I have an AR set up for close quarters shooting and decided to try a red dot. The one i bought was defective out of the box, it was replaced by the manufacturer, and I shot with it at my last range visit. It was like looking through a Mc Donalds straw, and the dot was very faint except on it's highest setting. Are all red dots like this? I am not sure if a red dot is for me. I am looking for a huge field of view and low or no power. I am not sure if I may need an LVPO or not, but I am looking in that direction. When I was shooting archery, I added a lens to a pin sight and am thinking that something like that is what I want for this AR. I don't think they make anything like that, but I want something that has such a big field of view I will almost be guaranteed that the target will be in the scope when I pull up and transition to the scope.
school me on red dot scopes
- Thread starter ebb
- Start date
R.Morehouse
Gold $$ Contributor
I would consider a 1x to whatever variable. There are some great ones out there, so it is going to depend on how much you want to spend. Youtube is your friend........... 
Regards
Rick
Regards
Rick
ELR LVR
Silver $$ Contributor
Red dots are kind of like scopes
Ya get what you pay for, even if it is not magnified.
Check out Aimpoints
And Holosuns
My personal preferrence is a Leupold Firedot, best of both worlds, low magnification and a lit dot
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Shake awake is a nice feature
But if you get something like an Aimpoint Comp M4- you can simply leave it on and the battery will last like 8 years (plus its a generic AA battery that can be had from anywhere, not some special watch battery)
The Aimpoint comp m4 is probably the most rugged, beating out Acogs as far as throwing the weapon into the back of the truck in a hurry and keep on ticking
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The problem I had with red dots is you still have to acquire and "look Through" something
which for myself, iron sights are a little quicker to acquire
so instead of red dots I stuck with iron sights and like tritiums
Ya get what you pay for, even if it is not magnified.
Check out Aimpoints
And Holosuns
My personal preferrence is a Leupold Firedot, best of both worlds, low magnification and a lit dot
-----------------------------
Shake awake is a nice feature
But if you get something like an Aimpoint Comp M4- you can simply leave it on and the battery will last like 8 years (plus its a generic AA battery that can be had from anywhere, not some special watch battery)
The Aimpoint comp m4 is probably the most rugged, beating out Acogs as far as throwing the weapon into the back of the truck in a hurry and keep on ticking
------------------------------
The problem I had with red dots is you still have to acquire and "look Through" something
which for myself, iron sights are a little quicker to acquire
so instead of red dots I stuck with iron sights and like tritiums
Krogen
Gold $$ Contributor
What kind of red dot did you buy, ebb? If you go cheap, you'll probably regret it. I use a number of red dots and like 'em just fine. Plenty of brightness and sufficient field of view.
A short story . . . . Somebody left a cheap red dot on the free table at the club. I snagged it, but then took it back to the free table. It had an insane amount of parallax. With the sight stationary, the dot moved about a foot at 50 yards when I moved my head to look through different parts of the window.
There are cheap red dots and good red dots, but cheap, good red dots are few and far between.
A short story . . . . Somebody left a cheap red dot on the free table at the club. I snagged it, but then took it back to the free table. It had an insane amount of parallax. With the sight stationary, the dot moved about a foot at 50 yards when I moved my head to look through different parts of the window.
There are cheap red dots and good red dots, but cheap, good red dots are few and far between.
JEFFPPC
Gold $$ Contributor
I have had a scope with a red dot on my deer rifle for around 10 years. Have killed a buck, usually early or late in the day, most of those years, Thick woods for the most part, see, identify, evaluate, Bang. Bucks down, oops forget to turn on the dot, lol. I guess I did not really need it. Now hunting with a revolver, red dot for me all the way.
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troupe
Gold $$ Contributor
Holosun 510C it has a big window and a great dot. I have used EO Tech's on my work rifles then 1x6 vortex's. I liked the vortex because of the versatility but they are not cheap and heavy. I have used the Holosuns and have added a green laser for up close. I set up my green laser dot just under my red dot, it is very fast and draws your eye. Like mentioned earlier, stay away from the cheap tactical cool looking junk. That is what they good at, looking cool and nothing but junk. Big windows and a good dot. Some prefer the circle dot, but I have used only the 1 to 2 min. dots. I remember shooting in the International Tactical Championship many years ago put on by one of my great shooting buds, Kyle Lamb. It was before magnifiers were even made. I was using a EO-Tech with the 1 min. dot. The only scopes were either a S&B or a Swaro 1x6. I hit my 315 yd flash targets with nothing more than the 1 min dot.
A lot can be done with a good dot and training.
A lot can be done with a good dot and training.
Jayplace
Gold $$ Contributor
If you're looking for something with a large field of view, I would look into the holographic type sight like the EOTECH. The dot brightness is adjustable and the field of view is huge. I have one of the EOTECH'S with a green dot, but they come in a red dot also. What attracted me to the EOTECH is that the dot is 1 MOA. Nearly all others are larger dots. What I found is, by increasing the brightness, the dot can appears larger. Like most quality product they cost more than many.
ELR LVR
Silver $$ Contributor
If you get a chance, you might also check out Meprolight
They are pretty nice also
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I'll throw this out there about the Aimpoint Comp M4...
I know its pricey, even used they are 500-600
Although one of my Cop buddies on one of his tactical training courses asked the instructor for a recommendation
Through the years, Acogs went down, other brands broke etc
The Comp M4 is the only optic that never broke, even under hard abuse
There is also the factor of if needing to adjust the dot intensity, a knob is much quicker than having to repeatedly push buttons, another reason cops and swat and military like them.
With NV or in a quick situation you do not want to be hunting for and clicking buttons
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My shooting buddy has those and loves them, he will let me borrow one and try it out. I bought my wife an Aimpoint years ago for her AR and found a deputy at the range sold me a used one. It had issues after 2 range trips and I called Aimpoint. I talked to a very nice guy who said he was the owner and asked for the serial number and as I was reading it he was calling it out number for number along with me. He says its a Chinese copy and it can't be fixed. He says I hate this as it poisons the market and anyone like you will never buy one ever. Well at least not a used one and at the price probably not a new one. I all fairness I should try to shoot a real one and see if they are all they claim to be. I am pretty sure what I want doesn't exist. When I throw it up, I want to be looking at the jumbo tron for field of view and clarity. Well you know what I mean.
Jayplace
Gold $$ Contributor
Interesting that you brought up the Chinese copy. I was in a pawn shop about a year ago and there was an EOTECH that looked just like the one I bought new through a distributor. It had a really good price on it, but as I was looking at it, the store operator came over and told me it was a copy. It was a damn good copy. I took a picture of it including the serial number and called EOTECH. They told me it was not their serial number.
Coyotefurharvester
Silver $$ Contributor
I was at an auction, picked up a new Truglo 5 moa red dot for 20$. A few shots and zeroed at 50 yards. A few more range visits to see if it will hold up. I mounted it as far forward on the receiver as possible. I did have to dig thru my stuff to find a riser(.75 ish), itself just to low for fast shooting.
You really want one with auto on and off. If you dont have that, the battery will be dead when you need it. I have had good luck with Sig scopes.
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