It is then possible to instinctively make minor corrections for subsequent shots. At the moment of firing, the muzzle flash creates a strobe-like flash that perfectly silhouettes the position of the sights at the exact moment of the shot.
What they can do is allow the shooter to call his shot. I do believe they have a purpose, however. Muzzle flashes can destroy or severely diminish night vision, and they will not illuminate any but the closest of targets and should not be relied upon for that purpose. I have one last comment about muzzle flash. In this instance, visually recovering the silhouette target was actually easier than with night sights. After the first shot was touched off, the muzzle flash destroyed any hope of recovering the pale white dot and outline for subsequent shots. With stock sights it was next to impossible given the amount of light I allowed for this test to make out the white dot and outlines before the muzzle flash. Lesson? Ports really have no place on a defensive pistol. Imagine how badly the flash would have affected the shooter if the gun had been ported. The flash did, however, cause havoc in picking up the darkened target silhouette for subsequent shots because after the flash, the light from the night sights was visually stronger than the image created by the silhouette. With night sights, the muzzle flash did not totally eliminate the ability of the eye to retain a constant sight picture. When one is concentrating on the front sight, one's focus is directed exactly where the brightest part of the muzzle flash, which is visible to the shooter, is going to manifest itself.
#Glock night sights vs meprolight full
Other than the fact that the sights stood out like a full moon on a blanket of freshly fallen snow, I noticed some important things that I feel must be commented on. We did not shoot a slow-fire stage to obtain the smallest groups, for it was considered a given that a night-sight - equipped firearm would have a definite advantage there.īefore I get into the results of my informal test, I wanted to point out that I had never before fired a pistol with night sights in a low-light scenario. 2 performed the same two tests, followed by yours truly. The same course was fired with the same instructions: Go for center-mass hits, and use only the time necessary to reasonably guarantee them. Group size was measured after all the shooting was over. The exercise was repeated twice, and the times were recorded. The point was not to shoot tight groups but to achieve adequate defensive accuracy for the given distance and lighting conditions. 1 was asked to fire three shots with night sights, taking only the time necessary to personally feel comfortable that he was placing center-mass hits in the target. Using timed fire beginning from the ready position, shooter No. No warm-up fire was allowed the shooters. Any closer and the silhouette could be engaged strictly with instinctively aimed fire, and the shooter might ignore the sights altogether in favor of pure speed. Any farther away and we would have to introduce additional light to simply make out the silhouette, and this would render the non-enhanced sights visible. Ten yards was determined to be the maximum effective range for target acquisition in our low-light situation, and frankly, all the shooters pretty much agreed it was on the ragged edge of a couple feet too far. Three misses, for an 83 percent hit rate on target It was there that my modest test was conducted. There are qualified expert trainers on hand for individual instruction, and there is a professionally designed and equipped formal classroom as well. Not many gun shops can boast a "try before you buy" policy. The only indoor shooting range in Southern Illinois, it has a fully stocked retail gun shop handling the hottest-selling brands of handguns, both new and used, and also has a huge supply of rental firearms of every sort, including Class Three guns like the UZI and an H&K MP-5. Owned by Steven King (no relation to the writer), it is a state-of-the-art indoor range for both handguns and rifles up to and including. But I was extremely fortunate to locate the Belleville Shooting Range, in Belleville, Illinois. In my area there are few shooting ranges, and only one would grant me the privilege of turning off the lights. Was I right? There was only one way I could be satisfied that I was correct, and that was to conduct some reality-based tests.įinding a suitable place in which to properly utilize night sights is not as easy as one would imagine.