The eyes aren't what they used to be and I was wondering if there was a color that I could paint the bead of the front sight that would make it show up a little more on targets and bambi...

I have aftermarket sights on my 336 that are nice and bright with little plastic inserts. I haven't tried them yet (broken firing pin...) but I think they look kind of gooffy on a nice lever gun... but if they work... I guess I could live with it.

On my 1894's I'd rather keep the traditional and stock sights but improve the visability.

Your eyes might respond to color differently than mine, and your conditions are certainly not the same, but white seems to work well for me in the field. A little bottle of whiteout (correction fluid) works just dandy. I've also used fingernail polish on occasion. This has the advantage of a large variety of colors, from hot pink to bright yellow. A pink or red might be a better choice if you are shooting targets with a white background. If you don't have a wife or girlfriend to borrow from, you can also try inexpensive model paints, available in a large assortment as well.

Another trick you might try is using the luminescent (glow in the dark) model paints that are available today. Years ago when I was doing agricultural depredation work in the orchards of southern Oregon, I used both a white luminescent model paint and a flourescent orange version as well. The technique really made that front sight stand out in low/no light conditions when using aperture sights.

By-the-way, those model paits are pretty tough and durable as well.... especially for the price!

God bless,

Liquid paper. Copmes in pink, yellow, sky blue (and perhaps some other corlors for the odder carbon copies)...easy to apply, easy to remove, and dead flat non-reflective. Won't last, but so easy to apply and easy to change colors that's really not a problem.

Get a set of fire sights. I'm in the same position as you and need something extra on open sights. Everything I shoot mostly has scopes, but here in Idaho we have to shoot open sights on our muzzle loaders. I put a set if fire sights on it and couldn't believe the difference.

Brownells has them in several different styles and so does Williams. It makes me able to do consistant hits to a hundred yards or over with my muzzle loader.

I second, faucet. Get a set of firesights. I've painted sights and had firesights. No comparison in my book. True, not as cheap as borrowing your wife's toenail polish, but much more effective. (The only exception I would make is on a defensive handgun. Mine is painted, front and rear, with glow-in-the-dark paint.)

On my muzzle loader (small front Bead) I found that a small dab of pait (pick your color) came off to easily. So, I cover the small bit O paint with a lot of clear nail polish, over the top and along the sides... This sort of glues the bit O paint to the site.

good luck

I've tried all kinds of sight paint and have found that lime green fingernail polish works well for me. Believe me that stuff will contrast with anything you encounter in the wild. Also a little fingernail polish remover will take it right off should you want.