# Laser Sight Activation



## SouthSideScubaSteve (Jun 20, 2012)

I am looking into laser sights for the handgun I purchased for primary home defense. I like the sights that are on the gun now, so I’m looking to add the laser for low-no light situations. It appears there are two major families of “laser sights” out there for handguns:

Grip Activated vs. Manually activated

I can see advantages & disadvantages for both … If you have a Laser Sight, or are looking into one like me; which type did/will you choose & why??


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## chessail77 (Mar 15, 2011)

Under stress in a home defense situation simple is always better.....spend the extra $ and get a Crimson Trace......JJ


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

...And get only the kind that goes either on or off.
No fancy, unnecessary strobing switch-position to have to cycle through.

I have to add: Lasers are all but useless, except for practice.
They don't show up well in daylight, and in low light you will find yourself hunting for the laser dot and getting it onto its, um, target, which is a huge waste of time when you have an immediate need to save a life.
Further, the BG you're up against can follow the lase beam right back to you. Bang, bang—you're dead.

A much better method would be to learn, and to practice, shooting quickly at short range: with sights in daylight, and using only the dim silhouette of the rear of the pistol in low light.

If you can't clearly identify your, um, target in low light, you have no business shooting at it.
It could be your wife or girlfriend, your child, or an inebriated but harmless neighbor who has wandered into the wrong home.


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## berettabone (Jan 23, 2012)

I have a laser sight on my Bodyguard.....manual....didn't choose it, it came on it.........pretty useless for real life...yeah, you can play with it, and get it sighted in........have the dog chase it......scare the hell out of the neighbor(hope he has a sense of humor)....I guess that I have an advantage.....myself and my wife are the only two that should be in the house....if I reach over, and she is still there, then anything else that moves is fair game...would I use the laser..maybe, if I knew that an intruder could see it on the wall, might make him leave...you can say that you have a firearm, but he may be more inclined to believe you, if he sees the red dot...maybe not...that's why, to me, too many if's...probably wouldn't even waste the time to use it...even in low light conditions, I can still see what I am firing at. Hopefully, an inebriated but harmless neighbor doesn't decide to wander into the wrong home, I hope that his siblings have a large insurance policy.


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## rex (Jan 27, 2012)

The lazer can be good for a scare factor,but it isn't going to light up a silhouette in dim light so you are shooting at an unknown target as said.Have you ever shot at night?After the first shot you will see everything in front of you at least 20ft away,if it was a no-shoot pray you missed but if it was a good guess you know where to throw the next shot.That sudden flash gets to you quicker as the eyes age,the spots happen sooner.


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## PARABROAD (Jul 7, 2012)

I need advice..I bought a pre owned Kimber Covert Pro Carry 4 inch b. I went to the store with the intention of buying a 1911 traditional model. I had Sig Sauer 1911 as my focus.
I bought the Kimber, It has Crimson Trace grips and night sights. I think I was side swiped by the camo look to the piece. I bought it. It shoots better than me!

My question is, what good is the CT ? the focus for the sweet spot for the laser and sights is circa 21 feet.

great on the range for the second shot. To activate the CT there is a switch on the grip that can only be activated by my left hand ( right handed shooter) another stage that will be ignored in stress.
so, I was attacted to the 'gimmic' of the combat looking piece but beginning to wish I had stuck to my original plan for the traditional style of a 1911 piece.


So any comments on the value of the CT would be really appreciated

I think I will end up trading


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

So just remove the Crimson Trace grips and replace them.
Advertise the laser grips for sale, maybe on GunBroker.

The laser and the sights _should not coincide_!
You need to sight-in so that they are in _parallel_, all the way out to 25 yards. Then you memorize the offset.
When it comes to precision shooting, which is rare in defense, let the offset guide you. You will be shooting a little high from seven to 15 yards anyway.


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## VAMarine (Dec 25, 2008)

PARABROAD said:


> I need advice..I bought a pre owned Kimber Covert Pro Carry 4 inch b. I went to the store with the intention of buying a 1911 traditional model. I had Sig Sauer 1911 as my focus.
> I bought the Kimber, It has Crimson Trace grips and night sights. I think I was side swiped by the camo look to the piece. I bought it. It shoots better than me!
> 
> My question is, what good is the CT ? the focus for the sweet spot for the laser and sights is circa 21 feet.
> ...


The on/off switch on the bottom of the grip is the "master" on/off switch, when being carried for defense that switch should be *on* and the front pressure pad (that big black pad at the top of the front strap) is the primary on/off mechanism.

If you decide to sell the grips, I call dibbs.


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