.010 or .019 — which pin size?

.019" for most hunting and 3D; .010" for target work and long-range precision if your eyes cope with it in your usual light. Mixed sizes on a multi-pin sight are a sensible compromise.

My pin is dim at dawn — is it broken?

Probably just short of light. Check the fibre coil for breaks first; if intact, a housing light or a lit pin is the fix. A fibre broken near the tip needs replacing.

Does the pin colour affect accuracy?

Only through visibility. Pick the colour that contrasts best with the targets you shoot most; on a pin stack, alternate colours so you never pick the wrong pin.

Optický pin

A fiber-optic pin is a sight pin whose tip is the end of a thin optical fibre. The fibre gathers ambient light along its length and glows at the tip, giving a bright, precise aiming dot without batteries. Pin diameter — commonly .010", .019" or .029" — sets the size of the dot on the target.

Detaily

The physics is simple: light entering the side of the fibre is trapped by internal reflection and emerges at the cut end, so a long coil of fibre wrapped around the sight housing makes a much brighter pin than a short straight run. That is why hunting sights carry visible coils of fibre. In dim light the tip still glows as long as any light reaches the fibre; when it doesn't, a small light in the housing or a battery-lit pin takes over.

Pin diameter is a trade-off between precision and visibility. A .010" pin covers roughly one inch of target at 20 yards and gives the finest aiming point, but is hard to see in poor light and against dark backgrounds. A .019" pin is the common all-rounder; .029" is bright and quick to find but covers more of a small target. Many multi-pin sights mix sizes — larger on the short pins, smaller on the long ones — because the long pins need the precision most.

Fibre colours matter for contrast: green is brightest to the human eye, red reads well on green 3D targets, yellow sits between. On a multi-pin sight, alternating colours makes it easier to count pins from the top under pressure.

Fibre is fragile. The protective coil housing exists because exposed fibre snaps on brush and gear bags, and a broken fibre near the tip dims the pin permanently. Check the fibre before a hunt or tournament, and log any replacement pin — a new pin can sit fractionally differently and move the mark.

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Časté otázky

.010 or .019 — which pin size?: .019" for most hunting and 3D; .010" for target work and long-range precision if your eyes cope with it in your usual light. Mixed sizes on a multi-pin sight are a sensible compromise.
My pin is dim at dawn — is it broken?: Probably just short of light. Check the fibre coil for breaks first; if intact, a housing light or a lit pin is the fix. A fibre broken near the tip needs replacing.
Does the pin colour affect accuracy?: Only through visibility. Pick the colour that contrasts best with the targets you shoot most; on a pin stack, alternate colours so you never pick the wrong pin.