I've been using Glocks with factory NS for a long time and never thought I needed anything new/different for personal defense. Fast forward to my latest aquisition - a G19 sporting XS Big Dot NS that I picked up as a partial trade towards a rifle I was selling. At first I wasn't very keen on the "Big Dot" sight but after using them for awhile now I REALLY dig this sight!! Its definitely not a target sight but for fast target aquisition on 1st and/or followup shots, this setup is fantastic and has made a noticible difference on my speed and accuracy. I love the XS ghost-ring sights on my lever-actions and this is definirely one more product from their lineup that I would highly recommend!

So what sights are you running and how would you rate them for personal defense?

Plain black Novaks on my autos and whatever S&W sent their revolvers out the door with. Most normally the narrow ramp front and gutter rear on my M36 and or the post on my High Standard derringer I have in my pocket.

I really like the Trijicon HD night sites with the orange front sight. I've got them on several "carry" guns.

Big Dot Tritium is probly the best with Trijicon HD next

I put these on my Springfield TRP and really like them. Plan to put them on some others when I get around to it.

I'm not sure that A LASER SIGHT wouldn't be the best self defense sight.

I am a big fan of Tru-Glo Day-Glo sights. Nice and large for my aging eyes.

I've bought more sets of Trijicon's then anything else for defensive pistols, Meprolite's come in 2nd!


Mike

I've used Glock branded night sights, Meprolights and Trijicons for years and they were all fine. Now that the eyesight is changing at "computer" distance, I have been running TFXs on one gun and they seem to offer the best combination for all lighting conditions. The weird part about the TFX sights is that the top of the front sight is lower than the top of the rear sight if the dots are lined up. It takes some time to get used to the correct sight picture.

I have a Big Dot on a NAA Pug, and I don't think I would want that on a gun to be shot at distance.

I have some HD sights on order for my Glock 43, so I have not had a chance to test drive them yet.

There's a bit of a learning curve with XS sights, but once you figure them out, you can do some pretty good work with them at any distance you would likely use your pistol for defensive use .... especially if you have visual acuity issues.

I use plain black Heinie's but it's only because I hunt with my carry guns. The express sight design isn't really a proper sight for that purpose.

I don't know about a laser being the best but I do know that showing that red light where a hostile citizen can see it makes them downright negotiable if not friendly.

` ` ` ` ` *

I wear trifocals and struggle with just about all factory sights and particularily dislike the 3 dot arrangements common on many. I tried the XS Big Dot on a M&P for a while - shot it well initially, but seemed to shoot worse over time which makes no sense to me. I switched to Warren Tacticals and really like them - Trijicon dot front with a single, smaller (more subtle) Trijicon dot rear. I put a Warren all black rear on a 1911 that came with a Trijicon front and like that as well or better. For me, an all black rear with a wider notch so I can see some daylight, and some kind of dot front seems to work. I'm using fiber optic front sights on most of my revolvers for field use.

Most folks tend to overwork the XS sight system and doing that not only fails to produce a better result, it's actually counterproductive.

The "express" sight configuration was designed to do one thing; get you on large targets quickly at relatively close range. The XS does that extremely well.

In my opinion, it doesn't really matter what sight system you use as long as you can see your sights. Especially the front sight.

What makes the difference is practice. Practical practice.

No sight compensates for knowing how to shoot and operate your handgun. And where it hits when you do shoot it.

Lots of people spend large amounts of money on sight systems marketed to give a better this or that, or one that they say gives them a no-fail edge.

Their money would be better spent on ammo to practice with, and getting familiar with the operation of the gun they depend on.

Another vote for Trijicon HD's

I love the BIG DOTs. Love 'em.




Travis

'visual acuity issues'

Holy [bleep]

As much as I enjoy shooting a laser, I don't think they're nearly as fast as the Big Dot when fast matters. That being said, I'm very glad my LCP has a laser in case I'd need to aim it!

I always practice point shooing - just in case!
It's also a lot of fun.

I like the Heine Straight 8's but the Novak & Trijicon 3 dots are fine..........unlike some, I have no complaints about 3 dots.

The versions with different colored fronts & rear are my preference though.

Also like the front blade to show a little light around it........a wide blade is fine for target shooting but not so much for SD, IMO.

MM

Plain black Novaks. I'm probably biased, though, after 40+ years of competitive bullseye.
Bob

For pure SD the big dot is tough to beat. For an all around set up I am migrating to rear notches of .140-.150 and fiber optics fronts at .115.

My current preferences were for a serrated front and rear blade, having a U-notch, having two dots (Heinie style), having the rear subdued so not to compete with the front, but having the front NOT being too loud so to detract from the information line of the sight picture. In addition, for a semi-auto, I prefer to have a ledge on the sight.

I am brand new to Glocks, with my first being a G43 for pure conceal carry duties as a replacement for an old J-frame. I like the serrated Heinie and was also looking at the Vickers for this Glock, but at the suggestion of others on this forum, I looked at a few additional sights. One of our LEO suppliers has a hand held pistol sight display, that had most available sights mounted at duty barrel length, with all side by side for comparison. Placing aside any desires for maximum accuracy, but placing emphasis on a fast belly gun sight picture, I found favor toward the orange HD sights for most lighting conditions.

The HD does have some faults, that go against my preferences, but I can live with these, whereas some of the other sights have faults which I would rather live without. Examples with the HD:

- I favor variations of 2-dots over 3-dots, but I’ve trained with issued 3-dots for so many years that I can make them work, so I can live with an HD 3-dot.

- I do favor a wide U-notch over either the square or the express for a combat pistol, and the HD does have a great U-notch design.

- I didn’t want too loud a front sight, and thought I’d dislike the HD, but it does appear to make for an outstanding fast sight picture in varying light conditions up until the point the tritium completely takes over. I did see a slight advantage with the Yellow in certain lighting conditions, but for my eyes, the orange works best overall.

- The HD does have an apparent weakness in its design when using the ledge for one hand drills, as it is not a stout design like the Heinie or Vickers, but I cannot find examples where the sight is running into breakage issues. So for now, I can live with it.

- Though the HD has a nicely subdued serrated rear blade, the front does not, having a typical Novak style smooth blade along the information line above and outside the orange. This does not provide the crisp and sharp, glare free information line that I get with the Heinie, So, if you like having a crisp serrated upper edge to make a fine sight picture, the HD is not the choice. But, I can live with this as the sight is designed for close quarter fast shots in varying light conditions, not for high x-count at longer ranges.

There are several other pluses and minuses, but this gives you the idea of why I ended up selecting the HD for a G43.

Many people who have little experience with white light and laser combos disregard them for some reason. The WL/L combo is extremely fast and works very well.

With iron sights we teach people to focus on the front sight and not on the target. This works fine on a static range, and in fact is often best for pure precision.

With that said, when shooting at dynamic targets, this method usually falls far short.

Look at it this way,

People most often kill you with their hands/what is in them. It is perfectly normal to focus on what is scaring you, or causing you concern. It is very, very difficult to teach someone to take their focus off of what is scaring a person, to focus on a front sight.

With a white light/laser combo, you put the threat in the center of the white light, focusing on the threat. It is very natural and intuitive.

In the center of the white light is the red laser dot, which is centered on the target. Once again, very natural.

I have taken a number of disbelievers, who believe that iron sights are superior for dynamic shooting, out for some low light bunny slaying. This is truly "performance on demand" shooting.

I have them use irons for a couple of hours. Then, I have them switch guns to one with a WL/L combo. Pretty much every person starts getting more hits,and faster.

Watching the light bulb come on amusing. Even the most die hard types tend to have an epiphany.

Lasers have been in use for special operations troops for quite a while now, and I don't know anybody how does not prefer them for low light use.

With that said, they are only part of the package. I firmly believe in having tritium sights for a back up, as lasers can and do occasionally fail, though these days they are extremely reliable.

The punchline is that during typical outdoors daylight conditions, I will rely on iron sights on handguns.Once I am indoors, or in any low light situation, I switch to a white light/laser combo.

CHEERS!

what Mackay said.

I know hundreds of people who have shot both iron sights and lasers, and none of the ones who were actually in a gunfight wished they had iron sights.

Not the best picture, but you can get the idea...

G19 with XS Big Dot Tritium. One of many solutions.

Lots of great options for sights. For fast on target I like the XS dot sights. Not the best for fine work but they get on target quick for me.

I like lasers. Just playing around with them at night they are so much quicker to find for me than tri/glow sights. Shooting at an odd angle you can see the target and not have to be lined up with your sight picture for irons. What really sold me on them is how well they work if I don't have glasses on or contacts in....huge improvement over trying to use standard sights.

That said, in daylight (wearing contacts/glasses) I put more on target faster with iron sights than using the laser. Not a huge difference, but still a difference.