On March 29, 1911, the greatest fighting pistol ever to be issued was officially adopted by the United States military. The M1911 or Government model has fought in every single conflict that our men have participated in for over 100 years. Currently the U.S Marine Corps issues an updated model 1911 called a M45A1. The pistol has been knocked off or built under license in countries ranging from Philippines to Norway. The Philippines still makes them the same way Colt engineers showed them how to in the 1920’s.

Fifteen or so years ago I acquired a stainless Springfield G.I. grade 1911 made by Imbel in Brazil. This gun now has 25000 rounds or so through it and various configurations. I have owned over 100 other 1911 pistols but this one will always stay with me. I run the old piece in an OWB leather Galco rig. I expect I will carry this gun on and off until the day I depart this earth.

Since I love these pistols so much, I have been wanting to get a 1911 project going at Night Fision. Two things happened that helped make this a reality. Night Fision has recently begun shipping Perfect Dot sights using Novak bodies. If you carry a quality 1911, more than likely the cut on your slide was developed by Wayne Novak. These sites are built like a tank and Novak makes them the best. 1911 shooters can now purchase Novak cut sights and reap the benefits of our advanced tritium insertion technology. I can now get Perfect Dot sights on my 1911 and my Browning Hi Power.

The Colt 1911 has been around now longer than anyone has been alive. With a million or so sold every year this pistol isn’t going anywhere. If you have a 1911, do yourself a favor and put a set of Night Fision Novak Perfect Dot sights on it.

-Jacob Herman

Night Vision – Quite simply, is the ability to see in low-light conditions.

In nuclear chemistry and physics, nuclear fission is either a nuclear reaction or a radioactive decay process in which the nucleus of an atom splits into smaller parts.

Tritium is an uncommon product of the nuclear fission of plutonium-235, uranium-235, and uranium-233.

Night Vision + Nuclear Fission = Night Fision

Night Fision brings over 25 years of manufacturing experience with Tritium to the firearms industry.

Night Fision sights pack 30% more Tritium into every sight so you are prepared for any lighting scenario.

I have carried about every type of pistol there is in the woods, including 4 inch 44 specials, 10mm Glocks, and Ruger Single Six’s. Unless I am in an area with bears there is no reason to carry a big bore pistol since I usually have a rifle. If I am out hiking or camping then I want a pistol that I can take a squirrel or occasional rabbit out with. I settled on the Ruger Single Six for a long time. We have a few of them floating around the house, and it was the simplest one to grab. A few years ago Tactical Solutions sent me a Pac-Lite upper for a Ruger 22/45. I had never really loved the 22/45 as I thought it was heavy for what it was and not as accurate as I wanted. The Pac-Lite upper changed my entire outlook on a semi auto 22 pistol.

I changed out the weighty, and less than optimal factory upper for the TacSol Pac-Lite. In my opinion, what makes the Pac-Lite upper so amazing is the precision machined aircraft grade aluminum barrel that contains a steel liner crowned at 11 degrees. Each barrel is hand chambered with a manual machine so the operator can actually feel the steel being cut. There are many accurate 22 pistols, but once you shoot a hundred rounds or so then the accuracy and reliability goes downhill like a snowball headed to hell. If I am headed to the woods I am probably going to be doing a lot of shooting over a weekend, and the last thing I want to do is break the gun down. TacSol chambers are designed to give the maximum accuracy while keeping reliability. TacSol guarantees each pistol will do a 1 inch group at 25 yards with standard velocity ammo. Chet tells me to use Eley ammo but that is a bit pricey. I run standard CCI Blazer.

I outfitted my pistol with a Vortex Venom red dot, which is a major upgrade over the old Single Six pistol sights. I use the 3 MOA dot and find it sufficient for about anything I could need while in the woods. In the future I might go with a bit smaller dot. I have used Vortex products for 10 years now, and could not be happier with their optics. The one time I broke one they replaced it, no questions asked. Since the pistol is threaded and in the great State of Tennessee, I can use a suppressor to hunt. I also added my old Aklys 22 can. I have several thousand rounds through this little aluminum ear protector and it keeps doing the job. I recommend getting a suppressor to go with your PacLite. Coupled with a few magazines, and a brick of CCI the whole camp can have a few days of quiet, fun plinking and shooting squirrels for the cook-pot.

-Jacob Herman

Check out this video from SOTG’s Paul Markel on using our 2 dot Accur8 sights with a suppressor:

Tritium, Tritium Tritium…What the heck is Tritium? Simply stated, tritium is a radioactive isotype of Hydrogen. There you go. You are now an expert, have a great day…

Ok seriously though, what does that mean?

IT’S SCIENCE TIME

 Tritium is a Hydrogen atom made up of three particles. Tritium is produced naturally in the atmosphere when cosmic rays collide with air molecules. Also, tritium is a byproduct of the production of electricity by nuclear power plants.

The chemical behavior of tritium is essentially the same as that of hydrogen. This means that tritium, just like stable hydrogen, can exist in a gaseous state or in the form of water.

Tritium in its gaseous form is able to diffuse through most materials except Borosilicate glass. When Tritium gas is encapsulated in these glass vials with phosphorescent pigments, a self-luminous (glow in the dark) device is created.

These vials can be found in a wide range of common consumer goods such as watches, compasses, key chains, tritium exit signs and GUN SIGHTS.

IS IT DANGEROUS?

 The short answer is NO.

It is important to note that everyone is exposed to radiation every day and, on average, the vast majority of an individual’s radiation exposure in the United States results from medical procedures and naturally produced radiation.

Since tritium is a low energy beta emitter, it is not dangerous externally (its beta particles are unable to penetrate human skin) but it can be a radiation hazard in large doses when inhaled, or ingested from food or water. To avoid this, please do not eat our gun sights 😉

If a tritium vial breaks, to be safe, one should leave the area and allow the gas to diffuse into the air. In the event you directly inhale tritium gas in large volume, drink water, and your body will excrete this in 3-7 days.

IS TRITIUM STREET LEGAL?

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulates the use and distribution of self-illuminated tritium devices. Only companies with approved distribution licenses are legally allowed to build and distribute these tritium products.

HOW LONG DO TRITIUM VIALS “GLOW”?

The time that it takes a radioactive isotope to decay to half the original amount is called the half-life. Tritium has a half-life of 12.32 years.

The more tritium that is initially encapsulated in each vial, the brighter it is to begin with, and the longer its useful life.

Night Fision prides itself on adding 30% more tritium into every single gun sight. This is why we back our Perfect Dot night sights with the longest illumination guarantee in the industry.

If your sights aren’t glowing after 16 years, we will replace them.

Student of the Gun’s Paul Markel helped Night Fision design the Accur8™ line of two dot sights. Check out his article the Evolution of Pistol Sights.

Continue reading The Evolution of Pistol Sights →

Here is my story…

Problem #1 Like most folks in their “early” fifties I started to have difficulty seeing things as they were  in the past as my eyes age.  I found that my eye was not picking up the front sight on presentation but rather grabbing the rear sights immediately then forcing me to transition to the threat and then back to the front sight.  This proved slow and it is not what we teach… i.e. “FRONT SIGHT FOCUS” and it is slow.

Continue reading Instructors Know Best →

Firearms are tools. Very expensive tools which have exacting tolerances, and which are subjected to extreme environmental conditions. Every single actuation of these tools subjects certain parts of the tool to thousands of pounds per square inch of pressure, hot gas, and high impact. Not to mention dirt, dust, grime, and filth from the field. Unbelievably though, I still meet shooters who swear that they abuse their guns right out of the box to test “reliability”, or “durability”. Would they do the same with a $300 DeWalt miter saw or framing nailer? I doubt it. They want their tools to last!

Continue reading Clean Your Piece →

I have recently participated in a couple interviews and round table discussions which focused on the validity of using competition shooting to prepare for self-defense shooting. More specifically, if participating in the shooting sports hurts or helps someone who also carries a gun and trains for self-defense. This question seems to be a serious bone of contention between the “Tactical” and “Competition” crowds. DISCLAIMER: I’m not unbiased. As a nationally ranked competitive shooter AND someone who teaches the use of firearms for self-defense all over the world, I’ve given this topic much thought, and I have some opinions.
Continue reading Can Competition Shooters Defend Themselves? →