Night Sights

skylighter · March 22, 2013, 10:17 PM

I am a phosphorescent pigment engineer and a firearms enthusiast. I wrote an article on the benefits, limitations, and correct application of night sights (glow in the dark, photoluminescent, phosphorescent) that I thought some of you might enjoy.

Night Sights

Enjoy,
Danny Clark

2ndsojourn · March 23, 2013, 09:18 PM

Better than tritium?

skylighter · March 23, 2013, 09:38 PM

Different than tritium.

It is cheaper than tritium at about $2.50 per firearm compared to $80. It lasts considerably longer than tritium (loses about 5% over 10 years). Tritium cannot be legally taken out of the US by serviceman, even on official deployments.

Read the article for details.

Danny

AK103K · March 24, 2013, 10:18 AM

If you can get it to work like tritium, you might be onto something. Other than that, I dont see it really going anywhere.

I can pick up any of my tritium equipped guns and the dots glow bright, 24/7/365, with no other light source. Thats pretty tough to beat.

That $80 initial outlay, works out to roughly $6-8 a year too, so its really not a bad deal.

dayman · March 24, 2013, 11:03 AM

$150 for "not new" handgun night sights? And a semi-custom job to install them?
Either I'm missing something or you need to find a new gunsmith.

The issue I see with phosphorescent sights is that the places I keep my guns - safes and holsters - are all quite dark. I'm not sure how they'd charge.
Tritium sights do cost a bit, but since I put them on pretty much every gun I own, I just figure them into the cost of buying a gun. It's only like $10/year

Are you sure that Soldiers aren't allowed to take tritium sights with them on deployments? I've never heard that before, and I'm pretty sure I've read lots about them being used on deployments.

rodfac · March 24, 2013, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Tritium cannot be legally taken out of the US by serviceman, even on official deployments.

I'd be interested in your source for that statement...Son #2, just home from Afghanistan might disagree. Too, what about the standard GI lensatic compass...with Tritium, I think, markers on the bezel.

Here's an ebay listing for one complete with the milspec number.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/CAMMENGA-TRI...item51a906b60b

Best Regards, Rod

thedudeabides · March 24, 2013, 11:14 AM

The half life of Tritium is 12.3 years. I think I can afford to replace my night sights every 10 years, assuming they weren't put in at peak freshness to have a gun that's night-ready out of the safe.

AK103K · March 24, 2013, 01:49 PM

Quote:

most of the time, it's $150, and the sights are not new. So it's more like $30 per year, because replacing them is a sort of semi-custom job. Still, it's chump change, well worth the expense.

I do my own, so it costs me what the sights cost, which for the last couple of sets, was $68 on sale. They were new too, and were dated the same year as they were installed.

Replacing them is easy enough, and so far, I usually recover half the cost of a new set, selling the old ones on EBay. That alone had paid for the sight tools.

Of the 6 sets of used sights Ive replaced, I have yet to replace a set that were totally dead, and most were beyond the 12 year warranty date when they were replaced. Even then, while not as bright as new, they still glowed, and were visible in the dark.

March 22, 2013, 10:17 PM	#1
skylighter Junior Member Join Date: October 19, 2011 Posts: 7	Night Sights I am a phosphorescent pigment engineer and a firearms enthusiast. I wrote an article on the benefits, limitations, and correct application of night sights (glow in the dark, photoluminescent, phosphorescent) that I thought some of you might enjoy. Night Sights Enjoy, Danny Clark

March 24, 2013, 11:03 AM	#5
dayman Senior Member Join Date: April 18, 2011 Location: The Woods Posts: 1,197	$150 for "not new" handgun night sights? And a semi-custom job to install them? Either I'm missing something or you need to find a new gunsmith. The issue I see with phosphorescent sights is that the places I keep my guns - safes and holsters - are all quite dark. I'm not sure how they'd charge. Tritium sights do cost a bit, but since I put them on pretty much every gun I own, I just figure them into the cost of buying a gun. It's only like $10/year Are you sure that Soldiers aren't allowed to take tritium sights with them on deployments? I've never heard that before, and I'm pretty sure I've read lots about them being used on deployments. __________________ si vis pacem para bellum Last edited by dayman; March 24, 2013 at 11:16 AM.

March 23, 2013, 09:18 PM	#2
2ndsojourn Senior Member Join Date: January 15, 2013 Location: South Jersey Posts: 1,416	Better than tritium?

March 23, 2013, 09:38 PM	#3
skylighter Junior Member Join Date: October 19, 2011 Posts: 7	Different than tritium. It is cheaper than tritium at about $2.50 per firearm compared to $80. It lasts considerably longer than tritium (loses about 5% over 10 years). Tritium cannot be legally taken out of the US by serviceman, even on official deployments. Read the article for details. Danny

March 24, 2013, 10:18 AM	#4
AK103K Senior Member Join Date: May 1, 2001 Posts: 10,223	If you can get it to work like tritium, you might be onto something. Other than that, I dont see it really going anywhere. I can pick up any of my tritium equipped guns and the dots glow bright, 24/7/365, with no other light source. Thats pretty tough to beat. That $80 initial outlay, works out to roughly $6-8 a year too, so its really not a bad deal.

March 24, 2013, 11:14 AM	#7
thedudeabides Senior Member Join Date: August 22, 2012 Posts: 1,031	The half life of Tritium is 12.3 years. I think I can afford to replace my night sights every 10 years, assuming they weren't put in at peak freshness to have a gun that's night-ready out of the safe.