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Thats true but I can buy a lot of batterys for 500 bucks.
Yes, the batteries just like a Timex will take a beating and keep on ticking. The cheap red dot will take one hit and fail.
Mine are battery free, a bit radioactive but battery free. Armson O.E.G. Sights
Great for use with both eyes open. If you can see it you can shoot it dead on.
If you keep your eyes open you can find a older one used reasonable that the tritium has not expired on it's half life. The new ones are all right but do not work in the blackness of midnight.
I have one mounted on a Winchester 94 in .44 mag and one mounted on a Marlin 1895 in 45/70
In a recent chat with the president of the company he dared me to distroy it, he said most of their sales are to the military and that they approve of it. He said my wildest loads in the 45/70 will not damage it.
I have a Bushnell that I got for about 350.00. Its a tough, armored piece, with a post style green or red illumination, adjustable for light conditions, back up iron built on top, so far so good, and my AR gets in the scrub. If I had to say its a knockoff, the configuration is similar to an ACOG. Though an ACOG it is not. Lmao. Still, its taking a beating and holding up great.
I have a Trijicon on one of my AR's and it works very well. I have several of the red dot sights that use batteries, and I've never had a failure from any of them either, so I think any of us that give you a recommendation are just telling you what our experiences have been. One poster mentioned scopes on air rifles, but he possibly doesn't know why the average scope won't hold up on an air rifle. Robert Beeman, former owner of Beeman's Air Rifles said the recoil caused by an air rifle was just opposite or the reverse of the recoil caused by firearms. The piston in an air rifle moves toward the front of the air rifle instead of toward the rear which causes the recoil to actually be forward instead of rear ward. The scopes Beeman sold were not expensive, but stood up well to the odd recoil of the air rifles. I guess a scope is just what it is and what you want is what you should buy. My dealer has a small Trijicon ACOG for sale with a green dot that I plan on buying, it's used and the price is $600, but these scopes are rugged and work well. I don't need it, but I want it...
Its not to put down any of the expensive red dot sights. I am sure they are some of the best available. My question is do people promote the very expensive sights because they paid a lot and therefor have a lot invested, or is it because they tried cheap ones and had bad results. I have read several articles where people pay from 39 to 80 for inexpensive red dots and have them for a long time keeping zero.
So for me its more of a question of what I am going to use it for. I am dipping my toe in the red dot pool. Never used one, always open sights or regular optics and the odd laser.
I also don't pay a lot for the lasers, I got the compact ones from China direct where most everything is made for cheap. How can I go wrong for 20 bucks shipped.
I bought a laser sight for my old now sold Smith 4506. It cost me 190 bucks and now I can pick one up for 20 bucks. It seems to work as well.
Not saying that the expensive sights are not worth what they are asking but if you take a gun to the range once a year or even less, I don't want some sight that cost more then the gun on it. Also I bet in two years I can buy what is being asked for now at a big discount when other models come out. Or used at a discount. Maybe not but its how everything else works.
I have a Trijicon on one of my AR's and it works very well. I have several of the red dot sights that use batteries, and I've never had a failure from any of them either, so I think any of us that give you a recommendation are just telling you what our experiences have been. One poster mentioned scopes on air rifles, but he possibly doesn't know why the average scope won't hold up on an air rifle. Robert Beeman, former owner of Beeman's Air Rifles said the recoil caused by an air rifle was just opposite or the reverse of the recoil caused by firearms. The piston in an air rifle moves toward the front of the air rifle instead of toward the rear which causes the recoil to actually be forward instead of rear ward. The scopes Beeman sold were not expensive, but stood up well to the odd recoil of the air rifles. I guess a scope is just what it is and what you want is what you should buy. My dealer has a small Trijicon ACOG for sale with a green dot that I plan on buying, it's used and the price is $600, but these scopes are rugged and work well. I don't need it, but I want it...
I have used the ACOG, though, sadly, cannot afford one, yet. It's a fantastic system. I bounce around alot on my AR. From actual magnifying scopes to my illuminated recticle, depending on the job. If ever I buy another sight system, it will be an ACOG. My son has an EoTech on his rifle. I don't think care for it, neither does he. He put his irons back on. Various reasons for this, top being, he says the recticle covers up the target, at lonver ranges. I agree.
Red dot sights, are the 500 dollar sights worth it?
Quote:
Originally Posted by nutnfancy
Its not to put down any of the expensive red dot sights. I am sure they are some of the best available. My question is do people promote the very expensive sights because they paid a lot and therefor have a lot invested, or is it because they tried cheap ones and had bad results. I have read several articles where people pay from 39 to 80 for inexpensive red dots and have them for a long time keeping zero.
So for me its more of a question of what I am going to use it for. I am dipping my toe in the red dot pool. Never used one, always open sights or regular optics and the odd laser.
I also don't pay a lot for the lasers, I got the compact ones from China direct where most everything is made for cheap. How can I go wrong for 20 bucks shipped.
I bought a laser sight for my old now sold Smith 4506. It cost me 190 bucks and now I can pick one up for 20 bucks. It seems to work as well.
Not saying that the expensive sights are not worth what they are asking but if you take a gun to the range once a year or even less, I don't want some sight that cost more then the gun on it. Also I bet in two years I can buy what is being asked for now at a big discount when other models come out. Or used at a discount. Maybe not but its how everything else works.
I think you will be surprised when you really look into what is available, what works well and what is cheap. I own twelve sets of Crimson Trace grips for handguns. I own them because I want to be able to hit what I'm aiming for whether it is daylight or dark. I might never be in a life threatening situation, but if I am, most likely the firearm I'm carrying will be equipped with laser sights. I tried Laser Max on a Glock when they first came out, that is the sight that replaces the operating rod. The cost was almost $500 back then, I ended up giving that sight away because I thought it was totally useless compared to a Crimson Trace. Shortly after that I sold all four Glocks I owned because no good laser sight was available. Today CTC makes a good laser sight for Glocks and I have one mounted on a Model 20 and a second one mounted on a model 30. What good is a handgun at night if you can not hit what you are aiming at? What is your life worth? I don't think the worth can be measured in dollars and cents. A red dot sight is something completely different than a laser sight, for those of you who do not know. With a red dot sight you look through it and see a red dot that you super-impose on the target. With a laser sight you press a button on your firearm and a red dot appears on whatever your firearm is pointing at, you don't have to be looking at anything except the target. Most laser sights sell for somewhere between $200 and $300, while the red dot sight sells for between $20 and $60 dollars, some models sell for as much as $150. Both of these sights use batteries. When you use either of these sights your accuracy is improved over using the open sights on a handgun, because there is less margin of error. I've used many sights over the years and I'm convinced you get what you pay for. One way or another a cheap sight from China will not hold up and do the same job as a more expensive sight that you can also use. I don't buy an expensive sight just because I like to spend money, I buy it because I can see the difference and the value, and I feel like I can stake my life on hitting what I'm shooting at no matter if it is daylight or dark. When new models of the Crimson Trace come out, the old models do not decrease in price or value.
Let me add this: red dot scopes are not made to be used for longer ranges, they are used where a quick snap shot may be necessary and you can see your target. They work well for many shooting games we shoot today at our various ranges. Laser sights are meant to be used for quick target acquisition during daylight hours or night time hours where you see a red dot on your target, rather than having to see your target through the sight. These kind of sights would not be useful for hunting situations unless your game animal was close, say 25 yards away. For hunting a game animal a scope with cross hairs would be the preferred sight.
Last edited by Nite Ryder; 05-01-2013 at 09:33 PM..
This is an age old argument and I doubt it will be settled here and I am also sure that most have very definite opinions on the subject.
I am in the camp that feels like high end optics are very good, but not 500 dollars good. How do I justify putting a 500 dollar optic on a 450 dollar AK? or SKS?
I just bought a cheap wall mart red dot on close out for 20 bucks. How can I go wrong? I did some research on it and many people who had them on rifles said that it held zero well and was going strong after 500 rounds. For out to 100 yds I don't feel its worth spending that kind of dough on optics.
Whats your thinking?
I'll probably take a beating for this but I'd say NO. A $500-1000+ red dot is not worth it on any neutered semi auto military style gun except for looks.
The whole point of a red dot is lightening-quick aiming and firing at fairly close distances with burst or full-auto fire, in a high-stress, adrenaline charged life-or-death gun battle, not precision or hobby shooting.
The real reason they sell so well is because they are so damn "tacti-cool", not practical...and yes, I am guilty too! I had Aimpoint compM4s on my AR and Sig 556 for a long time but have since sold them.
But if you are gonna go that route, just remember... "You get what you pay for" is more true with guns and accoutrements than just about any other tool out there! A cheap Chinese red-dot probably belongs on an airsoft gun, not a real firearm.
I don't go along with the "what is your life worth" argument. I have several ARs and AKs. and I will not be using my AK in some Iraq fire fight. So its not a point I will even try to ponder. If I were to pick up a rifle it would be iron sights. I can hit what I want with my ARs and iron sights at 100 yds. If I want to hit at longer ranges I have one AR with a 300 dollar Nikon on it. I can take a flys wings off at 100 yds. From what I have read and watched reviews on the TSR 25 from Bushnell they seem to be an excellent alternative to the expensive units. If the Chinese can not make electronics then we should have 10 million more jobs here in the USA.
I think every computer in the states would be falling apart if that were the case. Not saying the expensive units are not great, but I also believe in the laws of diminishing returns. That is that the last 100 dollars of that 500 dollar unit you may not be getting much for the money.
If I use it for playing around at the range I would be wasting money on a 500 dollar red dot. I have taken so many deer with a Simmons 4x32 29 dollar scope its not funny. And after all the years it still works well. Yes my Redfield and Nikon are a bit more clear but in forest where my shot is 100 yds or less they do not give me any advantage. My 275 dollar redfield is not as nice as some who will pay 1000 for a scope,but it still worked well to take pronghorn in NM at 300 yds with one shot.
The high end scope will take the beating your guns will give whereas the cheap scope might, just might, last a season before the gun recoil kills it.
I've run air guns that have such a sharp recoil that they will kill the average gun scope. I have to pay for the high end scopes made just for air guns to have a scope that will not fall apart on me.
It's all about the recoil.............
This is true. I had a cheap red dot and it would get loosened by recoil after a single session at the range. No matter how much I tried, I could not get that cheapy to fit snugly on the rail The recoil also bent the chintzy washers that came with it, though that is easy enough to solve by getting better washers.
Luckily, I enjoy shooting with the BUIS more anyway, so that saves me some money.
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Red dot sights, are the 500 dollar sights worth it?
