when your eyes are bad?

D

Deja vu

New member
Last night there was an odd noise in the house that lucky it turned out to only be a stray cat on the window.

Any way I woke up and reached for my glasses. I realised that I must of knocked them off the night stand as I slept. With out my glasses the sights on the gun are near impossable to see. I am considering getting a laser to make it easier should the need ever arise. Is this a good idea?

The gun is kept in a bed side holster.
 
Very dangerous situation. More than once a spouse has accidentally shot a loved one because they couldnt identify the shape in the hallway.

I would consider a good weapon light first. Its been proven that most defensive shootings never involve lining up the sights.
 
You need to see what you are shooting at. That blade runner guy accidentally shot his wife 10 times, or something like that. Don't need that in your life.
 
Crimson Trace

I like my Crimson Trace grips. They turn on the laser when you take a grip on the gun. If you do not want the laser seen you can use your trigger finger to cover the laser, or loosen your grip until you want to sight in. If you don't want the laser at all there is a switch on the bottom of the grip to turn it off.

When sighting it in at the local indoor range I felt like I was cheating! The was a solid red line from my gun to the target! Easy to hit even at 25 yards.
 
I like Tritium "night sights" better than lasers, since they don't depend on batteries, and don't give away your position
 
+1 on the Crimson Trace grips. I'm in the same boat vision wise. No need to worry about the sights, just put the dot on the target. The laser only comes on when you squeeze the pressure switch, so the dot isn't bouncing around the room or giving away your position
 
I might suggest you practice point shooting more, without your glasses. At inside your home ranges, and at night, point shooting should be adequate, you don't necessarily need to see your sights at short range if you are good at point shooting.

But, maybe a Laser would help.
 
+2 on the Crimson Trace grips. I need reading glasses to see up close, much like the OP. That isn't a problem using the laser. I'm undecided about adding a gun rail light vs. using a flashlight. I always have a flashlight handy.
 
Night sights don't solve this problem - they will be just as out of focus as regular sights since the OP is far-sighted.

This sounds like a problem for which a laser may be a valid solution. Just keep in mind that the laser is one more item to maintain (i.e., keep the batteries fresh).
 
I am a 53 year old who is in the same boat, except I can't see well near or far. I share the OP's problem of not being able to see the sights in dim light. Most people who start losing sight with age, tend to lose their ability to see color in low light. With everything viewed in shades of gray, you lose your ability to see anything well without total black or total white contrast. Even hunter orange appears as a shade of gray in dim light. The orange insert on my front sight is useless to me in dim light. When a person's sight declines with age, they first notice as it becomes difficult to see driving at night, while daytime driving is not a problem. I'd go out on opening day of deer seaon, and wait until legal shooting hours, and realized that I still could not see my sights until a half hour later.

A laser would certainly help with aim, as most of us can still see the silouette of target just fine. I've also found those big 3 white dot sights where you line up the white dots (one on the front sight between the two on the rear) are fairly visible to me in dim light.

The most practical solution for me though, was to practice after dark, without being able to use the sights. I can't imagine being in many defense situations where I would have the time to carefully sight, and squeeze the trigger. In typical distances within most homes, I would think learning to point and shoot would be far more effective. I am confident I could shoot across my largest room, and hit center mass without using sights.
 
Night sights don't solve this problem - they will be just as out of focus as regular sights since the OP is far-sighted.
Click to expand...
Out of focus doesn't matter so much at close range
They are still more visible in low light

With out my glasses the sights on the gun are near impossable to see.
Click to expand...
 
Deja Vu said:
I am considering getting a laser to make it easier should the need ever arise. Is this a good idea?
Click to expand...

I'm VERY pleased with the Crimson Trace laser on my 38. It's espceially effective in poor lighting.
 
You might consider laser corneal surgery. If you are a candidate, it has the possibility of restoring nearly normal vision. The drawback is that as one ages, the ability of the eye to accommodate ("switch" from distance to near vision) diminishes, since it is dependent on changes in the thickness of the lens which becomes inflexible. That's why the majority of people have to use reading glasses as they age. You can "sculpt" the cornea to adjust to glasses-free near or far vision, but not both.
 
I have the same problem my friend. Daytime sights are OK, nightime not so much. I have Crimson Trace on my Beretta and I had one on my little Taurus 5 shot. I highly recommend them. The dot lets you know about where the bullet will hit and even better it serves as a last warning to an intruder. Most everyone knows what that little red dot means and serves last notice to "get outta Dodge". I always figure, better if they leave than dealing with the repercussions from shooting someone.

Opticsplanet might be a good place to start price checking.
 
This is exactly why I have a streamlight TLR4 on the HK45 in my dresser drawer. Thumb the switch up and I have a bright light and a laser spot, if I need them.
 
"...Without my glasses the sights on the gun are near impossible to see..." If you can't see, you can't shoot well, period. A laser sight's dot won't change that. Turn the friggin' lights on.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top