Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Reflex and Holo Sights 101



Ok...  we have all of these sight options now.  But do we know how to use them?  Judging by what I've been seeing and reading... no.  no we do not.

So lets fix that shall we?

These sights are not scopes folks.  And they aren't even red dot sights.  As odd is it seems... they are actually more akin in use to laser sights than they are to scopes.

If you've ever used one... you know that the retical dances around in the sight with disturbing regularity.  Depending on the position of your head... the retical may be may be anywhere in that box.   So where does the bullet go?

Well the bullet goes where ever the retical is.... regardless of where the retical is in the sight picture.  I know.... you're thinking "bullshit."  Its the truth.  I'll even tell ya how to test it.

Get a boresight laser...  you know the ones.. laser... goes in the chamber of your rifle.  The the rifle in a vise and put that laser on some stationary object... like a door knob or something.  Then sight your reflex sight on to that laser.   Now turn the laser off... and turn the reflex sight on.  with the weapon in the vise on in the same position... you should note that the retical is on the door knob.

Now look through the sight and move your head around.  You'll see the retical moves all over the place inside the sight... but it stays right on the door knob.

So... this is how you use a reflex sight.  Both eyes open... focus on your target.  Bring your weapon up to the shooting position... still focusing on your target with both eyes open.  A retical will appear in your vision.  When its over your target... pull the trigger.

Its that simple.

15 comments:

Giraffe said...

I've been considering this. I think my best application would be on the .44 mag. Or the AR.

Nate said...

I have both.

Raggededge said...

Okay, so, where does one start? Going on Amazon, one can purchase optics for relatively little money, to a MARS system that is north of a grand. What's the sweet spot?

Also, I've heard people bitch about using optics during the daytime. I assume using more expensive optics rectifies this issue?

Shorty said...

Another point to keep in mind is that these are designed for fast acquisition, not surgical accuracy. It goes without saying that all shooting should be done as accurately as possible; the red dots allow your eyes to pick it up faster than it will take to focus on the end of your sight post, but for some sights the dot itself will be one to two mils large. At 200 yards this is much more of an issue than it is at 25-50m.

Nate said...

The front post takes up more room than most red dots.

I've never heard anyone bitch about that.

Nate said...

Raggededge...

I have been stunned by the construction of the Sightmark 14000 that I got on amazon for less than 100 bucks.

I've dropped it twice and it held zero.

Most of the people bitching about it not holding zero were actually changing the retical like its MW3 or some shit.

You always have to re-zero when you change the retical.

I don't know I bought it as a place saver until I got an aimpoint or eotech... but now I may keep the damned thing.

Raggededge said...

And, I assume magnifiers allow you to shoot at greater distances with these things?

Nate said...

couple things...

Co-witnessing is not looking through two sights at the same time.

its having two sight systems on the gun that do not interfere with each other. Like... iron sights behind an eotech. Battery dies... you can look right through it with the iron sights. That's co-witness.

I don't much care for the whole...magnifier behind a eotech thing.

Looks like a lot of things to screw up.

Giraffe said...

The front post takes up more room than most red dots.

I've never heard anyone bitch about that.


That is a damn good point. For the handgun, anyway. I don't want a 5 MOA dot on a rifle.

Nate said...

seems to me the front sight on a rifle ain't any skinnier than the front site on a handgun.

Sorry... I think the complaint is hypocritical.

Nate said...

i should also note that with both eyes open... it don't make a tankers damn how big the dot is... because you can see the whole target with your other eye.

Giraffe said...

Not what I meant.

Don't tell Piers Morgan, but a rifle is an offensive weapon, not a defensive one. Sure it can be used that way, but that isn't my philosophy.

If the target is close enough in a situation that requires rapid acquisition, I want my shotgun.

On a rifle, I'm going with a scope, because it has the ability to hit targets at long range, where a 5 MOA dot will cover the whole target.

On my .44, I'm not the best with open sights. I tried a scope, but the eye relief wasn't long enough and mad it awkward. So this system seems like it would cure that.

Giraffe said...

I totally realize that on a "battle" rifle, these sights would have an application. I don't set my rifles up for battle, and if it comes to that, a scope will work fine.

Nate said...

even at 100 yards... the limited view of a scope is just not acceptable. There is reason snipers have spotters.

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