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So I have been wanting to upgrade to good optics for a while. I've used Primary Arms and Lucid optics and both are excellent, especially at their respective price points. But recently I had the means to get something a little better so I picked up a BNIB Eotech 553 from a fellow Calgunner. I had always liked the look of the 553 and the integrated throw levers.
The 553 was a little difficult to get sighted in but that may have been due to my ignorance. I had to make a lot of adjustments at the range to get the Eotech sighted in. The 553 sits high so the cowitness with my irons (Midwest Industries flip up rear and standard front sight post is in the lower 1/3. It took me a while to figure out that the reticle, when aligned, sits right in the sight picture of my irons. I added a GG&G Hood and so now the Eotech is good to go on my primary home defense rifle (Featureless M&P 15).
Not content stopping there, I also picked up an Aimpoint Pro. The Aimpoint Pro is first rate all the way and the price is justified in the build quality. Now I 'get it' as to why people pay premium prices for premium optics. I mounted the PRO on my secondary HD rifle (Stag 2HT).
To Aimpoint's credit, the PRO was practically zeroed out of the box. 2 or 3 clicks placed the bright dot right in the heart of my iron sight picture (ARMS #40L rear, standard front sight post. I have not shot with the PRO yet but I have no doubt this optic will serve well in its intended purpose and will probably outlast the rifle it is on.
Overall, I really like both of these optics. I like the reticle on the Eotech a little better, but it was a little harder to get sighted in and the adjustment markings (Without the GG&G hood) are impossible to read. I was also worried about overturning the adjustment knobs because the manual states that going past the factory clicks will damage the optic, yet it is possible to keep turning them, so the device is not idiot proof and apparently can be inadvertently screwed up if care is not taken (I didn't break it! I was careful).
The Aimpoint gets the nod for simplicity and ease of zeroing. If I could only keep one I'd sell the Eotech and keep the Aimpoint. The battery life superiority of the Aimpoint is well documented, but for those of us who aren't downrange, changing batteries on the Eotech every once in a while is not a huge deal.
So that is my amateurish, unprofessional pseudo-review of these two products. They are both well worth the money, although I paid far less than retail for the Eotech. I would not have wanted to pay $600+ for one, but for $450 it was a bargain. $400 for the Aimpoint Pro is also WELL worth the investment and worth buying all day long.
So here's the prerequisite gun porn...
P1010587.jpg
P1010588.jpg
P1010589.jpg
The 553 was a little difficult to get sighted in but that may have been due to my ignorance. I had to make a lot of adjustments at the range to get the Eotech sighted in. The 553 sits high so the cowitness with my irons (Midwest Industries flip up rear and standard front sight post is in the lower 1/3. It took me a while to figure out that the reticle, when aligned, sits right in the sight picture of my irons. I added a GG&G Hood and so now the Eotech is good to go on my primary home defense rifle (Featureless M&P 15).
Not content stopping there, I also picked up an Aimpoint Pro. The Aimpoint Pro is first rate all the way and the price is justified in the build quality. Now I 'get it' as to why people pay premium prices for premium optics. I mounted the PRO on my secondary HD rifle (Stag 2HT).
To Aimpoint's credit, the PRO was practically zeroed out of the box. 2 or 3 clicks placed the bright dot right in the heart of my iron sight picture (ARMS #40L rear, standard front sight post. I have not shot with the PRO yet but I have no doubt this optic will serve well in its intended purpose and will probably outlast the rifle it is on.
Overall, I really like both of these optics. I like the reticle on the Eotech a little better, but it was a little harder to get sighted in and the adjustment markings (Without the GG&G hood) are impossible to read. I was also worried about overturning the adjustment knobs because the manual states that going past the factory clicks will damage the optic, yet it is possible to keep turning them, so the device is not idiot proof and apparently can be inadvertently screwed up if care is not taken (I didn't break it! I was careful).
The Aimpoint gets the nod for simplicity and ease of zeroing. If I could only keep one I'd sell the Eotech and keep the Aimpoint. The battery life superiority of the Aimpoint is well documented, but for those of us who aren't downrange, changing batteries on the Eotech every once in a while is not a huge deal.
So that is my amateurish, unprofessional pseudo-review of these two products. They are both well worth the money, although I paid far less than retail for the Eotech. I would not have wanted to pay $600+ for one, but for $450 it was a bargain. $400 for the Aimpoint Pro is also WELL worth the investment and worth buying all day long.
So here's the prerequisite gun porn...
P1010587.jpg
P1010588.jpg
P1010589.jpg
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