Can't See my Handgun sights very well any more?

It may be worth handling a gun in a shop that has a fiber optic front sight to see if that's an improvement. If that seems to do the trick, grab some Tru Glo fiber optic front sights to fit your guns, or even better, get Tru Glo TFX fiber optic/tritium front sights. I have one of these on my PPS and it's a super high visibility sight, and I have pretty bad eye sight myself.

Maybe try some fiber optic sights on the 69? I know in low light they aren't helpful but they glow nicely in daylight.

On the 63, I'd just paint the front sight with a white base coat first and then bright green or orange.

If low lighting is a concern, I'd upgrade to tritium night sights and/or lasers.

I feel your pain. My eyes are to the point that I need to carry +1.25 readers. When target shooting it's just an inconvenience that I'm not used to. Magnifying safety/shooting glasses work well.
For self defense there is little chance I will have time to put my readers on. I have Tru-Glow night sights
on on of my carry guns. The front sight is a little larger than most with a white ring around the fiber optic/tritium. It works well for me.
If my arms were just 10 or 12 inches longer it would fix the issue altogether.

At Amazon I bought Elvex RX500 Full Lens .75 Magnification Ballistic Rated Safety Glasses to help my 70-year-old eyes. The .75 is half of what I use for reading glasses (1.50 diopter).

They are full lens, not bi-focals. I can see the target well enough and the front sight clearly. Now these are my go-to shooting glasses for pistols.

After cleaning it with acetone, I daubed the back of my 1911’s front sight with white nail polish and the top half of the back of the front sight with brilliant orange nail polish.

Shooting defensive pistol league, I prefer it. Shooting skeet, I use regular safety glasses since I am not looking at the front bead.

Had the same experience. After cataract surgery, I'm seeing everything, including the sights on my pistols, a lot better. Just sayin'.

Four options in my book and I am right there with you,
1. Lasergrips or a laser.
2. Adding a holographic red dot
3. For range use cling on bifocals (the advantage here is you can place them on top of the lens which is much easier on your neck muscles)https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&k...&hvtargid=kwd-91014762&ref=pd_sl_1v7sav9y0p_b
4. Learn to point shoot

Prescription shooting glasses with amber lenses.

Get a fresh eye exam, tell the doc what you want to do, and order a pair of dedicated shooting glasses.
Mine are Decot Hy-Wide.

I think I just recently burned my old targets....but they proved tighter groups with my shooting glasses.

I shoot trap with them too.
Money well spent.

I have the same problem as the OP. My 67 year old eyes are not what they used to be. I don't use the sights on my pistols anymore. I point shoot. It is a pain getting old.

Get a pair of FIXED* focus glasses set at 30" (or wherever the end of your extended fingertip is). That will bring the front sight back into sharpness.

* (cheap)

I went to 'eye buy direct' and ordered four or five sets of cheap, polycarbonate 'computer focus' glasses with my prescription. Lets me focus on the front sight better, and along with fiber optic front sights (with narrow .100" blades from Dawson Precision if available for the gun) lets me at least have a sporting chance of hitting the target.


Larry

Anyone got any ideas to help

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Not being smug...see an eye doctor.

we added a BIG DOT orange FS to our glock 19 it is really great for picking up the FS rapidly

Armored farmer said:

Prescription shooting glasses with amber lenses.

Get a fresh eye exam, tell the doc what you want to do, and order a pair of dedicated shooting glasses.
Mine are Decot Hy-Wide.

I think I just recently burned my old targets....but they proved tighter groups with my shooting glasses.

I shoot trap with them too.
Money well spent.

Click to expand...

I was about to say, see your eye doctor and explain you need shooting glasses. Very well worth the money indeed.

I'm gonna vote, "see the eye doctor" also....... Be worth it to have a professional opinion. But having said that I'll also add that I put a set of Trijicon night sights on my Glock 19 and my eyes decided that it was a good move.

www.sportglasses.com/
Decot hy wyd

These guys know shooting sports.

I'm wearing mine in this avatar pic.

Next eye exam do an Ishihara test. You might be color blind to green.

MEHavey said:

Get a pair of FIXED* focus glasses set at 30" (or wherever the end of your extended fingertip is). That will bring the front sight back into sharpness.

* (cheap)

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BUT, the trick is to get the focal length right, You need a good optician who knows how to measure it, and preferably one who shoots.

Armored farmer said:

I'm wearing mine in this avatar pic.

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Nice! But I thought it was Charles Durning from some movie scene....
Sport coat and coveralls. Just walkin' out of church?

entropy said:

Sport coat and coveralls. Just walkin' out of church?

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Nope....
Just recieved my "trophy" for 27th place in the Alvin York memorial shoot in Pall Mall, Tennessee . Unfortunately I am not wearing my shooting glasses in this one....

My buddy is though.

XS big dot sights, fiber optic, red dots (RMR, Burris, Doctor, etc.). The XS big dot sights help me tonnes. Not sure if they make them for the revolvers you mentioned, but it would certainly be worth a look.

BUT, the trick is to get the focal length right,

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It's really quite simple:

- Extend your shooting hand in your shooting stance with your trigger finger extended ("go bang")
- Have the optometrist put the eye-test card at that fingertip distance and adjust the machine lenses for best/finest focus.
- Write down the numbers and proceed to EyeDoctor/LensCrafters, etc w/ prescript in hand.

Far sighted try .5 or 1 safety glasses. I use the .5 helps me. https://www.amazon.com/Elvex-RX-500...d=1491514273&sr=8-5&keywords=1+safety+glasses

I switched out the rear sight on my Blackhawk to a one hole sight, that plus orange fingernail polish solved the problem for this gun. For the G-23 think I'll switch to XS big dot, I got a few more that I don't or can't switch out so it's either sell or safe queen them. I wear bi-focal for reading and when I'm out and about it's sunglasses so I don't see any specialty glasses as a fix all that leaves is the guns.

MEHavey said:

It's really quite simple:

- Extend your shooting hand in your shooting stance with your trigger finger extended ("go bang")
- Have the optometrist put the eye-test card at that fingertip distance and adjust the machine lenses for best/finest focus.
- Write down the numbers and proceed to EyeDoctor/LensCrafters, etc w/ prescript in hand.

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But if the optician doesn't know what focal length you want, you'll likely get either 40 cm(reading distance) or ocular infinity-@20ft. optometrists and opthalmalogists rarely specify focal lengths on Rx's, and when they do the optician has to set their pupilometer at that exact distance. I've done shooting glasses for many a presbyope, but few opticians that don't shoot will be able to measure it right. It's actually how I started as an optician-I was a lab tech that shot, so the opticians would have me come out and talk to the pt., and measure them.

I ran into that problem a few years ago. The distance between "reading" and "far" lenses on my prescription bi-focals left a "dead spot", I had to go to tri-focals. The middle lens distance is just right for computer screens, dashboards, and front pistol sights, as well as the pin on my bow sights. I can see the distant target, tip my chin up just a bit and front sight gets sharp. Not like being 20 years old again but it keeps me sending lead down range with a chance of hitting. It doesn't work with long guns as I have to break "cheek weld". I am having to put scopes on long guns to use them very well. Good luck finding your solution.

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There have been some advances in lens technology in the last few years. Several manufacturers offer dual surfaced progressive lenses that greatly reduce the side distortion noted with the older types. I wear Nikon's Affinity lenses; the intermediate focal range extends almost fully across the lens. I actually see edge compression (I wear high minus lenses) before I see "the swim" or the distortion common in progressive lenses. I do have to hold the head up a bit higher also, no completely getting around that, except putting an occupational D-seg up in the top nasal corner.

No folks. It's just that simple. (Ask me how I know)

Set the focus target at front sight distance, adjust the the optical phoropter lenses for best patient vision detail, write the prescription.