Best Pistol Sights for Old Eyes
Rob PincusDescription
What are the best pistol sights for old eyes? Rob Pincus stresses that you need to have good sights you can use reliably in a defensive situation. That means those sights need to be able to help you put the bullet where you need it to go very efficiently in the context of defensive firearms use.
AGING EYES
As you age, you may experience near-sightedness, far-sightedness, cataracts, poor night vision, or any other number of problems as your eyesight degrades. Rob feels that as his vision has changed as he’s gotten older, it’s been more important than ever to stick to the fundamentals that make a good defensive pistol sight: to have a large front sight post inside a very large rear sight notch.
Rob designed the claw sights with Ameriglo to be exactly that: a big, bright front square (not a circle) that sits inside a relatively wide rear notch. That allows you to pick up the front sight cleanly and easily when using self-defense weapons, even if your up-close vision has degraded.
TRADITIONAL SIGHTS
The traditional handgun sights, which were common for decades even on defensive pistols, have a very narrow front sight post and a narrow rear notch. Because this setup gives less tolerance for error and higher potential for precision, it is good for competition and bullseye shooting as well as law enforcement qualification courses.
But with defensive shooting and its related handgun training, we simply do not need that level of precision. Nine to 15 feet is the range of the majority of defensive shooting situations, and we are aiming at the chest or sometimes the head, so the large square front sight and wide rear notch are the best setup of pistol sights for old eyes, and in fact for any eyes.
OTHER SIGHT OPTIONS
Rob offers his opinions on the large circular front sight sitting in a wedge, and red-dot sights, and explains why these are not his preferred choice for defensive pistols. To sum up, Rob believes the best pistol sights for old eyes for defensive use are the bright front square and wide rear notch, such as the Ameriglo claw sight or other similar sights.
Let's talk about best pistol sights for quote and quote old eyes. Now for a couple of decades, I was told on the internet in person that every trade event I went to, that someday I was gonna have a better appreciation for why this topic is really important. The fact is I'm right there with you. These are my reading glasses. I understand what it is to mean. I might need special sights because my vision has changed. My vision has degraded especially, when it comes to focusing on things up close but I still feel the same way about this important topic as I did 15 or 20 years ago, because here's the deal. You need to have good sights that you can use reliably in a defensive situation. And that means that those sights need to be able to help you, put the bullet where that you need the bullet to go, very efficiently in the context of that defensive firearms use. So the best kind of sight for someone that's near-sighted, somebody that's farsighted, somebody that has cataracts, somebody that has bad night vision. There's a lot of different problems that someone might be encountering, as they get older. And I know as my eyes have changed, I've really appreciated sticking to the fundamentals, that I think make a good defensive pistol sight. And that is very simply to have not a very thin front sight post, inside of a very narrow channel of a rear sight notch. But in fact, to have a large front sight post, inside of a very forgiving and large rear sight notch. And of course the sights that I designed with the Ameriglo, the claw sights. That's exactly what you get. With the claw sight you get a big right front square and a square I think is really important as opposed to a circle that sits inside of a relatively wide rear notch. Now, what that allows you to do is pick up that front sight very cleanly and easily, even if your site has degraded. Your vision has degraded up close. So the problem is if you've used traditional sites, and if you go back 20, 30 years ago, many pistols even defensive pistols shipped with a very narrow front sight post. And in order to be able to be used well for qualification courses, for competition shooting, for bulls-eye shooting, you want a relatively narrow rear notch because what that gives you is less tolerance for error. So if we have a very thin front sight post, let's go back to that. And we have a very narrow notch in the rear sights. What we get is a higher potential for precision but with defensive shooting, we know that we are generally gonna be shooting at chests within 20 or 30 feet. Possibly shooting at the head even closer than that. Nine to 15 feet is the average range for the vast majority of defensive shooting situations. So we are able to get away with a bright front square that sits inside of that rear notch. Now a lot of people have so supposedly thought that the large dot would be a better option for them when it comes to defensive shooting sights. The problem with the large dot that sits inside of a wedge, is that you were giving up, quite a lot of potential for precision. Far more than you are with a square that lives inside of a rectangle. Now, certainly this is a compromise from a high level of precision narrow front blade if you will post, but this is too big a compromise, I think because you do give up the opportunity to really know where that bullet's going to go. When you are setting the ball on top of the wedge it's just not a natural alignment that human vision picks up very well. And of course the other option, which has become very popular in the last few years, is to have a red dot sight mounted on your defensive pistol. And certainly it is easier for people that have degraded vision in any way. Again, variety of different ways your vision can change, over the years, to Use that red dot sight, under the conditions that we find on the range in competition, all of this sort of choreographed perfect world scenarios we get into in the training and practice environment. The reality is though, you are doubling the cost of your gun, and you're really only increasing your potential, over this type of a setup with iron sights in a situation that is really perfect for that red dot. And that means lighting conditions. That means a clean window. And obviously it also means that you are going to be able to do better further away because that red dot sight really comes into play, when you start getting out the 15, 20, 25 yards I like the red dot sight for those environments but I also recognize that the red dot sight on the pistol creates new potential failures. Again, it doubles the cost of your gun. And again, the vast majority of your defensive shooting situations are going to be up close. So when it comes to the perfect site for old eyes I think that bright front square and the wide rear notch or something like the Ameriglo claw sight or several other options that are out there on the market is the best way for you to go for a defensive pistol.
Hi, I put a red dot on my KC2000 and no matter how I tried I couldn't pick up the dot without much gyrations, I really like the laser sight red green for me especially without glasses I can pick up the dot witout ANY trouble. All of my guns have a laser on them, and where the dot is the bullet will go.
As mentioned below Ameriglo no longer makes the CLAW sights. They do make a set called CAP for Glock, Sig, and S&W autos. Check it out. https://ameriglo.com/products/listing/glock-cap-sight-sets
What sight package replaced the CLAW?
The Ameriglo Claw sight has been discontinued what sight has Ameriglo replaced the Claw sigth with?
Rob: I understand the wide box sight in the wide rear sight for old eyes, but where are you trying to put that bullet, right on top of front sight sitting on top edge, or behind the box front sight??
where can i purchase the Ameriglo Claw sights you referenced in the video "Sights For Old Eyes"?
My question is on the broader subject of "Old Eyes". I'm left-handed with glaucoma in my left eye. Would you recommend shooting with both eyes open or changing hands and closing my left, or something else? Also, after more than forty years wearing contact lenses, I'm now wearing glasses full time. Do you recommend prescription shooting glasses, or don't bother? And, if so, any particular brand? Thank you!
Loved this video! I’ve been looking for a big front sight forever. Unfortunately the sight recommended here isn’t being produced by Ameriglo anymore. Can you recommend another?