night sight question

[High Altitude]

Could people with shooting experience using the various types of 3 dot night sights explain the various pros and cons on the following set ups. Which type of sight do you prefer and why?

1. rear dots with white rings
http://www.ameriglo.net/weapon_site/store_pages/images/gl113.jpg

2. rear dots with NO white rings
http://www.ameriglo.net/weapon_site/store_pages/images/gl146.jpg

3. rear sight with no dots at all but with a front dot night sight.
http://www.mle-shootingsports.com/images/SIG6.gif

I don't understand what the benefits/trade offs etc.... are of the different types of night sight setups. Why would you want one setup over the other?

[DMNSPD]

From my experience the first will give you a 3 white dot setup during the day and a 3 green dot night time setup. The second will give you a single white dot in the front and a black rear during daytime firing (thus drawing your attention to the front sight during the day and giving you all 3 dots at night to line up). The last one will give you a similar setup to the second but a single dot at night as well as day.

There is a fourth setup that you did not list. TruGlo makes a set called TFOs. These use fiber optic rods to give you three glowing dots during the day and then tritium capsules behind the fiber optics so that the dots still glow at night as well. This way you do not shift your aiming method at all regardless of lighting conditions.

I used to have Trijicons that were similar to the first setup you listed but traded them out for the fourth option I listed and now have two sets like the fourth and love them!

[wewo]

The TruGlo TFOs are on my Christmas wish list. I better be good to the wife ...

[SkipD]

The third option (night sight lighting in front but not in the rear sight) is extremely silly in my opinion. The reason for night sights in the first place is to be able to align your sights to keep the weapon aimed at the target when there is not enough light to properly see the sights. In a low-light situation, this combination would not provide the ability to align the sights because you could not see the rear sight to align it with the front sight.

[fredj338]

Skip, the thought behind the single front is you can misalign the three dots, a single front dot gets the front site on target. I've shot pistols both ways. Don't knock it till you try it, it does work.

[SkipD]

Originally posted by fredj338
Skip, the thought behind the single front is you can misalign the three dots, a single front dot gets the front site on target. I've shot pistols both ways. Don't knock it till you try it, it does work. When you have shot with this combination, was it in the dark with dimly lit targets? I can see how it can work when the pistol is in the light or the target is well lit, but am confused as to how you would know the sights are aligned on a target when the pistol is in the dark and there's not a lot of light on the target to silhouette the rear sight.

Thanks.

[DMNSPD]

I used the single front night sight setup on a G19C I had. It does work if you have a natural point of aim. It worked for me as 9 times out of 10 when I would point the gun at the intended target in the dark it was lined up enough to hit the target. The front night sight just confirms it for you.

That said, I do prefer the green/green 3 dot system over all others I have tried so far.