paint the front sight

JQIAN

JQIAN

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I recently acquired a SW 1911 PC, great gun but one thing I hate is the sight.
Both rear and front sights are completely black. Hard to see especially under the shade of sunshine.
Is it a good idea to paint the front sight white? if so, what paint should I use? I can use my wife's nail polish?:p
 
Nail polish works just fine. Clean the contact area first(alcohol works well). Apply the nail polish thinly and evenly. May take a couple of coats,depending on colour. Your wife can likely advise on how to get the best result.
I use gold nail polish. Borrowed from a daughter. Stands out well under most lighting conditions. Use what works for you. White is a good choice.
Nail polish is quite durable. I use my guns frequently(competitive shooting). No problems with excessive wear, flaking, etc.
If you prefer paint, any paint suitable for metal works. Spray on, or apply automotive touch-up paint(small bottle...brushed on like nail polish). Use the same general precautions as nail polish.
 
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I remember doing this to a pellet gun I had as a kid and it worked great but it's not a look I'd want on a nice gun. I'd just buy a replacement front sight. That being said I'm sure you could manage to make it look a hell of a lot better than I did lol.
 
I use a drop of white as the base and then apply desired color.



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hatman1793 said:
Try “smoking” the sights. Dedicated & competitive PPC shooters have been coating/depositing black soot from calcium carbide smokers on their sights for years. The matt black coating makes the sights stand out creating a great sight picture, even in direct sunlight.
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I used to carry a roll of masking tape, tear of a 6" or so length and light it on fire. Let the sotty smoke coat the front sight. Worked like a hot damn to eliminate glare and gave a great sight picture.
 
Garand said:
x2, it works
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I did a white coating last night, it's still too subtle. I will make an orange coating again today to see how it goes.
Wife has more than 30 different color nail polish. Lots of fun to do. I was thinking a bright yellow-ish as well
 
JQIAN said:
I did a white coating last night, it's still too subtle. I will make an orange coating again today to see how it goes.
Wife has more than 30 different color nail polish. Lots of fun to do. I was thinking a bright yellow-ish as well
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The white will really help to make the bright colours pop, they aren’t strong enough on their own without lots of coats. When outside in daylight they’re pretty bright, works well for the price. If it chips or wears off, simple to redo or touch up.
 
Butcherbill said:
The white will really help to make the bright colours pop, they aren’t strong enough on their own without lots of coats. When outside in daylight they’re pretty bright, works well for the price. If it chips or wears off, simple to redo or touch up.
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I just did a bright green coating on top of the white prime. The result is fantastic. I am going to try it out this weekend at the range when it's sunny outside.
 
JQIAN said:
I recently acquired a SW 1911 PC, great gun but one thing I hate is the sight.
Both rear and front sights are completely black. Hard to see especially under the shade of sunshine.
Is it a good idea to paint the front sight white? if so, what paint should I use? I can use my wife's nail polish?:p
Click to expand...

yes...Nail polish. this stuff is really bright, kinda Fluorescent
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Degrease first.

Then white enamel.

Then a fluorescent red or orange. Without the white undercoat, the red will be flat. The white is key to making it pop.

I bought a bottle of clear polish at Walmart called "Hard As Nails". I paint this on top of the red, so that the sight will wipe clean.
 
1ABNDT said:
I use a drop of white as the base and then apply desired color.
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FWIW, one of the guys at the range did this for my iron sights with liquid paper - as a newbie I experienced an immediate improvement. I'm guessing from the other responses you can use whatever works for you that is reasonably durable.
 
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