Mini Red Dot Sight (MRDS) Reviews

Red-Dot and Holographic Optics For Mil-Style Weapons:

Philosophy:

M1Surplus.com’s Red-Dot FAQ’s

Non-magnified red-dot optics are great when you need to quickly acquire and fire at targets. Red-dot sights reduce the number of points in a proper sight picture from three to two. Instead of aligning the target with the front post and rear notch, it is only necessary to place the dot on the target. At night, when used in conjunction with a weapons mounted light, the red-dot is highly visible against the dark background. They are especially effective when shooting at moving targets, such as when hunting.

Red-dot and holographic optics are designed to be used with both eyes open and focused on the target. They red-dot appears as an illusion on the target. Although the red-dot is only a few inches from your eye, the dot appears as if it is floating on the target many meters away. Simply place the red-dot on the target (or lead a moving target if necessary) and press the trigger.

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Sought After Features Of A Red-Dot Or Holographic Optic:

The following are essential criteria to consider when selecting a red-dot or holographic optic for a military style firearm and are discussed in the MRDS reviews:

Clear Aperture.
Parallax.
Azimuth and Elevation Adjustments (ease of use, fineness of adjustments).
Housing (ruggedness, water proof / resistance).
Mounting Method.
Weight.
Power Source (battery type and lifespan).
Brightness (visible in bright daylight, usable with night vision goggles).
Equipment Compatibility / Interoperability.
Height Above Bore.
Environmental Testing (temperature extremes, sand and dust, thermal shock, and sealing).
Reliability and track record.
Size of target reticle (i.e. 2 MOA, 3 MOA, etc.)..
Manufacturer’s Warranty.

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Aimpoint:

Aimpoint T2:

Tier one gear. Very pricey.
Many aftermarket mounting options for 1/3 or absolute co-witness.
Uses common 2032 batteries.
12 brightness settings — 1-4 for night vision, 5-8 for daylight.
At mid-range brightness setting (6 or 7) you can expect 50,000 hours of battery life.

Aimpoint H2:

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Bushnell TRS-25:

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Bushnell TRS-25 Red Dot Sight Mounted On PTR-91

Features:

Quality budget red dot sight.
3 MOA red dot.
11 brightness settings.
Red dot is easily seen in bright sunlight.
Uses 2032 batteries.
No auto-shutoff.
Perfect for 22.LR rifles.

If you buy a cheap red-dot optic you will usually end up with junk that can not produce a bright enough reticle to be seen in bright sunlight, and probably will not be able to handle the constant abuse of firearm recoil.

The Bushnell TRS-25 (pictured above), while not cheap, is still reasonably priced from around $80 – $120 (depending on where you purchase it, and whether it is on sale or not). The TRS-25 has been tested on .375 H&H Magnum rifles. If it can survive that massive recoil, it certainly can handle the almost non-existent recoil of a .22LR rifle.

The TRS-25 has 11 brightness setting. I have two of the red-dot sights and I have never needed to use the brightness settings, even on the sunniest of days. It has a 3 MOA red-dot reticle. Mounted to a Ruger 10/22 I zero the red-dot at 20 yards. Bullet impact at 50 yards is still within the upper third of the dot. Point-of-sight and point-of-impact are the same again at 66 yards. At 100 yards the bullet will impact just to bottom of the dot. With the 20 yard zero you will hit what ever you put the dot on out past 66 yards, and will only require slight holdover as your near 100 yards. My two children can hit spent shotgun shells with impunity out past 30 yards, and tennis balls past 60 yards. I have several friends that have these same sights on their Ruger 10/22 rifles and absolutely love them.

Bushnell makes a riser for the TRS-25 that lets you co-witness with you AR-15’s backup iron sights (BUIS) 1/3 low. Promag makes a mount that will allow you an absolute co-witness with your AR-15’s BUIS.

Note: Make sure that you use LocTite on the screw when you mount the sight to your rifle. Do not over-torque the mounting bolt as you may accidentally crack the mount. Keep an extra CR-2032 battery with your rifle. If you leave the TRS-25 turned on it will not automatically shut off and the battery will probably be dead when you go to use it again.

TRS-25 Yellow Lettering vs. White Lettering:

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Holosun:

Holosun Products
Most models include Smart Features: Functions such as motion based on and off, memory of the last brightness & reticle style, and automatically adjusting reticle intensity.

How To Decode Holosun Red Dot Product Numbers:

When there is a “4: as the first digit of the model number of a Holosun sight, it has a simple 2 MOA dot.

When there is a “5” as the first digit of the model number of a Holosun sight, it has a reticle with a 2 MOA dot surrounded by a 65 MOA cirlcle, similar to an Eotech, but the user can still switch off the circle and simply use the dot.

If the model number has a “G” in the suffix, it means that the battery is mounted to the side of the optic.

If the model number has a “U” in the suffix, it signifies a housing design that shrouds the windage and elevation turrets on two sides.

If the model number has a “C” in the suffix, it signifies that it is solar powered. The brightness of the recticle is automatically adjusted based on the ambient light hitting the solar panel and the solar panel is both a power supply and a light sensor. The backup battery will compensate if the optic cannot be powered by light alone.

Holosun’s Limited Lifetime Warranty:

Holosun products are warranted to be free of defects in materials and workmanship with the Holosun Limited Lifetime Warranty. This warranty applies to the first owner upon registration of the product. This warranty specifically applies to the metal structure of the product housing and does not apply to the optical and illumination systems. The optical glass is covered by a 5 year warranty. The illumination system including electronics and LED is covered by a 3 year warranty.

Holosun HS403B:

2 MOA red dot.

Holosun HS503C:

2 MOA dot surrounded by a 65 MOA cirlcle, or user can still switch off the circle and simply use the dot.

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Primary Arms:

3 year limited warranty.

Primary Arms Advanced Micro Dot Sight:

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Sig Sauer:

Lifetime replacement warranty.

Sig Romeo 4H:

Sig Romeo 4M:

Sig Romeo 5 / 5X / 5XDR:

2 MOA red dot.

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Vortex:

Incredible no-questions-asked warranty. Wow!

Vortex Crossfire:

Vortex Sparc AR:

Vortex Sparc AR
Intended for use with AR15 style rifles and designed to co-witness with backup sights (mount is non-removable).
2 MOA red dot.
Uses one AAA battery.
Lifetime warranty.