Looking at some sights
By MARJ LAW
Handgun sights are not all the same. I know many readers will mentally say: “Duh!” but Newbie will have to learn how to use the sights she has on her handgun. And, if her sights are changeable or if her gun changes, she’ll figure out over time which sights are the ones she prefers. She might have a preference for fiber optics, night sights, big white dots, u-shaped rear sights with front ramps… Yep. A lot of sights, but Newbie Glenda is taking her gun to the Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) range for the first time.
“OK, am I supposed to look at the sights near me or the one out front?” Glenda asks. Her gun is sporting three big white dots: two in the rear and one in the front.
“Let’s look at both,” I suggest. “First, here’s a piece of paper. These two dots represent the sights nearest to you. They are your rear sights. The dot further away from you is your front sight. They are lined up in a straight line on this paper.
“Now, hold up your gun, muzzle always pointing away from you, and make the sights appear to be in a straight line. When the center dot is just below the bull’s-eye on your target, this is when you have lined up your sights properly.
“Remember your strong stance and squeeze the trigger.”
“I did it! I almost hit a bullseye!” Glenda is excited.
Three big white dot sights are easy for me to see. I like them. Some guns have smaller white dots. I like them too, but I sure do appreciate the larger white dots more.
Some guns have what look to be small white dots. Actually, in bright light, they look less like white dots and more like milky glass dots.
If you cup your hands around the rear sights to take away most of the light, you’ll notice them glow.
These are night sights. They are glass vials filled with tritium. Tritium glows in the dark. People in the military may need night sights. You might want night sights on your handgun if it is to be kept by the bed and this is your defensive weapon at night.
Night sights with two dots in the rear and one in the front line up just like the three dots on Glenda’s gun. Well, almost.
If you bring a gun with night sights to a dark place, you’ll notice that the dots are not so close together as they appear in daylight. The sights are built on the gun with usually a black surround holding them in place. The surround won’t show up in the dark. This means it will take some practice to align the sights, since they will appear to be further apart.
Joe says night sights have a half-life of eight years. Basically, at 10 half-lives or eighty years, the tritium light will fade to nothingness. By around 50 years, the brightness may have faded so that you’ll want to replace the sights.
Good news is, tritium sights are replaceable. If your gun is brand-new, you will probably not notice any fading for about eight years. Even after those eight years, you still have plenty of years before you think: “Time to get new sights.”
I’m not a big fan of night sights. Since they are enclosed in black metal, they are fairly small. In daylight, they don’t show up as well as white dots. They look tiny in comparison to big white dots.
You may need tritium sights on your gun. If so, take into account the age of the gun, so you’ll have a good guess as to how long these sights will perform well for you.
Most new handguns have sights that are replaceable. Some of my friends like to put on fiber optic sights. I call them “Christmas tree lights” as they are often red and green. Light shining on these sights makes them appear to glow brightly. Take the two green rear sights and move your gun until the front red sight appears in the middle. Your bull’s-eye should be right above the red fiber optic sight. Easy to see!
Some handguns have a squared-off u-shape sight in the rear. Sometimes, this “U” has a white line around it. The front sight can be a black rectangle. In this case, you move the gun to where the black rectangular front sight sits within the U of the rear sight. Like the three-dot sights, the combination of the U and the rectangle form a straight plane when aligned perfectly. Then, you’ll aim with the bullseye centered and atop this plane.
Some of these rear sights do not have the white stripe around them. In my opinion, this makes aligning the sights a bit more difficult.
Others have a front sight that is called a “ramp.” It is a black rectangle closest to the muzzle of the gun. It slopes downward towards the rear sights. Again, you place the top of the front sight to form a solid plain within the rear sights.
Black on black sights can be difficult to see easily. A lot of men, yes men! bring out their bright white or neon orange nail polish. The front sight or the ramp’s front sight can be covered in polish. This makes it easier to see against the black rear sights. If you ever want to sell your gun, you can carefully wipe off the polish with nail polish remover or acetone.
Big, small, and tritium are often found in sights having the configuration of two dots in the rear and one in the front.
Other handguns have a square U-shape in the rear and a rectangle or ramp in the front.
“Well, that’s not much to learn about sights,” Glenda says happily. “Most have three dots and others have the U-shape thing going on.”
Yikes!
“Sorry, Glenda.” We’ll talk sights again one day, but she doesn’t need to be overwhelmed.
Another time, we can discuss figure eight sights, and guns whose sights are simply a groove along the top of the frame. Some guns have rear sights with a white line to partner with the white line of the front sight.
The best way to learn to love your sights is to practice regularly. We usually visit the WCSO on Wednesday mornings around 10. We may soon come earlier: at 9:30 or so, because of the heat. You are welcome to join Joe, me and friends on Wednesday July 12th, and Wednesdays after that if you would like a bit of assistance, if you want to learn the rules of the range, or if you simply want moral support when you shoot your handgun.
The WCSO range is very safe. There is always a deputy at the front desk. Any one of them has a huge amount of firearm knowledge and they are always willing and happy to share what they know. They’re also willing and happy to help if you have a difficulty.
After you visit the range, you can decide if you’d like to be a member. This is the most reasonable range I’ve visited. For $75.00/year, you, your spouse, and supervised children under 18 can shoot any time the range is open. This is usually Tuesday through Saturday (with exceptions of holidays). According to the WCSO Range website, they are open from about 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Do you have a handgun? The WCSO range is a great place to learn.
Marj Law is the former director of Keep Wakulla County Beautiful who has become an avid shooter in retirement.