Long story short, my eyes are getting worse. Interestingly enough, after my annual eye checkup, I don't need a prescription. My eyesight is good enough that I only need readers/cheaters for reading small print. Otherwise, my eyesight is excellent. The main drawback to this is that the sights on handguns are blurry. I've tried different sights and have found some that "work". I want to experiment with carrying a pistol with optics/red dot.

So we don't get sidetracked, being a military firearms instructor, I am very familiar with red dot sights, CCOs etc. I have shot RMR equipped handguns that belong to friends. There is no need to sidetrack the thread. I am going to experiment with carrying in this manner.

The purpose of this thread is to find, in your opinion, the most cost-effective means of going this route. Should I wait and look for a used milled M&P? Should I purchase a milled slide for one of my many current M&Ps? Should I just go the new route? Keep in mind that if I have to have one of my current M&Ps milled, along with that cost, I would need new higher sights also. For any of the above options, if you know a good place to buy, please let me know. I know the answer is really up to me; but, I would like input from others on, like I said, the most cost effective means of doing this. Yes, I can afford a new pistol. Thanks in advance for your opinions and input.

I know you don't want the thread sidetracked but you also asked for economical solutions. I'm in the same boat and a feller recommended $10 safety glasses that come in reading correction strengths. I bought .5 and .75 and found the stronger ones work best for me. Of course, those won't help other than on the range. YMMV

Jeppo, when I wear my readers/cheaters, I see the sights perfectly. I don't wear them unless I'm reading and won't put myself in the situation where a) I need to wear them all the time; or, b) put them on in a self-defense situation. Yes, I could probably get prescription glasses that equate to readers/cheaters and don't interfere with my "other" vision. First, I don't want to do that; and, second, it would eliminate the purpose of this thread. I didn't ask for "economical solutions" as an alternative to the optics equipped handgun. I wanted people's input on the most economical way to accomplish the end of obtaining the optics equipped handgun. Thanks for the suggestion though. I appreciate the intent. Maybe someone who doesn't want to go the optics equipped gun like I do, will benefit from your post and suggestion.

Remember, with the factory CORE, you get the correct high sights and the Pro trigger also. You choose the correct optic (some aren't) that fits the factory plates, put it on, and go shoot. That's important to me. However, some tinker friends say the real fun is in buying the cheapest gun possible and custom building their unique gun. Don't know what you like to do?

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Science plus Art

OKFC05, I'm definitely leaning, without other convincing to the contrary, the M&P Core at $626.

I have the CORE ported. Be aware that depending on the thickness of the body of the MRDS, you will get varying degrees of co-witness with the iron sights. With the Burris FF3 I have a lower 1/5. I have similar eye issues, I need cheaters to read.

If you are LEO/Military active or retired Quantico Tactical has a discount.

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Improvise, Adapt, Overcome

That's actually where I got my price in my above post. I usually purchase from them or Bud's, depending on which has my desired firearm in stock.

I bought the 5" PC Slide kit for my FS M&P. I topped it with a Type 1 RMR I also got on sale.

$350 delivered for the slide kit. Another $350 for the RMR.

My FS already had the PC sear in it.

I second the slide kit option. Got one for my full size from grab-a-gun for about that price.


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Yep, that's where I found mine!!

I have a C.O.R.E. 4" slide cut for an optic, has suppressor sights. I haven't decided what to put on it, but I'm ready to give something a try. My eyes are getting weird, a larger dot could be very helpful. Burris sounds good. Any other options you all try?

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I have a core that I put a trijicon rmr on.I do not carry it often.But that is because my sheriff demands glocks.So I carry a glock 17 cut for a rmr or a glock 19 mos.Holsters for guns with rmr's are much easier to find now than a few years ago.Also they cost more but the trijicon rmr is a much better quality red dot than the cheaper ones.Kind of like comparing Smith's to Taurus,Rossi or RG.

I have heard that about the Trijicon, supposed to be the best. I saw an optic somewhere that had a larger glass, can't remember the type tho.

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Probably a Vortex. Also look at Leupold, Burris.

There are others but these seem to be the top brands.

I have had a custom milled, FS M&P with a Trij RMR06 on it as my daily carry for 2.5 years.

You sound serious about setting up this pistol with a good RDS. No one wants to throw money away, but it sounds like you are willing to invest in quality. So . . .

Trijicon RMRs are the best and highest quality. They are robust, properly sized, sit fairly low for co-witnessing, and cost what they are worth.

I believe a slide milled for a specific sight is a much better mount than a generic cut used with adapter plates. I can go into more detail why if you want, but I have done so in previous posts on this forum.

My slide was milled by Suarez Intl., but they no longer do S&W, only Glocks. I now have three RDS personal defense handguns:

1. The aforementioned FS M&P
2. A Glock 19 set up similarly, same RMR06
3. A Shield 9mm milled for the narrower Shield RDS. This sight has smaller overall dimensions to fit the Shield pistol. It is not quite as robust or expensive as an RMR.

I mention these different guns to show I am committed to RDS for carry. My eyes are 68 yo, and I struggle to be fast and accurate with iron sights. The RDS is the answer for me, and because I stake my life on these pistols, I choose to pay what it takes to get the best.

I have way more $$ in each of these pistols than most people would consider spending. I don't care. They are what give me the confidence I want to shoot better and faster when lives may be on the line. I am not a competitor, although I do some IDPA for training. These guns are for serious situations, so I spend what it takes to get it done right, once. All of them have co-witnessed sights. The two M&P's have simple night sights. Again, if you want more detail I'll share.

I commend you for your approach and choices so far. Good luck.

SMITH & WESSON - M&P9 CORE HANDGUN 9MM 4.25IN 17+1 10268

$609.99 Shipped (Use Discount Code: M2S)
SMITH & WESSON M&P9 CORE HANDGUN 9MM 4.25IN 17+1 10268 | Brownells

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Well Wolfman-Iraq, thanks for the heads-up. That took me over the top as it saved me over $100 off the military pricing at Quantico Tactical. I was looking at the non-threaded for $625. The threaded version at QT is $696 + $10 shipping. Using the link you provided, in addition to the $30 off the sale price, it got free shipping too. Thanks again. Now I probably should sell my other full size M2.0 9mm.

I bought the JPoint red dot.
I was unhappy to find out the plastic lens of the JPoint became cloudy.
I did obtain a replacement JPoint, but I would not choose one again.