Best general purpose optic style?

[Carrot]

I second the Nikon recommendation. In my humble opinion, they make the best scope under $250, and they make some nice AR specific models. If you're looking to shoot coyotes at 200+ yards, you're really going to want an optic that gets you at least 9x, maybe even 12x. I personally wouldn't buy a cheap scope with an illuminated reticule, but that's just me - the quality difference between cheap light-up scopes and expensive ones is HUGE, and I wouldn't buy one at all if I couldn't afford a good one (which I can't). Good glass will transmit enough light for you to shoot in pretty dark conditions, and if it's too dark to shoot with a plain reticule, it's probably too dark to be shooting it at all.
The Nikon P223 3-9x40 or 4-12x40 are both great value for money and have BDC reticles, with high-transparency glass. For maximum versatility on a limited budget, I'd go with the 3-9x40 (which is almost the same scope I have on my Remington 700 - I have the ProStaff, not the P233).

I just did the comparison between the nikon and Bushnell 3-9 AR specific scopes. I went with the Bushnell. It has a slightly closer eye relief and, in my opinion, slightly brighter and clearer. I found it a few bucks cheaper for a nicer optic.

That said, for the money the nikon is nice too.

I leave that guy at 3x power and have the 45 degree sights for anything that's closer than a 3x scope can handle. But, my perps are usually raccoons, not people. The 45 degree sights are so easy to access with a simple roll of the rifle counterclockwise. It takes some practice to roll far enough to achieve the proper sight picture right away. I find that if I think about getting my elbow up and out, it snaps into place pretty quickly.

It also works best on a gas block with a rail on top rather than a front sight.

Disclaimer: I'm fairly new to ARs, but not to shooting. Your mileage may vary.

 

[batmann]

I have had great results with my Burris AR 332. It has a black reticle as well as a Red and Green so you can change depending on background and it has various brightness levels. The black works without the need of a battery so you always have something should your battery die. It is 3x and the clarity is very good. With the BDC, you get a more precise point of impact out to 300-400 yards which as far as I have shot. Great optic and fits in you price range. Burris now has one with 5x magnification with same features. One other thing to consider is over all length and the AR 332 fits very nicely on a flat top receiver with out over hang which you get with some other optics.

 

[CENTURION24]

Without reading everyone's replies, go with a primary arms 1-6x24 scope.

 

[SGT_Lindy]

This...

Amazon.com: Nikon P-223 3-9x40 Mate BDC 600: Sports & Outdoors@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41Pu%2B51eKmL.@@AMEPARAM@@41Pu%2B51eKmL

plus this....

Amazon.com: Nikon M-223 Mount: Sports & Outdoors@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41bmS14tLDL.@@AMEPARAM@@41bmS14tLDL

$214 to your door if you have Amazon Prime.

 

[ptgarcia]

I don't have a lot of money to spend on this stuff either so I picked up up a Burris 1-4x TAC-30 with German #4 reticle (much like the Leupold reticle pictured in post #8) and illuminated center dot, and mounted it up to my AR with a Burris PEPR QD mount. I spent $275 on everything and it has turned out to be a great do-all setup.

Sorry for the low quality but this is the best picture I have:

 

[Texasfisher]

Several years ago I bought a Center Point scope from Walmart for a .22 that I had bought to play with and while it is a very cheap scope, I think about $70, I was very impressed with it and when I bought the AR that I presently have I mounted it with a quick removable mount and it has done very well and held its zero well, I switch out between this and my Eotech.

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

For a general purpose optic... I prefer 1x red dot

I shoot my AR offhand. No need for a fancy BDC reticle. I zero at 50 yards and am only around an inch high at 100yds and back to to zero around 200yds. I can't hold the rifle better than that. I don't like to strap on a hefty pound or more magnified optic plus a one piece mount. No need to fool around with eye relief and field of view limitations. Have used cheapo Primary Arms MicroDot that works just fine. Recently got an Aimpoint H1 2moa. Works good too.

 

[Dr Rick]

I would go to Primary Arms and get one of their in-house optics. PA usually has some sort of deal where the 3x magnifier is included in some type of set up. So, I think you'll find what you're looking and at a very reasonable rate. And getting a good optic set up. Just to let you know. I recently had to return my PA optic after 9 months of great usage. It seemed the circuits or wire was loose, due to the amount of shooting I do. And it's rapid fire to boot. I had no problems when returning it. The customer service was awesome. Nick the customer service/sales rep. apologized and issued me a Return Merchandise number. He said write the number on the box. PA got the returned optic and sent me out a brand new one that day. A letter from PA again apologized for any inconvenience. Was only 4 days without an optic. And they upgrade my optic to the newer generation. Threw in some extra batteries and gave me a $20 gift certificate to their site. What happened to my optic can happen to the $500 or more too. My other PA optics I have had for years and they're still going strong. I tell people all the time that PA is an excellent alternative or if you want a good solid optic that won't break your bank. As well as, PA has other stuff on their site and all items at a great price point too. Also, another alternative is the newer Lucid Optic which goes for $250 or a bit less and can be found at Optics Planet web site. Hope this helps you out. If you got an optic already. Then wish you the best. And NO I don't work for PA. Just think their site is great. The have awesome customer service and items if bought before 3:30P CT will be at your residence in just 2 days. And their prices are usually lesser than their competitors. SO what's not to like at PA.

 

[JaPes]

iron6, one more piece of advice...

I'm not sure how old you are or the condition of your vision. My eyes are changing again as I near 40. The change in vision combined with my astigmatism caused me to perceive a 3MOA LED dot to be fuzzy with a slight starburst. I switched to a holographic and I'm good to go, at least for a while.

Before buying a dot optic, go to a local store and look through a few. Get a feel for how your eye perceives the dot. Check your perception of the different intensity levels, dot colors, and dot sizes.

 

[jws339]

Iron6 look at a Redfield Revolution 4-12x40mm. model # 67115, Matte Accu-range. around 200.00 lifetime warranty. a brand of Leupold out of Oregon.and I do believe the Revolution is made there too, not sure. by the way waiting to pick up my M&P 15or Feb 2 2014 (10 day wait period ) hope this helps

 

[apiccola]

I think the micro reflex red dot sights like The Burris Fast Fire, the Vortex Razor Reflex, the Trijicon RMR, the Leopold Delta Point ... and now Eotech has even entered this market ... are the best general purpose optic. These optics can be adapted to your handgun, rifle or shotgun. Additionally, the micro red dots can be used as a primary sight on the top rail of an AR, and can be adjusted to co-witness with iron sights using a riser in most cases and can be used with magnifiers as well. The micro red-dot can also be mounted on a 45 degree offset adapter as a CQB/backup sight when a more robust optic is on the top rail ... they can also be mounted on a bird nest above a larger optic. The other great feature about the micro sights is that they weigh almost nothing compared to other optic sight classes.