Red Dot Pros & Cons: A Buyer's Guide

Red or green! Can't decide.

AIMPOINT ACRO P2 is kicking asses!!!!!!

I only have 1 pistol that I care to set up with an optic and that would be my Glock G47 MOS. Since it's my only one that I care to set up I figured I'd go with the Aimpoint ACRO P2. I like the idea of a overbuilt optic that I shouldn't be able to break. I do take care of my stuff so the way I see it is that it should last a very long time. I have no problem with waiting longer to save up to by one. I do believe that quality comes at a price.

I can no longer see the iron sights, so a red dot is a must for fun at the range.

its all a matter of what you prefer but you are right on the money people are so hyped on the pros and do not realized the cons until they get the gun not just batteries but optic plate that does not mount right. Got a nice 92X optic ready 200 off brand new shoots great and I have no interest in optic just wanted a full size 92X and got one for a deal. PS I have seen new hand gun optics solar powered big question how much

Yeah… no, you missed Leupold’s Delta Point Pro which is trusted by multiple law enforcement agencies both federal and state. It’s durable, has a one of the largest windows in the industry which is fantastic for quick target acquisition, and it’s extremely durable.

This is an awesome video that gets right to the point on the Red Dot optics. I’m sure for new shooters the huge selection of sights available just has to be overwhelming. I have a Vortex UH-1 on a brace AR and it is great. Kind of pricey. Approaching Aimpoint cost but I like it. I have an Aimpoint Comp M2 on my AK and am embarrassed to say that after 10 years the batteries are still working. I’m going to change those tomorrow as I feel like a dick for not paying more attention to this. Batteries could start to leak and I would have buggered up a good optic because I didn’t pay attention to this. Holosun is great. I have them on several guns. Never failed.

I was using a red dot on my CCW pistol, but I kept running into issues with the lens getting lint and dirt on it. Ultimately went by to iron sights. I'm sure the red dot is great for many, but the added cleaning + battery + catching on clothes factor in that scenario was just too much for me. On a rifle/carbine, red dots are awesome.

You must not have got your check from eotech this month oh an your unbiased of course. That being said

Can you try some of the cylee optics for the budget minded people because I see a lot of people torture testing them and they seem to be tough. The torture testing you do is always great

-3 cent screw made of melted beer cans 😂😂

Saving that to memory for future use

most defensive situations are very close and all you have to do with iron sights is point the gun in the direction of the target, it is instinctual. The problem with the dot sight is that you have to go through the optic lens, pointing is not as easily done if at all, that is what I find for me. Iron sights will always be there, batteries do not go dead, no electronic malfunctions. Got to ask yourself how did some of the handgun pros of the past, including old west, shoot so good and quick without red dot optics? It is a matter of personal preference and training but that said I flat refuse to accept that red dot allows for faster target acquisition. One more thing about dot sights, ya better always have it on, otherwise in an emergency you may have to get the action put on hold until you power up.

What kind of sunglasses are you wearing? They are cool!

0-15 feet iron sights are superior. Good luck finding the red dot when you start shooting your gun. It is absolute insanity to spend that kind of money and maintenance for a red dot on a pistol.

Red dots on pistols are a fad. They are trash

Where do Vortex optics fall in your buyer's guide?

I lost it at the -$0.03 screws made from melted beer cans

I recently happened upon your videos. Good stuff! Appreciate your direct way of presenting.
Just pulled the trigger on an M&P 5.7 and likely to jump into the optic waters. Do you prefer the Holosun 507K (muti-reticle) over the 407K (6 MOA only)? If so, which reticle setting do you prefer? What are your thoughts on swapping 5.7 factory sights with suppressor sights?

Jason has a red dot mounted on his machete y’all ain’t winning that gun fight

I carry for self defense. At the distances we are talking about no sights are really necessary. You want to shoot targets beyond 10 yards sights become feasible. Or you are shooting for a score.

Hmmmm 👍😎✊

In the same boat. Just gotta keep tilting my head :(

What kind of shooting gloves do you use.

What about the mounts, dot size, and color? Still great video

Do you have a video on how to instal rds on pistols?

I qualify twice a year, with irons, on pop ups, at 300 meters. Military Pistol qual has very minimal range distance either.

If youre shooting at 75+ yards with a pistol you need a rifle. Theyre close range weapons.

I use Burris Fast Fire 3’s on my competition guns. And love them. Battery is easily accessed from top they hold true and have never needed to be reshighted.I’ve competed in knock down steel, Steel Challenge, Bianchi Cup, and Bullseye. I have them on Wheelguns and Semi’s.

Great for long range. Useless for self defense.

Your hatred of Sig is baseless and irrational. Bye Felicia.

You did not mention the vortex sight. Is it that bad? What is its faults?

I did the unspeakable and sold a pistol just to get three red dots for three of my pistols. I went Trijicon RMR just because in my opinion, it is the standard. The only thing I don't like is I have to remove the red dot to replace the battery but it's literally maybe once a year. All three are still going strong three years later. Great video outlaw!

What was that mount on the Romeo5?

For the great and wonderful video a_l_gor_it_hm!

red dot has starburst effect if you have astigmatism

I bought the X1-x3 Riton and there now 150$ and less and is amazing optic ..I do hate they use there own mounts its why they aren't every were its moronic of rition to use a MT that's a t1 but moved holes 1 mm ..makes no sense

I had an Aimpoint Comp M4 cap fuse to the optic. Had to dremel it off. I almost cried. Ordered a new cap and it works now but boy that was a pain. Surely I'm not the only one. Oh when I put vice grips to the cap to try and unscrew it, the whole battery sleeve unscrewed its way out. So the cap threads are actually not on the body but on a sleeve that inserts and screws into the body. Crazy stuff.

I am new to the optic world I’ve used iron sights my entire life but I have 3 Holoson 507C and they are unbeatable to me. I’m still not as capable with them but with more practice I’ll get there.
I’d use it for any weapon I have even EDC

You've gotten luckier than I with Sig Romeo 5. I've bought 3 and 2 have broke with neglible abuse. So bad that I don't trust any Sig electronics, even though I love their guns.

I appreciate your advice on red-dots.

1. How do you decide between a red-dot with 1-MOA or 3-MOA dot? I have a full-size Walther with 5" Barrel used for home defense and range (not CC).

2. I have a stigmatism and wear trifocals. Is there a red-dot design (open/closed) or otherwise that facilitates stigmatism? My budget is $250 or less.

3. Do you leave batteries in your red-dots for months and years at a time? What about corrosion inside the battery department?

Thanks for any advice.

What do you think of the dove mounting system for the s w shield plus rather than getting the slide milled

Chris what would you recommend for a 73 year old marine who has never shot a red dot only iron sights who has eyes that are not what they used to be with out breaking the bank

I ended up with Leopold Delta Pro 2 on all of my hand guns and AR. Bummer, it did make the list.

No mention of vortex?

You can have all the Aimpoint's ever made as far as I'm concerned !

I've had 2 both of which failed and there warentee is shit. They did not honor the warentee and told me both the ones I had were discontinued in about a year after I'd bought them and they sent me some POS El-Cheapo Chinese regular scope as a replacement for one of them and the other one , they never did anything about and just totally ignored my warentee repair requests .

Well, if that's how they want to do business , there just crooks as far as I'm concerned .

If they think for one minute that I'll EVER buy any more of there products, they can go pound sand ! Replacing a several hundred dollar optic with something that looked like a cheap <$50 pistol scope ,,,for something I paid hundreds for ,
just don't fly with me !

Sadly one of the red dots had the Aimpoint rail mount system that was on a custom shop S&W 8 3/4" bbl mod 57 in 41 Mag , which failed rather quickly for the amount of use it got and the mount holes were not standard placement/ spacing and I'll be Damned if I'll put any more holes in my back strap to accommodate a different mount on a custom gun .

So you're fore warned about my Aimpoint experiences !
Aimpoint as a company ,,, ABSOLUTELY SUCKS IMHO

@honestoutlaw hey brother, how about a review on that super cheap truglo that any1 could buy for like 50 bucks or less

Your reviews rock I like that you always give the price

Just wondering, in your opinion, how many rounds does a red dot have to survive through to call it good to go?
I've heard of the likes of Ben Stoeger won't use a red dot for competition until 4k break in period...

Hello Sr big fan from Puerto Rico 🤙I just bought a full size PDD but think wish is good red dot not a lot but not too much either thanks