Lasik and Red Dots

[Agent Tikki]

Looking for some suggestions:

A little background.....I had Lasik, done about 10+ years ago and its been an awesome life changing experience. As much as I love it, and still do not regret the decision to go with it, it has skewed my eyesight a little bit. I get halos and flares from light sources which are really pronounced at night. I really didn't mind it at first. When I drive at night it can be like a playing a video game. However when I started shopping for for a Red Dot to mount onto a handgun slide, I noticed that I get some halos and flares on the dot. A 8 moa dot has a pretty big halo. It reminds me of an eotech's 65 moa ring on their reticles. Its a halo so its not nearly as bright or defined, nor is it constant (its constantly changing size/shape). I noticed that the 4 moa halo is much less pronounced but is still distracting.

What I'd like are some suggestions for some high quality red dots with 1 or 2 moa dots that are handgun mountable for 100+ yards. I haven't found anything that would fit the bill. What would you suggest?

[Caseless]

A list of 1MOA red dot sights from big to small size-wise:
Sightron S33-4R
Ulta-Dot
Eotech XPS
Nikon variable red dot

How about fiber optic front sight blade.

[Recession]

That's strange. I just got Lasik done about a month ago and I had the opposite effect as you. Before Lasik the reticle on my Eotech would look like a starburst now it's a nice crisp circle. Maybe your red dot is using really cheap components?

[Agent Tikki]

Thank you Caseless, I hadn't seen those models yet, do you think the Eotech will fit on a glock slide tho? I'm guessing its probably too wide.


Recession: I wanted a Trijicon RMR, looked at that, and an Aimpoint(forgot what model off hand). Those are really on the low end of the optics range, I don't think.

Also Gratz on the Lasik bro! Hope you love your new eyes as much as I do! But you gotta keep in mind, I had my procedure done 10+ years ago. Technology has changed, alot. I understand there are different, faster, cooler lasers that they use now, and bladeless incisions to the lens. I also have pretty bad astigmatism and was warned that the procedure would impart those visual effects. My visions was better than 20/20 after the procedure, and leveled to a little better than 20/20 after the first year. I've noticed that my vision is getter a bit worse over the years....but that could just be that I'm getting old

[tacticalcity]

I had Lasik, and had it done BIG time. Over 2 mins on one eye and just under 2 mins on the other.

The trick is not to dial the red dot up so high. Even without lasik if you crank the red dot power all the way up it is going to star burst. The only reason you notice it and blame it on your eyes is because you remember all that star bursting with lights right after the surgery. But that is not what is going on here. You just have it cranked up too high. Dial it down a bit and 90% of that star bursting will go away.

It is a very common thing for new guys to do. So don't feel so bad.

[Agent Tikki]

Oh and the fiber optic front sight is a definate maybe I'd like to see if I can get some sights to co-witness the red dot. But I've been planning on getting flat black sights for this particular build. It'd have to be tall in order to cowitness, and finding a fiberoptic/tritium sight at that height maybe kind of hard.

For iron sights, even at distances like 25 yards, I find it hard to keep the target in focus while focusing on the front sights. Which is why I want a reflex/holo sight. My ultimate goal is to go hunting with this.

[Agent Tikki]

I had Lasik, and had it done BIG time. Over 2 mins on one eye and just under 2 mins on the other.

The trick is not to dial the red dot up so high. Even without lasik if you crank the red dot power all the way up it is going to star burst. The only reason you notice it and blame it on your eyes is because you remember all that star bursting with lights right after the surgery. But that is not what is going on here. You just have it cranked up too high. Dial it down a bit and 90% of that star bursting will go away.

It is a very common thing for new guys to do. So don't feel so bad.

Ya, but will it get rid of the halos? I did play with the brightness, still got some halos. Starbursting wasn't too much of an issue, its the fuzzy ring around the light sources that I get, not the spiky streaks. I still get them walking down the street at night if I look at a streetlight, I get starbursting and halos.

[Agent Tikki]

Just curious, does anyone know if you can get a Tru Glo, TFO front sight only? Or do you have to get the package with the rears....

[akjunkie]

I had Lasik done in 2002 for my Bday. @ the Saddleback Eye clinic in Irvine, Ca.
I dont experience any Halo effects with my Aimpoints or Eotechs.

[tacticalcity]

Ya, but will it get rid of the halos? I did play with the brightness, still got some halos. Starbursting wasn't too much of an issue, its the fuzzy ring around the light sources that I get, not the spiky streaks. I still get them walking down the street at night if I look at a streetlight, I get starbursting and halos.

That ring is the incision when they cut and flipped the lense out of the way. Sounds like you ended up with some major scarring.

It has been 10 years for me. No halos any more when looking at bright lights. That lasted about 6 months then went away. I would bet you get the same thing when you look directly at a street light at night. If you have some major scars, then dialing down the brightness will definately help...but it might never completely go away. You would likely see some haloing with any IR reticle. The light is reflecting off the scar tissue (or unhealed incession for people who just had surgery). Normally this effect is not noticable unless the light is VERY bright, even right after surgery. That is why I think dialing it down should help. The less ambient light, the lower the setting should be. This is true even if you have not had surgery, as it makes the dot more precise.

[Agent Tikki]

Ya, I had a change to play with the RMR dual illum and the battery powered verions. Played with all the brightness settings, I acutally prefered the Dual illumination one as it wasn't as bright as the other. But the halo is kind of annoying. I really am happy that you guys don't have the small issues that I have with my eyesight. If it weren't for illuminated reticles, I really don't have any other complaints. >< I believe that this isssue was due to being astigmatic. Either way, having a big fuzzy dot to aim with, really isn't all that usefull. So my search continues.

I just found out that Aimpoint's T-1/H-1/R-1 line is coming out with a 2 moa dot. Not quite out yet, I think I'm going to see if I can get a hold of one as soon as its out .

[Fyathyrio]

Before you spend $400 or so on an Aimpoint, perhaps $50 on a Mounts Plus fiber optic front sight might help. Since it only collects and focuses ambient light you may not get the flare issue. I've not had LASIK, so I can't speak to that issue though.

There's three blade/dot size combos to choose from and each sight can be reversed to get a larger dot...meaning two different dot sizes per sight. You can also change colors easily to suit preference/eyesight. Even in very dim light the dot is slightly visible, really helps when the front sight has disappeared against a dark background. It also has better adjustability then standard front sight. (5/8 MOA)

[bohoki]

i think that is because your iris is opening in the dark wider than the corrected zone of your cornea