XS Sights' new line of fiber optic sights for Glock pistols covers the following models: Glock 17, 19 ,22, 23, 24, 26, 28, 27, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 38, 39, 45, & 47. They also have models for the Glock 42, 43, 43X, & 48.
May 16, 2024
By Jack Oller, Digital Editor
I’ve owned a number of Glock pistols over the years, and one of the first things I change from Glock “Perfection” is the sub-par factory sights. I’ve tried out a number of excellent sight brands, and I’ve never been disappointed with XS Sights. However, they’ve only ever offered tritium sights for their Glock sights line. Fortunately, that’s finally changed with XS Sights’ new line of Fiber Optic sights for Glock pistols. I decided to try them out on a Lone Wolf Arms Dusk 19 semi-auto, striker-fired 9mm I have. It’s a great sub-compact pistol that uses Glock-style sights, which is a good point to remember with these new fiber optic XS Sights; they’re a great option for any pistol that uses Glock-style sights. The Dusk 19 comes with a great set of tritium sights, but I’m partial to fiber-optic more often than not, though I regularly go back and forth, depending on the pistol. The best thing about Glock sights is how easy they are to replace and upgrade. Before we get into the installation process, let’s break down the features of the new fiber optic XS Sights.
XS Sights Fiber Optic Glock Sights In the package, you'll get the serrated rear sight, front sight with the green fiber optic installed, and an optional red fiber optic insert. To install the sights, you'll near a Glock front sight tool and a rear sight tool. The author used a Wheeler Handgun Sight Tool , but XS Sights also offers a handy inline sight pusher and front sight tool set. As you’d expect, the sights are constructed from quality steel, and they’re built in Ft. Worth, Texas. The rear sight features a serrated design which reduces chances of glare and is a pretty standard design. The magic sits in the front sight with the green or optional red fiber optic insert. The insert sits in the sweet spot for size at about .06 inch in diameter, which is large enough to easily pick up but not so large as to be overwhelming. These are what you’d reference as standard height sights, so they’re not quite tall enough to use with a suppressor or co-witness through a red dot, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see some taller offerings down the road. Now, what are the advantages of fiber optic sights over tritium sights? The biggest advantage is that fiber optic sights don’t have a shelf life like tritium do. All tritium sights, no matter the brand, have a shelf life of about 10 years before they no longer emit light. Fiber optic sights maintain their brightness indefinitely, which comes from the ambient light of your location. This makes them especially ideal for competition shooting, providing you a clean, crisp sight picture to pick up and transition between targets. Fiber optic sights are almost always more affordable than tritium sights, too. MSRP on the new XS Sights Fiber Optic line is $69.99, compared to the $150 price tag with most of XS Sight’s tritium Glock sights.
Once the sights are installed, you'll have a bright green or red front sight that's easy to pick up and transition between targets. The disadvantage to fiber optic sights comes in low-light or complete darkness. Since they do require an external light source to illuminate, you won’t be able to pick them up in the dark. Regarding competition and range training, which is done during the day, this is a non-issue, but it does cause concern for a defensive fight in low light. I would argue, though, that one doesn’t have any business pulling the trigger if you cannot identify your target, which requires a light source at night. So, whether it’s from your handheld flashlight, weapon light or whatever lighting you have in your home, your fiber optic sights should have an illumination source in a defensive situation. A final note on the features of the new XS Sights fiber optic line comes from the red versus green sight debate. You get a green insert pre-installed in the front sight with a secondary red fiber optic insert. Technically, the human eye can more easily see the color green, but with how fiber optic sights illuminate, it doesn’t make much difference for our purposes, so there is no wrong answer on preference. I kept the green insert in place, but the red makes a nice backup in case the green insert should ever break. If you do opt for red, it’s a simple process to swap them out. You’ll simply need to carefully break the green insert in half, then pull from both ends of the sight to remove both halves. The red insert comes with one side enlarged, which I suggest you place on the end you’ll look at, then use a lighter to carefully melt the other end. It doesn’t take much to stake the other end of the fiber optic, so go slowly.
Sight Installation It's best to start by removing the rear sight. Using the Wheeler Handgun Sight Tool, it's a simple process to line it up and push the old rear sight out. Once you have that removed, be sure to clean out the sight groove, then you can push the new rear sight into place. Be sure the serrated portion is facing you! The front sight is even easier. Simply use the front sight tool to remove the screw holding the original sight in place, then set the new XS Sights front sight into the groove and screw it into place. Be sure to add some Loctite. Glock-style sights are some of the easiest to replace on a handgun. You will need a Glock front-sight tool and a tool for your rear sight. It is possible to use a hammer and punch, but more often than not you’ll end up scratching the slide a bit. I use my Wheeler Handgun Sight Tool , which is specifically designed to remove a handgun rear sight, but XS Sights also offers a handy Inline Sight Pusher rear sight tool . I’ve used both and they both work great. To get started, I like to remove the rear sight first. The Wheeler Handgun Sight Tool is super easy to use. Simply place the slide into the unit and line up the pusher and tighten everything down. I prefer to only push sights from right to left, and I’ll install the new rear sight from the right sight moving left. Once you have the tool lined up, it does take some force to push it out. If your current rear sight has a set screw, make sure you loosen it. Once the original rear sight is free, I like to clean out the slide’s sight groove of any debris or oils. Once that’s done, reset your sight tool and line up the new rear sight. Make sure the serrated portion is facing you! Use your pusher tool to line up the rear sight, then you’re all set. I just eyeball it on the initial installation to put the sight in the middle of the slide. You’ll still need to take your rear sight tool to line it up just right once you shoot some groups.
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XS Sights fiber optic sights are an awesome upgrade for your Glock pistols. And, since so many other pistols use Glock-style sights, they're a great option for those handguns, too, like the Lone Wolf Arms Dusk 19 featured here. The front sight is even easier to install. With your Glock front sight tool, simply remove the screw holding the original sight in place from beneath the slide, then the sight will pop right out. Once again, clean up the slot where the front sight goes of any debris or oils. With your new sight, it will fit right into the Glock-style front sight groove, which will line up the sight for you. Add some Loctite to the new screw, then lock it down, easy! There’s really nothing to it. Once everything looks good, head to the range and shoot some groups. Make any necessary adjustments, then your all set for training, competition, defense and everything in between. It's hard to beat a good set of fiber optic sights, and I’m glad to see XS sights has finally added them to its product offerings. For now it’s just Glock-style sights, but I’m confident we will see even more fiber optic offerings from XS Sights in due time. With an MSRP of $69.99, these new fiber optic sights are competitively priced and are a great option to upgrade your Glock pistol or Glock-style sights.
