So Sightmark, NcStar, UTG, Bushnell, PA....which to get?

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Sabre77

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So this is my first post here, just picked up my 15-22 and got the following: MagPul MOE+ grip, AFG2, CTR Stock, MBUS Gen2, UTG Grip Panels, Polymer Foregrip w/Steel Leg Bipod, & 3 add'l 25rd S&W Mags.

With that, I'm now ready to pick up 2 more items. A carrying case & optics. Undecided on both.

I want a red dot (preferably with multi reticle), and possibly a magnifier. I don't want to drop $500-1000 for that setup. I've read a lot about these, and I'm just not sure which is the best buy. So I'm looking for recommendations: Primary Arms, NcStar, Bushnell, Sightmark, UTG, & what else...
 
Red dot sights are just that, a red dot or green dot...No different reticules.......A reflex sight has dots, crosses, circles, ect......A rifle scope will have a magnification and several varieties of cross hair reticules........

Go to Walmart and get a cheap red dot or reflex for under $40 and try it out........Note that reflex and red dot sights aren't great for accuracy and are better for general plinking.

I have all three types of sights and scopes and each is on a different rifle.....My 15 22 MOE has a NcStar 3-9X42R scope and is very accurate out to 100 yards...I haven't tried shooting further yet because all the ranges around here are 100 yard only......................Research and read the various opinions on this forum and others before you make up your mind on a scope.
 
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Magnifiers are cool, but I prefer to have a red dot and a scope both on QD mounts so they can be easily swapped without loosing zero. That gives you the best of both worlds.

Out of the brands you mentioned, I would go with Primary Arms. They make great products at a decent price point. I've been using their micro dots for years now and have never had a single issue. The micro dots don't have multiple reticles, but they are built like a tank and always work. Unfortunately, they are out of stock at the moment due to their popularity.

They also offer larger red dots with multiple reticles if that is something you really want. I don't have any experience with those, but a lot of members here use them and like them.

Also look at Vortex. They make nice optics. I don't use their red dots because I don't care for the push button controls that are mounted on the side, but other than that they are nice. I broke a Sparc in under an hour. It was mounted to a friends 15-22 and it tipped over on my kitchen floor when I was taking a pic to post on this forum. The controls seperated from the tube and it was dead. Vortex has a good no BS warranty, but my experience turned me off from their dots.




dan01 said:
Red dot sights are just that, a red dot or green dot...No different reticules.
Click to expand...

There are plenty of red dot sights out there with multi reticles.
for example https://www.primaryarms.com/Primary_Arms_MultiReticle_Red_Dot_Sight_PAM3M_p/pam3m.htm
 
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PA and vortex are at the middle of the spectrum, the others are lower. personally i have a utg red dot and scope that im happy with and i swap depending on the distance im shooting.
 
I have only had the ones with just the dot only and thought dot meant dot.........I haven't had any failures with my cheapies so I haven't been looking at the better designs with more features.......So far my cheap reflex with 4 different reticules has been great.......I have it on my HK MP5 SD and that bad boy really performs from 0 to 100 yards plinking.

Gopher, thanks for setting me straight on the different reticules in the red dot type scopes.....I hope that I did not mislead Sabre77
 
Criteria--

Overall weight and size of optic. They can vary between 3oz and over a pound.

Dot size. Vary between 2 and 5MOA.

Riser. Designed with optic or requiring a separate generic riser.

For dime store optics, Bushnell, Primary Arms and Vortex are popular and get good reviews. For shooting outside in direct sunlight I would stay away from the below thumbnail design. I have a couple of the Primary Arms MicroDot sights and have been quite pleased. 4.5oz (with riser designed for optic), 3MOA dot.



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Gopher Slayer said:
Magnifiers are cool, but I prefer to have a red dot and a scope both on QD mounts so they can be easily swapped without loosing zero. That gives you the best of both worlds.
Click to expand...
+1 on that, that's what I have and love it. A Mil-Mil 3.5-14x44 BSA in a PEPR QD and a decent reflex sight in an NcStar QD.
Out of the brands you mentioned, I would go with Primary Arms.
Click to expand...
+1 (does that make +2) on that as well.
There are plenty of red dot sights out there with multi reticles.
for example https://www.primaryarms.com/Primary_Arms_MultiReticle_Red_Dot_Sight_PAM3M_p/pam3m.htm
Click to expand...
That's the one I have, and I love it.
 
PA or Bushnell. I have had the sight mark w/3X and could not keep it zeroed.
Sold them for vortex viper 3-9 scope.


Zack
Using Tapatalk
 
it doesn`t say what state your from. for the past few weeks Dumhams has had their Sightmark reflex site on sale. for $35. i put one on a 22 semiauto pistol. my shooting steel plates has improved 30% at rapid fire. it has 4 settings but i just like the dot. it has maybe 7 or 11 brightness settings. but my pistol shooting has also improved. a couple of hundred rds. using the 22, and then when i switch over to a larger cal., it seems i`m relaxed. the info sheet says it is rated to a 50 cal. that`s hard to belive, but it sure takes a pounding from the 22 cal. semi pistol.
 
ChattanoogaPhil said:
Criteria--

Overall weight and size of optic. They can vary between 3oz and over a pound.

Dot size. Vary between 2 and 5MOA.

Riser. Designed with optic or requiring a separate generic riser.

For dime store optics, Bushnell, Primary Arms and Vortex are popular and get good reviews. For shooting outside in direct sunlight I would stay away from the below thumbnail design. I have a couple of the Primary Arms MicroDot sights and have been quite pleased. 4.5oz (with riser designed for optic), 3MOA dot.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us
Click to expand...

Depends on the reflex sight. I exclusively use a TruGlo Dual Color red/green reflex sight on whatever rifle I am shooting speed events with, either my 15-22 or one of my ARs w/CMMG conversion on it, and regardless of whether it is a club match, regional Steel Challenge, or the Ruger Rimfire World Championship. I have been doing that since before I even got my 15-22. In green it showed up fine in the high noon of New Mexico at 5000' elevation so it will do it anywhere. the reticle shapes are solid and sharp edged. I use the crosshair w/3 MOA center dot for regular speed steel shooting because it enables me to center the image over a plate in passing without me having to look directly at it. Sort of a poor mans C-More with a 12 MOA dot module. And when I have to shoot really tiny targets like at the PSA Rimfire Challenge coming up in Oct. I use the 3 MOA dot only. I find I do not even have to readjust it for each gun either when the targets are 35 yards and under. As long as I mount it over the last forward slot in the receiver rail it stays on target.
 
PA, Bushnell, and check out the Sig branded red dot. Used to be $75 but runs about $100 now. I've been using it on a squirrel and bunny thumper rig for a while now and rather like it.
My only hands on exp with NC star is a spotting scope that doesn't zoom like it's supposed to.

Tapatalk ate my spelling and grammar.
 
Primary Arms!!

I currently have PA optics on three of my rifles. They aren't the best out there but, for the price, they work great and are perfectly accurate for my needs.
 
ive been thinking about upgrading to a PA micro dot from my UTG mainly because i want something smaller, it will have a sharper dot and only be around $100.
 
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dan01 said:
Red dot sights are just that, a red dot or green dot...No different reticules.......A reflex sight has dots, crosses, circles, ect......A rifle scope will have a magnification and several varieties of cross hair reticules........

Go to Walmart and get a cheap red dot or reflex for under $40 and try it out........Note that reflex and red dot sights aren't great for accuracy and are better for general plinking.

I have all three types of sights and scopes and each is on a different rifle.....My 15 22 MOE has a NcStar 3-9X42R scope and is very accurate out to 100 yards...I haven't tried shooting further yet because all the ranges around here are 100 yard only......................Research and read the various opinions on this forum and others before you make up your mind on a scope.
Click to expand...

A red dot IS a reflex sight. I'm pretty sure you know that. Many reading your post might get the wrong idea though.

Open tube or closed tube reflex (reflecting) sights both use the same optical principle.

Either open tube or closed tube can use dots or reticules sights.

That being the case, there are two common categories of optical sights, reflex or scope.

There are two styles of reflex sights, open or closed.

Here's some good info on red dot sights:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reflector_sight

The Overview and Weapon sights sections in particular explain the differences between the closed tube and open versions.
 
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I've got the vortex strikefire and love it. When I picked up my14-22 at sportsmans I picked up my strikefire for 149 and it comes with a mount that's perfect height to cowitness your iron sights perfectly. Comes with a screw-in 2x magnifier that's decent, but I'm looking into a flip-to-the-side magnifier as well. Just personal preference for me, but the flip one is WAY more convenient. The strikefire has a bunch of different brightness settings with a red/green dot that's 4moa I believe. If I remember correctly the sparc has a 2 moa, so something to look into if it matters to you, is dot size and how much it covers up your target. The strikefire also has a night vision mode to use with a night vision unit. From what I can tell it just makes it very dim so the light wouldn't drown-out your night vision optic system. It has flip-up lense protectors too, but the back one is a bit of a pain to thread your magnifier through. I enjoy it thoroughly for the price, hasn't moved from zero, and pretty user friendly. I'm looking at the sparc just cuz of size and dot-size, but couldn't regret a thing about the strikefire in general. Of the others you mentioned, others have had good and bad luck, but the reason I went with the vortex is after doin some research and vortex has a great warranty, great price, and I didn't find anyone say a negative thing that wasn't personal preference related about the strikefire or sparc. Couldn't agree more
 
Dik,

Thanks for the good information. I have looked at the Vortex Strikefire but was unsure of spending the $150. Good to hear the site is worth the price. The 4 MOA I was unsure of so I might also look at the Sparc for the 2MOA.

Thanks again for sharing your experience.
 
after reading more, i really like the 2 moa dot on the sparc, just not the $200 price lol.
 
As for which case to buy...

I have one from UTG. It's softsided holds 5 magazines and has multiple carry handles. Works OK.

But, I've seen some cases from Condor that I really like.


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