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Howdy all, hope you are all staying safe and getting the rest of the things you need while you can still get them during this crazy time. SO, just bought a Springfield Hellcat to try out the pistol dot to help out my old man eyes. Anybody running a dot on their handgun? Pretty interested in the green dots, as they are more visible for me than the reds.... Have been looking at the newer Holosun 508TGR, but also considering the 507 V2 since it's quite a bit less expensive. I know that the Trijicon RMR is the standard bearer, but looking for practical experience from anyone has used dots on their pistols. Going to rent one with the Holosun to check it out in the next week or so.... TIA

My front sight has a dot on it.

yes

I have an RDS on one of my pistols but it's not a carry piece, it's one of the plinkers. Ruger MK IV 22/45 with a volquartsen trigger kit and RDS, it's pretty dang fun.

I've had a vortex on a 22/45 for a couple of years. I really like it so I decided to try one on a 9mm carry pistol. I got a P365XL and added a Holosun 507K. It is what I carry 95% of the time now. The 507K has a 32 MOA circle and 2 MOA dot. The circle makes it so much faster and easier to get on target than just the dot. Try it and if you don't like it you can always take the optic off and sell it. I would definitely get one with a circle and dot though. Good luck!

They have a learning curve for sure. But there is no doubt with training and using them that I have determined they are faster and more accurate. I think if you trained a new shooter with a dot they would pick up shooting whatever gun it is quicker. Stay away from the sig Romeo zero. That dot just doesn’t hold up. I’m speaking from personal experience. I had problems out of the gate and so did a friend of mine. Holosun makes good edc optics for good prices. True the RMR is the standard. They are bomb proof. You might look a the Trijicon SRO and also the Aimpoint acro. Little more expensive tho. If I was going to run another dot on a carry gun I’d most likely go with Holosun.

I did for a while on 3 of my pistols... A 1911, Ruger Mark IV and my Canik SFX.. But I took all of them off. I've noticed as I am getting older that my hands are not as steady as they used to be and I find that I kept "chasing the dot" the more I tried to stead it the worse it got so I just gave up and went back to iron sights... As far as putting one on a carry gun NEVER... I've seen enough red dots fail to know that I don't need another point of failure on a carry gun.. I also believe that if your going to carry a weapon, you should train to draw, point and shoot accurately... A fellow member on another forum mentioned something about long distance self defense shooting is why he wanted a red dot... Of course it was explained to him by many others that if he ever got into that situation then he was going to have a lot of explaining to do to the DA....

I agree the Holosun is a much better choice than the Sig Romeo Zero. Both do have a rear sight integrated so id the optic fails you still have an option. It probably isn't as good as the factory sights. I train using the optic and with it turned off. Shake awake feature is a must for a carry gun.

I have one on my G40 and I love it, it's got the Leupold so it's red. Just thinking out loud but green would probably be easier for contrast with the background. I intended to get a RDS on my carry gun but I keep switching carry guns so I haven't done it yet but eventually that's my plan.

I have a Red Dot on all of my carry pistols except the ones I pocket carry which is very seldom. I took a training class in February and it worked out great. It just took a lot of practicing to get used to.

I have three carry pistols with red dots. They are: 1) Gov't. Model 1911 (38 Super); 2) Springfield Champion (.45 ACP); and 3) CZ P-10C. All dots are Leupold DeltaPoint Pros ("DPP") with the 7MOA triangle. I really like the triangle, but it is no longer offered. The Houston Police Dept. now requires all cadets to have a RDS on their handguns. (I can't recall if they require an RMR or is they can choose between an RMR and a DPP.) I asked one of their trainers how new cadets/shooters are doing in training and, to my great surprise, he said it is going very well. Cadets are learning to shoot far easier than with iron sights.

There are two "standards" in the industry; RMR and DeltaPoint Pro. Whatever you choose DO NOT get a RDS that requires you to remove it to change the battery. The requires you to zero your pistol again and this discourages changing the battery on a regular basis. That makes it too easy to have a dead RDS when you really need it.

Chas.

I've thought about it, but can't seem to justify the expense. I'm constantly trying to balance my firearms versus motorcycle interests.

I have three .45's and although it would be even more expensive the thought I've had is that if I got one more Glock 21SF that I would get an RMS mounted on it for carry. I don't know if I can bring myself to getting holes drilled into the only one I have. The other two are 1911's. GCT and a Colt Competition. I don't think I would do it to the GCT even though I might be replacing the front sight anyway. There's nothing wrong with it except that it is just an unlit black blade. With the Comp. there is at least a fiber optic rod that I've gotten used to that I'm considering for the GCT front sight. The Comp. is the one I would carry once I get a holster for it and the one I might consider mounting an RMS. That reminds me, I'll have to ask S&SLeather if any of their holsters will still fit with an RMS attached.

I wonder how much it would cost to have an RMS mounted to the Competition if it would fit in one of their holsters. Hmmm

EDIT: I just remembered I have one more .45, a Glock 30SF that I hardly carry any more and haven't even shot in a year or two at least. That might be the perfect one to do this with and go back to something a little smaller for carry.

Howdy again all. Thanks a bunch for your responses, please keep 'em comin'!! That's the awesome thing about this site; lots of great experience and advice, along with a great attitude willing and open to try and embrace NEW concepts!!! I'm loving the conversation, can't wait to try-before-buy but pretty sure it'll be kinda like the revelation I had when putting a light on my Glock and a dot on my AR's. WAY easier for my old eyes to see than the irons...

Just ran across the Shield RMSW in my research. Interesting option, but as pricey as an RMR. Anybody have experience with the Shield optics?? Other suggested dots??

This thread got me to thinking about what I have that will readily accept a dot. And I'm thinking now I want to throw one on my 686, there's an adaptor for that.

I guess I’m the Luddite of the group.

I do like an RDS on a long gun, and I have a couple of them.....one on an AR SBR, and another on a Ruger PC9.

But I had such a negative experience chasing the dot while trying to shoot pistols with a laser aiming device, that I’m hesitant to invest in the modifications necessary to one or more of my pistols, on top of the cost of the RDS(s); and I couldn’t afford to buy an RDS-ready pistol right now, even if I could find one. I find that sights like the Trijicon HD tritium sights, and hybrid tritium/fiberoptic sights work pretty well for me at "pistol distances". And if I really need to shoot accurately at longer ranges, well....that’s why I have a carbine in my vehicle.

I've no doubt that red dots on pistols work well for many people, and I don’t necessarily think they’re a bad idea. I’m just not that interested for myself.