The Kimber K6s was dubbed the world’s lightest 6-shot .357 Magnum revolver at the time of its launch and has only been succeeded slightly by the ever-so-slightly smaller K6s revolver. However, what the K6xs lacks is a true rear iron sight. Last time we did an XS Sight review we took a look at the Taurus 605 Defender with the dedicated Taurus front Glow Dot. Like the K6XS, the Taurus also doesn’t have a true rear iron sight, instead, both pistols have trench-style rear sights which can be difficult to get a solid sight picture on if accuracy is your goal. In stark opposition to both of those revolvers, the K6s features a replaceable and drift adjustable rear iron sight and XS Sights just happens to make their XS R3D Night sights for that particular platform. So today we’ll be talking about those and see what advantages or disadvantages they might offer you should you choose to make the upgrade over the standard sights that the K6s ships with.

XS Sights @ TFB:

• XS Sights Introduces New R3D Kimber K6s Revolver Night Sights
• Pushing for Perfection: XS Sights DIY Sight Pusher Kit & Meprolight Hyper-Bright Sights – Glock 48
• New Henry Big Boy Carbine Ghost Ring Sights from XS Sights

Does Kimber’s K6s 6 Shooter Need XS R3D Night Sights?

Kimber’s K6s 6-shot .357 Magnum revolver features stainless steel construction, a rear drift adjustable white dot iron sight, and also a very nice and predictable double action only hammer. I don’t particularly like double action only (DAO) guns but the K6s have a nice and light take-up, a very clearly defined wall with a clean break for the final portion of the pull that isn’t too light but is not so heavy as to upset your accuracy – probably thanks to the non-stacking trigger design. Overall, the revolver itself is a fine piece of machinery and quite easy to shoot even with full-power defensive .357 Magnum ammunition. Unlike the Taurus 605 Defender, which we checked out last time with XS sights, the K6s doesn’t feature as much nasty blowback and as a result, is much more pleasant to shoot for practice.

Below you can find the specs and features of the K6s:

• Height (inches): 4.46
• Weight (ounces) with empty cylinder: 23
• Length (inches): 6.62
• Width (inches): 1.39
• Cylinder capacity: 6
• Action: DAO

FRAME

• Material: Stainless steel
• Finish: Brushed stainless
• Serrated backstrap

BARREL

• Length (inches): 2
• Material: Stainless steel
• Finish: Brushed stainless

SIGHTS

• White 3-Dot
• Radius (inches): 4.1

GRIPS

• Material: Black rubber
• Kimber logo

TRIGGER

• Non-stacking
• Factory setting (approx. pounds) – 9.5-11.5

MSRP: $985.00

Kimber’s K6s has only recently gotten the XS sight treatment with the R3D sights being released earlier this year. Many of you commented that this is one of the best features of Kimber’s line of revolvers – they have replaceable sights and a healthy amount of support in the aftermarket. This is another thing I never really considered when looking at revolvers for self-defense – they often don’t have any replaceable rear sights and sometimes not even replaceable front sights. Some revolvers simply have permanently fixed sights built right into the frame.

The Kimber K6s come with metal iron sights, but they’re just a simple 3-dot design. The XS R3D night sights are a great upgrade if you can afford them, and for 1/10th the cost of the revolver itself, I think it’s a worthwhile upgrade especially since you’re not only getting better visibility with the rear sights during all lighting conditions but a phenomenal front sight picture which as we discussed last time, allows you to to focus less on the sight and more on your target in a stressful defensive situation. The orange front glow dot isn’t my favorite color option, but it still stands out quite well compared to a plain or white dot front sight.

The XS R3D sights are great and give you a much-needed boost of visibility in broad daylight, and enough visibility in low-light conditions to make them useable into the darker hours of the day or indoors. The rear sight is only adjustable for windage so if your .357 Magnum or .38 Special loads aren’t landing where you want them to at the distances you shoot at, then you’re stuck having to remember what your hold over or hold under will be which is something that I wouldn’t recommend for a revolver that is being carried for the express purpose of self-defense. However, of the loads I used (AAC .357, .358 Spl, PMC Bronze, and Hornady) none of them had a significant departure from the point of aim/point of impact at 10 yards.

Does the Revolver Need it?

The K6s is already pretty damn expensive at about $1000. The R3D night sights can range anywhere from $75 to about $140 depending on what colors you want and whether or not you want to pony up for a full set or just the front sight. I personally don’t think that the rear sight set is particularly necessary for a self-defense revolver, but then again, I don’t carry one on a daily basis and I generally consider hammerless revolvers to be mostly useful at very short distances.

Does Kimber’s K6s 6 Shooter Need XS R3D Night Sights?

I’d like to hear what all of you revolver guys have to say about the merits of having night sights at just the front, or if you think they’re necessary to have for both sets. Next up in our ongoing exploration of XS Sight’s product lineup, we’ll be taking a look at the Lever Rail for Henry’s Big Boy Lever action rifles!

Does Kimber’s K6s 6 Shooter Need XS R3D Night Sights?