Why are 3-dot sights so popular?

Trying to line them up takes too much time and longer than a quick flash sight picture.
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Actually, they are part of the flash sight picture and increase its speed. Or at least for me they do.

When I bring the gun up, the front sight is always just a tad higher than the rear of the gun and I lock onto the front dot as its coming up. As I reach full extension, the gun rocks into place and I now have a row of dots, with the center dot and main focus, right where I want the round to go. Its very fast and natural.

Even with the gun coming up, and not at full extension, with the gun just below the line of sight, I now have a small triangle of dots (front dot a little higher than the rear dots) that are in my peripheral vision, that indexes the gun, and the top of the triangle points to the target. This is especially noticeable in lower light, or when the ambient light highlights the white rings on the vials.

Works with rifles and shotguns too, and I get the same thing with my AK's and shotguns that have night sights on them.

At closer ranges, that triangle is like an arrow pointing right to where the round will go, even if you dont have a perfect sight picture.
 
I think 3-dot sights are about the worst set-up, of those I've used. There's no contrast at all, so the front sight is lost in the sea of dots and gaps. Removing the rear dots helps a lot.
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For me they are not the worst, but nor are they the best either. As AK points out, we are all wired differently so it stands to reason that what works great for me might not be the best for you.

I do okay with the 3 dot setup. I don't dislike them, but I don't particularly dig 'em either.

Call me old school, but so far the easiest acquired / used sights for me are the adjustable units found on S&W revolvers (front blade or partridge, black or colored, doesn't matter). Ruger's adjustable and fixed units work good too. That big prominent front blade (further exaggerated on pencil barrel guns like the Model 28 and 15) is extremely easy to see through the entire firing sequence ... for me at least. As for the rear sight, I have a slight preference for plain black, but a white outline works fine for me too.
 
I just switched to the XS with the big white dot since my eyes are what they used to be it works pretty good. However I have the three dot system on my Ruger SR9C and LC9 which seem to work just as well.

I seem to be able to aquire the XS sights just a tad quicker
 
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Back in the day, you had either (1) adjustable sights which were good for more precise work but not for quick acquisition or (2) plain iron fixed sights like the GI-style 1911 sights or the groove and blade like a SW Model 10 revolver. SW would sometimes put an orange or red ramp on the front sight. That was pretty much it.

Then someone started painting dots on the sights to help target acquisition in defensive situations. And it was faster than other standard sights of the day. I still think they are a reasonably decent sight system at a low cost. Night sights are not really necessary in "up close and personal" guns
 
Plain black work fine for me.

At very close ranges in a fight, I'm not likely to use the sights. If I do need them, I want a precise sight picture.
 
I have used the gamut of sight choices and each seems to have their place, but for fast, combat style shooting (especially with multiple targets), 3 dot sights are the fastest for me to line up and make significant hits. As AK says, we are all wired differently, so results may vary; personally, I have never had a problem using 3 dots in the manner they were intended- lining them up and centering the front sight over the target area.
 
Your eye focuses on one thing at a time. There are two correct places to focus depending on distance and precision required. That would be target or front sight. All that other garbage distracts your eye.

Heinie straight 8 for night sights just because you need a gross reference for gun alignment when it is really dark.
 
"All that other garbage distracts your eye."

That's why you don't try to focus on the rear sights; in fact, at close range where most shootings occur, I focus more on the target, and look over the sights. When paired with a solid thumbs forward, I have no problem making as many center of mass hits as I choose to pull the trigger.
 
The only time I'm aware of the dots are:

1. When the conditions are such that I can't see the sight outlines.
2. During timed events when the target is close enough that I don't need precise sight alignment. Then I'm not trying to line up the dots in any precise manner--just getting things close and breaking the shot.

The rest of the time I use the sight outlines to aim.
 
It took me quite a while to get used to using the three dots on my 5'' government after using standard irons and the 6 o'clock sight picture with my revolvers. Now after thousands of rounds, it's an easy adjustment. With either, the focus is still....."front sight, front sight".
 
Im not a fan of 3 dots but I do have some night sites that are 3 dot.
Most of the others have been changed out to single dot fronts and black U rears.My comp guns are running fiber fronts.Old eyes.
 
I have three dot sights on my CZ75B but they payed some chimp to paint them and they suck for shooting. I just have to repaint them, what do you expect for $500+. :D

TBS, just about every gun (mostly poly framed) I've shot with 3 dots, I shoot very well.:rolleyes:
 
I'm not saying one can't adjust, or that I can't shoot 3-dots. I'm saying for me they are not faster.

And while it's a personal choice, most manufacturers these days seem to default to 3-dots. They typically aren't optional, they are just there. That's the part I don't get.
 
Its probably just the average of their polls, and cheaper than trying to have all those different options.

Its easy enough to just order the gun with plain sights, and put what you want on it. That way you get what you want.
 
I find 3 dot sights let me shoot adequately with my regular glasses.
I'm in my mid-50's and can't focus on the front sight with my head erect using my normal glasses. I can see that it's there but the rear sight is so far out of focus as to mostly not be there. Makes alignment, especially vertical, pretty iffy.

But I can line up 3 out-of-focus dots adequately and hit the target.

To shoot accurately I switch to my computer-distance glasses then I can see the front sight correctly and the rear sights are only slightly out of focus but are clear enough to align the front with. (Group size shrinks 50%)

I'm too cheap to invest in shooting-only glasses which would have my right eye set for front sight distance and left eye set for infinity.
 
I dislike three dot sights. They work. But I wish I would have discovered the other types of sights before I bought guns with $300 adjustable 3-dot tritium sights.

3-dots give you 4 or 5 (one dot overlaps another) dots with both eyes open (best way to shoot at close range so you don't lose half of your sight radius).

It is better to have two dots with one on top of the other. Make the front dot green and the rear dot yellow tritium. This way you only have "3" dots while you are staring at the front sight with both eyes open. Much easier to figure out which two dots to line up.

If you are right eye dominant you line up the front dot and the left dot (the right rear dot is created by your non-dominant eye). And vice versa if you are left eye dominant.

Correct me if I'm wrong guys but this is how I feel.
 
Mmmm, Im not quite sure what youre saying here. I shoot with both eyes open, and I see three dots, not four or five.

The last part is really puzzling. Two dots over each other give you three in a row somehow?
 
Nearly all of my handguns have three dot sights of various types...some are Trijicon night sights, some are TruGlo TFOs, and one or two are MeproLites...

In general terms, I use the three dots in certain lighting situations...the rest of the time, I use them as outlines and shoot as I would with a plain black sight.

I also have Crimson Trace lasers on several handguns and can shoot them equally well with or without them.

Edited to add: My Kahr PM9 came with the XS Big Dot sights. Couldn't wait to get rid of them. Most un-natural sight picture I have ever experienced, and caused me to shoot quite high. I know a very good shooter who swears by them, but I can't imagine why. To each his on, I guess.

Technology is a good thing. Use it, enjoy it. Do not bet your life on it.
 
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