I've had a couple of brass and one gold bead front sight over the years.
I used to dislike them, as they were slow for my eyes to pick up and horrible in dim light.
For some reason I like them more now, and my Colt Wiley Clapp has a brass bead front sight.
I still can't see them well in dim light, but am comfortable enough to basically "point shoot" for lack of a better term, and can live with the brass bead.
They work well in full on daylight, for sure!

 

Outdoor in daylight, a gold bead sight is a wonderful thing indeed.
Fiber optic is likely better, but fragile comparably. Also hideous.
The gold bead functions as a black front sight in low light. But like Wheely said above, eventually you will not care about that, and are not gonna take a long shot in the dark for "defense" anyway.
The gold bead front lasts forever, and will always be the classier option, over basically anything else.

 

I love me some god bead front sights! They are pure class and it was interesting to me when I heard many speak of how hard they were to see. I never had that problem at all, but then I realized that those having issues were shooting indoors. I shoot outdoors unless I'm killing something from a window and I use a rifle for that.

The few times that my gun has come out in defense I would never have noticed if the front sight were even there at all. When I have used my pistol for coyote at long ranges, I have been very thankful for proper sights. Fiber optic sights are wonderful but have no class at all and may break. Tritium on the front sight makes sense, I suppose. What I have truly been blown away by is the tritium ringed fiber optic. Whoa. That jumps out like crazy and while it does not have the style of the gold bead it is very, very useful. I also believe that the "white ball" sights are very easy to use as well.

 

I didn't think I would like the brass bead sight on my TCP when I first purchased it. I have grown to really like it in most circumstances.

 

They look traditional and look classy, they are durable, depending on the bead/rod they can do weird things in the sunlight. I prefer fiber* now on everything pistol related, I don't even want tritium anymore.**

*Red, not green. Green can wash out in some conditions.
**The exception being the Ameriglo green ringed one. That green ring seems to glow no matter the light and even in low light, I don't know what sorcery they have going on with that green-yellow they apply. I put those on Glocks.

 

I like gold dome better, but whatever works. I even made one once that I really like.
This on my 3913.

 

Hell yes!!

 

gold bead on each of these

 

Outstanding collection!!

 

Gold definitely beats brass in my opinion. I have one of each and I paint my brass one as I don't care for it.

 

Brass can tarnish over time. A gold dot will remain bright forever.

 

I had a Wilson Experior Commander with a gold bead and it was my favorite set of irons I’ve ever had. I regret selling it. Very fast acquisition, picked up well even in low light, very bright in higher illumination too.

 

Well I didn't care until Me Precious walked into my life. I have looked at brass beads but they do tarnish. Shotty's I have with them before going out I clean them. The Gold is impressive in low light at an indoor range especially if the light source is behind it.

Natural light from a window.

 

I think that gold is used as much or more for it being a precious material as it is for functionality. I'm sure the color difference between a light yellow brass and gold isn't going to be that great. But the brass just doesn't have the prestige or status that gold does. I think this is along the same logic of using mammoth for grips. For me personally, I can't see any logic in using that material. In most cases, a nice figured piece of wood looks much better than any piece of mammoth. But that's not the point of using mammoth. It's because it's supposed to be rare and therefore expensive. It's more of a status thing than a functional thing. For that matter, I'd never have a set of polished mammoth or wood grips. A grip is called a grip for a reason. It's supposed to help you hold and maintain a grip on the pistol. Checkering or stippling helps you do that so much better. But this is also why polished grips tend to be on barbecue guns or mantle pieces rather than functional firearms.

 

I think that gold is used as much or more for it being a precious material as it is for functionality. I'm sure the color difference between a light yellow brass and gold isn't going to be that great. But the brass just doesn't have the prestige or status that gold does. I think this is along the same logic of using mammoth for grips. For me personally, I can't see any logic in using that material. In most cases, a nice figured piece of wood looks much better than any piece of mammoth. But that's not the point of using mammoth. It's because it's supposed to be rare and therefore expensive. It's more of a status thing than a functional thing. For that matter, I'd never have a set of polished mammoth or wood grips. A grip is called a grip for a reason. It's supposed to help you hold and maintain a grip on the pistol. Checkering or stippling helps you do that so much better. But this is also why polished grips tend to be on barbecue guns or mantle pieces than functional firearms.

And the beauty is that we get the function and the "prestige"! While it's true that a grip with something to hold onto is quite functional, at the same time a smooth gripped gun has never flown out of my hands. I agree that wood looks better and it looks better checkered. Not everyone agrees with that and some think that mammoth with the weirdest colors is attractive. I'd take some slightly figured cocobolo or walnut any day over that.

The logic on a gold front bead on something "fancy" makes a lot of sense in my opinion. They are precious and functional. I must say that the bead sights on the DW models that the OP is speaking of are a little silly. I would definitely not want that kind of front sight on a TCP or ECP. On my NHC Hi-Power, they're great! On my DW A2, they would be out of place.

 

A gold bead front sight is easy to pick up. They do work. If there isn't enough light to see it, then use the side of the slide as your sight.

Although, in this case, you do need to be sure of what you are tossing lead at too.

Need to mention, been through the glow in the dark sights, all black sights, then a gold dot/bead front. Go for the gold...

45_JMB

 

Worked well just now

 

I have gold on one of my Colts and a Les Baer. I like the simplicity and also the look.

 

Thats a nice Colt!

 

I had the gold dot on my ECP and felt pretty strongly a night sight would work a lot better. I ordered one from Novak and they sent me a NightFission I think it was and told me it might take a little fitting. I’ve been filing on it and sanding on it for a couple weeks now and I may have to put the gold dot back on. Additionally, the gold dot on the Dan Wesson ECP was a nightmare to remove, worse than any I have ever done.

 

Though I knew about gold bead sights, I'd never tried one. That is until I acquired my NHC Classic commander last year. It showed me the gold bead front works great for me. I'm in the process of swapping out the night sights on a few of my 1911's, to gold bead.

I agree that the night sights with colored rings show up better. They are also wider that I prefer.

And yes, gold bead front sights look great, too!

 

I have one currently and I like it.

 

I'm not a fan of gold or brass bead front sights. A green fiber optic is my favorite.

 

This will be nothing new to you veterans, but on your brass beads , use good old brasso to easily shine it up and put a touch of clear nail polish on the polished dome. Lasts a good long time, cheap and easy to do.

Not a replacement for a gold bead , but have you priced gold lately?

 

I would mail you 50 of them, but the cost of sending them is more than they cost to go buy yourself.
Gold wire would work too, and you could just hit the sight with a torch and press the gold into the hole and it would melt right in. Would arguably be a much better fit, but would not be easy to dome like mine.

 

I would mail you 50 of them, but the cost of sending them is more than they cost to go buy yourself.
Gold wire would work too, and you could just hit the sight with a torch and press the gold into the hole and it would melt right in. Would arguably be a much better fit, but would not be easy to dome like mine.

😂 Now Rose Gold Or Cubic Zirconia.....Don't forget 🧡 shaped. 😂😂😂 i suppose you triggered my inner Cheap... Didn't Bill Wilson start in the back of Jewelry Store?

 

I have had brass bead front sights, gold bead front sights, and varying black or tritium sights.

The best and fastest one for carry or duty guns to me is the Ameriglo or Trijicon tritium front sight with a big orange polymer ring around it. Easy to pick up in any light and the front sight just stands out so sharply. Not as fragile as the plain fiber-optic sights, and much brighter than gold or brass beads.

However, gold or brass bead sights never need to be replaced, so I like to have a gold bead front sight on the pistols I mainly have for collector pieces. Currently that is only one pistol, though, but if I ever ordered another custom build, I'd probably go for a gold bead.

I will say that gold and brass do not seem equal to me. Brass tarnishes and gets dull faster and doesn't seem as bright even when clean. Gold seems brighter and polishes nicely. If it's a domed bead, I find that better as well, as a flat one mainly reflects light straight back and is most reflective from a perfect sight picture, while a domed and polished bead, for me anyway, is picked up more readily from imperfect sight pictures.

 

Dude, have you tried the Amerglo Lumi-Green? Seriously, give it a shot, it is sorcery. I've had the red/orange black out on me*, the Lumi-green is amazing.

*I need reading glasses, so I have to have a FS that really stands out if I'm not wearing them.

 

I was noticing gold dots been a fan fav mentioned among other 1911 forums

 

Personally I think it's form over function but not quite "chrome that won't get you home"

 

Brass can and will tarnish...GOLD never does. I love the look of it, and the functionality during daylight hours. Hence the gold bead on my competition Wilson. But for a serious defense pistol, like my EDC Ed Brown Kobra Carry, I like an HD tritium front sight. Fiber optics are, in my opinion, ugly and fragile.