Bought mt first RDS.

roccoracer

NES Member
Joined
Dec 9, 2011
Messages
2,191
Likes
2,120
Location
The peoples republic of Massachusetts
Feedback: 7 / 0 / 0
I have always wanted to try out a red dot on a pistol but never wanted to spend the money needed for a quality unit. Today I took the plunge. I will be mounting this on my Sig P320 X5 Legion.
I have not shot a pistol with a red dot. How is a red dot used compared to irons? I went with the Leupold over the Sig Romeo 1 pro because it is American made The Sig Romeo 1 pro is assembled in the Philippines.
20200630_151313.jpg20200630_151318.jpg
 
How is a red dot compared to irons? When set up properly with a taller front sight, there's faster target acquisition. Likely more accurate, too. Spend a few hours dry firing with the dot on and put a few hundo through the gun to acclimate yourself.
 
Just a word of caution. I opted to buy suppressor height sights for my first pistol red dot for absolute co-witness. I'm wishing now I didn't. Sight picture is too busy for my preference. To each their own, but I think I would have preferred standard height sights.
 
While I see where @ReluctantDecoy is coming from, I put a RMR on my G19, but didn’t fully appreciate it until I put supressor height sights on it. It took too long to “find” the dot on drawing sometimes, especially off hand.
im running the same set up and im glad i put suppressor height sights. I went with blacked out sights to not distract from the dot but in a dark environment that black front sight can be hard to acquire. I’ve thought about painting the front sight white. 8598F8BF-7F35-42AE-B3FB-B25CB002303F.jpeg
 
While I see where @ReluctantDecoy is coming from, I put a RMR on my G19, but didn’t fully appreciate it until I put supressor height sights on it. It took too long to “find” the dot on drawing sometimes, especially off hand.

I totally get it. Sight picture is definitely a personal preference. However, I'll say this about not having absolute cowitness: Clearer sight picture in just having the red dot covering the target area. Especially true if small MOA red dot. I went tritium suppressor height sights. The front sight is tall and thick as a result. I also don't like having both a red and green dot now. Blocks too much target picture in my opinion. And most importantly, the beauty of a RMR/RDS is that where the dot is, is where the bullet goes. Irons don't even have to line up, so having two separate sight pictures is OK. Once you get used to it, RDS is super fast because you're not even bothering lining up irons. What you see is what you shoot (assuming good zero).

If I could go back and do it again (which I won't because I'm being cheap), I'd go standard height sights and all black, as long as your trust your RMR/RDS.
 
Just a word of caution. I opted to buy suppressor height sights for my first pistol red dot for absolute co-witness. I'm wishing now I didn't. Sight picture is too busy for my preference. To each their own, but I think I would have preferred standard height sights.
I think the sweet spot is a lower cowitness (I think mine are Ameriglo sights). I too had a RDS with cowitnessed sights (halfway into the glass - Trijicons) and it was too much. Granted, that was with an RMR and I find the Deltapoint Pro to have a slightly larger window. But lower sights that can still be used with a RDS seem to be the best option.
 
Nice. I have a couple of RMR'd pistols and one with a holosun and really have an appreciation for them. My eyes have trouble focusing on the front sight, blurry over the last few years. And even though I have also developed a slight astigmatism, the red dot and both eyes open have really been great for accuracy for me. I have suppressor height sights on the two Glocks I have and they don't bother me at all as I am focused on the target anyway with the red dot showing point of impact. The other thing I have found to be very beneficial is that I can see what is happening to the point of aim while aiming and shooting as the dot is very clearly going low left. This has allowed me to to improve my grip and trigger work a lot with dry fire, and live fire. I think they are the best thing to happen for pistols in a long time (and long guns as well).
 
Been hearing a bit about astigmatism lately. Is there something about red dots and astigmatism? Would be nice to know. If so, is it just with pistols, or with anything? Thanks.
 
Been hearing a bit about astigmatism lately. Is there something about red dots and astigmatism? Would be nice to know. If so, is it just with pistols, or with anything? Thanks.

I believe some folks don't see a nice round clean dot, but rather a red "starburst".
 
I have always wanted to try out a red dot on a pistol but never wanted to spend the money needed for a quality unit. Today I took the plunge. I will be mounting this on my Sig P320 X5 Legion.
I have not shot a pistol with a red dot. How is a red dot used compared to irons? I went with the Leupold over the Sig Romeo 1 pro because it is American made The Sig Romeo 1 pro is assembled in the Philippines.
View attachment 369536View attachment 369537

Both eyes open...complete focus on target...let the dot superimpose on target. A game changer for aging eyes...
 
I mounted my rear sight in front of red dot when I had it milled... much better for dot acquisition
 
Been hearing a bit about astigmatism lately. Is there something about red dots and astigmatism? Would be nice to know. If so, is it just with pistols, or with anything? Thanks.

astigmatisms are with everything. If I look at a star in the night sky without my glasses, I see two or three of them right next to one another. Same thing happens with red dots, I see multiple red dots very close to one another.

I've got a Trijicon on a Glock 17 that I use for pins, (and now trying with steel challenge). I took the sights off entirely. It's not a carry gun, so if I lose the dot, (unlikely with a trijicon), I'm simply SOL on the stage - not in danger for my life.
 
I totally get it. Sight picture is definitely a personal preference. However, I'll say this about not having absolute cowitness: Clearer sight picture in just having the red dot covering the target area. Especially true if small MOA red dot. I went tritium suppressor height sights. The front sight is tall and thick as a result. I also don't like having both a red and green dot now. Blocks too much target picture in my opinion. And most importantly, the beauty of a RMR/RDS is that where the dot is, is where the bullet goes. Irons don't even have to line up, so having two separate sight pictures is OK. Once you get used to it, RDS is super fast because you're not even bothering lining up irons. What you see is what you shoot (assuming good zero).

If I could go back and do it again (which I won't because I'm being cheap), I'd go standard height sights and all black, as long as your trust your RMR/RDS.
You can always just remove the sights completely.
I made my first optic mount a few years ago to see how I liked it. Took it off the gun and never installed the rear sight. Did lots of training with that set up out to 20 yards
 
Just a word of caution. I opted to buy suppressor height sights for my first pistol red dot for absolute co-witness. I'm wishing now I didn't. Sight picture is too busy for my preference. To each their own, but I think I would have preferred standard height sights.


I also made this mistake and totally agree
 
My M&P core came with white dot suppressor height sights. After a while I didn’t have problems acquiring the dot on my vortex viper. I actually needed the sights at first for reference finding the dot. My 19 is cut for a rmr and delta point pro. Still undecided on which to pick up (eventually) but I wanted standard height night sights on this gun. I want the sight picture to be uncluttered. Seeing both dot and sights keeps me slow.
 
You can always just remove the sights completely.
I made my first optic mount a few years ago to see how I liked it. Took it off the gun and never installed the rear sight. Did lots of training with that set up out to 20 yards

True. That is an option. But I like the concept of having some form of backup irons if the battery dies unexpectedly or I shatter the red dot and have to push the glass out. Obviously more of an emergency scenario, but I like to be prepared.
 
Been hearing a bit about astigmatism lately. Is there something about red dots and astigmatism? Would be nice to know. If so, is it just with pistols, or with anything? Thanks.
5CD11129-C118-4838-9203-9584B6D9519F.jpeg
For some people, like myself who have an astigmatism, this is what they see when using a red dot and no glasses. Some version of the middle and right panel. Thankfully mine is in my non-dominant eye but the glasses do help even more.
 
How is a red dot compared to irons? When set up properly with a taller front sight, there's faster target acquisition. Likely more accurate, too. Spend a few hours dry firing with the dot on and put a few hundo through the gun to acclimate yourself.
Why does taller front sight matter if you're only looking for the dot?
 
Why does taller front sight matter if you're only looking for the dot?

Couple reasons:

(1) One's muscle memory for bringing the gun up on target is going to bring the gun up to a point where you'd naturally place the front and rear sights as if you were using irons when you first start using the dot. Having a taller front sight remedies this a little.

(2) I spend less time "searching for the dot" with a taller front sight post. This results in faster times versus a normal front sight for me.

Let me give an example. I bought a RMR for one of my pistols back in March. I didn't put a taller front sight on it. Then, one of my friends bought the same exact model of RMR as mine and put it on a G19 with Zev slide and a taller front sight post. We then compared our pistols and shot each other's. I spent a discernibly longer time looking for the dot on my pistol than when I was shooting his pistol. So, for me, the taller front sight makes finding the dot faster; thus, shooting is faster, and that pistol's slide is currently having a taller front sight post put on it.

TL: DR, a taller front post makes "looking for the dot" a faster proposition.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Couple reasons:

(1) One's muscle memory for bringing the gun up on target is going to bring the gun up to a point where you'd naturally place the front and rear sights as if you were using irons when you first start using the dot. Having a taller front sight remedies this a little.

(2) I spend less time "searching for the dot" with a taller front sight post. This results in faster times versus a normal front sight for me.

Let me give an example. I bought a RMR for one of my pistols back in March. I didn't put a taller front sight on it. Then, one of my friends bought the same exact model of RMR as mine and put it on a G19 with Zev slide and a taller front sight post. We then compared our pistols and shot each other's. I spent a discernibly longer time looking for the dot on my pistol than when I was shooting his pistol. So, for me, the taller front sight makes finding the dot faster; thus, shooting is faster, and that pistol's slide is currently having a taller front sight post put on it.

TL: DR, a taller front post makes "looking for the dot" a faster proposition.

It’s also easier to zero your RDS when you’re not searching for a reference point, assuming your irons are properly aligned.

I had a DPP and liked it. But for a sale on the Trijicon SRO, I would still have it. With respect to astigmatism, it will make the red dot blurry. My prescription glasses largely eliminate the blur, and my toric contact lenses, designed for astigmatism, help, but not to the extent the glasses do.
 
Been hearing a bit about astigmatism lately. Is there something about red dots and astigmatism? Would be nice to know. If so, is it just with pistols, or with anything? Thanks.
I developed an astigmatism later in life, and my red dots went from being a crisp dot, to a slightly blurred dot. I feel it makes no difference, as you focus on the target with a red dot and not the front sight as you do with irons. I need 1-2 diopter reading glasses to see my front sight post. With a red dot, I don't need magnified glasses at all. Both eyes open, focused on the target, the red dot, even though not crisp, puts you on target much more easily than irons I think, certainly for me. I strongly prefer the RDS over Irons for both rifle and pistol shooting now.

And as a bonus, you can see any grip or trigger pull issues impacting your accuracy as the dot shows exactly what you are doing. Has helped me a lot with improving grip and trigger pull.
 
Back
Top Bottom