I am not much of an optics guy and the choices are overwhelming- looking for a good red dot at a fair price- trying to choose between the quality makers-aimpoint eotech trijicon maybe j-point. I have used acog/aimpoint/eotech before so have a bit of an idea, but would like some input on the most cost effective setups others have
Whats your intended use for this?
If its just range use self/ home defense you can not beat the Aimpoint comp c3.
Its pretty much a M3 without NVD settings or the deep water resistance.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pwswheghNQsFFHwq_KhEISQ
if this is a range/plinking gun you might want to maybe also look at vortex’s SPARC. I am hearing good things about the company.
If this is your go to gun then I would stick to the brands that you have in your post.
EOtech will offer you more precision with a 1 moa dot in the center of the 65 MOA ring, which gives you faster target aquisition. Best reticle you can get, I think. However, the battery life on the aimpoints is getting incredible, 80,000 hours and up, as compared to the 400 hours you get with the EOtech. AAs arn’t expensive though.
if this is just a range gun then take a look at primary arms. they are suppose to be very good and cheaper pricetag too.
Primary Arms makes a great product IF you are certain your needs allow for it. People are abusing them and they are holding up well. I will have ~1500 rounds through one in about a week.
I used to be a Supervisor in the Trijicon ACOG Department. Now I’m a Tactical Gear Retailer.
The way I break down how to shop for optics is to figure out the average engagement range you’re going to be using:
0-200 Meters = Aimpoint and EOTech are the best
50-600 Meters = Trijicon is the best
200-2000 Meters = Leupold is the best
This is to not saying that the optics can’t shoot outside of that range, it’s just what range they’re “best” at. To give you a couple of scenarios
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If you’re 400 meters from me and you have an Aimpoint, and I have a Trijicon…I am much more likely to hit you than you are to hit me.
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If you’re 25 meters from me and you have an Aimpoint, and I have a Leupold…you are much more likely to hit me than I could hit you.
If cost is a factor, and you’re looking at targets within 300 meters or so, I’d say Aimpoint or EOTech would be the way to go (blasphemy! I used to work for Trijicon). We give unbiased advice based on what the customer wants / needs.
If you have any other questions about Aimpoint, EOTech, Trijicon, or Leupold don’t hesitate to ask. We have plenty of experience with those optics. If you are looking at other brands, I’ll have to turn you to the advice of the fellow forum members (as we only carry the 4 lines listed above).
Have a good day!
Matt
Aimpoint Comp C3 or EO Tech 512 are $400-450 new
you could spend a little more and get an H-1 if you are concerned about weight. None of these are NVD compatible in case you are going that route in the future. With the battery life of Aimpoints these days you’ll make up the price difference vs the eo tech in a year or two.
http://www.gandrtactical.com/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=C3
these guys run deals every now and again on the C-3
http://swfa.com/Aimpoint-CompC3-Red-Dot-Sights-C8.aspx