I am looking at a gold bead front sight for my 627 pro. I'm considering this possibly for duty carry, and intend to change out the rear sight to something a little more substantial (like the C & S extreme duty sight). Should I go with a factory height .250" or a .300" front sight? Any reason the gold bead would not be a good choice?

There is a formula for the correct height, C&S figured it out for me when I put their Extreme Duty rear on my 325PD. Most likely though it will be the .250". I have the gold bead on my 325TRD and really like it for fine shooting. For duty wouldn't you feel better with a night sight in the front? The XS SMALL dot works well with the C&S.

I just bought a 627-5 and the red ramp front sight definitely has to go. I was thinking either a gold bead or encapsulated fiber optic. I have never used the gold bead so I'd have to try one first. Fiber optic front sights can have a lot of merit but they should be encapsulated for duty use.

S&W's rear sights are quite good. Mine have taken their knocks and bumps over many years and I never had one break. Come to think of it, I never had a need to readjust the sights after that initial sight in with any of my revolvers. A good fixed rear sight might not be such a bad idea after all.

Dave Sinko