Sights or light for Glock 21
 

Any recommendations for a scope or light for a Glock 21?

Can someone please explain the differences between the two? Which is more advantageous? Why?

Any other recs to me for tactical gear? Thanks!

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

Meprolight Night Sights and Streamlight TLR-1 are my recommendations. Not sure why you want a scope for your G21...maybe a red dot, but it would be difficult to mount and would be cumbersome. If Carver made a mount for a G21 (I don't believe they do) it would look something like this...

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

A scope typically is mounted on a rifle and is used for magnification. A light would be a flashlight, typically mounted on a pistol or "tactical" something or other, and is used to illuminate.

Of course in the dark, the flashlight mounted on the pistol does tend to say "here I am, shoot me!" so I figure why not have a flashlight off to the side, aimed at the door or area where a threat might come from, and you be off elsewhere. That way you can be sure of your target without having a bright white light in front of your chest, giving away your location.

When you say scope, are you perhaps thinking of an optical sight like a "red dot" sight as opposed to an actual [tele]scope?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_dot_sight

edit - Woops... started this post about 15 minutes ago, then left, then came back and hit "Post Reply"... sort of a redundant post, now. :D

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

For Glocks, metallic night sights are a practical improvement over the factory plastic ones.

If you have the dough to spare, an extended slide release (slide stop lever) is an inexpensive upgrade. I have a match grade slide lock on one Glock, but you can read up on that if you're interested. Consider a healthy amount of range time, ammo, and extra mags first.

http://glocktalk.com/forums/showthre...eel+slide+lock

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

+1 to what SilverCity and Krug said. If for no other reason, the G21 is bulky enough without lights, scopes, or red dots.

However, I'll blatantly ripoff Boston T. Party and say forget the Buck Rogers stuff! :D

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

A good tactical and defense set of sights for Glocks would be ones something like Trijicon makes (there are other manufacturers of similar night sights besides Trijicon). Here is a link to a web site which contains a diagram of the night sights mentioned below, however you can shop around and find a better price should you decide to purchase these. http://www.opticsplanet.net/trijicon...-21-29-30.html

These "night sights" look much like regular factory iron sights in the daytime, however, in low to no light, the front sight contains a vial of tritium gas and the rear sight contains two vials of tritium gas that glow in the dark. The glow is strong enough for the operator to properly align the front and rear sights, however, the glow cannot be seen by anyone from the business end of the firearm. Thusly, you can get a good sight picture for firing without giving yourself away - as you most certainly would with a flashlight. Have a good flashlight - but I strongly recommend against attaching it to your firearm - for more reasons that I can list here.

A scope is USUALLY a magnified optic and for defense use it usually makes a poor choice for an optic as magnification narrows your field of view and it is difficult to get a reasonably quick sight picture with a magnified scope on a pistol in the best of conditions and almost impossible to do so in low light.

A "Red Dot" type of scope is usually not magnified, however, that is not universally true. Red Dot type scopes are great and can assist with getting a good sight picture (something VERY desirable in a defensive situation), and are a popular sight used in several types of competition where fast acquisition of your target is vital. The "Red Dot" type scopes should not be confused with "laser" sights. With Red Dot scopes, the Red Dot (other colors are available as well) is only visible to the shooter and not visible from the business end of the firearm. By contrast, a laser sight emits a beam of light (usually red) that is visible to all. Generally speaking, that is not desirable in a self-defense firearm (there are exceptions of course).

The primary drawback of a Red Dot scope is that they are usually illuminated with a battery. That means that you need to remember to turn the battery switch on before use (difficult to remember to do under stress) and off after each use (easy to forget). When the battery has been drained, your red dot will not be visible and that is a bad situation to find oneself in if lives are at risk.

For a primarily defensive firearm, the simpler the sights, the less to go wrong when you really NEED to use it. That's why I recommend the Trijicon-type night sights that contain illuminated vials of radioactive gas (too small of an amount to pose any danger of having), and have the added benefit of glowing in the dark without the aid of battery power.

Should you be willing to put in lots of time at the shooting range and become an expert with your firearm, then a Red Dot sight could be a great choice for a defensive firearm, however, you'll need to put in a considerable amount of time (and money) becoming VERY proficient with your firearm and train yourself to operate the battery switch under stress (and remember to turn it off when you are finished with the firearm). You will also want to swap out the batteries regularly to make sure that you have sufficient battery power to illuminate the red dot when needed.

I own a variety of firearms with about every type of sight system on the market and I am very proficient in their use. Besides being a gunsmith and certified firearms instructor in pistol, rifle and shotgun, I also was a professional competition target shooter for 12 years. The handguns I choose to keep bedside are a Glock 22 w/night sights (and a spare loaded magazine) PLUS a 6-shot .357 magnum 2-1/2" barrel revolver (with plain iron sights). I COULD keep a red dot sighted handgun at the ready and make it work for me in a defensive situation, however, I believe in the K.I.S.S. philosophy - Keep It Simple Stupid (or Silly if you prefer).

I also believe in Murphy's Law. If you are in a situation where you have to grab a firearm for defensive purposes, you're already not having the best day of your life. Why would you expect that things will get better if your defensive firearms have more than a basic degree of complexity? If it can go wrong, it will. Keep it simple. I base the above on my own personal real world experiences, your mileage may vary.

JR

PS: I also keep a variety of flashlights around the house and in my vehicles. They range from small but powerful tactical flashlights to larger ones. I don't believe that one can have too many firearms, ammunition or flashlights. I also have a shotgun safely stowed that I could put into action in a matter of a few seconds - but no one else could. If you have children living in your home or ones that visit, you should modify how, what and where you keep your defensive weapons but still have a plan developed in advance for defense. That sure beats trying to come up with one when you have more immediate issues to deal with.

PPS: I realize that you asked what time it was and I have proceeded to tell you how to build a watch instead. Sorry about that, but one thing seems to lead to another, and I just wanted to share some advice that might be useful to you or others. Safety first - always!

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

..................

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

tlr-1 rail light and trijicon night sights as mention above.

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

..................

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

+1 to all the above.

I'd only like to add one thing about the lights being attached
to the gun itself.

Sorry to point out the obvious....but...

Tac-lights are made for stormtroopers....not for somebody defending
themselves or their home(in most instances)

Ask yourself...would you in daylight point the muzzle of a loaded
firearm at you son,daugher,wife,dog ect?...

So a tac-light makes it ok to break a fundmental firearm
safety rule?...There is no accessorythat should ever
force one to break any of the rules.

I think some overlook the possibility of somebody else in the
house waking up and moving around during a given situation.

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

+1 - no lites - only nite sites:wink:

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

All you really need are these:

:D
:sarc:

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

heh - and I always thought homies were point shooters... shows ya how little I know:no_ma:

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

the question: " recommendations for a scope or light for a Glock 21?"
ANSWER: Purchase a couple spare magazines, and then BUY AS MUCH 45ACP as you can find, start with 230 grain ball ammo, once you have a thousand, obtain a huge variety of every conceivable hollowpoint whizbang cartridge you can afford, and shoot that ting at least weekly. shoot it a LOT, dry fire it EVERY DAY. dry fire at everything in your house, dryfire practice at the television, pay particular attention to the sight alignment immediately after each pull of the trigger. keep practicing untill you can draw and hit first shot with finely honed instinct, and FAST.
Then buy more ammo. you dont need lights you need practice.

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

practice is best training, draw, aim, fire. repeat until the physical actions are ingrained. anything in a six inch circle at 10 feet good enough. double tap after consistant hits. the physical training will condition the mind, and the weapon becomes an extension of your will. i envision the pistol as a precision drill with a 10 foot bit. grip, sight alignment,trigger squeze,follow up shot[s] until predator is neutralized. works for me.

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

For those of you who see no need for a tactical light, refer to the other thread on Self Defense Shooting and the respondent's personal account of the shooting...walking into "pitch black" hallway (with no N/S or light) and firing fourteen times into the darkness at the charging assailant...without even identifying the target.

He is very lucky one round found the femur bone and dropped the perp. But using a light EVEN MOMENTARILY could have given him a chance to place at least one WELL-AIMED shot into the assailant's CNS and increased his odds of ending the fight sooner. Shot placement and penetration deep enough to hit something vital is the key, not firearm or caliber.

We are all "armchair quarterbacking" or at least analyzing that scenario for what it was--and that is good and necessary--to be better prepared if and when it happens to us. Any advantage we have over our adversaries is only a plus. A tactical light on your pistol gives you an OPTION to use it or not and allows you to use BOTH HANDS when firing the pistol. A flashlight in your weak hand may actually be a handicap...depending on whether or not you need that hand for something important...like opening or closing a door and RETREATING to a safer location, reloading, etc...use your imagination.

As for that fellow, I admire his presence of mind, the fact that it turned out the way it did, and that he survived the encounter...we will have to see how the LEGAL encounter ends now.

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

Exellent weapon SS!...I own one myself...I use a mini-mag in my left hand, UNDER my right, light exiting out the back of my hand....

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

I have an insight M6 on mine.

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

Beautiful POST!!!!!!! Thanks for taking the time to make a Watch!:D I learned more in your email than I have on the internet in a week. I feel A thank you is not commensurate to the quality of your post. You're awesome and thank you again for the brillant advice. :applause_:applause_:applause_

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

Another wise and brillant post! You guys are too good to me. Thanks, will do.:applause_:applause_

Re: Sights or light for Glock 21
 

wow,

the M6 has a light and a red laser. is it practical? does it work well? good for a novice.