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Laser Sights for a hand gun

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  • Realtor

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    Pro's - Con's whats your take. I'm asking because my eyes are getting older and I find it harder and harder to shoot my 9's and 45's. Do the laser i have no experience with laser sights. help me out and tell me your thoughts
     

    Fear21

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    Pro's - Con's whats your take. I'm asking because my eyes are getting older and I find it harder and harder to shoot my 9's and 45's. Do the laser i have no experience with laser sights. help me out and tell me your thoughts

    Are you using standard sights on your pistols or do you have anything like fiber optics, night sights, etc?

    I've shot a couple pistols with Crimson Trace units - once the novelty of pointing a laser wore off, I found it was more of a distraction than anything else, at least for me. They're kind of a pain to zero / adjust and feel weird in the hand if you're used to your pistol's grip already. Don't have any experience with guide rod lasers. I got to try out a TLR-2 light & laser combo (mounted to the pistol rail) once... again, the laser felt like more of a distraction than a tool to me. YMMV with all of this, of course.

    Maybe check out some XS Sights if you don't already run them? Here's a quick n easy explanation:

     

    Realtor

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    I have the standard sights on the guns now. my problem is I have cataracts and not sure how long it will take for them to get to the point they can be removed.... I have a appointment next tuesday for them to see and check them out, but, I have a feeling i'm going to be challenged for a while... I can still pretty much guess and hit the target, but its blurry as hell.... (front sight bleeds into the rear sight and target......)
     

    Realtor

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    My Glock 26 has the guiderod laser and I love it!


    how far can you be away from the target and still see the laser on the target? just googled then, 300 smackers whoa.....
     

    MAXman

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    I’ve got a set of crimson trace in my 642 and my model 10. It was the quickest and easiest way to get a low light/night sight for either.
    The k frame grips I got at a local shop and can out too 200$ otd. The ones for the j frame were robbed from a Taurus I took in trade so they cost me 20$ for the replacements.

    I don’t even notice them when shooting in daylight using sights, and when i just use them and focus on the laser I don’t think there’s much difference in speed or accuracy. I’ve shot the j frame at twighlight: the difference made me buy the set for the k frame. For what it’s worth, my mom stacked three shots into a ragged hole using the laser on the j frame which is a significant improvement over her shooting with iron sights. I REALLY like the pressure plate activation. Light years better than the paddles/switches/buttons.

    I recommend trying fiber optics first, maybe find someone who has them installed on a similar pistol. The prices aren’t cheap, but for me, night sights would include Milling and installation and the sights themselves. Lasers involved a couple screws.
     

    FrankT

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    The auto on is interesting to me: REACTOR R5 Gen 2 Green Laser Sight for Springfield XD-S/XD-S Mod 2
    The Viridian Reactor R5 Gen 2 Green Laser Sight now with 3X more battery life and a new ambidextrous IWB holster with INSTANT-ON activation.

    The Viridian R5 Gen 2 green laser sighting system. This laser sight is easy to install and blends seamlessly into the trigger guard for invisible profile and smooth draw. Viridian’s green lasers utilize a 510-532nm wavelength range creating an optimum target dot that is up to 50 times brighter than red lasers. It features two modes of operation: constant and strobe.

    New features of the gen 2 models include 3X more battery life (up to 5 hours) and an ambidextrous, inside the waistband (IWB) holster with INSTANT-ON automatic laser activation. Made of microfiber, this holster is more comfortable and durable than the previous models. The INSTANT-ON activation ignites the laser the moment you draw. No buttons, no squeezing, no doubt. When you draw, it's on.
     

    Realtor

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    I have a S&W .45, a FNS-9 and a XDM-9 they all have P-rails under the barrel, not real concerned about drawing from a holster, these aren't my carry guns. just shooting at the range and around the house if I really needed to....(you know what I mean) I've started to investigate and research the screw on type, but don't want to spend a pile of money either. I might get one and try it on all the guns, if I like it I can always get another I suppose...
    Something like this? Thoughts?
    https://www.opticsplanet.com/crimson-trace-rail-master-green-laser-sight-universal-fit.html
     

    RackinRay

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    Realtor

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    I trained with lasers and believe they have a purpose. I have two of the below on the house Glocks if you want to check them out Jim.

    https://www.amazon.com/Mounted-Lase...34540876&sr=8-3&keywords=lasermax+green+laser

    We could even slip out to the range early one morning and shoot 'em if you would like to.

    Nice! I just ordered one, I'll give it a try and if I like, I'll order a couple more. Thanks Ray! It was good seeing you the other day... It's been a few years. :) BTW, the red dot works fine on the storm. I still have a little tuning to do, Its hitting just a little low and to the right. I ran out of ammo the other day lol
     

    Realtor

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    Okay, Ive had time to mess around with these laser sights, here the deal...
    I can not figure (after watching the youtube vids) out how to at what distance "zero" the laser in. for example. at 20 or so yards, I put the green dot just above the front sight so its just visible. the rounds are still hitting 4-5 inches (or more) low. I have the left/right thing figured right, but all the rounds hit 4-8 inches low. if I raise the front sight to compensate for hitting low, then the laser disappears behind the sight.

    I'd like to see the laser dot just above the front sight at about 12 yards. is this possible?
     

    FrankT

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    well it says from the factory they are sighted in at 25 yds, from there just figure out where to hold the dot at the distance you want is what I would do.
     

    RackinRay

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    Okay, Ive had time to mess around with these laser sights, here the deal...
    I can not figure (after watching the youtube vids) out how to at what distance "zero" the laser in. for example. at 20 or so yards, I put the green dot just above the front sight so its just visible. the rounds are still hitting 4-5 inches (or more) low. I have the left/right thing figured right, but all the rounds hit 4-8 inches low. if I raise the front sight to compensate for hitting low, then the laser disappears behind the sight.

    I'd like to see the laser dot just above the front sight at about 12 yards. is this possible?

    Jim, the laser is not designed to co-witness on the gun sights like a red dot on an AR. The way to zero/sight in for your selected distance is to use the laser dot, not the sight, at your 12 yard range you want it zeroed for. Center the laser where you want it to hit, fire, and adjust the laser toward the point of impact until it is on. One advantage of a laser is the ability to lower the gun from your sight line, allowing you to watch an individuals hands while the dot shows point of impact should shooting be required.
     

    Realtor

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    Jim, the laser is not designed to co-witness on the gun sights like a red dot on an AR. The way to zero/sight in for your selected distance is to use the laser dot, not the sight, at your 12 yard range you want it zeroed for. Center the laser where you want it to hit, fire, and adjust the laser toward the point of impact until it is on. One advantage of a laser is the ability to lower the gun from your sight line, allowing you to watch an individuals hands while the dot shows point of impact should shooting be required.

    good point, I have been trying to put the green dot on the top if the front sight. So, I should use the dot on the impact point and gofrom there paying more attention to the dot vice the front sight. right?
     

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