{"id":7664,"date":"2019-08-24T04:21:56","date_gmt":"2019-08-24T10:21:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gunmagwarehouse.com\/blog\/?p=7664"},"modified":"2022-06-21T16:12:37","modified_gmt":"2022-06-21T22:12:37","slug":"night-sights-tritium-pros-cons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunmagwarehouse.com\/blog\/night-sights-tritium-pros-cons\/","title":{"rendered":"Night sights: need ’em or not?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Walk into a gun shop, talk to some LEOs, or just speak with some Subject Matter Enthusiast who carries, and talk about sight selection. There’s a pretty good chance they’ll tell you must <\/em>get night sights. Others will vehemently deny they’re necessary at all.<\/p>\n

So do you need ’em? Maybe. Maybe not. That assessment differs depending upon which SME (Enthusiast or <\/em>Expert) you talk to. Before you spend the money on adding night sights to your weapon (assuming it didn’t already have them installed), work through some considerations first.<\/p>\n

You will note if you work your way through all<\/em> the information below that opinions vary. That’s a Good Thing.<\/em> If we’re all thinking alike, nobody’s really thinking. Different perspectives are important if you want to make an informed choice. <\/p>\n

But before we get started, if you’re new at this, let’s address the first question.<\/p>\n

What are night sights? <\/em><\/h3>\n

What are night sights made of?<\/h3>\n

Put simply, night sights glow in the dark. Explained somewhat more thoroughly, they are weapon sights \u2014 usually though not always assumed colloquially to be on a pistol \u2014 designed to allow a shooter to find and align his or her sights in the dark. They are often referred to as self-illuminated<\/em>, though anymore this is a fairly redundant term. Most (though again, not all) night sights are mad with Tritium, which is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. Sights made with Tritium are treated with a phosphor material that reacts with the Tritim’s radioactive elements to become…wait for it…phosphorescent. <\/em><\/p>\n

By definition, night sights do not <\/em>require the use of an artificial light source (e.g. a flashlight) to “pick them up”. This is true only when it comes to acquiring the sights with the naked eye. <\/em>Positively identifying what’s on the other end of your muzzle is another matter entirely. <\/p>\n

Tritium sights are distinct from fiber optic sights<\/a> in that the latter, which often function very well under low- or no-light conditions, “gather” ambient light vs. producing their own. They are less expensive than tritium sights but are also substantially more fragile. Tritium sights produce light via “tritium luminescence”, which is a fancy way of saying they glow<\/em>. They don’t require electrical or solar energization to be luminescent (until they wear out at least). <\/p>\n

The science of tritium sights is little different than that of illuminated watch hands and some of the “permanently” illuminated signs you see on the walls of public buildings. <\/p>\n

Night sights do not <\/em>eliminate the need for one or more artificial light sources. In the ideal setup, a handgun will have a WML (weapon-mounted light)<\/a> on it and the person using that pistol will also <\/em>have a handheld flashlight. <\/p>\n

\"Should<\/div>\n

Pros and Cons of Night Sights<\/h2>\n

Night sights: Let’s take a look<\/h3>\n

See what we did there?<\/span><\/p>\n

This is a work in progress. It will be updated periodically with more commentary and information. <\/p>\n

Edit 4\/9\/21: a video explaining tritium has been added below; the author’s personal sight selection to be added shortly.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mike Pannone, CTT Solutions<\/h3>\n

I’m going to start with Mike Pannone of CTT Solutions. This video changed up how I personally view night sights (pun intended) and though it’s a few years old now, the info and perspective is (imho) excellent.<\/p>\n