Reflex sight for shotgun...with conditions

[squee116]

Hi all,

I have a 590A1 that's begging for a reflex sight. Just going to say ahead of time, I don't have the money to drop on an Aimpoint T1 or H1, so please don't recommend those. Ahem.

Anyhow, I'm looking for a reflex sight I bang around and not worry about damaging it. I'm also hoping it will work well in dark rooms, even if I have a flash light on, so in other words, minimal washout. Longer battery life is a plus, but it doesn't have to last 5 or so years.

I was looking into the dual illuminated RMRs, especially because I have an ACOG TA33GH that seems to work well with my eyes, despite having astigmatism. I haven't been able to force complete washout with my ACOG yet. However there are lots of reports of washout, especially in the conditions I mentioned for the RMRs. I've heard the LEDs don't have this problem so much, but I noticed with my Primary Arms, the dot looked like a blob. My Aimpoint C3 was less so, and the EoTech even less so than that.

I'm okay with a bit of distortion from an LED, since it's going onto a shotgun, so the important things are reliability, battery life, and hopefully an MOA to match my shotgun. Thinking 6MOA+. Also, I don't think my head would quite line up with an EoTech on the shotgun, though I don't discount their MRDS, if it's any good.

[kedenimar]

got one of these for my 9mm AR-
may be a little small

https://www.primaryarms.com/Burris-R...ghts-s/906.htm

[OpticsPlanet]

I do like the adjustable LED RMR. They have a 6.5 MOA model that seems to be more of what you are looking for. The only problem is the price. You are approching Aimpoint T-1 $$, at which point I would say just go with the T-1.

I am more inclined to agree with kedenimar on the FF III. They have an 8 MOA version as well as a 3 MOA.

Chase B.

[squee116]

The FF3 is definitely appealing, especially because of the price, and the reputation for being worth the money and then some. Is the adjustable RMR brighter than the normal RMR?

[postal]

Dont forget the vortex razor red dot if you're looking at spending RMR coin...

They have 3 and 6 moa models. unlimited lifetime warranty.

For just over $200 if you're not allergic to tube style dots, you can find a nikon monarch VSD- They're pretty nice... I have 2 of those and a vortex razor.

[JamminJ]

I have an adjustable RMR on my Benelli M4. It's a match made in heaven!

[squee116]

I've given thought to the Vortex as well. My main concern is that it may sit too high on the receiver for my stock... stock.

Is there much difference in brightness between the adjustable RMR and the standard LED RMR?

[squee116]

The monarch looks to be a little weighty, and mates with a weaver rail. I went with picatinny. The variable MOA dot size is intriguing though.

[OpticsPlanet]

Originally Posted by squee116

I've given thought to the Vortex as well. My main concern is that it may sit too high on the receiver for my stock... stock.

Is there much difference in brightness between the adjustable RMR and the standard LED RMR?

It is hard to do a comparison in terms of brightness. The standard LED model auto-adjusts to the ambient light. At any given time, even in the bright sun, I can only guess that it is at its highest setting.

That being said, I have never been disappointed while using a standard LED model. Personally I prefer the adjustable model because I like to have the control over the brightness. Also, the highest setting is extremely bright.

Chase B.

[postal]

Originally Posted by squee116

I've given thought to the Vortex as well. My main concern is that it may sit too high on the receiver for my stock... stock.

Is there much difference in brightness between the adjustable RMR and the standard LED RMR?

The vortex is meant to compete with the RMR's. I dont have the specs in front of me right now, but I wouldnt imagine there is much height difference. The vortex is a little guy similar to the RMR.

The nikon is a lot bigger, and heavier- but I wouldnt call it heavy. I have one on my ruger mark II 22/45 handgun for plinking. Though the cross bolts are "weaver size".. (smaller than 1913- it will mount on a 1913 pic))They have the coolest invention I've seen so far on a mounting system...

The front crossbolt is fixed, but the rear cross bolt is 'floating' in a groove... It has nearly 2 inches of travel for the rear cross bolt to fit any rail style and spacing and allows a lot of mounting placement even on stupid weaver rails with only 2 front slots and 3 rear.. I have it mounted on the rear slots only for balance. The rail has 3 rear slots and I use #1 and #3.

I own these things but I'm not trying to sell you any brand. I would however point out that no one touches vortex unlimited lifetime warranty, and that razor is truly impressive.

[squee116]

No problem. My claim from the weight came from Nikon's website. It claims to be near 8 oz. The vortex razor is 1.4 oz by comparison, and the rmr is 1.2oz with battery. I'm just trying to keep the amount of "stuff" on it as light as possible, as the 20" 590a1 is an already-heavy gun.

It's intriguing to hear about the Nikon's mounting system though. I may have to give that a try on my AR at some point.

[postal]

Need a 1/2" riser for the nikon or razor on an AR to cowitness A2 front sight post.

I tried both the nikon and vortex on my AR. The Razor is still on it as the primary sight though it's A2 post, and Troy Buis rear...

The nikons are on my 22/45 hand gun, and a 10/22 rifle. Another 10/22 has a nikon buckmaster 4.5-14 scope... which will probably end up on my next AR- a varminter style- scope only.

[miron721]

I've got an RMR on my mossberg 500, and it's tricky about washout. Mine's the dual-illuminated fiber/tritium one.

It adjusts to the light it's actually in. So say I'm in a dark room, looking outside, it's pretty dim. Bright room, looking into a dark area, it's really bright.

I've got a tlr-1 on the same gun, and it's not bright enough to make the dot disappear. It's not startlingly bright, but it's bright enough.

I'll try to get pictures tomorrow if anyone wants to see. It's the dual-illuminated one though, so it might not translate to the LED ones.

[squee116]

That's what worried me about the dual-illuminated version. I was leaning towards the LED, but heard that some of those users had issues with washout too.

I'd love to see those pictures Miron

[miron721]

Here's the pictures, I took a few to show various conditions. It's about 15% brighter than the pictures show, but it takes a bit of hunting to find it with the flashlight on. You couldn't see it at all in the picture, so I put the dot over a dark jacket in the last one so it's at least visible. Oh, and in the lights-out one, you can see my tritium bead sight I was using before the RMR

[squee116]

Wow, okay. Yeah. I'll have to see if the LED version is much different.

[miron721]

Yeah, it's not great. You can still find the dot, but it's not as instinctive as it should be.