Are Night Sights Important on Your Defensive Weapon?

When shooting in a defensive situation, being able to pick up your front sight quickly is critical if you are striving to be the first person to make an accurately placed shot(s). Law Enforcement statistics demonstrate that a large number of defensive exchanges occur in the evening hours in low light conditions. This is why it is important that your sights have the capability of being visible in every lighting condition, whether it be daylight or low light. Many have installed night sights on their firearms which have tritium vials inserted that give off a mild glow, so that sight alignment can be achieved quickly in low light applications. They are typically good for the first shot, but after the muzzle flash in a dark environment, they can not been seen for the follow up shot(s) until your eyes recover. This is why manufacturers are now making ammo that has reduced flash, and also why many also carry a flashlight utilized in the momentary switching mode which can help to overcome a temporary condition of blindness as well as to identify their attacker while temporarily blinding them. Tritium night sights initially work well in low light situations, but do not offer any real advantage during daylight hours. Enter fiber optic sights. They are highly visible in daylight, because the fiber optic rods collect available light which makes the end of the rod which is the dot on your sight glow. This is why many competitive shooters often use the fiber optic setup. It offers quick acquisition of the front sight in a daylight environment. Unfortunately fiber optic sights do not work in low light, because there is not enough ambient light for them to collect and refocus. Now we will explore the third option, which is a combination of fiber optic and tritium night sights. This type of sighting system is made by one manufacturer who holds the patent. That company is Tru Glo whose headquarters are in Richardson Texas.

I personally favor the fiber optic/ tritium combination. In my opinion, it provides the most consistent sight picture under every light condition that you will ever encounter. They are bright in low light, and can be also seen clearly on overcast days. In direct sunlight the fiber optic rods glow like lasers. In dim light the tritium vial which is coupled with the fiber optic rod gives off a glow, which is transferred down the rod and magnified by the fiber optics. The fiber optic rod is inset into a steel casing to protect it from damage. A port in the top of the sight allows light in so that the rod can capture it.These TFO sights work well in both low light and daylight, giving you a bright green dot that is easy to acquire. It is interesting to note, that when you activate a rail mounted strobe on your pistol in a dark room, you can still see the green dot on the front sight. This could be the tritium, but I personally believe that it is the fiber optic rod collecting the ambient light as it is reflected from the room surfaces which causes the sight to glow. I highly recommend this combination, as it gives you the best of all worlds. As a side note, I had a few discussions with the people at Tru Glo and they were very friendly and helpful, and gave me some good technical information. I would like to thank them publicly for taking the time to talk to me, which helped me to learn about their exceptional product.