03Lightningrocks wrote: Sun Nov 13, 2022 11:48 pm
Maybe this is the wrong thread for this question. Why do you folks like optics over laser sights? I have laser sights on several of my everyday carry weapons. They don't add the bulk of an optic and work well for me. With the laser sights I can usually use the holster I use with no laser because they are low profile. I have an optic on my AR15 and have had some issues with it working and staying sighted in. It is an EOtec. maybe the brand is the issue but for a concealed carry weapon, I am rather rotund and the extra profile an optic adds can be an issue for me.
For
me, the tiniest tremor in my hand (literally
everybody has
some movement in their hands when aiming) turns into amplified motion at the far end wherever the laser dot touches the target. The greater the distance, the larger the amplitude of the dot's movement over that particular degree of arc. It’s just plain old geometry. If the target is close enough to me for that movement not to matter, it is also close enough to me for there to be no particular advantage of an electronically generated red aiming point over plain old iron sights.
When you couple that angle of movement problem with my terrible tendency to "follow the wandering dot", you end up with my point of impact being anywhere except my original point of aim. Like I said previously, I could
probably train that out of my technique given a willingness to spend the money and time on doing so. But in my personal calculus, that just hasn’t been worth it to me. My preferred home defense pistol is a G17, with a TLR-1s light attached, hybrid tritium/fiberoptic suppressor-height iron sights, and a suppressor. I am able to hold as steady a point of aim in an otherwise darkened room with that setup as I am able to do with iron sights in broad daylight.
That said, my
primary home defense weapon is a suppressed 11.5” AR, topped with an Aimpoint T2 micro. I am able to hold that setup pretty much rock steady, and by virtue of the much longer sight radius (i.e. barrel length) the amplitude of dot movement on the target is much smaller…enough so that I can hit accurately at distances I wouldn’t even dream of with my handgun. And that SBR
also has a weapon light on it too, and backup tritium iron sights co-witnessed to the red dot.
Mind you, after all of my ranting, I’m not
against the use of RDS optics or lasers on pistols. If it makes someone better, then I’m all for it…just don’t do it for the "cool factor". I just haven’t yet been able to articulate a particular need for one on
my part. And if I were counseling a relative newbie who had asked
me whether I thought they should get one, I would answer, "By all means, if you think it would make you a better shooter. BUT… before you spend the money on an optic and/or any necessary conversions,
FIRST buy a good weapon light for your pistol if it is able to take one. Being able to see
AND identify your target is a higher priority."
But again, that’s just me, and I’m not criticizing other people's choices. What works best for
someone else (or even for me) doesn’t make it a universal solution.