Several of my handguns sport laser sights but I've not kept up on the consensus of opinion for the last five years or so. Have lasers maintained their popularity or are they now seen in a less favorable light?

Consensus? Are you kidding? How about a multitude of opinions instead? My own opinion is simple. Of what use is a Laser sight that adds bulk to a CC gun that if ever actually used for SD will probably be fired in extreme haste at a man sized target at a distance of no more than ten feet?

I personally don't use laser sights.

Wife has weak hands from chemo few years ago. Put laser grips on her J frame but she says the Mdl 12-2 “ feels better”. So looking for laser grips for RB K frame.63E30AC7-86DC-4E15-878B-60E16DF9F934.jpg

I had a veridan reactor green laser on a khar cw9. Magnets in the holster deactivated the laser when holstered. The laser activated when drawn from the holster . If you practice regularly be prepared to buy a lot of batteries. If the gun sat inactive for a month the batteries would be weak or dead. After a year I gave up and moved on to a sig p365 with night sights. I’ve been happy with that set up ever since.

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Dave
Regulators mount up!

Does it really matter what everyone else thinks...what do you think ?

I think they are cool gadgets but I'm too old to bet my life on battery powered electronic anythings . Red Dot sights help me shoot small groups ... but I'm still leery of them on a handgun I might have to use to protect myself ... a red dot that has irons for when the battery / chip fails might work ...but I don't have one ... yet !
I will bet my life on a iron sighted 1911 and a Randall #1 Fighting Knife or perhaps a USMC Ka-Bar fighting knife ...

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Certified Cajun
NRA Member

I think of them as an excellent training tool. If you want to see how bad you shake when shooting try a laser. Most of the shooters that I’ve watched at our club can’t keep the dot on the target when shooting. If you devote the time and ammo a laser will make you a much better shooter. That said I don’t have any desire for one on a carry gun.

There is no consensus . Just opinions . Choose wisely ..

Not a #1 but a #5. Will that work?

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Pack light and cinch tight.

Learn to shoot well and you'll probably find no need for laser sights.

They look cool in the movies. They also identify your position precisely at night.

Can't do it here. I have a clowder of cats and if I pointed a laser at an intruder he, and half my furniture, would be instantly aerated.

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Bob's my uncle

M1911 with iron sights with a New York reload of another M1911 with irons, heaven forbid I have to go to a kabar, but have two of those too.

Any kind of laser or dot are to distracting to me.

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USMC 1969-1993

Red laser sights are useless outdoors during the day. As mentioned, most can't even keep them steady and 'chase' the laser.
A better alternative is a laser bullet (laser ammo) for dry fire training. They will let you see how well (or how badly) your follow-through is.

Yeah, no. Laser light goes both ways, kind of a " shoot me here" accessory.........just my 0.02

Yeah, it’s fun to watch new shooters at the range with their laser bouncing all over the target. You can even watch then flinch from the safety of your bay.

On top of dead batteries, malfunctioning unit, there are a variety of surfaces that make a laser hard to see. In a high stress situation you don’t want to be fidgeting and trying to figure out why your laser isn’t working. Unless you train with it on a regular I wouldn’t want one.

I like them. I have them on my 649-2. The grips are a lot more comfortable than those from the factory and not much bigger so concealment is no issue. They can be switched on and off and frankly I see more advantages than disadvantages to them.

A brief time out for a round of applause for the timely reintroduction of “clowder of cats” into the modern vernacular. Well done.

We now resume our regularly scheduled programming.

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I.M. Shirley Wright

my night stand pistol [fnx-9] has a TLR 4G laser/light combo and i like it. alot. Bodyguard has built in laser....adds minimal weight and batteries last forever. i put it in my pocket when taking the pup out at night for potty. have several Crimson Traces on revolvers. so, put me in the "i like 'em" camp.

You don't even need a gun for that, just the laser!

A laser sight will give you a slight advantage in certain situations. But it takes practice and is a new way to aim. You still need to use all the principles of marksmanship to hit accurately. You cant just yank the trigger when the dot is on the target. You grip and follow through must be the same.

When CT sights / grips were new on the market, they courted many law enforcement agencies and sent samples to those that were curious. I tested a set on our Sig 229’s by utilizing about six officers with varying experience from rookie to SWAT guys. We shot a standard qualifying course and had some fun on the “tree” where two shooters swing the gongs back and forth. The general consensus was that following the laser created a tunnel vision effect which took away from the down range activities of potential bad things. Too much focus was required and scores were not affected. It was decided that we would rather utilize our current training / sight picture, etc than become dependent on a laser which looked different depending on the lighting in the day, night, inside or outside. There may be a practicality of a laser on a home defense handgun but not in the field.

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S&W factory revolver armorer

The EDC I carry most is a LCP with red dot laser, and if the dot is hitting center target, so will the bullet. Consider it a defensive plus being able to fire accurately from angles other than a proper sight position.
At the range, however, I'll shoot magazines without the laser while working on draw and aim, and than use it for the last two magazine to verify the laser remains dead center.

I have exactly two laser sights.. both came with a gun attached. neither is attached anymore... until I can't see my sights they serve no purpose.. guns don't take batteries

Will it Work .... Is the Pope Catholic ... Heck Yeah !!!
Sweet , both of them !
Gary

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Certified Cajun
NRA Member

If you have time to look for that dot on your target you probably aren’t in a gunfight.

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Thirty characters. Exactly...

Was assigned to an Anti-Terrorist unit while in the Corps. We were given a Combat Pistol Course (designed by Jeff Cooper ). We did a lot of man on man competition on pepper poppers. We started with our guns in the holster and drew and fired on command. Was usually over in about 2 seconds (sometimes less & sometimes more). Never used more than the front sight and just caught that in your peripheral vision.

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USMC 1969-1993

Lasers, not personally a fan. I do like a good light on a home defense gun, but not so much on my carry gun.

Most people agree, the dot is a pretty good target, and will give your position away to an attacker.
Most defense shooting is done at pretty close ranges. Learn to use sights, and practice.... A lot... Pray you dont need it... be ready if you do.

I find them an excellent training device for learning to point a handgun without sights and dry fire. These old eyes can't see sights indoors very well and the laser makes aiming a cinch. I use them on all of my self-defense handguns, as well as, my Remington TAC. Nothing better at night!

Don't any of you have laser sights on those Randals? Would they not be as useful?

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Kind regards, Heinz

Nothing like carrying a red flag around at night saying "Here I am!".

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USMC 1969-1993

We aren't talking military combat here, but home defense. I think Crimson Trace’s Kent Thomas sums up the situation nicely: “If you have your gun drawn and pointed downrange (or down your hallway), you’re already engaged in a gun fight.”

Funny stuff. Consensus? No. Plethora of opinions? Oh, yeah......

I'm not a fan of lasers. For police-type sniper work I can see the use but I don't want to follow a light to hit a target with a handgun. I can still use a front sight and, even better, I point shoot extremely well.

On handguns I don't like red dots, either, although they are becoming all the rage and I don't get it except for a parallel to polymer, striker fired handguns - it's new and modern so yippee-ki-yi, let's do it. Not I said the spider to the fly.

Same with attached flashlights but that's whole nuthuh rant.........

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Come and take it!!

It does not matter if you are "in military combat" or "defending your home", a gunfight is a gunfight. Take every advantage that you can. Have some kind of plan on what to do. Yes, I know that plans tend to fall apart when in contact with the adversary. Crimson Trace wants to sell you products.....

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USMC 1969-1993

Please pardon my ignorance, but when I’ve seen people shooting with laser sights there isn’t a visible beam back to the shooter. Does the laser sight have some kind of glow at the projection point that would be visible to an adversary? Wouldn’t you have to be looking right into it?

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I.M. Shirley Wright

Does it appear laser sight gadgetry is taking the same course toward extinction as other products of dubious worth like molycoated bullets and graphite wads?

I got one for my carry snubby shortly after my motor nerve condition started.
It helps me with trigger control when doing dry fire practice.
I just put the red dot on something across the room and keep it there all the way through the trigger pull both right and left handed.
For live fire I use both the sights and laser for practice with both.

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Keep on Chooglin'

It's just the nature of the laser beam, in most environments there is not enough dust/smoke in the air to reflect the beam and make it visible, basically the same thing that happens with just a flashlight in a clean room, you see what it's illuminating, but won't see the beam of light unless there's dust or something else to reflect it in the air.

And like a flashlight, if you have the thing pointed at you, you will be able to see the light source. Since it's a more focused beam than a flashlight, you need to be looking more directly back at the laser, but you can be a off the axis of the beam some and see the emitter.

The beam you see in a movie/tv, or published add for the things, is a special effect that is added in.

Based on my 30 yrs on the street I don’t put laser sights on my EDC.

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Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

These are boxes from most of my Crimson Trace lasers. I also have lasers from LaserMax and other.

I tell/show people that by activating the laser when the gun leaves the holster there is no wasted time in the extremely rare case of the laser not working. You just continue to elevate the gun to the normal position and use the "iron sights."

Pointing a laser is like pointing a flashlight. If you have to fire the gun it goes bang and the bad guy will see a flash and know where you are.
Both of my on the job discharge of firearms took place at night. I would have loved to have a laser available back in the day.

Speaking from experience, that’s for sure!

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Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

And if you are thinking of a laser because your eyesight isn’t what it used to be, a red dot optic will be much easier to pick up in the screen on your slide than a dot down range on your target.

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Thirty characters. Exactly...

I disagree. Combat is completely different than civilian self-defense, although apparently the top tier special operators of the different services use lasers, at least sometimes. Lasers have a lot of advantages and few disadvantages. Giving up one's location is not one of those disadvantages. Hell yes, companies want to sell products, but that's not a consideration here. In a low light situation when one cannot see one's sights, what is a better option?

Actually, unless I was in a smoke-filled room, I have never really seen the red beam leading back to the shooter, just the red dot. Seeing the beam flash around seems to be a Hollywood effect.

We can agree to disagree.......🤷‍♂️

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USMC 1969-1993

Nothing wrong w/laser sights but in my ‘74 gunfight it was all fast point shooting across the hoods of our cars on a dark parking lot. No time for an aimed shot of any kind.

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Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

For me it was watch for muzzle flashes and did point shooting at those.

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USMC 1969-1993

Yeah, I've got that "old eyes" problem as well. The light from the laser is really easy to pick up and getting it on target is a piece of cake.

For me, the jury is still out. Fortunately, I've never been in a gunfight and hope to never be in one. That said, I believe in preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.

Let me address red dot sights on a defensive pistol. I have a Glock 17 with a red dot that I use in GSSF matches. It is taking a lot to get accustomed to. Ninety nine times out of a hundred, I find myself hunting for the dot in the window when I present the pistol at the target. For this, I am old school and would NOT consider it an advantage on a pistol carried for self-defense.

Concerning lasers, I have a more positive outlook. I have 2 Sigs that are wearing lasers: a P320 Xcompact (CMR204) and a P365 (Lima365). I use the P320 as a competition gun at the Adaptive Defensive Shooting Summit, and the laser is very advantageous on the "near total dark" stages. Flashlights are prohibited for these stages, and the green laser helps me acquire the threat targets and benefits my times. I use a Black Rhino holster for this pistol.

When I acquired my P365, I purchased a red laser Lima 365 for it. I have found that when the Lima is installed on the micro grip module, my grip changes as I break the shot, and the pressure on the activation button is removed. For me, the Lima 365 and the micro grip module is a "no go". However, I did acquire an X/XL grip module, and put the Lima 365 on it. I found a winner, because I am now able to keep enough pressure on the activation button through out the trigger squeeze.

For a defensive pistol, I don't need to worry about giving away my position, because the predator is already moving on me. Being disabled, with 2 bum legs and a bum arm, I will take advantage of any unfair advantage I can get. I know that I own every round that I fire, so that is why I like the concept of the laser. My belief is that if the predator is advancing faster than what I anticipated, I can point shoot with a higher degree of confidence that I'll hit my target when I show him/her/it that they chose a victim with teeth. With a properly zeroed laser, I know that if I can paint the target with the laser, I will hit the target.

That said, I have not yet tested my current configuration on the range, but I feel confident that it will work.

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Judge control not gun control!