Is this red dot at fault or is it me?

[Striker911]

I just got my first one from walmart cause it looked decent and was only thirty bucks. Only when I finally got it mounted the dot does not stay in the center. I have to keep my face perfectly center and thats hard to do. What I mean is if I move my head left the dot moves also without moving the gun. Its annoying. Id think the dot should stay in the center of the scope. Is it me?

[carver]

It is you, but it doesn't matter! If you can see the dot, and can get it on the target, fire! It will put the bullet right in there.

[Brass Tacks]

with all due respect to you, what due you expect from ChinaMart for $30?

[carver]

Nothing wrong with the $30 aimpoints, just don't stick em on a gun with heavy recoil.

[LDBennett]

Red dots are a lot more tolerant of the dot being off center when you fire the gun. That is, red dots exhibit minimal parallax errors. But there is some and it is better to keep the dot centered. Red dots are not totally parallax free regardless what people and ads imply. Testing has proven that. Putting it on mounts that raise it so that you can get your eye behind it centered is ideal.

It is my opinion based on my personal experience that any red dot that sells for less than $100 can be problematical. In fact, about the only red dot I buy (I have 6) is the Ultra Dot entry level one inch tube, single dot size, at about $140. Others have given me problems, eventually.

LDBennett

[gdmoody]

There is nothing wrong with a $30 red dot, I don't think I would put them on a high powered rifle. I have a couple that I paid $20 for and they work great on .22s. I did buy a $110 one that I use on my AR, it is really no better than the $20 ones I have.

[Bindernut]

Like LD said, even Red Dots aren't free from parallax errors. Ideal mounting position is getting your face planted to the stock in a comfortable position that you can repeat consistently and have the sight mounted at the same height as where your eyeball looks down-range.

If you move your eye around you['ll see the crosshairs wander around in the tube of a scope just like your dot is wandering around. That's normal.

Think of a red dot (or scope reticle) as the front half of a two-piece sighting system. Your eye is the rear half.
Just like with iron sights needing both the front and rear sight to stay in a fixed position, you need a consistent eye position to guarantee that your point of aim does not wander from the point of impact.

[cpttango30]

I got a $30 red dot on my Neos and it is dead nuts accurate.

You can move around and still hit where you aim at.

[Striker911]

Aw. Thanks for the clarity. The arm I put in on has a laser pointer as well. So it was going way off according to that. I can see it will take some getting use to though and im glad I only spent $30 on it in case I dont like it in the end.

[jce07a]

the nice thing about red dots is that wherever that dot is, is where your shot should hit...if you zero'd it properly. i have a $30 tasco red dot on my M&P15-22 and its awesome, i feel like im cheating when i go to the range and have plink contests with my buddies

[al45lc]

I compared a unit I have (NcStar) to one my buddy has with the Browning logo on it. They have the same markings and etching on the underside, and he paid $50 more for his. He swore his was better because Browning wouldn't put their logo on chinese crap.
That deerhead is expensive!

[Striker911]

Good news then. I do need to sight mine in. I couldnt find the tools that came with the 995 so I have the front sight on since I cant get the flash suppressor out of the way to get it off. The dot was all over the place so thats what made me wonder. More reason to practice. 1000 rounds is on the way : )

[LDBennett]

Here is an excellent article about Red Dots, well worth reading:

http://www.bullseyepistol.com/dotsight.htm

If you get a good stock weld (every time the same) and are still off center but you zeroed it with the good same stock weld then the parallax error wilt always be in the same direction and you can still shoot accurately.

Over the years (I bought my first one about 25 years ago) I have lost more than a couple of cheap red dots so I no longer buy cheap ones. All six of my Ultra Dots work perfectly and none has failed. Most bullseye shooters use the Ultra Dots exclusively. They can not afford a failure while competing.

LDBennett

[jack404]

i've a cheapy ( $50 here for the $30 one's there) i'm amazed with it ,

i think if i dropped the rifle it'd be dead ,

i'm thinking of putting it on my next NAA ( the BP one) and making it a hunter ( dont laugh i may just surprise you all , got over 40 or so ( guess only maybe 80??) bunnies with my standard NAA now)

and yeah i'd not put it on a high recoil job either ...

as the others say put the dot on the target and fire

enjoy!!!

[hawaiianbasshead]

there are a few budget dots that are good even on 12ga shottys, there are guys with 1000 shots down the pipe and still holding zero.

I have only had experience with mine on my 22AR and it is great, I could do shots to 120/150 yards pretty and anything under 100 yards I was pretty consistently pegging even smaller targets with this dot, this is what the shotgun guys were running so I figured what the heck

http://www.sightmark.com/products/re...black-sm13003b

rated for recoil of bmg 50s. like I said, I've peronally talked to guys who've ran loads of 12ga on their shotty with no problems on these. I'm a member of the saiga 12 forum. I also have a perfect red dot (tactical red dot of theirs, very similar to a primary arms unit ect)

primary arms mini dots are durable and guys run them on high recoil weapons

the vortex strikefire is a very popular dot.

bushnell trophy acog style is good

the above imo are on par with or more durable than an aimpoint IMO (besides the reflex as it's not even the same type of dot) and that is military issue but they do break alot of aimpoints out there in the middle east from what I've read... haven't got to shoot my perfect red dot yet but hoping maybe next weekend if I order another bcg setup as I sold my other complete ar15 yesterday and I only shot 4 or 5 rounds on it that day otherwise it was a new build

my personal red dot on the 22 is actually the firefield version made by sightmark, also has a lifetime warranty ect, but there are alot that look the same have the same reticle ect so I ordered a cheap $26.50 shipped NcStar one to put to the test to see if they are all indeed the same thing as they do look it. if that is the case it is probably going to be the budget red dot I recommend most anywhere is this style, if not just the sightmark/firefield ones in the same body

[Striker911]

Originally Posted by hawaiianbasshead

there are a few budget dots that are good even on 12ga shottys, there are guys with 1000 shots down the pipe and still holding zero.

I have only had experience with mine on my 22AR and it is great, I could do shots to 120/150 yards pretty and anything under 100 yards I was pretty consistently pegging even smaller targets with this dot, this is what the shotgun guys were running so I figured what the heck

http://www.sightmark.com/products/re...black-sm13003b

rated for recoil of bmg 50s. like I said, I've peronally talked to guys who've ran loads of 12ga on their shotty with no problems on these. I'm a member of the saiga 12 forum. I also have a perfect red dot (tactical red dot of theirs, very similar to a primary arms unit ect)

primary arms mini dots are durable and guys run them on high recoil weapons

the vortex strikefire is a very popular dot.

bushnell trophy acog style is good

the above imo are on par with or more durable than an aimpoint IMO (besides the reflex as it's not even the same type of dot) and that is military issue but they do break alot of aimpoints out there in the middle east from what I've read... haven't got to shoot my perfect red dot yet but hoping maybe next weekend if I order another bcg setup as I sold my other complete ar15 yesterday and I only shot 4 or 5 rounds on it that day otherwise it was a new build

my personal red dot on the 22 is actually the firefield version made by sightmark, also has a lifetime warranty ect, but there are alot that look the same have the same reticle ect so I ordered a cheap $26.50 shipped NcStar one to put to the test to see if they are all indeed the same thing as they do look it. if that is the case it is probably going to be the budget red dot I recommend most anywhere is this style, if not just the sightmark/firefield ones in the same body

Looks like a good one for the price. Ive never seen one like that really. The one I have is on my 9mm luger shooting carbine so it should work. Just have to pass the learning curve. Ive yet to shoot for a while now though. I have been working on building my range when I have time. Soon.

[jbmid1]

The purpose of the red dot sights is quick target acquisition, not long range accuracy. That's why we still have the iron sights also on our issue weapons.

[LDBennett]

jbmid1 said:

"The purpose of the red dot sights is quick target acquisition, not long range accuracy."

That is not strictly true. Accuracy is greatly improved with a red dot on a pistol. But of course pistol are generally not used for long range shooting. If, for instances, I were to go hunting with a pistol, I would choose a red dot over open sights any day, just for the accuracy of sighting a red dot gives you over open sights. Bullseye competition shooters use red dot exclusively because it increases their sighting accuracy. But again that is a short range (relatively) use.

All you have to do is to mount a red dot and sight at say 25 yds and you will see hand shake you never saw with open sights. Try it.

What you say is true if you are talking about the big dot red dots but any with 4 MOA or less dot size are for precision sighting.

LDBennett

[Hammerslagger]

Cheap optics are like a lot of other things that are cheaply and poorly copied off of good or excellent designs. Usually, you do not get what you do not pay for! A cheap item often looks the same, even to an educated eye, but is not the same in quality or performance.

All red dot sights work on the same principle; but there is a huge difference in the usually observed quality and performance between a cheap red dot and a top quality one. Sometimes, an individual cheap item may be "reasonably right" and serve you well. You often have to examine a large number of cheap items to find even one that is really worth having. "That's just the way it is." ojw

[LDBennett]

The moderately priced red dots to go to are the UltraDots. I have six of their bottom of the line one inch single dot units and all work excellent with no failures to date. I also have a couple of cheaper units that went from the guns to the trash in quick order. Among my red dots are some 25 year old Tasco's Pro-Points that still work just fine. A couple of those in the day went back to Tasco for repair but work fine now (??). Since Tasco is out of business (in their original form), once they fail they will be replaced with UltraDots.

LDBennett

[Hammerslagger]

LDB's remarks are almost exactly my own.

The Aimpoint was the first really successful red dot. They are of excellent quality and expensive.

The 1" Ultra-Dot is rugged, optically well made (i.e. reasonably parallax free) product that has found great favor with competitive Bullseye shooters. Prices are usually above $100 but under $200.

The less expensive red dots typically have more parallax than Ultra-Dots or Aimpoints. Some really cheap Chinese made red dots will not stand up to the recoil and vibration of an auto-loading 22 RF.

[Mosin_Nagant_Fan]

Like anything, it can be a hit and miss with electronics on firearms, just remember to have a backup (like iron sights).

[ka64]

Pretty much answered your own question, 1 - Wallmart, 2 - $30.

[Striker911]

Well at the time I posted this I was able to take it back and get a different one. However, this is my first exp with a red dot, and even if I can not take it back, it was a cheap lesson learned. What I didnt understand, and still dont to be honest, but I guess its normal that you have to have your face in the exact same place every time you shoot or its off target? I left the front sight on to help. I put a rabbit in the freezer 2 nights ago but with no help from the red dot. I tried it and missed. I ended up using the laser and flashlight and it worked just fine with a head shot at 30 yards. The only problem with the laser is it has to be dark outside to see it.

I only hunt rabbit that come out at night anyways, but I also like target shooting.

[LDBennett]

Striker911:

The way they work is a facing forward LED shines through a tiny aperture and reflects off the back of the front glass of the unit. What you see is a reflection. So you have to be looking into the center of the tube (roughly) to see it.The front lens is ground with no power but a curved surface on the rear. How well made that lens is, determines the amount of off center you eye can be and still hit the target. That is called parallax and better red dots have less. But you still have to find the dot by moving the gun around a bit with the target versions. Once you find it leave both eyes open and the dot will appear to hang in space. The equivalent sight radius is many times more than open pistol sights and as such the shakes will be amplified in the dot.

I use red dots on 22 rifles, and 22 pistols and some center fire guns as well. My shooting gets significantly better with guns with red dots on them over the guns with open sights.

The cheap red dots serve a purpose for some but the better ones are worth the extra money. Those in the $100 to $200 range with closed tubes are the best. I don't like the open framed ones (erroneously called holographic sights which they definitely are not) because typically the LED is too close to the front lens element negating any accuracy gains in sighting.

LDBennett