Red Dot/Holographic for AR

[longbow51]

So, OK, AR gurus, want to change one of our Rock River Arms ARs from scoped to red dot/holographic for home defense.

Ideally something @schmalts sells. Something that works every time. Price point not all that important, but don't want full night-vision either.

Military folks, your experience is valued.

Thanks so much.

 

[Nick87]

Following along here bought each one of the boys a rock river and a red dot would be just the ticket eventually.

 

[MTLabrador]

Aimpoint PRO if you’re okay with spending a little more. Holosuns are pretty hard to beat for the price.

 

[TheJason]

Aimpoint is kind of the gold standard here.

The Trijicon MRO are also a pretty good option.

Be aware that many of these advertise as “parallax free”, when in reality they are not. Sometimes it’s not enough of an issue to make a difference, but it’s a pint of consideration.

Take note of battery types as well.

 

[Farmerj]

I put a crimson trace CTS-25 onto my ruger 10/22 and my 3-gun shotgun.

Works pretty decent for 3-gun work.

It comes with a riser as well and it puts it up there. Huge scope shadow compared to other Reddots I’ve seen.

Yes, I’m likey taking the riser off the sight. I at least wanted to try it to see what the benefit/drawback is.

The only other reddot I have experience with is the aimpoint CompM4 aka M68 CCO.

It let me see if I’d like one and didn’t cost but $55 for me.

 

[p_ham]

If I'm trusting a red dot with the lives of my family and myself, it's going to be Aimpoint.

 

[millerkiller77]

Huge aimpoint fan here. Nobody in the optics game can touch their constant on battery life and flat out bombproof reliability . Comp M4 has 80,000 hours of continuous powered on(8 years) off one standard AA battery .
I believe the PRO is 50,000 hours continuous on using a less common 2L76 or DL1/3N battery.
Comp M4 is NV compatible if that matters
Top pic is Comp M4 , bottom is PRO

 

[millerkiller77]

I'm going to throw in Eotech as a lesser contender. The downside is the battery life (CR124) is nowhere near Aimpoint longevity, but still light years better than a Chinese optic. The other problem I have with putting Eotech on a primary home defense weapon is the auto shut off. After "x" amount of hours of no dectected movement
(built in inclinometer) the optic turns off. You have to manually press the illumination button to turn the optic back on. The buttons are slightly recessed to prevent accidentally changing the illumination settings, so plan on fidgeting for a second or two if you don't have hundreds of hours of muscle memory using this optic.
Some models are NV compatible with one button activation if that matters.
My last thought on Eotech, stay away from the green reticles, they are nowhere near the image quality of red and are difficult to see when looking through glass during daylight.
Trijicon is the only company that has a functional green reticle,, imo...

 

[Wind Gypsy]

When I last researched it came down to the aimpoint PRO and trijicon MRO. I got the PRO and have been happy with it but I’m tempted to swap it for a 1-4x for a little more versatility with magnification.

 

[schmalts]

I'm going to throw in Eotech as a lesser contender. The downside is the battery life (CR124) is nowhere near Aimpoint longevity, but still light years better than a Chinese optic. The other problem I have with putting Eotech on a primary home defense weapon is the auto shut off. After "x" amount of hours of no dectected movement
(built in inclinometer) the optic turns off. You have to manually press the illumination button to turn the optic back on. The buttons are slightly recessed to prevent accidentally changing the illumination settings, so plan on fidgeting for a second or two if you don't have hundreds of hours of muscle memory using this optic.
Some models are NV compatible with one button activation if that matters.
My last thought on Eotech, stay away from the green reticles, they are nowhere near the image quality of red and are difficult to see when looking through glass during daylight.
Trijicon is the only company that has a functional green reticle,, imo...View attachment 240301View attachment 240302View attachment 240303

I sold 5 Acogs to the local police department so they could replace the Eotech on the service rifles due to battery life surprises.

 

[Simeod]

Look at the Sig Sauer Romeo5. Can find some good deals online if you look around. Motion activated so it turns on when you pick it up. Fairly small unit and fits the bill for me in the home defense roll. I also have EOTech and ACOG. I like my EOTech, but it does require regular activation and battery checks. The ACOG is nice, but not what I wanted for home defense.

 

[millerkiller77]

Look at the Sig Sauer Romeo5. Can find some good deals online if you look around. Motion activated so it turns on when you pick it up. Fairly small unit and fits the bill for me in the home defense roll. I also have EOTech and ACOG. I like my EOTech, but it does require regular activation and battery checks. The ACOG is nice, but not what I wanted for home defense.

I absolutely love these little optics, PSA has them on sale during the major holidays for under $100 and they make great stocking stuffers.. I would have no hesitation putting one on a home defense platform.

If you do order one online, make sure it's from an authorized Sig retailer, not Amazon, Fleabay,Alibaba etc,etc. Those are going to be 50/50 counterfeits. There are a few videos online how to ID an authentic Romeo5.

 

[Tikka06]

I’m an Aimpoint fan and have been for about 20 years. The holosun’s are a good value also. I recommend just looking through a few different ones and then deciding.

 

[454]

Two Iraq deployments as a 19d with Aimpoints and Acogs. Never had an issue with either. I did see some Eotechs lose zero a couple times for no known reason. Working in retail now, I hear the least complaints about Holosun and rarely see them returned.

 

[longbow51]

Thanks to all. Looks like Aimpoint PRO fits our needs best.