Hate to paint the front sight but...

[jondwright]

My wife and I purchased our first handgun for self defense and home defense recently. We got the Ruger SP101 with Target Gray finish and wood grips.

I think it is a very nice looking gun, and it shoots very well. Last night I was dryfiring with snapcaps in front of the TV and realized how poorly this gun aims in the dark, and I set out to correct that problem. I don't want to make any mistakes with this since the gun is brand new and so nice looking.

I found some paint at the craft store that advertises that it glows in the dark. I was a little discouraged that it was labeled like it was for kids, but thought I would try. I didn't see any other alternatives. I came how and painted a stainles steel wrench. I'm gonna see how it looks. I also painted part of the wrench white. I'll paint the glow in the dark paint over it to see if I need to use white as a base. I'm able to tell that it glows VERY well, but I have two questions.

1. Do you think over time that it will NOT glow as well?
2. Do you think that because the color is so neutral, I will have trouble aiming in well lit situations?

 

[Black Snowman]

The problem with glow in the dark paints is that they need a "UV charge" to get them glowing. With most paints this effect wears off fairly rapidly. Still, it's probably better than nothing. The fastest way to charge glow in the dark items that I've found is with a florescent "black light".

 

[MrTuffPaws]

If you carry that gun in a holster, glow in the dark paint will not do you any good. As stated, you need to charge the stuff before you can see it glow.

 

[jondwright]

Thanks for those insights. We'll see what happens when that wrench is in the dark for a day or 2 straight. Currently, since I only have 2 guns, this one does get a lot of attention, and is out in the light fairly often...Do you guys paint the sights a different color?

 

[Shorts]

I painted the front sight of my revolver with acrylics, base coat white, top coat florescent orange mixed in glow in the dark. The glow in the dark had to little to no effect. The glow was extremely dim.

1. Put a white base down or your top color will be dark. I did various samples with and without the white base and it is much better with.

2. Glow in the dark won't matter. As already mentioned it needs to be charged so it does no good out of the nightstand drawer or case/holster/glovebox...etc.

As for straight glow in the dark, I put a few drops on my Beretta in the three dot sights already on the gun. It glows fabulous in the dark, but only after having it out in the daylight and walking into a closet. There is really no advantage to painting sights glow in the dark as probably the time that you need it in the middle of the night, you will not be able to expose the sight to light. If you use a flashlight to light the sights, you might as well walk down and investigate the dump in the night with your flashlight.

 

[jondwright]

I suppose I won't paint it at all then. If it's not going to help me in the dark, I don't want to do anything to detract from how nice it looks now.

 

[Pilot]

"I suppose I won't paint it at all then. If it's not going to help me in the dark, I don't want to do anything to detract from how nice it looks now.

I think that is a great ideas. Even nite sights don't help if you can't see your target. Plus after the first shot, you have no night vision anyway and therefore essentially blind.

 

[Cosmoline]

There are special "Brightsights" paints designed for front sights. I'd strongly suggest you try those rather than something at a hobby store. Check your gun stores and someone should have them in stock. Normal paint will not be able to cope with the extreme heat and stress of life at the business end of a Ruger.

http://www.brightsights.com/index.shtml

The trick to make SURE the metal on the front sight is totally free from oil before applying the paint. You can also use steel wool to make the fit even tighter, but this will remove blue. Use a potent degreaser/cleaner several times, air dry, then apply the brightsights paint with a toothpick. Let dry several days.

 

[bean357]

Cosmoline, THANK YOU for the tip and the link. I'm going to try this product.

I have used bright orange fluorescent jig head paint on some of my sights. It has held up pretty well, especially on my slug gun barrel, but on the handguns I shoot/transport lots, it does wear off and sometimes chip.

jondwright, good luck with your sights!

 

[Kamicosmos]

For the SP101s, Brownell's sells a tritium front sight. It glows regardless of prior exposure to light because it's radioactive. Which is cool.

It's like $45 bucks though, and I haven't decided to order one yet for my SP.

That target grey sure is pretty! When I was shopping for mine, that finish was just announced, and I couldn't find one. At the time it was only available for a certain distributor, I think, and I didn't feel like special ordering one and paying extra for it. So, mine is the basic stainless steel, which is fine cause I like stainless revolvers.

 

[Shorts]

Anything that is light activated will not do you any good in the middle of the night. Daytime it will be great though.

 

[Tman]

I used the light activated paint on one of my pistols. Found it didn't work very well. Tried it in a dark closet, could see it a little bit but that was about all. Took it off right away. I'd think your better off with tritium during darkness.

 

[R.H. Lee]

Thanks for that link, Cosmoline

 

[Brian Williams]

just get some construction orange marking paint it is cheap and one can will last forever. I painted the rear white with exterior house paint Semi-gloss, and the front I sprayed a spot on a block of wood and let it set up a little and then put some on the front blade with a toothpick

 

[brickeyee]

GEt a surefire or other type of combat light and learn how to use it.
Seeing the target is more important than seeing the sights.

 

[happy old sailor]

my experience was similar to shorts, crappy. i now have tritium front and rear on my carry guns. works in Any diminished light situation. use one of those midget spotlights for target ID in the total dark. the sights work, but who am i gonna kill? tritium sights are pricey and could be difficult to install in DIY. gunsmith here charges $20. but, 20 is his lowest fee, may charge that to say hello. glow in the dark paint was cheap enough, but the real loss was in my time. reccomend take a diff route.

FYI, the U.S. Air Force shooting team investigated sight colors back in the 60's and determined that mint green was the best. i have used it for handgun hunting and it worked as advertised

 

[Doug Add]

I painted the front sight on my SP101, and have been very pleased with the result.

Shortly after getting the Ruger I picked up a bottle of "tequila sunrise" fingernail polish. Cost me a buck or two, and I have enough to repaint hundreds, if not thousands of times.

It's been six months, several hundred rounds of .38, .38+P, and .357, and dozens of cleanings after trips to the range. The polish looks like it did the moment after I applied it.

 

[mainmech48]

FWIW, I had the same issues with my S&W 640-1. Neon orange or green enamel made it easier to see, but didn't eliminate the problem. In light levels where I could see a potential assailant, if only by silhouette, they were still pretty much useless.

Even at those very-close ranges, I wanted something where I could get a positive index on the muzzle no matter what the ambient light level.

I had an XS tritium front in the smaller 'standard' size installed. Works like a champ. Not real cheap, but neither is the value that I place on my Personal Favorite Behind.

 

[bean357]

I ordered the bright sights coating that Cosmoline mentioned.

Does anyone know if there are 3 dot sights available that can be installed on S&W K/L frames to replace the factory sights? I have seen the night sights at Brownells for them, but am looking for just the plain 3 dot, as I would like to use the colored paint anyway.
Thanks!!

 

[black bear]

White in the front sight for low light situations, is better than orange, probably better than anything else, so I paint my sights with Paper-Mate Liquid paper. Works o.k. for me.
I also use a flashlight to indentify, illuminate, and blind my target.
my old stamby for years was a Surefire 9 P with a P-91 lamp, (200 lumens)
lately I have been using a Mag85, 800 lumens light.
black bear

 

[280PLUS]

I just read somwhere that an old police trick is to use Whiteout. and if you come across a gun at a show or shop with whiteout on the sights it was probably an old police gun.

 

[fastbolt]

I also painted the front sights of my SP-101 & 642-1, using the bright orange sight paint sold by Brownells. It lasts a few range sessions, although naturally enough, the porting on the SP-101's barrel seems to reduce service life more than the unported barrel of my 642-1. Interestingly enough, I also tried the same orange front ramp/white rear outline treatment to my Ruger Service Six heavy barrel a couple of years ago.

I also agree that a front night sight is probably the best bet. I just haven't felt like sending off either of my snubguns to have it done. Maybe sometime ...

More and more of my pistols are equipped with night sights, nowadays.

Nice treatment of the SP-101's finish, by the way.

 

[chaim]

My best friend and I have experimented with a few paint options on our front sights to make them easier to see. Even if it doesn't help in pitch black darkness, it does make them easier to see the rest of the time.

I've used the sight paint sold in gun stores and that seems the worst option (chips and wears pretty quickly). Also, between the two of us we've tried orange, white and a bright florescent green. The best is the bright florescent green glossy model paint my friend bought. A small bit dropped into the dots of a 3-dot sight on an auto or painted on the front sight of a revolver makes a huge difference.

As others have said, for any practical defensive effect the glow in the dark will do you no good. CZ puts a glow in the dark paint in their 3-dots. It is nice at an indoor range where the lighting isn't perfect, but in a nightime shooting situation they wouldn't have any glow left so it is no better than just regular white paint. If you want that effect for defensive situations you need tritium (expensive to install on any gun, especially on a revolver). If you just want it for the range, glow in the dark is fine.