Well, as all of the old timers know, as we age our eyes don't work as well as they did when we were young and dumb.
Lately I have been having trouble picking up my front sight on my '73 short rifle. So I sprung for a replacement from Pioneer Gun Works that has a BIG brass bead that I can see. So if you have trouble seeing your front sight on your '73, Pioneer has front sights for both octagon barrels and round barrels found on carbines. The carbine model is a figure eight design and fits over the barrel and magazine tube, replacing the original. The sight for the octagon barrel models is your standard dovetail type.
Enjoy.