Nitesighters

[Oldgringo]

I hate stupid; especially, when it's loose in the house.

There are no kids here (Thank Goodness) , so if we left our "heaters" on the night stands during the day, the gun sights would glow at night?

Am I missing something here?

[HerbM]

How does one "charge" the Nitesighters?

Expose them to light.

For $12 with shipping, I ordered a set today and I'll post pictures when they come in. Maybe a comparison between them and TFO and standard tritium.

Yep, i just ordered a set too. WAY cheaper than the tritium stuff and I dont like the idea that tritium has a short 1/2 life for that kinda cost. I'd rather stick the sites under a light for a few minutes before bed and get off WAY cheaper.

Will likely do a product review video.

For those of you who are curious what Herb was talking about, I occasionally do product reviews on my youtube page.
http://www.youtube.com/user/merddyn2002
I just 2 today, one on the Milt Sparks Summer Special II holster and another on a very nice 1 inch flashlight/laser I found on Cheaper than Dirt.

Good videos -- I watched them all last week when I first started reading LedJedi's posts.

I do hope that he will give us a quick head's up mini review right away first here though.

Apparently UV light charges them even faster but it wasn't clear how fast.

I guess we could sleep with a UV light on in the bed room -- strange flashbacks from the sixties start now for those of us over 50.

[MoJo]

Not wanting to rain on your parade Big Dan. The XS sights are a good idea but, they take a lot of training to get really proficient with. I had a set of non tritium XS sights on my Hi Power and changed them out for standard notch and post sights and haven't regretted it.

I am an old dog and teaching me a new trick is hard. If all my handguns had XS sights on them I could become proficient with them, changing back and forth just wasn't an option. Plus, undoing 50 years of muscle memory would take way too long.

[HerbM]

I hate stupid; especially, when it's loose in the house.

There are no kids here (Thank Goodness) , so if we left our "heaters" on the night stands during the day, the gun sights would glow at night?

Am I missing something here?

Yes, they would in fact glow, for some portion of the night. How long is indeterminate. Maybe all night, or maybe a few hours.

If you left them next to the night light that would help (some too) since even indoor lighting will charge them (according to the site that discusses the sight.)

[sar]

I've got them on both my muzzleloaders and will be putting them on my redhawk.
They work great. If you can charge 'em with sunlight, they last 5 hours or so. The little UV light works very well. I agree that I wouldn't want to have to charge a gun in the middle of the night, but most of our houses aren't completely dark. I use these for night hunting pigs.

As mentioned in the ad hype, they also allow better visualization in the day.

[LedJedi]

I've got them on both my muzzleloaders and will be putting them on my redhawk.
They work great. If you can charge 'em with sunlight, they last 5 hours or so. The little UV light works very well. I agree that I wouldn't want to have to charge a gun in the middle of the night, but most of our houses aren't completely dark. I use these for night hunting pigs.

As mentioned in the ad hype, they also allow better visualization in the day.

what sold me on it was the video they have on the website doing a demo. Those suckers are awfully bright.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MjabqLZPfc

[boomerang]

Mine arrived and I dotted the plastic factory sights on a Glock. When they're freshly charged the nitesiters seem as bright or brighter than TFO sights in sunlight and in the dark. They did dim noticeably when not being recharged. It didn't take long until TFOs were brighter but it was a lot longer before they dropped below standard tritiums. I took a few pictures but my pocket digicam was no good in the dark. Maybe LedJedi will have more luck with pictures or video.

Bottom line? I wouldn't recommend them over tritiums for a defensive pistol that sits in a drawer or IWB holster. I will keep them on my range Glock and I'll probably put them on some other non-carry firearms. For someone on a tight budget they're a big improvement over the standard Glock sights and at $12 for 8 dots they won't break the bank. They're probably also a good option for airsoft or paintball guns for indoors under black lights.

[SCone]

Prefer a SureFire in the left, .45 in the right.

[boomerang]

Prefer a SureFire in the left, .45 in the right.

That's one way to keep the nitesiters charged up!

[SCone]

A good blinding light tends to give one an advantage over a BG in the dark. Also fits the rule of knowing what you're shooting at before firing... even if it is a BG.

[Excaliber]

I may have come off as a bit harsh in my assessment, however I personally would be more than willing to pay $120 and have the confidence that they'll be ready to go any time I need them. I don't have to worry if I forgot the expose them to light.

The professional gun carriers I know (and that includes quite a few) fall into 2 schools of thought:

1) They use tritium sights because they are always on and work well in all lighting conditions. These are at their best in twilight conditions where a sight picture can be obtained on a known target that has already been identified and can be located by silhouette and movement. They provide no advantage during the day when they're not needed, or in full darkness when a hostile cannot be reliably identified without a light source.

2) They use nonilluminated sights because these work just fine in daylight, and also show up fine when used with a tactical light at night. The borderline conditions when a hostile can be identified without a light source and the illuminated sights can help make up so small a percentage of the conditions they work in that they figure it's not worth worrying about, especially since those situations can still be successfully addressed with use of a tactical light. They also note that you don't always know where your adversary is, and if he's behind you he may be able to locate you by the glowing dots. They see this as not a good thing, and something they'd rather not have to worry about.

No one I know who routinely goes in harm's way would consider using a sight system that had to be charged with light before use. Those are toys, plain and simple. They can be fun to play with. They can be useful as "training wheels" to see under what conditions they make a difference, and whether making an investment in tritium sights would be a good idea for your circumstances. They are not good bets for deadly force encounters.

My recommendation is: Don't bet your life on toys when proven tools are called for to handle situations where "do overs" aren't an option.

[DoubleJ]

I will probably get some for my IDPA gun. I think that's prolly one of the best uses, IMO.
m'kay.

[lrb111]

I think I'll get a package of the Nitesighters to use in the house. A dot on each foot of the bed, a couple places on the molding near the floor, a couple wallplates, one at the front door, one at the back. IOW, places where i would normally look when the lights are on, for direction or avoidance. That way I can still "see" my way in the dark.
Might save some toes...
Might be able to tell that light is blocked in some areas, too. Like when someone or something is in front of one.

White dots on white surfaces would go unnoticed be nearly all casual visitors.

Just thought of some outside places, and they would get charged by my 18 volt light, if I were checking things out. I would have instant points of reference on the grounds, and that only I would know in the dark.

Ok, Two packages.
This could be really kewl!

[LedJedi]

No one I know who routinely goes in harm's way would consider using a sight system that had to be charged with light before use. Those are toys, plain and simple. They can be fun to play with. They can be useful as "training wheels" to see under what conditions they make a difference, and whether making an investment in tritium sights would be a good idea for your circumstances. They are not good bets for deadly force encounters.

My recommendation is: Don't bet your life on toys when proven tools are called for to handle situations where "do overs" aren't an option.

Your logic is sound and I always respect sound logic, but I think you're being a bit harsh. Of course self-illuminating sights would be ideal but for cost vs benefit (ROI) I think this is potentially a good deal. I agree that it's not the best solution, especially in the scenario where you're waking up a 2am after the proverbial bump in the night. Odds are you didn't charge them before going to bed.

However, if you make it a practice to charge them before going to bed and they last until dawn, well where's your gripe for $12?
I know I probably won't charge them at night before bed. There are plenty of nights I just come in and crash. I could opt for a small black light night lite if i wanted, but i like to keep her in the holster on the bedside.

The scenario I DO see this paying off on is the general "going out at night" bit. If you know you're going out for a few hours in the evening set them under a bright light while you get ready and grab them on the way out. They'll be glowing all night and I didn't have to spend $150 on radioactive sites.

Eventually I may upgrade to tritium sights, but right now I have other things to spend the cash on and this is better than nothing in the meantime.

how about glass 1/2 full ?

[BigDan]

However, if you make it a practice to charge them before going to bed and they last until dawn, well where's your gripe for $12?
I know I probably won't charge them at night before bed. There are plenty of nights I just come in and crash. I could opt for a small black light night lite if i wanted, but i like to keep her in the holster on the bedside.

Sorry, the last thing I would want to have to "think" about is my sights. I have tritium so I have less to worry about and have confidence it's "always on" when I need it. I posted this on a HARSH message board, but I'm still waiting to hear an official moderator opinion. These guys are instructors and I'm sure they'll have nothing positive to say about these. Only good use is what I saw above. Placing them in strategic places around the home to help identify objects when you're doing a sweep to secure the house.