Leupold d-evo. evolution? or fad?

[SloChicken]

I have 2 rifles with 45 degree optics. One is a 45 degree miniRDS accompanying a 3-9x on a 308. The other rifle has a set of 45 degree irons on a magnified 5.56.
Both are useful for closer targets and I prefer the cheekweld vs. the piggy-back RDS (read: "cheek-hover") like on burris MTACs etc.

That said, I have always thought I would prefer the close quarters sight to be the primary (atop the rail) and have the magnified sight as a secondary on the 45 degree position. But then you have to consider worse ergos for the more precision shot vs. speed with the non-magnified optic in the primary. Two ways to consider this one.

At any rate, Leupold came out with the d-evo which puts a 6xfixed (acog style) optic to the side of the rail mounted non-magnified optic, but the side mounted, magnified optic has a viewer/objective lens that is just below the non-magnified objective lens.

This solves the head-tilt issue of the 45degrees and looks like a pretty well thought out design.

All except for the price (near 2k) ...

Thoughts?

http://www.leupold.com/hunting-shooting/scopes/d-evo/d-evo/

[teflondog]

I think it's a cool concept but I don't like that the ejected brass will hit the offset scope. If it weren't for that, I would definitely buy one.

[Rcjackrabbit]

I have TA11J-Gs with offset T1s. To me, it is the best setup in existence right now.

I agree that the RDS should be primary. That would be better.

My opinion is that the DEVO does not improve on my TA11/T1 setup.

The ACOG is a better scope. Rotating the rifle is not a big deal. And, there are no offset issues for your trajectory.

[Mute]

It has potential. It is very quick to switch from the RDS to the 6x optic, however, as noted, there are other 6x optics out their that will be optically superior. It's damn good for something that uses a mirror but my primary concern with this optic would be how well it performs in less than optimum lighting conditions (low-light, glare, shooting into shadowed area...etc).

I will say that it's faster to switch from dot to magnified than anything else I've tried, including an offset mount on a scope. I also like not having to rotate my rifle.

[FMJBT]

To be honest, I'm not even sure what I'm looking at here:



In this view, there seems to be a red dot sight attached on top, but I'm not sure how or where it's connected:

[SloChicken]

To be honest, I'm not even sure what I'm looking at here:



In this view, there seems to be a red dot sight attached on top, but I'm not sure how or where it's connected:

It is a 6x sight that fits on the picatinny rail just toward the buttstock from an existing AR height RDS.
It allows one cheek weld, but you can use either the conventionally mounted 1x RDS or look down just a bit and use the 6x which has its objective just below the 1x objective.

[GoatLocker]

To be honest, I'm not even sure what I'm looking at here:

Looks like it's mounted behind the red dot, where you would place a magnifier. The scope itself uses a porro prism to offset the objective lens to the right, to see around the red dot. It's kind of like half of a binocular.

[MauserMike]

here you go, this sheds some light on the sight.

[Scotty]

The downside of the 6x is you will hit left of center at distances less than the zero distance. It will hit right of center beyond zero distance.

[FMJBT]

here you go, this sheds some light on the sight.

That definitely helps seeing it set up on a rifle along with the separate red dot. It does raise some concerns though. The eye relief seems like it will be pretty short, which is pretty consistent with prismatic internals. The biggest concern for me though is how low the eyepiece for the 6X sits. It looks to be well below the 1.5" height that is pretty much standard for AR sights. I'd imagine you could smash your face down hard enough to see through it.......

[FMJBT]

The downside of the 6x is you will hit left of center at distances less than the zero distance. It will hit right of center beyond zero distance.

I'd treat it just like a laser sight when zeroing. Set zero to be off center the same amount as the offset of the sight, so your sightline and bore axis are parallel. You'll be off still, but it will be consistent regardless of distance.

[SuperSet]

The downside of the 6x is you will hit left of center at distances less than the zero distance. It will hit right of center beyond zero distance.

The reticle is supposed to be compensated for this very fact.
Looks expensive and bulky. I still want to shoot one.

[Gomphe]

I'm withholding judgement on this product until I have a chance to play with it. As mention above, it definitely has potential. Just the fact that this product will work with your existing red dot optic is huge. And when compared with my current optic setup (an Aimpoint 3x magnifier on a detachable mount with an Aimpoint H1), there are obvious and clear pros and cons. For example, the D-EVO weights about 13.80 oz compared to a mere 7.1 oz on my Aimpoint 3x magnifier. Sure the D-EVO has twice the magnification, but is the extra magnification with the extra weight? Personally, I like my ARs somewhat light and maneuverable.

Another problem I have with the D-EVO is the obvious bulky attachment sitting on the top of my rifle. ARs, IMHO, should be runned clean with the fewest possible attachments as possible and little or no bulk.

These are just two of my concerns about the product. Like I said, I want to put this optic through its paces before I decide to drop $1800 for the unit.

[ke6guj]

The downside of the 6x is you will hit left of center at distances less than the zero distance. It will hit right of center beyond zero distance.

it is zeroed at one distance and the BDC reticle accounts for the offset.

The reticle is supposed to be compensated for this very fact.
Looks expensive and bulky. I still want to shoot one.

correct, the BDC reticle is curved slightly right as you go further down the BDC.

I played with it at SHOT with the laser guns and it seemed to work nice. have to see how it would work in real life with the brass ejection, and with me being a Lefty (would it occlude too much of my peripheral vision?).

[Rcjackrabbit]

I was aware that the reticle compensates for the offset of the DEVO. The big problem is that:

1. There still will be an offset at distances less than it is zerod at.
2. You have to know your distance.

People are notoriously bad at estimating distance in the field. This is nothing new. But, it introduces another error. Error in trajectory (usual error) and error in offset (new error).