Backup sights are one of those things you never think about, right up until the time you really need to think about them. Sure, it's far more likely that you'll pull your go-to carbine out of the safe, check your red-dot sight and discover the battery has shuffled off this mortal coil, and replace them without incident, but what if you didn't check until you got to the range? Sure would be embarrassing to find out you're looking through empty glass...
Things get even more dicey when it's a carbine you rely on as a home-defense firearm. It might live in a safe under the bed or in the corner of the closet, out of the way but not forgotten, until such time as you really need it (although, being astute Shooting Illustrated readers, you're practicing regularly, right? Right?) Backup sights are cheap insurance against pulling your rifle out of storage, pushing the button or twisting the knob to turn the red-dot sight on and getting... nothing.
Mission First Tactical recently released backup sights, featuring adjustable front and rear post and aperture sights, respectively. Constructed of DuPont military-grade polymer and deploying instantly by simply sliding the cover forward, the sights take up minimal space on the top rail and weigh 0.5 ounces each. The front sight features 1/4-click MOA adustments made with a standard AR-15 front sight tool. Rear sight adjustments are infinite with only a hex-head wrench.
MSRP: $39.99 (front sight), $44.99 (rear sight).
