How far to mount a red dot from the eye?

What do you mean that it is adjustable to distance? I can change the intensity of my dot, and I can change the MOA, or dot size, but I don't have anything for distance. How does it work?

Mainly the same thing you are talking about. I change "intensity/dot size" to match the target size/distance. Smaller target I change MOA to match. If dot is too big I adjust down. Close in I might adjust the dot larger. I have a changeable red/green dot depending on light conditions. Normally I'll keep the dot about mid sized. Easy to click up or down. I'm iron sighted/zeroed at 200 yards and already know if I need to hold over or shoot lower for POI (from my old days shooting iron sights before all the new do-dads),my red/green dot is adjusted to match my iron sights,200 yards. With light conditions,it's a giant plus being able to change dot color too. I like iron sights (old school) but older eyes (even with new implants for long range,not reading) it's still hard to get a good sight picture off "up close" iron sights. Handgun I'm just fine (you've heard the term "My arms are too short to read the news paper" :o). So I found the red/green dot helps get on target faster and adjusted it to match my iron sights.I still prefer a good scope. But the red dots add a new perspective to iron sights. I'd like to see a future red dot with range & windage dots/lines like some of my higher end scopes. Built in range finder would be nice too. But now we're talking BIG $$$$.
 
Maddmax, I guess I just never thought of changing the dot size having anything to do with distance. Honestly, I put mine on the smallest dot setting I have and leave it there.

I change the intensity on mine to deal with not being able to see the dot in certain lighting conditions. On mine, that gives the appearance of changing the dot size a little, but I think that is because it is a cheap optic and the dot loses it shape as I turn the intensity up. I have some other projects first, but an EO Tech is on my list.
 
Maddmax, I guess I just never thought of changing the dot size having anything to do with distance. Honestly, I put mine on the smallest dot setting I have and leave it there.

I change the intensity on mine to deal with not being able to see the dot in certain lighting conditions. On mine, that gives the appearance of changing the dot size a little, but I think that is because it is a cheap optic and the dot loses it shape as I turn the intensity up. I have some other projects first, but an EO Tech is on my list.

I think it comes from having too much time on my hands (some days) and I like playing around :o). Hunting,I prefer a good clean one shot kill. We have enough stray "yotes" running around this time of year and I have marked yardages I can compare range to also helps. Marked yardage comes from my old Army days on the firing range. ALL the targets were at a fixed yardage. Being a "good ol' country boy" it didn't take long to figure POI out for each range target to knock down.

I've also played with the dot sizes on a fixed object (like bow shooters foam animal targets) at different fixed ranges seeing if I can get a good distance guess. I'm still playing with that one. Beats shooting paper all the time and adds a challenge to the game.
 
The reticle of a red-dot sight will appear the same size to your eye no matter whether it is mounted close or far.

So, the answer is: Mount it wherever it fits.

Here is the EOTECH reticle at four different distances.
I put the EOTECH on top of my hot water heater, and shot the pics from four different distances.
Notice how the size never changes.
Pretty weird - but is a fact.

EOTECHreticle-1.jpg


EOTECHreticle-2.jpg


EOTECHreticle-3.jpg


EOTECHreticle-4.jpg
 
Realistically, with the "tubed" sight, does it really matter?

You can only mount it but so far forward - not like across the room on top of the hot water heater.

If your head is where it is supposed to be on the gun, the dot is going to be right in front of your eye whether the device is mounted on the rear of the receiver or halfway up the handguard.
 
Well, yes it does matter some for a tubed site. Its a little eaiser with the EoTech because its more forgiving for head movement/placement/alignment vs rear view angle and still see the dot so has a wider rear view angle for the dot than the fixed dot tubed sight. With the dot tubed site you need to remain in line pretty much with the tube sight, the further it is forward the more head movement/placement/alignment affects alignment for the rear view angle through the sight to still see the dot. So if you put the tubed sight, for example, on the hand guard forward of the upper receiver portion more towards the front iron sight, aiming alignment thru it may become more critical than the EOTech at the same postion. The EOTech is, and to some degree some fixed dot non-tubed RDS's are, more forgiving in this aspect.

There are a ton of different opinions, and everyone seems to have a spot on the weapon they say is perfect for them. Its taught different ways in different courses sometimes.
 
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Alright everyone the newbe is back. While I still haven't shot it yet I have be moving the red dot up a notch at a time. Then i walk around the house. I'm 2 or 3 notches forward from where I started. I really see how periferal vision comes into play. I'm at the point where, with both eye open I can comfortably put the dot on small object and if I close my left eye and look through the tube I'm right where I should be.
Great info. Thanks
MG
 
Revelation after rereading this thread I am doing the same thing with my Homebuilt...plus that video was the bomb....I ended up moving my optics about 6 slots forward, the reticule and dot immediately come into view without having to look for them....very educational thread!!!
 
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Alright everyone the newbe is back. While I still haven't shot it yet I have be moving the red dot up a notch at a time. Then i walk around the house. I'm 2 or 3 notches forward from where I started. I really see how periferal vision comes into play. I'm at the point where, with both eye open I can comfortably put the dot on small object and if I close my left eye and look through the tube I'm right where I should be.
Great info. Thanks
MG

Sounds like you are geting the hang of it and discovered the 'secret' on your own :)

Absent vision issues and problems with the sight its self; If you need to "hunt" for the dot, or the dot seems to shift position on target between both eyes and one eye aiming, or you need to concentrate hard on maintaining a sharp dot in vision, then its probably in the wrong place even if one eye aiming does the trick. The dot should simply be a stable part of whats in your field of vision with both eyes open and not a separate part that you need to specifically focus on or "hunt".
 
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I'm running a EOTech mounted just ahead of BUIS's, shooting both eyes open, and all is well. But, at some point, isn't eye dominance (left eye dominate, right handed shooter, or reverse.) going to play a part in where the optic will best be located? Just wondering.
 
I'm running a EOTech mounted just ahead of BUIS's, shooting both eyes open, and all is well. But, at some point, isn't eye dominance (left eye dominate, right handed shooter, or reverse.) going to play a part in where the optic will best be located? Just wondering.

The dot should simply be a stable part of whats in your field of vision with both eyes open and not a separate part that you need to specifically focus on or "hunt". A 1x RDS with unlimited eye relief, for both eyes open use, is based upon a optimal balanced vision concept with both eyes in the same plane at the same time.

Let me see if I can explain all this correctly below, I don't have the actual training documents with me right now so this is from memory;

To be frank, approximately half of the population in the U.S. would not be able to achieve that perfectly with a RDS. Its because perfect both eye open use of a RDS needs optimal vision in both eyes to be balanced the same and about half the population doesn't have the same balanced vision in both eyes. Sometimes its correctable by glasses, contacts, surgery like lasik, or maybe other methods. Shooters generally tend to have better vision than about half the population, or have vision thats already been corrected by some method. Some people never notice the difference because they unconsciously have trained theirselves over time through life to seemlessly compensate that it doesn't seem any different and they are not even aware they do this. Some people can "train" theirselves to do it by learning how to seemlessly and automatically concentrate a little harder with the weaker eye more than the other.

This is not to say that people without balanced optimal vision in both eyes can't use such a sight effectively with both eyes open, because they can if they allow for compensations they may not already have or be using or learn to use it. However, there are those that simply can't do it with both eyes open no matter what they try and its probably not their fault but rather that they simply do not have the natural capability for such just as there are people who, for example, can not view all the 3D aspects fully of 3D movies with those red/green-blue 3D glasses things. The majority of shooters will probably use the Eotech fine with both eyes open once they get the hang of it. When you hear people say (or see people post stuff on the internet) something about not being able to use an EoTech and prefering a tubed type RDS like an Aimpoint, plenty of times this is because they don't have that natural optimum balanced vision or the ability to compensate and they do not even realize it because the rest of the world vision wise looks and is perfectly normal to them and always has been and when they use a dominate eye sighting device (e.g. magnified optics such as a scope or iron sights) everything is perfectly normal for them. For these people, although they may not know it, they tend to prefer the tubed type in this aspect because their dominate eye can play more of a part in helping them compensate because eye alignment thru a tubed sight by virtue of its construction is in the same plane line with where the dot is located in the tubed sight and because the eye will naturally tend to seek the center of a circle. The more dominate eye is tending to seek the center of the round tube rear circle automatically which is where the dot appears located. Then, some people just simply prefer a tubed type of RDS regardless of vision.

For a sight like the EoTech, eye dominace should not play a part for vertical mounting on the top plane of the weapon for both eye open use with the eyes in the same plane with the sight over the upper receiver, unless the person simply can not maintain the dot properly with both eyes open then they have a tendency to use the dominate eye more. If the Eotech sight (and tubed sights also) is mounted too far forward from the both eyes open position for the person then eye dominance may begin to play more of a role depending on the persons vision. For the balanced vision person able to use both eyes open, too far forward for the tubed sight and the dominate eye tries to take over naturally while the Eotech is still able to provide both eyes open aiming without a tendancy for the dominate eye to take over although too far forward for some and they have a tendency to shift to dominate eye use. Of course on offset types of mounting, for example mounting at 45 degrees or 90 degrees from vertical, the dominate eye can have more of an effect as the shooter shifts focus from the top weapon plane to the offset plane.
 
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I like the option of using either my red dot or my mbus without removing the red dot. So the red dot is far enough forward so that I can flip the mbus up and also pop open the red dot covers without removing anything. The red dot has a tint and when using the mbus or red dot I open the covers to get a clear view with both eyes open and more light gathering.
 
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