If you want to suppress a pistol and still hit your mark, you’re probably going to have to rethink your sight situation.
Let’s get this right out in the open: A suppressed pistol for personal protection has limited application. This is, of course, because in most personal protection situations, the ability to comfortably conceal the pistol is paramount … and it becomes exponentially more difficult when you screw a 6-inch can to your pistol’s muzzle.
But handgun suppressors are getting shorter and lighter. The new 9K suppressor from Silencer Central is only 4.1 inches long and weighs less than 3 ounces. Still, it’s unlikely suppressors will get short enough for concealed carry, but for home defense or use with a truck gun, suppressors are becoming more practical.
Something to think about, however, are sights that are compatible with a suppressor.
But before we get into compatible sighting options for suppressed pistols, you might be wondering how you can make your pistol suppressor compatible. Unlike with rifles, you cannot just thread your pistol’s barrel, because it’s not long enough. You’ll need to purchase an aftermarket barrel with a threaded muzzle. The good news is that for most modern, polymer-framed, striker-fired pistols, there are drop-in barrels that don’t require fitting by a gunsmith. Once you have your threaded barrel, you can worry about which suppressor you should buy and the suppressor compatible sights to go with it.
Handgun suppressors range in thickness but are generally around 1.30 to 1.40 inches in diameter, thus placing the top of the suppressor at about 0.65-inch above the centerline of the barrel. This distance will vary from pistol to pistol, but the top of the front sight on most handguns is less than 0.70 inch from the centerline of the barrel. This means that, with the suppressor installed, you won’t be able to use your sights.
One solution to this problem is to install suppressor-height sights.
Suppressor-Height Sights
A lot of companies offering aftermarket handgun sights also offer suppressor-height sights, and in some cases, you can install them on your own. For example, with the sights from XS Sights, they offer an affordable and easy-to-use sight pusher tool that allows you to install their sights while working right on your kitchen table. Some manufacturers, like Trijicon, will list the exact dimensions of their sights, and this can help you determine compatibility with your handgun and suppressor. However, generally, with a suppressor that has a diameter of about 1.3 inches, you should find most suppressor-height sights tall enough.
With some handguns, I prefer suppressor-height sights as opposed to standard sights, because they offer a bolder profile. My Glock 43X doesn’t have a threaded barrel but it’s outfitted with a set of XS Sights R3D 2.0 suppressor-height sights. This is partly because I like them better than the standard factory sights, but also partly because I can still use them when I have a reflex sight installed on the pistol. I prefer to have a backup to battery-powered gadgetry.
But don’t just assume any set of suppressor-height sights will work with your suppressor and/or allow for co-witnessing with a reflex sight. This is partly because some suppressors might be larger in diameter than others, and it’s also partly because some handguns utilize plates for mounting reflex sights. When in doubt, make a call and get some expert advice from the manufacturer.
There’s another consideration concerning suppressor-height sights: Because these sights are taller, and because they rarely have radiused or smooth edges, they can hang up on clothing when trying to draw from concealment. These sharp edges can also be problematic when you’re manipulating your handgun—racking the slide. I’ve seen sharp-edged sights take hunks of meat out of shooters’ hands.
Reflex Sights
With many pistols, the simplest way to aim at a target when using a suppressor is with a reflex sight. Most modern handguns that come with a threaded barrel also come with a slide cut to accept a reflex sight. My Sig P322 is a perfect example. If you remove the rear sight plate, you can direct-mount a reflex sight, and the pistol becomes suppressor friendly.
The current popular trend with defensive handguns is the reflex sight. And although it should come as no surprise, shooters are realizing they can shoot more accurately if they aim with a single dot as opposed to having to line up a rear sight and a front sight with the target. This is especially true at distance, where—with practice—reflex sights also allow you to shoot faster. If your pistol is compatible with a reflex sight, it very simply solves the suppressor-sight problem, because the parallax-free dot you aim with is well above the top line of the suppressor.
Reflex sight mounting options vary widely from manufacturer to manufacturer. As mentioned, some utilize a series of mounting plates that correspond to specific reflex sight footprints. Others offer a slide cut that fits a certain reflex sight footprint. The new Ruger RXM pistol has a unique slide cut that you can modify with various pins to work with a variety of reflex sight footprints. The only real standard is that there’s no standard. You’ll need to match the reflex sight and suppressor-height open sights to the handgun and the suppressor you’ll be using.
Wilson Combat has a unique approach to the reflex sight/suppressor-height sight conundrum. They offer a custom alteration for their handguns to include Glocks and Sig P320s and P365s, called their True Zero Handgun Optics System. With this system, Wilson Combat machines the slide to accept a mounting plate dedicated to a specific reflex sight footprint, and it can also incorporate a suppressor-height rear sight. This greatly simplifies the question of sight height, co-witnessing and suppressor compatibility.
Suppressors can make handgun shooting more fun and less noisy, but it’s not just as simple as screwing a can to your barrel. You gotta have your sights right … or none of those muffled shots you fire will hit where you want them to.
Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared in the 2025 suppressor special issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
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