Nightsights

[9x18_Walther]

Does anyone have some photos of tritium nightsights new and nightsights after a decade or other long period of time?

Not quite sure if these sights that came with a handgun need to be replaced. They seem a bit dim.

 

[oldandslow]

9x18,

I've had Trijicons or Meprolights in some of my pistols for about ten years and they still seem to function fine. The thing to remember is that the green tritium sights will lose about half of their brightness every 12 years. The red and yellow lose brightness in about half that time. Sorry I don't own a camera to take pics.

best wishes- oldandslow

PS- if you want to get the sights relamped the easiest way is to send the slide to a company called Tooltech ( www.tooltechgunsight.com) who will replace the tritium vials with new ones for a reasonable price.

 

[9x18_Walther]

Thanks.

I just bought a LEO-trade in USP that had some nightsights on it, but they seem pretty dim to me. To what am I comparing? Nothing. I'm taking a hunch.

Well, I just purchased a new set of Trijicon HDs, so we will see how much I can sell the old ones for...

 

[Theohazard]

I'm no photographer, but it seems to me that using a photo won't work well. Considering tritium is only visible in low-light situations, it's going to be really hard to tell if the difference is due to the brightness of the tritium or the camera settings. Or just the overall quality of the camera.

A better way is to try to determine how old your sights are. The half-life of tritium is about 12 years; so in 12 years they should be about half as bright as when they were new.

If they're factory sights and the box came with a little manila envelope that holds the test-fire casings, often the date on the package will tell you when it was test-fired in the factory, which should be pretty close to its manufacture date.

The oldest set of tritium sights I had were made by Meprolight, and I started to notice them getting dim at around the 8 year mark. Even then, they were still definitely usable as night sights. I never found out how much more noticable the dimness became after that because I sold that handgun soon after.

EDIT: Oops, forgot to refresh my browser before answering; when I wrote this response there were no replies yet.

 

[9x18_Walther]

Thanks Theo.

The USP is from 2004, so I'm guessing the sights were probably put on then. I'm pretty well versed in physics/chemistry, but the half-life is pretty useless to me when I've actually never seen the brightness of new nightsights. I'm doubtful the LE agency would have replaced the sights, but I have a pusher and Trijicon HDs on the way!

 

[wogpotter]

I'm no photographer, but it seems to me that using a photo won't work well. Considering tritium is only visible in low-light situations, it's going to be really hard to tell if the difference is due to the brightness of the tritium or the camera settings. Or just the overall quality of the camera.

The problem isn't getting the low light to record but balancing the exposure so that the actual image has the same exposure so the difference in light emitted isn't messed up by the camera's exposure system trying to "standardize" everything for "correct exposure".

Example Which of these is "correct" the same compass, same illumination from the glow in the dark, but different exposures on the camera.:

(Images (c) Wogpotter 2014)

 

[DennisD]

I'd just take the gun outside at night and sight down the gun under a few different low light conditions. Then decide if they are bright enough for your needs. The percentage of original brightness doesn't seem as important as if they will still work for your needs.

 

[wogpotter]

Yep, that will work.
I have a 18 year old Betalight operated compass. Its dimmer than it was, but its still enough to work fine.
Just make sure to let your eyes night acclimatize for 15~20 minutes before testing.

 

[9x18_Walther]

Hmmm... I am a bit disappointed.

The new Trijicon HDs came in and they look to be the same brightness as the old Meprolights? What the *?@!.

Guess I'll be returning them.

 

[DennisD]

Don't you hate it when that happens; you think you are upgrading and it turns out to be no better. Man I hate when I blow money that way. At least now you know.

 

[9x18_Walther]

Don't you hate it when that happens; you think you are upgrading and it turns out to be no better. Man I hate when I blow money that way. At least now you know.

Well I'm going to guess that the sights were replaced right before the guns were taken out of service because its pretty much equal in brightness.

Honestly, I never knew how "bright" night sights were supposed to be. Now I know!

Looks like the sight pusher was for nothing... Maybe I'll put night sights on something else.

 

[Theohazard]

Most people seem to put way too much emphasis on night sights. To me, tritium night sights are a bonus, but what I'm really looking for is a good pair of sights that work well during the time of day where I use them most: Daylight.

That's what makes Trijicon HDs so good; they have an excellent daytime sight picture with the large, bright front dot and the wide, black U-notch rear. The fact that they also have tritium vials for use in low-light situations is a bonus, but it's not my primary concern.

Keep the HD sights; in my opinion they're a big upgrade over your old sights, which I'm guessing were three-white-dot sights, which I hate.

 

[9x18_Walther]

Keep the HD sights; in my opinion they're a big upgrade over your old sights, which I'm guessing were three-white-dot sights, which I hate.

Too late! The old sites are meprolights and they have a white outline (they're pretty good in day and night). My concern was they were a bit dim. Apparently they are pretty new.

 

[Theohazard]

My concern was they were a bit dim. Apparently they are pretty new.

I understand, but my point was that Trijicon HDs give a much better daytime sight picture than the white outline 3-dot Meprolight sights that are currently on your gun.

 

[9x18_Walther]

I understand, but my point was that Trijicon HDs give a much better daytime sight picture than the white outline 3-dot Meprolight sights that are currently on your gun.

Totally understand. I let them sit out a while and then checked their visibility. I'm not a huge fan (I tend to prefer totally blank notch and post sights).

 

[Theohazard]

I let them sit out a while and then checked their visibility.

Now I'm not sure I understand. What was the purpose of letting them sit out a while? None of the sights in question require charging in the light.

I'm not a huge fan (I tend to prefer totally blank notch and post sights).

Yeah, sights are certainly a personal thing, and what your eyes are used to often makes things easier. I say pick the sights that give you the best daytime sight picture, and then view the tritium inserts as a bonus.

 

[9x18_Walther]

Now I'm not sure I understand. What was the purpose of letting them sit out a while? None of the sights in question require charging in the light.

The Trijicon's use a tritium insert with a photoluminescent paint outline.

The brightness of the tritium in both was about equal. I didn't realize that the Trijicon's require light exposure for the paint outline to glow. I think I would go with tritium + fiber optic in the future.

 

[Theohazard]

The Trijicon's use a tritium insert with a photoluminescent paint outline.

I never knew that. Thanks for teaching me something new. To be sure, I just tested mine. And I'll be darned, but the front sight glowed after I charged it with a flashlight.

And that shows how useless photoluminescent sights are: I've used Trijicon HDs for three years now and I never noticed it. Every time I've trained with an HD-equipped gun I was either drawing from a holster in the dark or I was outside and the light had gradually gotten dimmer and the photoluminescence had dimmed until it wasn't noticable. Either way, I've never seen the photoluminescence; the only glow I've ever noticed was from the tritium in the sights.

To me, that just reinforces the fact that's it's a good idea to pick your sights based on their daytime performance. And that's where the HDs really stand out in my opinion.

I didn't realize that the Trijicon's require light exposure for the paint outline to glow. I think I would go with tritium + fiber optic in the future.

Ignore the photoluminescence for a moment. The bright dot on the HDs does pretty much the same thing that fiber optic sights do; it's highly visible in the daytime but not very visible in low light.

 

[9x18_Walther]

Ignore the photoluminescence for a moment. The bright dot on the HDs does pretty much the same thing that fiber optic sights do; it's highly visible in the daytime but not very visible in low light.

Pretty much. I'll probably buy the HDs for my next purchase Glock 19 or Sig 226.

 

[Knightsofnee]

I once read a post from a guy who was worried to death that his newly installed Tritium sights were so bright that they would illuminate his face when he brought his pistol up, thus making him a target for the bad guy. Well at least you don't have to worry about that.