Almost every gun owner is looking for something new and improved to upgrade his or her shooting performance. One of the least expensive and easiest means of making a change to a handgun is a new front sight, rear sight or both. (These sights will be referred to as “iron sights,” although they regularly are made of another material, such as plastic or steel.) More expensive but within most people’s economic reach is the increasingly popular Mini Red Dot Sight (MRDS), which adds a whole new dimension in the arena of sight systems for handguns.
Quest for the Perfect Sight
FORE AND AFT: Though Glock-style rear sights are best changed with a sight-changing tool, the front sights can usually be changed with a socket tool like the one above.
With the wide variety of sights for pistols and revolvers on the market these days, it could be a perpetual experiment for an individual seeking the magic of a perfect sight picture for all the applications relevant to his or her shooting interests. It is, however, beneficial for the shooter to know a little more than the simple fact that sights are needed to get a sight picture and that a sight picture is needed to get hits on target. Application — the intended use of the sights — will play a large role when selecting something new for a favorite handgun. The sight picture and hold area (spot on the target a shooter is physically lining the sights up to) will determine the sight height and configuration necessary to accommodate the shooter’s preference. In many cases, visual deficiencies or other considerations unique to an individual shooter necessitate a new set of sights to achieve optimal performance.
Night sights are almost mandatory on a carry gun, whether it be carried on duty by an armed professional or for personal protection by a responsible citizen. The fact that they are offered in multiple colors and design configurations allows the shooter to custom-tailor a night-sight combination to his or her visual preference.
Transitioning from iron sights to an MRDS adds another set of variables to work with in seeking that ideal sight picture. Most of the Mini Red Dot Sights, regardless of brand, have a variety of brightness levels to match the ambient light available to the shooter. MRDS systems also offer different dot-color options and dots of different diameters as well as shaped aiming images if a dot won’t meet the need. There are almost as many variables with an MRDS as there are iron sights, making finding the right sight system for the right application a long-term project in both cases.
Sometimes just trying something new to see if it makes any difference can be helpful to validate what’s been working or to point out what could work better. Such a change can even uncover the next step in a shooter’s advancement. Some brands of guns are more favorable to changing sights than others, and this should be considered before taking on the task — particularly if it is to be a “do-it-yourself” project. Sights are an area on firearms that can be fouled up easily if proper attention to detail isn’t given its due.
So, Why Make the Change?
Arguably, the most prevalent reason to change sights on a handgun is to alter the strike of the round on the target to coincide with the point of aim on the target. This could equate to an elevation adjustment or a windage adjustment or both. On a pistol or revolver with adjustable sights, this can be accomplished by turning the windage and elevation screws in the proper direction to achieve the desired results. Fortunately, most pistols and some revolvers without adjustable sights have removable fixed sights that can be replaced with different-sized factory or aftermarket sights to provide a desired sight picture.
When making elevation or windage changes, moving or replacing front or rear sights can become a bit confusing. The guidelines are simple and easy to follow: When working with rear sights, move the sights in the direction the bullet strike needs to move on the target. When working with front sights, the opposite is true.
When making elevation or windage changes, moving or replacing front or rear sights can become a bit confusing.
Perhaps even more confusing is how much the sights need to be moved to achieve the desired result. This can be quickly determined by measuring the distance between the back of the rear sight and the portion of the front sight viewed through the rear sight notch to align the sights. This measurement is referred to as the “sight radius.” The sight radius is multiplied by the distance the point of impact on the target differs from the point of aim, either vertically or horizontally. (A separate equation will have to be done for each because the sights can only be adjusted vertically for elevation and horizontally for windage.) The sight radius multiplied by the impact difference on the target is then divided by the distance to the target in inches to find the amount of sight movement required to have the point of aim and the point of bullet impact coincide at the target.
Using this formula, a pistol with a 6-inch sight radius needing a 3-inch adjustment for point of impact would need its sight to be moved 0.02 inches to bring the point of aim and point of impact of the bullet together at 25 yards. All it takes is the proper measurements to determine the amount of movement to get the desired result.
Selection and Installation
Most manufacturers offer a variety of sight heights to adjust vertical target impacts with values assigned to them to accommodate a customer’s needs. Windage adjustments are achieved by moving the rear sight in the dovetail in the direction the strike of the round needs to be moved.
Fortunately, the job of sight replacement or sight movement on pistols with sights mounted in dovetails is made easier by the use of sight pushers offered by a manufacturer or one of the gunsmith supply houses in the industry. Precise movement and/or installation of a different set of sights can be done with some judicious work utilizing a soft drift punch and hammer. Placing the slide in the jaws of a padded jaw vice is a great help when using the hammer-and-punch method.
A note of caution though: Manufacturers are not consistent on which side of the dovetail new sights should be started into for best results. Dovetails themselves can vary in dimension enough to make fitting new sights difficult. Read and follow the instructions that come with the sights or contact the manufacturer for advice on installation and adjustment. If fitting or metal removal is required to successfully install a set of sights, a prudent individual will always work on the least expensive part first.
Manufacturers are not consistent on which side of the dovetail new sights should be started into for best results. Dovetails themselves can vary in dimension enough to make fitting new sights difficult.
An oft-overlooked reason for changing sights on a handgun is to accommodate the natural change in a shooter’s vision that all but inevitably comes with age. The problem is usually the ability to clearly distinguish the front sight from the rear sight as they are superimposed on a target to achieve a consistent sight picture. It helps to understand how the eye will automatically center objects, which is a subject for another time. That said, sight alignment can be enhanced by increasing the width of the rear sight notch in relation to the width of the front sight so the fuzzy edges of the rear sight notch and outline of the front sight can be distinguished from one another. This will allow the front sight to be centered in the rear sight notch precisely, even though both sights are not as sharp as they once were. The eye will automatically center the front sight vertically and horizontally in the rear sight notch as long as they can be distinguished from one another.
Some shooters benefit from contrasting colors of their front and rear sights, which will allow them to more easily distinguish the difference between the two. The resulting contrast enables a consistent relationship of the sights and the target for an acceptable sight picture, yielding accuracy that can often exceed expectations. Aftermarket sights of varying sizes, shapes, colors and configurations are available for most of the popular handgun models currently produced. A simple change from one combination to another will allow a shooter to discover what he or she likes best.
Upping the Game
Recently on the scene are Mini Red Dot Sights, which are taking the handgun market to a level never seen before. They have gained acceptance in every arena — from sport shooting to law enforcement to military service. The major benefits of the MRDS are many, but at the top of the list is allowing a shooter to look at the target and superimpose the red dot on the visual point of reference for an accurate shot. The fact that there are only two points of reference — the dot and the target — and that either one can be the primary point of reference at the shooter’s discretion makes for successful hits on target.
Many manufacturers make pistols that are MRDS-compatible or that come already equipped with an MRDS from the factory. Most are equipped with raised iron sights that co-witness with the aiming image in the MRDS, meaning they align with the visible dot on the sight’s lens. This is an ideal setup for a shooter who likes to experiment with both sight systems to see what serves him or her the best.
Most modern handguns will fire more accurately than their owners can shoot them. Aside from smoothing the trigger, there are few actions that can be taken with a handgun’s layout that can be more beneficial in improving shooter performance than changing what a shooter is seeing. That’s as good a reason as any to change the sights. As with other aspects of firearms, the more types you can try before you buy, the better. But once you find the combination that works best for you, your performance will have nowhere to go but up.
