Conceal Carry Weapons: Night sights or not?

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Orion8472

Orion8472

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Low light situations MAY happen . . . in the VERY unlikely event that you need to defend your life. Should that happen, one could say that having night sights would be quite a benefit. However, what about the idea that you should be aware of what is behind the target, . . . . and in low light situations, you may not be able to?

Having said that, if your life is in danger, and you had to quickly discharge your weapon, . . . would you have time to line up the sights anyway?

Discuss...
 
It will depend on how much training the individual has had the benefit of receiving and the type of scenario. I like to think that I would at least get the front sight on target but who knows how much time you have before its too late, you may have to take an instinctive shot. I think there are too many variables to truly know whether or not it would be beneficial, but I doubt it would hurt your chances of taking a more accurate shot. So basically, if there is a remote chance that it may increase your chances of survival, go for it.
 
However, what about the idea that you should be aware of what is behind the target, . . . . and in low light situations, you may not be able to?
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You do your best.

Having said that, if your life is in danger, and you had to quickly discharge your weapon, . . . would you have time to line up the sights anyway?
Click to expand...

Maybe, maybe not. Get a laser.
 
My .02 (with no experience whatsoever) is that in a self defense shooting, you'll probably just point and shoot. Now, if you like them, and would feel more comfortable with them, get 'em. You might actually use them, especially if you train hard with them.
 
Night sights are nice, but in reality...when in a defensive encounter with a handgun you will be in fight/flight mode, and with that comes tunnel vision and auditory exclusion, etc.

To be honest, when I train I do not use my sights. I go solely on muscle memory and conditioned response, as that is exactly how my body will respond in an actual encounter.
 
i think they may help to have them so their is an upside, but i don't think their is a downside.
 
When some "hip hop stars" were whistling at my lady friend and tried to grab her while the others were ready to jump me I honestly did not even try to line up the sights. You don't want to just aim anywhere cause if you do have to discharge you want your ammo to land. When I go to the range I do about 25% single shots and take my time. The other 75% is "instinctive" shooting where I draw and fire controlled pairs in a couple of targets. Some sights are utilized but you get a feel for it.
 
I have them on both of my carry pistols. It was a really easy decision to make after doing some low light/night time shooting at the farm.
 
I like em, but I've been known to wander at dusk once in a while.

One thing I appreciate in bed is having those 2 comforting little green eyes glowing at me from the shelf next to me, with my glasses on top.

I don't think if it's a desperate situation that they'll come into play, but a coyote at sundown ... or one of those Wolve-raccoons that come up from the slough.

Didn't know I was capable of jumping up an entire staircase in one leap, adrenaline is fun. Those suckers will tree you in seconds if you surprise them.

LOT of skunks in my neighborhood this year, but they've been harmless and peaceful.
 
I love having night sights on a gun because they just look so cool. But for self-defense I really don't care whether I have night sights or not. I don't expect to be able to carefully line up a shot. Plus, if its so dark that I can't see the sights, will I even be able to see the target?
 
A lot of self-defense situations happen at dusk or night. No downside to having them, and if you find yourself with the wherewithal to be able to line them up, they would be a godsend.

My CZ has Meprolights, and they're at least as good as the original three-dot sights in normal light, and worlds better in the dark. If you don't line up the sights, you're not hurting anything by having them.
 
Carry a gun, carry a flashlight too. It's dark about half of every 24 hour period after all. And lots of places inside can be dark even in the daytime. Train with both and you'll do about as well as you'll be able to do no matter what happens.

My current carry gun (S&W 642) doesn't have night sights, though my previous one (Glock 19) did. Those snubbies which do have night sights usually have just one tritium lamp inserted in the front sight, or have a replacement front sight installed that has a lamp in place.

But my snub does have a set of CT Lasergrips (the Glock didn't).

If you train to use sights you'll use them by default, assuming you can manage to get the gun up to eye level so you can actually see the sights. Sometimes getting the gun to eye level isn't a possibility though. The laser works from any position, eye level or not, which is why I have one on the S&W. A short class from Southnarc and another from Clyde Caceres late in 2005 at Andy Stanford's Snubby Summit made me a believer in CT.

Defensive long guns (shotguns and carbines) here all have night sights as well as white lights, but none so far have lasers.

As far as time to line up sights is concerned, you'll have the amount of time you have. The closer the target the less time you have, up to the point where you don't really have time to even draw a gun at all. That's where ECQC ( http://www.shivworks.com/pdf/ECQC Course overview .pdf ) or the equivalent comes into play. http://www.downrange.tv/blog/drtv-weekly-myths-and-techniques-on-self-defense/11957/ or http://blog.hsoi.com/2011/10/19/youve-got-a-hammer-but-everything-isnt-a-nail/

Keep in mind - there are no hardware solutions to software problems. What you're talking about are mostly software problems, though some aspects of hardware can help sometimes - when they work, of course. Gotta remember, Murphy loves you and if you depend on a crutch, that will be the first thing to fail in a pinch. Train and study, study and train... Murphy has less luck with software, if it's installed properly.

Stay Safe,

lpl
 
I can just imagine being in the upstairs hallway in pitch blackness while the intruder squeeks his way up the stairs (it's an old, old house) and around the corner at the top. Well, it's not completely pitch dark because my stupid gun is glowing and reflecting off my glasses. :cuss:

So, could there be a down side?
 
My 1911 has night sights which actually make them hard to see during the day. They pretty much blend in with the rest of the sight.

I have a BG 380 that I purchased in May. It's sights are also all black and would be useless in low/no light situations. It does have a laser that was not sure about until I did some point and shoot excersises at an indoor range. I was really impressed on how quick you could get on target and fire accurately.

Now that being said, the laser is useless in bright conditions since it gets washed out so practice is a must with either night sights or lasers.
 
Having taken the time to actually shoot a couple of courses designed to teach self defense and tactical shooting at night, my opinion is that night sights can be useful in some situations.

For me, they are worth it.

Mr. Lapin is correct, if you plan on using night sights you should train with them and I cannot express the importance of a reliable bright light and the training to use it.

John, you made me laugh... I like when we try to figure a scenario where things wont work. One thing is certain if an individual is in your house and chooses to sit still and ambush you and you go in search of that individual.. you will loose! Night sights will not make a difference.

I fall back on my mantra. Training is the key, owning a gun for self defense without training means you are only partially prepared.
 
well I haven't really read through the entire thread but here is my two cent's worth , I have nights sights on my pistol , but not really for aiming purposes , in the pitch dark I can see exactly where and in what position my pistol is lying on the night stand , simply by look at the position of those three glowing dots , and that is always n nice picture when you wake up in the middle of the night hearing strange sounds somewhere in the house ;)
 
Well, yes there is a down side to night sights, and yes they can cause more harm than do good. You can accurately hit a target that you don't want to shoot and wouldn't if you could see it. Get a flashlight.

Rule: If it's too dark to see the sights it's too dark to see tha target. If it's light enough to see the target it's light enough to see the sights. With back lighting you can see your sights in sihouette just perfectly!

Whatever you do, practice!
 
I removed night sights from my carry pistol this afternoon to put the original sights back on.

I just prefer normal sights to 3-dot sights -- I find it much easier to see and acquire the front sight. I've also done some night shooting that convinced me that if I have a light on me I can shoot just fine in really dark conditions.
 
if i were to get night nights, I would probably only want the front sight to be glowing
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This is my preferred sight arrangement. I find three glowing dots to be distracting, and in some cases (as with the Mepros I installed on a 4" Kimber), they would wash out the target. My eyes are sensitive to light, due largely to working graveyard shift.

I hate three dot sights, or the white outline sights (such as stock Glock). My Springer had the dots filled in with paint, and I just had the rear sight on my Glock spun around backwards when the night sight was installed up front.
 
My SAA is pretty much the definition of "natural pointer". I don't even need to think about it anymore. Night sights are unnecessary.

Couldn't you use a camera flash to disorient an intruder? Just keep an eye closed to maintain night vision?
 
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