1911 Modular Rear Sight

We are very pleased to finally announce the release of our new 1911 Modular Rear Sight.  This new sight replaces adjustable rear sights with a unique 2 piece design that allows the sight to be installed in the pocket cuts popular in custom 1911s.  The design permits easy swapping of the removable, interchangeable sight leaf while the base remains in place on the pistol.  The user can easily swap out the sight leaf with only a flat head screwdriver or the rim of a .45 cartridge casing. The height of the rear sight blade approximates .325" "standard" height 1911 LoMount rear sights, and permits use of existing front sights. Once installed, this sight behaves as a fixed sight.

The sight is currently available with a Bomar base, which fits guns with true Bomar style adjustable rear sights, including the popular STI Trojan and Springfield Armory TRP Operator.  If you are not sure which base your pistol has, we suggest contacting the manufacturer. You can also check the photo gallery on the product page to compare the dovetail to your existing sight.

Sight Kit includes base, leaf, two set screws and wrench for base, custom pan head screw for sight leaf.

***Base for LPA Rear Sight coming later this year. LPA rear sights look similar to the Bomar, and are used on Springfield Trophy Match and Range Officer Models.  Comparison photos are on the product page.

Our Youtube channel has a detailed video that shows how the sight is installed, as well as how easy it is to swap the sight leaves.

Standardized Sight Dovetails

The most common emails that we get concern the compatibility of our sights with various sight dovetails.  I have seen internet forum posts from understandably frustrated shooters who wonder why manufacturers don't standardize the dovetails used.  To start answering this question for yourself, step outside and look at the car in your driveway.  Are all its parts made to the same dimensional standard as every other car driving down the road?  Sure, some parts share certain standardization,  but the majority of the components do not.  Even in relatively standardized parts like wiper blades, tires, and oil filters, there are still a mind boggling variety of options.  Firearms are no different.  A sight that is the correct shape and size for a Glock would be too short for a 1911, and sights appropriate for a 1911 could not be reasonably crammed onto a Glock.  Manufacturers design a gun, and the sights need to fit the form factor of the gun, not the other way around.  If we narrow this field a bit more just to 1911s, the gun has been in production for over 100 years, and nothing - not even the grip screws - is standardized.  It may be a bit confusing and inconvenient, but it's really no different than buying the correct sized tires for your car.

2012 Single Stack Champion

Congratulations to Nils Jonasson, 2012 Single Stack National Champion!

10-8 Performance is very proud to sponsor Nils Jonasson, who blazed his way past an extremely tough field of competitors to become this year's USPSA Single Stack Champion.  Nils is only the third person in the history of the match to hold the championship title (Rob Leatham won the first 15, Dave Sevigny won 2011).  Nils used a single stack pistol built by Matt McLearn using parts from Caspian and 10-8 Performance.

Follow Nils on Facebook as he continues to burn up the 2012 USPSA matches!

90 Degree Reload Drill

Here's a simple drill that you can do to really test your reloads.  Don't read too much into the tactical significance of this one, it's just a skill builder.  I started working this after reviewing video from Area 6 and finding that direction changes confounded my reloading process and slowed me down.  The setup pictured depicts two targets that are 90 degrees apart from your firing position.  Distance to the targets can be set based on your skill level.  I am working these on 15 yard targets for now, and mean to work toward more distant targets as well as closer ones at greater speed.

I started working this drill with my ever present and always handy SIRT pistol.  I had actually trained the drill in very informal dry practice for about a week prior to trying it live fire.  In dry practice, I'd just pick any two small spots on nearby walls/objects that were about 90 degrees apart.  I found that even this lightly structured practice without any set targetry proved to be very valuable, translating 100% into results in live fire.

Here's the drill:

• Start facing one target, so that the other target is at your 3:00 or 9:00.  
• Draw and fire 2 shots on the first target, then perform a reload as you pivot toward the other target and engage it on the move.  You may perform a slide lock or slide forward reload as your preferences and training needs dictate.

My primary objectives on this drill are:

• Pivot aggressively to the second target during the reload.  This simple movement will be more confounding than you'd think, and you may find yourself sailing some reloads past the gun when you try to push the speed.
• Complete the reload within the first step or two.
• Engage the target on the move as early in the movement process as possible. 

The goal is to pare down the overall time for all 4 shots while completing the movements cleanly and aggressively.  For the tactical/defensive shooter, this will help get you out of being static for reloads.  For the competition shooter, this will shave off a lot of time during field courses.