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Chris wrote:

yerasimos wrote: 2) you need a white light for target identification (you cannot pull the trigger using night sights alone)

white light with a red filter works better. it doesn't crap on your night vision.

Well said, except that in an age of automobile headlights, streetlights, porch lights, etc, I figure my night vision will be sub-optimal from the start. And since the white light gives me that much more output and better target identification, I have chosen not to bother with a red filter. (If I was hunting feral hogs at night a mile or so from civilization, I could appreciate using a red filter, but that is not one of my hobbies.)

What I've gotten from this thread:

1) night sights are great for the initial sight "pick-up" or locating your handgun in darkness/low-light

2) you need a white light for target identification (you cannot pull the trigger using night sights alone)

Here's something I did not see mentioned that may be important to remember: the tritium (heavy isotope of hydrogen) in night sights slowly leaks out &/or decays over a period of years. My long-term experience with these sights has been a shotgun that I had fitted with a tritium vial in the front sight blade. Upon receipt from the folks who did the fitting, it was quite bright, but 3-4 years later it was noticeably dimmer, and now (8 years later) it is completely played-out.

Hope this helps . . .