now is identifying the target. If there's enough light to ID the target there's enough to hit the same. Now somebody will come along and act as if I said we didn't used to have to ID the targets.........I just think that most training now emphasizes it more than it used to whether it be law enforcement or CCW. So, the answer is that they're probably not always needed but I still prefer them.
All of my carry handguns have them. And they all will always have them.
how do you know you need to draw & present or make the decision to shoot that shadowy shape in the dark?
How are you sure that you need to apply deadly force... What if what you identified them as a potential threat, but they fall in that “don’t shoot yet” category?
To not PID your threat is a really dumb idea for a multitude of reasons.
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Your first post gave me the impression we were talking about a situation where I already knew deadly force was necessary and immediate, where the night sights would help with making those shots and the light wouldn't - because the threat went from 0 to 10 before a handheld light could be considered. If we're talking about identifying shadowy, unknown figures, then we aren't talking about night sights because night sights can't illuminate anything. The decision to draw is an entirely different subject than the usefulness of night sights after you've already drawn, and I think it wouldn't be fair to assume that shadowy figure scenario would be the reality of that situation often enough to completely negate the necessity of night sights.
I think it's also fair to make the presumption that we've already zero'd our pistols and chosen a reasonable selection of ammo with reliable magazines after which we consider night sights.
Not all my carry guns have them, same story to past carry guns (j frame, ruger lcp, beretta 92 compact). They are a wonderful limited use tool. That being said, if your carry gun will allow for it, no reason to not buy them. On the same note, the odds of shooting in total darkness are low, if there is enough light to identify a threat or a figure to shoot at (thinking paper threat), there tends to be enough light to make out a sight picture from what I have found with fairly few exceptions.
Not on a primary (say, G19 or larger) unless for some reason the frame does not have a rail. I always carry an X300U, so Dawson adjustable sights with a fiber optic front are fine. On my PPS M2, I'd run night sights. Likewise on a G26 or similar.
I use them. There is often lighting enough to easily ID threats, but dark enough to make seeing sights slow. Night sights fix that.
Yes I do.
Here’s an excellent analysis by JW Ramp regarding this topic. Food for thought.
http://www.jwramp.com/news/pistol-si...ing-conditions
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As my eyes have aged, I've moved away from them and gone to a solid black rear, and a fiber optic front sight. My carry guns have a X300 on them, plus I usually have a handheld also. It hasnt been a problem shooting low light.
I have a Surefire 300X on my house gun, a Glock 17. When the flashlight is lit in the darkened house, I can't see the Tritium in the night sights anyway, so I'm back to just using the silhouette of the sights as I line them up.
YMMV, but that's my experience. I don't know how many carry a gun with a flashlight on the rail, but I imagine they would have a similar experience.
If I'm in a situation where I'm not using the tactical light, then I do consider night sights essential.
No, I do not.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZXvKLWSZbM
There are plenty of lighting conditions under which it's quite possible to identify threats, but dark enough that sights can/will blend into clothing (early morning/evening, dimly lit interior spaces, heavily shadowed areas, etc., etc.). "Night sights" aren't intended for use in pitch black conditions. They're useful during those situational or transitional lighting conditions between being able to clearly see the sights unaided on the target and needing artificial illumination (e.g., flashlights, NOD's, etc.).
Isn't part of the theory behind the light is that it is intense enough to blind the attacker and give you the tactical advantage? I think most perps would be taken aback by a sudden face full of 500 lumens. They might just break and run not knowing if the next thing they will experience is the shot.
Over the years I've had a lot of guys ask for tritium in the front only. I ask why. They say the rear dot distracts them. I then say we should absolutely take the rear sight completely off because if a little glowing dot in reduced light is a distraction, it must be bloody awful in the daylight when you can see the whole rear sight.
I say it in jest-- pretty much-- because, well, they get to have it their way. And some are way more the real deal than I ever will be. I still don't see how it can be better but.... I try to make the case for having a rear sight as well as a front and if they still don't go for it, I figure they have their preferences and I drop it.
I say 100% not needed in the USA.
Now to clarify, in the USA post shooting you are going to be looked at by the authorities. You will have to answer how you were able to identify your target, this to me says we must use a light to identify a target at night.
Regular sights at night, when used in conjunction with a light are super easy to see, so why do we need night sights.
Boy these internet myths are something else. The courts don't work that way. The shooting is either justified or it's not. That's it. Night sights have nothing to do with that. Neither does the ammo you use which is another myth.
Name one court case where the defendant was found guilty for using night sights.
No. I used to, and I've had some classes that involved shooting in dark. But they aren't a necessity for me.
If it's dark but I can see the threat, I can see my front sight that is brightly colored. If it's too dark to see/identify the threat, I can't see my sights, either. If I'm already being attacked at contact distance in the dark, I don't need to see their face or my sights. When illuminated by a flash light, I can see the threat and I can see my sights in silhouette. Problems solved.
I like a front site about .125-.115 wide and bright. White, but brass/gold can work, so can bright green, yellow-green, or something fiber-optic.
Tritium sights seem to lose by day (they don't "pop" in sunlight), and no/little gain by night, for me.
Police Officers absolutely need a light mounted on their pistols. And another on their belt/pocket.
If I know I'm going to be out in a city after dark (festival or whatever) I'll be sure to bring a bright light. If I end up in a dark area I carry the light in my support hand. If I go condition Orange I can grip my pocket gun and still look very casual. (And have a bigger gun on my belt)
I do have night sights on my carry weapons (Trijicon HD) and I also carry a light. The HDs are great for daytime and low light. In darkness, up close and personal, I'd probably use my light and point shoot. Longer distances, I'd try to evade.
I’ve got nightsights on all my carry guns...mostly the ones I carry at night. You have to be prepare for every situation possible.
Night sights cool, lasers better.
Please don't take this wrong, but your first two posts have not been questions, or answers to questions which contain useful substance.
As I said, don't take this wrong, I just kind of wanted to warn you that generally folks don't look kindly on post what they feel are just to get your post count up.
You could have explained why you think night sights are cool, and why lasers are better, if you were off course in your reasoning someone would give you some insight from their knowledge base.
Welcome to the forum, and good luck!
Yes. 31 years in Law Enforcement with the vast majority being night shift. I have had numerous occasions where I could make out a potential threat or area that needed to be searched without added light but my sights would not have been visible without night sights. Light conditions are not always all encompassing, IE: the lighting where you are may be different then the area you are looking into/searching so the argument of "If I can't see my sights I'll have to be using my flashlight, so then I can see my sights anyway" doesn't really hold water.
In the end it all comes down to user preference. Like I tell my students, it's your gunfight, you're only going to get one chance to win. Make sure you do everything you can to be the winner.
My belief is that a duty pistol, or a pistol carried for self-defense should have some sort of high visibility sights, whether they be traditional night sights or fiber optics which gather available light is up to the individual.
I personally prefer a tritium front and plain rear. I particularly like the Ameriglo Defoor sights. Why just the front? Because I have seen too many people spending time trying to align three dots when they should have been shooting, or moving.
The major problem with night sights, which has been mentioned several times in this thread, is that they allow you to align and fire on a target you have not identified as a threat. We ought not be shooting at shapes and shadows.
Generally, if there is enough light to ID the target there will be enough light to see your sights, especially a fiber optic or tritium front.
If you have a WML or a hand carried light, when you hit the target with the light, the light reflecting off the target will bring your sights into sharp contrast with the target, which is really an optimal sight picture. In that situation, I find anything but black sights somewhat distracting. Unfortunately, there are no guarantees that is the situation I will find myself in, so compromises must be made. The DeFoor's fill that nich for me.
Night sights are just another form of insurance that we need to take advantage of if we are using pistols for HD, CCW, or duty.
Very quick and accurate target acquisition without the need to line up front and rear sights. Lasermax offers an internal guide rod replacement laser. I can shoot very quickly and accurately without even bringing the pistol to eye level.
As for my first post, he asked about a sub $300 blackout barrel and mentioned bcm, i found my response quite relevant.
Worth noting: if you flash a wml and move, tritiums are picked up much faster while your eyes adjust than plain sights.
I dots make lining up dots a non-issue. Get them close and start smashing the trigger.
Lastly, id say a laser is a good supplement, but not replacement for night sights- although my experience is very limited with them.
I would rather have them than not. I also prefer an X300 series WML.
No, but I consider a carry gun essential at night!