TA-33 vs. TA-11

Tactical Gear Optics & Mounts
1

I’m torn. I like the performance of the TA-11 better, but the TA-33 is far superior in the weight department.

The other ACOGs offer to little eye-relief for my taste.

I plan on getting the green w/Horseshoe reticle regardless.

My questions in specific:

-Is the limited field of view (comparatively) of the TA-33 a big disadvantage?

-Is the weight actually noticeable (will be going on a dedicated silenced 14.5" pinned carbine)?

-I will run a LaRue mount. Is the 1 locking lever on the LT105 for the TA-33 a disadvantage compared to the 2 levers on the LT100 for the TA-11?

-What am I NOT considering that I SHOULD consider?

*Primary use will be 50-300 yards, 600 yard occasional use “just for fun” on the square range. Otherwise, it will be used for HD, hogs, square-range, and maybe a carbine-class. I do not want a battery-powered optic, I DO want magnification, as I will do more shooting >100y than <100y.

is there a reason that “green” and the horseshoe reticle one or both are not the best choice?

I know Rob_s and a few others were huge TA-11 fans. Did you jump ship for the TA-33, or are you still on board with the TA-11 and why in either case?

2

I have a 33 and find it to be a fantastic all around optic. I have the ADM mount so I don’t feel qualified to talk about your mount questions.

Something you are not considering: Maybe a 1x4 accupoint?

Chris

3

I haven’t made my purchase yet, but I’m leaning in this direction also. Eye relief is one of my main concerns. I read too many complaints about ACOG eye relief, including one guy who says he actually gets his safety glasses smacked regularly. :eek:

4

and that guy is an idiot.

WILL NOT be a problem with the 33.

Chris

5

TA33.

With that said, we have a smokin deal on a TA11. :wink:

C4

6

For your stated purposes the TA33 would be my choice and I’ve owned numerous ACOG’s. For me the TA11 is too large. I currently own a TA44 and TA33, both green horseshoe/circle dots and have no intent of getting rid of them. On a 14.5 the TA11 and 1X4 offerings are not for me. YMMV.

7

Have you read this???
http://m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=85338

8

I used to have a TA33GH. (That I got from Grant)

I didn’t have a problem with the field of view at all. I think the smaller field of view was helpful when transitioning targets. A larger field of view would have made it more likely to “suck into the scope”. (Which I did notice happening when I used to have a TR-24) Having the smaller FOV meant I could keep my eyes moving from target to target and when I wanted to see something up close, I could just blink and switch to “camera two” for the closeup. My problem was that this only worked real good in bright light, the dimmer it got, the less effective the BAC was to me, to the point that it wouldn’t work at all.

Unlike others, I did have trouble with the fixed FSB in my field of view using the factory mount (which sucks by the way). I don’t shoot NTCH though, if you do it might not matter to you. The closer I got to the optic the less visible it was. I don’t have this problem with RDS, just magnified optics.

Since the Larue mount is about .25" shorter (1.5" optic centerline to bore) than the factory mount (1.7" or so), it will make this even more of a problem, if it bothers you. The Larue mount is worth it though, the factory mount is too high for me and I kept having to lift my head up to see through the scope from prone and I would prefer the ability to get it off the rifle with only one lever versus having to unscrew 2 relatively smooth finger nuts.

Eye relief is good enough that I had it butted against the front of my Troy BUIS but I could put my cheek almost on the back of the stock and still see through 90% of the viewing area as long as I kept my cheek on the stock.

I didn’t like the low light performance and the magnification.

If you are willing to make the commitment to train around these or they aren’t an issue for you. You will love it. (I wasn’t)

As to the mount, I don’t think that the 1 lever is a disadvantage at all. If you need to get that optic off, you need it off RIGHT NOW! One lever is way faster and the TA33 is a relatively small/lighweight optic. I base this experience of off Aimpoint M4 mounts versus the SPR mount that I had when I tried the 1x4 variable thing.

By the way, I agree with Seb5, I would MUCH rather have the TA33 and train to use it versus going the 1x4 variable route.

I don’t have any experience with the TA11.

9

Yeah, what he said.

:wink:

:smiley:

10

Thanks! Weapon is 14.5" noveske w/ vltor vis and troy buis.

11

I would recommend the red horseshoe TA33 for your application.
There are some very good things about a green reticle that is illuminated by ambient light when precision is at play, but for hog work, fast acquisition and bold reticle presence will outweigh those aspecst.

12

I was led to believe green was the be-all, end-all? Would green be the superior choice for everything BUT hog work? Can you elaborate?

13

Sorry, I thought you would chime in at some point. Great report. The TA-33 is on my list, next scope. GH is what I will go with.

14

Here’s the deal with ACOGs and red vs green:
A big problem with red chevron cogs is that to get a crisp chevron you need to tape off part of the fiber optic cable. However, by limiting the amount of light getting transmitted to the reticle you suffer when lighting conditions change. Uncovered, the fiber optic provides a very obvious reticle, but one that suffers from loss of precision. The bright red reticle stands out against every background except for very bright red, which is pretty uncommon to find. The blooming causes the shooter to lose the exact zero point of the chevron, which causes loss of precision from 100 to 300 meters.

The green reticles allow more light to be used with less blooming, however, green is a natural color, and though the human eye can differentiate more shades of green than any other color, it still isn’t as obvious as an illuminated red.

Going to a horseshoe dot alleviates the zeroing issue since you are zeroing to the center of a dot instead of a point, therefore blooming is not as much of an impact. A red reticle will stand out better in all environments, especially one that is predominantly green, such as found when hunting hogs.

15

If I were in the market for another ACOG it would be a TA11, no question.

While yes, the TA33 is smaller and lighter, I think much of the love for the TA33 comes from the fact it’s a few hundred dollars less.

16

You feel the 10’ extra fov justifies the 1/2# weight increase? Weight is my big issue. The can is already adding a full pound.

17

That and the extra eye relief. I’ve never much liked TA33’s though.

18

Most of the TA33’s I see are mounted half way toward the front of the receiver. I’m not a NTCH guy. Also, the eye-relief on the TA-33 is generally accepted as being much longer than spec from Trijicon. The eye-relief and money issues are a wash with me. The FOV and weight issues are not.

Can anyone else comment on the weight issues? The TA-11 would come in at around 17oz with a LaRue 4XDOS. The TA-33 with LT105 would come in at around 9oz.

Yes, this is at the center of gravity, but wouldn’t a full 1/2 pound be noticeable, or not so much because of where it is?

Keep in mind I am already planning on running an SPR/M4 and an LMT SOPMOD to balance the weapon. I am starting to get weight-conscious at this point.

So far:

Noveske 14.5" VIS w/SB= 7.25#
SPR/M4=18oz
VFG and light= another 10 oz or so.
Loaded PMAG=1#?

So…9.9-10.1# loaded WITHOUT the optic or considering the weight of the SOPMOD vs. VLTOR…oinkoink. You can see why I am scared to add more.

Not sure how the SOPMOD vs. VLTOR stock comes in, so I will consider it a wash.

19

I have a Ta11H-G on a LMT 16". For me the weight is not a factor - after the first few mags to me that is just how heavy the rifle is. Same as when I put an X300 on my 226, yes it is lighter without, but more useful with.

The up sides are how well it works in low light, even with a ARD on it. The biggest point at least for me is that with the horizontal part of the reticle there is a dot 5 mil to ether side of the horseshoe that when combined with post below the horseshoe work to draw my eye to the center when the horseshoe would otherwise seem to fade due to low light to the fiber optic. When this happens I only seem to lose the horseshoe for only a fraction of a second. No a real amount of time seems to be lost - just trying to say that by the time I realize that horseshoe seems kind of dim the rest of the reticle has brought/kept my eye on it anyways.

Hope this makes sense, and not just a ramble. And I am not trying to take anything away from the TA33 at all.

Edit - Pic to show that you can also use a LaRue RCO mount if you want a single lever on the TA11.

And on green vs red - to me the green is almost neon and shows up very well against everything except maybe a green traffic light.

20

This is true for the entire product line. Trijicon seems to run the numbers lower than what they functionally are. This is a good idea on their part (and the opposite of many others in the industry)