Red dot on your Pistol
- Thread starter HHQ
- Start date
Old Eyes
Once I got BiFocals i can't even use iron sights anymore.
If you look at the gun sights the target is a total blur and vice versa. Your eyes can't do the instant back and forth focusing they used to do (unconsciously).
Red dots are my savior now, but I used to love irons more.
Red dots with auto-on /off and smaller profile are my favorites. Picking up the dot is always tough on a new-to-you gun, but becomes quick with a little practice. And co-witness ready guns like my Staccato make it stupid easy to pick up the dot.
Once I got BiFocals i can't even use iron sights anymore.
If you look at the gun sights the target is a total blur and vice versa. Your eyes can't do the instant back and forth focusing they used to do (unconsciously).
Red dots are my savior now, but I used to love irons more.
Red dots with auto-on /off and smaller profile are my favorites. Picking up the dot is always tough on a new-to-you gun, but becomes quick with a little practice. And co-witness ready guns like my Staccato make it stupid easy to pick up the dot.
Attachments
Last edited:
I"m not sure what a flip up RDS would look like. To me it seems one more thing to go wrong. If you like your irons (and I liked my irons), look into the mevo flat fiber optics that try to split the difference between RDS and fiber optics.
EDIT: Sorry, Mepro. These:
https://www.meprolight.com/product/mepro-ft-bullseye/
EDIT: Sorry, Mepro. These:
https://www.meprolight.com/product/mepro-ft-bullseye/
Last edited:
I bought a $500 Trijicon RMR for my G19X .... it took practice , but I am not completely sold on a red dot sight . If it takes too much to practice, why spend the money.? I don't have the confidence in it like I do my iron sight pistols. Even though it looks cool, and it is accurate once you ger it down. I have more confidence in my iron sight pistols. Maybe it's because I have been shooting for 40 years plus with iron sights, and I don't have to depend on batteries for a quick shot. It is fun to shoot at the range with it, but to get a true sight picture in a quick amount of time , I don't have confidence in it yet. And I shoot every weekend.
The wide FOV and much more accommodating parallax of a red dot can't be beat. I'm eager to give it a try.
With dead battery, a red dot sight still has some use. As long as the shooter's eye is on the sight's optical axis, it will shoot true.
Flip-up doesn't seem reliable. I will pass for now.
Having said that, a good light is probably more important.
-TL
Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
With dead battery, a red dot sight still has some use. As long as the shooter's eye is on the sight's optical axis, it will shoot true.
Flip-up doesn't seem reliable. I will pass for now.
Having said that, a good light is probably more important.
-TL
Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
Schlitz 45
New member
I did a slow transition as it took me a while to figure out what works for me. I struggled with a red dot at first & continued to train with it but switched slides back to iron sights when carrying. Gave a Holosun with the big circle with dot in the middle reticle in green was a game changer for me & I'm very comfortable carrying it now.
All I have learned regarding RDS on pistols is it IS a learning curve. But, once you've come out on the far side of that learning curve, you've broken into new ground that the average shooter can't get to with iron sights. No one tries to advocate that iron sights on an AR15 are faster at getting good hits at 50 yards in than a good RDS. I think the same applies to pistol, but the learning curve is steeper as a pistol is handheld.
zincwarrior
New member
Put cowitness sights on. If the red dot malfunctions the you still have a pistol with iron sights.
I don’t use optics on handguns but just this past year shot a S&W 41 with a top shelf red dot. Was at a public range and guy had this rig. I know several of the guys present and know they can’t hit a bull in the butt with a base fiddle. Most are at range to shoot a few 9mm or 380s out of their CCWs. I was amazed when these guys took a turn and were busting 4” spinners at 50’. Now that ain’t much for a m41, you think? That’s true but it was a lot for what was hanging on the pistol. Anyway took my turn and ran a mag of 10 on spinners and had no problem and I’m sure did it faster than I would with my 41 with irons.
I had a buddy a few years older than me who was deadly with rifle or shotgun.
We had ongoing competition for years. The funny thing was he could never hit anything with a handgun. I’m sure that if red dots were available back then he could have used a handgun proficiently.
I’m told that some of the cheap RD sights have major parallax problems and dots have halo effect. I’ve only shot the one so that’s all I know about RD sights
I had a buddy a few years older than me who was deadly with rifle or shotgun.
We had ongoing competition for years. The funny thing was he could never hit anything with a handgun. I’m sure that if red dots were available back then he could have used a handgun proficiently.
I’m told that some of the cheap RD sights have major parallax problems and dots have halo effect. I’ve only shot the one so that’s all I know about RD sights
Never thought I'd get a RDS on a pistol. Unfortunately, when I entered my 50's my eyes were not aware of that fact. As I age, I can no longer see the sights. The rear AND front sight are blurry no matter what, while the target is clear. So, now I have RDS's on my carry guns.
At the range I can still use iron sights, but I have to put a peep-hole sticker on my shooting glasses, then the sights are perfect. That won't work with a carry gun: I'd have to tell the perp to wait while I put on my shooting glasses with the peep site.
At the range I can still use iron sights, but I have to put a peep-hole sticker on my shooting glasses, then the sights are perfect. That won't work with a carry gun: I'd have to tell the perp to wait while I put on my shooting glasses with the peep site.
Tactical Jackalope
New member
Yeah. I swapped to an RDS on my pistols in 2020 and got used to it in 2021. Then by 2022 I started carrying a RDS pistol exclusively. Took me several thousand rounds and a few classes to feel as or more adequate with the RDS. I will say, for what it's worth. I don't see a major difference inside of 15yds. With my eyes (I wear contacts) passed 15yds it's been an absolute game changer.
This is my Gen 5 Glock 19 done up by Sonoran Defense Technologies. Glock performance trigger. Forward Control Design plate. AimPoint Acro P2. Streamlight TLR7A. Trijicon Bright and Tough black sights with tritium.
Also have a love for the Trijicon RMRs. Trijicon and AimPoint Acros are my two absolute favourites.
This is my Gen 5 Glock 19 done up by Sonoran Defense Technologies. Glock performance trigger. Forward Control Design plate. AimPoint Acro P2. Streamlight TLR7A. Trijicon Bright and Tough black sights with tritium.
Also have a love for the Trijicon RMRs. Trijicon and AimPoint Acros are my two absolute favourites.
My primary interests in handguns is either historical/mechanical curiosity or self-defense and, for me, red dots just aren't my cup of tea. I'm a bit distrustful of electronics on firearms (I'm just now warming up to red dots on rifles and only then with a set of back-up irons), particularly when it gets cold (was below zero here just a couple weeks ago). For concealed carry, the red dot would add weight and bulk which would make some of my favored guns and carry methods impractical. I also prefer the ability to make hits with many of my handguns at both relatively short ranges like 7 yards and extended ranges of up to 50 yards depending on the gun and I worry that the sight offset with a red dot might make this more difficult. Finally, as I understand it, shooting a handgun with a red dot requires a different technique and has a bit of a learning curve as opposed to iron sights and, because many of my guns would be impractical, prohibitively expensive, or simply impossible to mount a red dot on, I don't want to have two different sighting techniques that I have to switch back and forth between.
An RMR with a battery is 1.2 oz. I get that ounces = pounds, but the weight argument isn’t one that’s overly relevant, imo. I do agree they add bulk, and depending on how and where on your body you carry that may be a problem. I don’t personally find it problematic, but I understand some may.
A red dot equipped pistol can make POA hits at 7 yd up to 50 yd as well as in between those distances and beyond. Will the POI vary slightly based on the range to target? Yes, as is true of iron sights. If your main aim is defensive style shooting I can fairly confidently say the POI offset at the distances you described is not enough to turn a “good” hit into a “bad” hit at those distances, absent a very specific “corner case”.
I think there is a misunderstanding when it comes to the learning curve associated with red dots. Learning to use a red dot does not mean that if you go back to using iron sights that you will need to completely readjust how you are using the pistol. I and others I have talked to have found their iron sight shooting has improved after learning to use a red dot. Often this is a function of needing to have a better, more repeatable presentation with a red dot equipped pistol in order to see the dot readily. I shoot red dot equipped pistols every week. Last month I did a half day of shooting with my S&W Model 19 without a red dot. I shot it better than I ever have and that was even after months of not shooting it. Having one or many red dot equipped pistol(s) will not ruin your skill with pistols without red dots, in my experience.
Last edited:
How significant 1.2 oz is depends on how much you value weight and how heavy the pistol is to begin with. My two lightest handguns weigh less than 10 oz unloaded so the RMR you mentioned would increase their weight by 12% or more. That being said, the added bulk is more my concern as when I carry a small handgun, it's usually in a pocket holster and when I carry OWB (I've never found IWB to be particularly comfortable) its usually with a large enough gun that extra bulk would be problematic. The extra bulk of the red dot also limits my choice of holsters somewhat and some of my favorite holsters are not available for guns with a red dot.
I'm not so confident in that. The handguns that I shoot out to 50 yards are chambered cartridges that are relatively high-velocity, and thus flat shooting, at least by handgun standards like .357 Magnum, .44 Magnum, and 10mm Auto. With iron sights, I notice a significant difference in POI between shorter and longer distances and the higher sight offset of a red dot could only accentuate this. Is the difference insurmountable? Probably not but I don't want to make things any more complicated than I need to.
I don't think that the difference is insurmountable or that using a red dot will "ruin" your iron sight shooting, but its another complication that I, personally, would rather not add. I own a variety of different pistols with differing styles of controls, actions, triggers, etc. and, because of this, I try to use techniques that are as "universal" as possible. For example, because not all of my handguns have a slide stop that is easy, or even possible, to use to release the slide, I've adopted the "slingshot" method for reloading because it works with all of my semi-autos. I also use a "thumbs down" grip and press the trigger with the distal joint of my finder because those techniques work well for me with both revolvers and semi-autos.
You also mentioned that you shoot red dot equipped pistols weekly. While I commend you for your diligence, I don't get the opportunity to shoot nearly that often due to time, finances, distance, and life in general. Because I can't get nearly the range time in that you do, it would likely take me a lot longer to develop proficiency with a red dot. I've been shooting handguns with irons for decades and, while I may be rusty and thus not as proficient as I'd like, the basic skill is still there if somewhat atrophied. Likewise, many of my handguns are not only for my use, but for other members of my household who, unfortunately, get to the range even less frequently than I do. For these people, developing proficiency with a red dot is a skill that may never come and thus having one on a pistol that they have to use would be more hindrance than help.
Finally, as I said earlier, the majority of my handguns simply aren't practical to put a red dot on. In actuality, I only own one pistol that is cut for a red dot: my S&W M&P 2.0 10mm. Many of my handguns are older and out-of-production and modifying them to accept a red dot would significantly diminish their value and still others simply aren't capable of being so-modified (I think an RMR might actually be just a big, if not bigger, than my Beretta Jetfire or Kel-Tec P3AT
). Even of the ones which I might be willing to have milled, the expense of doing so doesn't offer enough benefit to be worth it to me. I'm not trying to say that red dots aren't worthwhile for anyone, just not for me.Tactical Jackalope
New member
Respect to anyone who chooses to carry with irons and anyone who chooses to carry with a red dot sight. Do what you're comfortable with. Nothing wrong with that.
No one should be trying to convince someone so vehemently to do something they don't want to. There is a learning curve. I have had a couple friends who stopped carrying with their RDS handguns because they were unable to go to the range for an extended period of time or for the foreseeable future. One had a baby with his wife and the other moved jobs. You have to practice relatively often to stay sharp, but more so with a RDS on a handgun over irons.
(Typing this with the same pistol on me as in post #36)
No one should be trying to convince someone so vehemently to do something they don't want to. There is a learning curve. I have had a couple friends who stopped carrying with their RDS handguns because they were unable to go to the range for an extended period of time or for the foreseeable future. One had a baby with his wife and the other moved jobs. You have to practice relatively often to stay sharp, but more so with a RDS on a handgun over irons.
(Typing this with the same pistol on me as in post #36)