repainting Trijicon sights
I'm in the process of building a couple 1911s up. I'm using some new to me Novak-low mount trijicons on both gun. The sights are in great shape, except the finish is a little worn. I think I am going to refinish them when I put the finish on the guns (Norrell's moly-resin). I'll just cover up the tridium vials with some tape and air brush the rest of the sight then thermally cure it. Does anyone know the burst temp on the tritium vials? I've looked around and I can't find tech specs on the sights. I am certain they will be fine at 100F, but the full cure requires a 300F temp which I'm not so sure about. Anyone have any experience here? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks!
When in doubt call the manufacture.
Corporate Office
49385 Shafer Avenue
P.O. Box 930059
Wixom, MI 48393 USA
Phone: 1-800-338-0563
Phone: (248) 960-7700
Fax: (248) 960-7725
Please post what you find out.. I would like to do this as well and would prefer using something other than flat black paint.
Some discussion here:
Sight Bake Thread
BTW.. Schreckengost was a fairly well known gunmaker / smith in 19th century Pennsylvania.
Ok, I called Trijicon and asked them about the burst temp on the tridium vials. According to the CS guy I spoke to temps above 300F will damage the vial and more importantly damage the tridium therefore dimming the sights or drastically shortening their lifespan. I don't know what I think about that argument, I'm not sure that a little heat will change the atomic structure enough to damage the luminosity (I could be wrong, I'm not a chemist or physicist). Anyway, I'm going to pain the sights and cure them at 250F for a longer period than I would at 300F.
The CS rep offered another alternative (which I will take advantage of in the future) which is a lamp replacement. Go on the website and set up an RMA, send back the sights (or the slide) and Trijicon will replace each lamp for $18 each, so $54 buys another 12-15 years of light.
Thanks for the helpful comments and getting me going in the right direction!
The seal between the vial and the phosphor screen is not a very high temperature one.
Many are epoxy.
I would certainly believe elevated temps will let the Tritium break down faster.
Thanks for posting the vial replacement info - I have a 12 year old set on my AR that have seen much better days. $54 is a winner!
Originally Posted By Shizzlemah:
I would certainly believe elevated temps will let the Tritium break down faster.
Thanks for posting the vial replacement info - I have a 12 year old set on my AR that have seen much better days. $54 is a winner!
Temperature has NO effect on half life.
thanks, i have a 15 year old set that is still running, however they need to be alot brighter.
The half life of tritium is 4,500±8 days, or about 12.3 years.
Depending on the fill at 15 years they probably are starting to look a little dim.
Do not bake your Tritium sights. Use flat black Alumahyde II and a small modeler's brush to freshen them up. Give it a week in a warm, dry place to cure and you'll be GTG. Afterthought; if they're fifteen years old, refinish the gun then put new sights on it.
