Aimpoint 5000 red dot optics: tactically viable?

R

Red Bull

New member
I picked up a used AR flat top with an Aimpoint 5000 red dot optic on top.
It is really cool, but I am wondering how "tactically viable" it is? I mean, I am new to this type of thing and I want to know if that is the scope for wannabes or is it a really respectable optic?

The downsides seem to be: it is run on batteries, and it has no magnification, and it has to be turned on to be used....and lastly, if it breaks or something, than it is useless (but I have no idea how tough it is).
The good point is, it is very clear and once you line it up it is damn fast and very cool.

So, what is the general consenus on this item? Is it only for armchair commandos or is it a real tactical tool? Is it only good for comepitition shooting and plinking, or is it a real combat tool for the armed civlian or possibly LEO?

Are my concerns over it's weaknesses viable, or is this a serious piece of equipment?

Thanks.




[This message has been edited by Red Bull (edited August 09, 2000).]
 
Also, someone in another thread says that Aimpoint offers a 4x add on for this optic? Taht would be cool. Then I could put it on if I needed more range. Anyone know anything more about these? How much $? Where to get them? How they attach? If they suck?
 
I just got another quick question too: how long do the batteries last?
Can you leave it on all of the time and it will last for like, months?


Thanks!
 
I believe the 5000 is the commercial version of the Comp M/ML. How/whether it differs other than as to finish, I don't know.

The Comp M was selected by the Army and has been very successfully deployed. Out to 150 yards or so, it is a superior sighting system. Qual times and scores have gone down and up (respectively). It has also proven to be quite durable, even in airborne units.

Lack of magnification is an advantage, not a disadvantage, for the intended purposes and range. Try hunting around for the target even in a 4x scope when time is critical. 1x mag also means that the shooter can keep both eyes open, which is a benefit for many situations.

The little lithium batteries that it uses are cheap, easily found (drug stores, camera stores, Radio Shack, etc.), and have 10-year shelf life. Keep a spare in the buttstock. I have never actually killed a battery in use, although I've killed a few by leaving them on in storage. Because the power drain is very low, you can leave it on for long periods of time without worry, so having to turn it on is not as big a problem as you might think. Turn it on and leave it on for the rest of the day.

To guard against serious disablement/destruction, you should have a backup rear sight zeroed and ready to go. There are several good products available, including Yankee Hill, DPMS, and GGG. Some of these fold down, others just sit there and you can effectively "look through" them when using the optical sight. In order to make this work best, you need to arrange mounting hardware so that the dot sits in the same line as the rear sight/front sight.
 
Concur with what John said -- since I'm on a digital camera shooting spree, check out a DPMS detachable rear sight on a Bushmaster flattop with the M68 sight (Aimpoint Rail Grabber mount).

View


Justin

------------------
Justin T. Huang, Esq.
late of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
 
Iron sights, Iron sights, Iron sights.

Don't break.
No battery.
Faster than scope.

If you plan on using the aimpoint. Practice much. I know guys who use them and love them. Only problem with practicing with aimpoint, you become used to having the thing, and then it breaks at the wrong time or the battery fades when your on target. And when you shoot, shoot 1/2 with the aimpoint and 1/2 without.

I'm an engineer, and don't like gadgets. KISS is the rule for life. Simple and Rugged.
 
Partly agree w/ MP Freeman, except that I think the Aimpoint will always be faster, at any skill level. If it had any magnification, it might be different, but with 1x magnification and a single dot that's focused at infinity, there's no way irons are faster. More durable, yes; no batteries, yes. Practice 50-50, right on.

Best iron sights, IMO, are the A1 rear with A2 aperture and A2 front post. Set 'em and forget 'em. No picking up the rifle and finding that someone fu, I mean fiddled, with your sights.
 
I agree that you should have iron sights as a backup, just in case something goes SNAFU with your red-dot. However, I have a red-dot on my AR, and with my eyes, it's definitely an improvement in accuracy and target acquisition over the standard iron.

And if you want to save a few $$$ over the Aimpoint, you might want to look into the Tasco PDP5 (around $80 at CDNN). It has 4 different dot sizes and 11 brightness settings. I love mine!
 
I'm going to be a PITA (forgive me), but I do believe that the extra cost of the Aimpoint Comp M (or ML) XD is worth it. I have had mine almost literally underwater, no problem. I have (accidentally) slammed it very hard into a wood beam, no problem (and no change in zero). I haven't tested the Tasco and similar red dot sights, but I am not sure they'd take the abuse that MP Freeman is worried about.
 
Red Bull,

You have a great weapons system with the AR and the Aimpoint.

The red dot sighting system (regardless of the manufacturer) I believe is the biggest advancement in sights (non-magnifying) ever. I hunt deer with handguns and I top them off with a red dot sight. Finding and staying on target is fast you can shoot with both eyes open. In low light conditions it really shines. My AR-15 SP1, does have a Red Dot sight mounted and I wouldn’t be without it. If the AR has to brought out for self-defense my confidence level is much higher with this sight over the pep sight (issue site). I've used the RD sighting on my AR out to 200 yards (length of my local range) and it shoots better than my open sights. I've had Aimpoint, Tasco and Sightron and all have with stood the recoil from 41 Mag, 44 Mag. and 45 Colt hunting loads.

You had concerned about the sights breaking and or batteries running down. In combat equipment can break. Radio’s have batteries but just because the battery may run down you don’t leave it in the rear area, you take an extra battery with you. A rifles stock, firing pins etc. can break that’s why military equipment is made to higher standards than civilian use so they can stand more abuse.

I believe in the theory if it isn’t broke don’t fix it, but the Red Dot system is a better mousetrap and I really can’t believe the military isn’t using this system across the board to troops.

You mentioned the Aimpoint 5000 possibly for only Armchair Commandos?

Go to the library and get the book The Raid by Benjamin F. Schemmer. In 1970 a 56-man Special Forces ground assault team and aircrews raided a POW camp (Son Tay) in North Vietnam. A Col. Bull Simons led this raid.

During training for this raid Simons found out his best (Special Forces) shooters were hitting only about 25% of rounds fired in the dark at 50 meters into torso-size targets simulating enemy soldiers.

The Army had no night sights only 6 prototypes so one of his men saw in a hunting magazine an ad for a Singlepoint night sight. I believe this was the orginal Aimpoint but not sure. They purchased a few for testing. At 25 meters, even the poorest marksman could fire all rounds into a 12-inch circle at night. At 50 meters, the same shooter could put every round into an “E-type silhouette” the size of a man’s torso.

The only problem they had with the sight was its mount and I’ll quote from the book how they finally solved this problem. “Simons’ three-man armament laboratory told him they had a fix for the mount –generous use of black electrician’s tape.”

The raiders have a web site, www.sontayraider.com that will be of interest to you as it shows photos of the night sight.

I’ve been in numerous firefights and if I had to go back into battle I’d have one of those sights even if I’d have to buy it myself.

Turk
 
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