Advice on 1911 Rear Sight

[Tallball]

I have a "GI" 1911 that I like very much. It's been completely reliable, has a nice trigger, is accurate, etc. It's a Turkish Tisas that I bought from Bud's around five years ago.

There are no problems with the pistol, but there are starting to be problems with me. As I am getting older my eyes aren't what they used to be. I am starting to have trouble shooting the pistol as well as I used to because the GI sights are so small.

I was wondering if it would be possible to purchase a larger rear sight and install it. I would think that step one would be to press the original sight out of its groove. Then I would imagine that the groove or the new sight might need to be filed down a little bit. When it was a good tight fit I might add a little bit of the temporary Loc-tite (the blue kind, IIRC) and press it in place.

I make knives sometimes, so if that's all that would need to be done, it shouldn't be a problem. My FiL is a very skilled craftsman and I would probably allow him to supervise me. (He is retired and doesn't always have enough interesting things to do.)

I have two main questions:

Is that roughly the procedure that I would follow?

Can anyone recommend a good rear sight?

 

[johnmcl]

I think you almost have the procedure down, but don't touch the gun with a file, ever. It is the sight that's fitted to the gun, and not the other way around.

There's a couple of great videos around, including on the Brownells site, on how to fit rear sights. Check around for video How-To guides for 1911 rear sight replacements. If you do not find what you desire, PM me directly or post back here for further guidance.

For this gun, certainly a possibility is a replacement Government style that's bigger. I have this kind of sight on a GI model and it rocks.

http://www.brownells.com/handgun-pa...x?psize=48&avs|Make~~Model_1=1911__Government

Best of luck and keep us posted on the progress.

 

[pintler]

"As I am getting older my eyes aren't what they used to be."

One depressing thing about that is that you don't quite know where your vision end up. Mine took 10 years or so of near vision getting gradually worse. I started out looking for better sights, but my eyes kept getting worse. I eventually ended up with laser grips. They're expensive, and don't work in bright light, but when they work they are the only way I can have my original level of accuracy (the mini red dots seem to be a coming thing, but have their own issues, and are still novel enough that it's hard to find carry holsters, etc).

This is a very individual thing. My distance vision is still fine, so I only wear glasses (drug store cheaters) if I'm reading or doing close work. That means that if, God forbid, I have to use a gun defensively, I'm likely not going to be wearing glasses. If you wear glasses all the time anyway, getting the right bifocals might make the sights work well again.

 

[gotboostvr]

I put a LPA adjustable rear on a GI 1911, it ended up being kind of a "half-measure".

Sure it uses the original "bump" front sight, but in hindsight I'd rather have gone with a new front and rear fiber optic set up.

I'd recommend going with a new front and rear set up designed to work togther rather than just a new rear sight.

 

[JTQ]

Harrison Custom has their "retro" rear sight that should fit that sight cut. https://shop.harrisoncustom.com/rear-sights-for-the-usgi-rear-cut

10-8 Performance also has one http://www.10-8performance.com/1911-nm-rear-sight/

Colt also has GI sight sets (front and rear) with white dots that should work, though they no longer sell them direct (I think), and I don't see them at Brownell's so I don't know where they'd be available.

There are a lot of front sights that would be better, white dot, gold bead, tritium, fiber optic, but most would require having the slide cut for a dovetail.

 

[pblanc]

Your front sight is staked, but it can be replaced. I would recommend having a qualified smith do the job. As gotboostvr suggested, the GI style front sight is so small and short that I doubt many replacement rear sights would work very well with it. I would replace both, which is what I did on my GI replica Springfield Armory GI 45 1911A1.

 

[gsbuickman]

I had a Tisas zig 1911 myself which was nice, however the GI sights that were on it or any other 1911 I've had like the Llama Max 1 I recently picked up sucked. I would also recommend a nice 3 dot or Fiberoptic front and rear sight, however it might be cheaper to trade the Tisas in on another 1911 model that already has better sights on it.

There are a few 1911's in the same price range as the Tisas ($400-$500) you can look at, but the ones I've been considering as of late are from Metro arms like The Firestorm 1911. the reviews from trusted sources and people I know and trust personally are excellent and for the price you can't beat the features, overall the folks at Metro arms in the Philippines make a pretty damn nice gun

 

[FWP]

You need a new front sight and a corresponding rear sight. If you can't see the front sight you won't be able to shoot a handgun well. You need to be able to focus on the front sight.

I have the same problem you have.....I'm getting old and my vision is not so great anymore. I found that I can see a front sight with a round dot more clearly than a black or red ramp. I recently replaced the red ramp on my Smith 69 with a green fiber optic sight. It made a big difference.

 

[rskent]

I have to wonder if changing the rear sight without changing the front would help or hurt?

 

[Fuego]

Keep in mind that the upgraded front sight will cut a groove in your holster if it does not have a sight channel molded into the holster.

Another option would be to install Crimson Trace laser grips. Simple to do, no modifications to the pistol, and all you need is a screwdriver for the grip screws.

And unlike tritium sights, they do not get dimmer over the years. I have 10 year old batteries in my CT grips that are as bright as new. And they are easy to replace.

 

[jeepnik]

I went through the rear/front thing a few years back. Ended up with a ghost ring rear and matching front. Electronic sights are fine for the range. But, I'll stick with irons as I've never taken a firearm out of it's case and had dead batteries on iron sights.

 

[Tallball]

I started searching around for a 45acp with better sights and ended up winning a gently used EAA Witness (Tanfoglio) full-sized polymer pistol for a $250 bid on Gunbroker. It shot very well at the range last weekend and has nice big sights. Problem solved!

 

[BSA1]

I have to wonder if changing the rear sight without changing the front would help or hurt?

I think you can answer this question yourself.

Proper sight picture;

Rear sight fuzzy, Front sight sharp and in focus, Target fuzzy.

 

[The Bushmaster]

While you are at it...Have a look at Novak sight systems for 1911s.

 

[Skylerbone]

You've got a narrow tennon staked front sight for starters which will limit options a bit. For something you can actually see, I'd recommend a gold bead front and having the rear notch opened up a bit. Talk to a good Gunsmithing.

 

[xXxplosive]

Would love to start shooting my 1911's with no sights.......Yup, just sight down the top of the Bbl. like I do with my flintlock smoothbore.......maybe with practice it could be done with some degree of accuracy.

 

[gotboostvr]

Would love to start shooting my 1911's with no sights.......Yup, just sight down the top of the Bbl. like I do with my flintlock smoothbore.......maybe with practice it could be done with some degree of accuracy.

Maybe with ALOT of practice!
It certainly can be done, but you'll never be as accurate as quickly compared to regular sights.

 

[xXxplosive]

Hmmmm.......real point shootin'.

 

[1911 guy]

They're out of the market now, but try to find a copy of the Yost "retro" sight. Fits the existing dovetail, has a much more visible notch.