Thoughts on red dots

[lakersandguns]

I prefer for the mount to be rock solid. With some quick detach mounts, they can move around a little (probably due to the cheap ones I've had) or the latch gets snagged and "opens."

Yeah... Need to get a $200 qd

[bigbearbear]

I wouldn't worry too much about it if I were you, this is year 2014, not 1980. Using any kind of optics on your firearm should be considered the norm now, and the good news is that the market has a huge selection of optics to suit just about every need and budget.

Optics have become so reliable and cheap that some military, such as the Singapore Armed Forces, even manufacture their military assault rifles with built-in 1.5x scope. See SAR 21 on wiki.

While learning how to shoot well with iron sights is useful, it is not so critical now, so if it causes you stress and make the shooting experience not enjoyable, skip it.

[lakersandguns]

I wouldn't worry too much about it if I were you, this is year 2014, not 1980. Using any kind of optics on your firearm should be considered the norm now, and the good news is that the market has a huge selection of optics to suit just about every need and budget.

Optics have become so reliable and cheap that some military, such as the Singapore Armed Forces, even manufacture their military assault rifles with built-in 1.5x scope. See SAR 21 on wiki.

While learning how to shoot well with iron sights is useful, it is not so critical now, so if it causes you stress and make the shooting experience not enjoyable, skip it.

U can't be serious

[trigger945]

I recommend learning to use iron sights somehow. Hit paper targets up to 15 yards with a handgun and up to 50 yards with a long gun with decent grouping at the very least. Focus on the front sight once the sights are lined up on the target. Rear sight and target should be blurry, while the front sight is clear.

Once you have achieved decent groupings up to 15/50 yards, then use optics all you want.

Hope this helps.

[RuskieShooter]

Something else worth thinking about; I have been to ranges where either I let someone shoot my firearm or I shoot theirs and they don't always have optics on them. My two favorite rifles are my M16A1 clone and my '44 Inland M1 carbine, neither of them have optics (same with my SKS and M16A2 build). In my opinion, not knowing how to use irons limits your access to loaners and "try-outs" and it really isn't a hard skill to learn.

-Ruskie

[mr2ndamendment]

I think, at least for law enforcement/military/defensive usage, iron sights will always be around. They're fixed on the gun, they don't require batteries, and they don't get damaged as easily as glass does. Murphy's law will always appear at the worst moment, and everything may work fine till that moment of need and all of a sudden your batteries die, your mount comes loose, or you take a random piece of shrapnel to your optic and the whole weapon system is down.

This is why, for hard-usage/LE/military/defensive guns, I always insist on backup irons of some kind. Without irons, one AA battery is the difference between an operational weapon system and an indirect fire boomstick.

With that said, for the recreational guy, target shooter, or hunter, I don't see the need for irons as much. Buy a quality optic, make sure it's installed correctly, get it zeroed, and chances are you'll never have any problems, especially with a no-batteries optic like an ACOG.

My rule of thumb: if your life is on the line, get backups. If it's just a hobby/fun gun, who cares? The worst that'll happen is you'll drive all the way out to BLM for a fun day of shooting and your optic fails you and you can't shoot that gun for the rest of the day.

You can still have some success with irons though given your sight problems. I'd look into ghost right sights, fiber optic front sights, and all the other great solutions for helping people see them better.

At the end of the day don't forget to regard optics for what they are; a luxury. It's like an electric stove top. You can always cook food over a camp fire, but you have the luxury of the stove top. If the electricity goes out, you still need to eat, and knowing how to cook over a fire will always be a valuable, essential skill.