Accuracy of a Red Dot on an AR

[XD-9Guy]

I put a little red dot on my AR and me and the BIL tried to sight it in at about 30 yards. I was less than impressed with the results but I don't know what I should expect either, this is the first red dot I've ever used.

The first thing we noticed was that the red dot almost completely covers the bulls eye at that distance, so it is quite obviously not going to drive nails. But we couldn't get them any closer to center than about 4 inches, I can shoot better than that with the steel sights that came on it.

Should I keep fine tuning or am I hoping for too much?

Is the benefit of a red dot solely quick target acquisition?

 

[bink98xcab]

i hada cheepy red dot on mine right after i got it and it was ok. maybe turn down the brightness and see if it helps

 

[mmchambers06]

What kind of red dot? You got it cranked down tight?

I shoot a Millett Zoom Dot and I can ping 9" gongs at 200 yards with boring monotony. I would expect a quality dot (even one w/ a 4 MOA dot) to do the same.

 

[aeropb]

With a red dot, you do lose precision. You gotta keep that in mind, its not a scope. Its a compromise. Faster acquisition, less accuracy. You might look into a model with a 2 MOA dot, assuming you have a 4 now.

 

[Shadowrider]

How big is the bullseye? Are you using a rimfire target? My 4mil dot is just fine at 100. Any good shooter wouldn't have any issues at 200. I can keep it on paper at 200 but that's about it. Old eyes, not the sight.

 

[Fyrtwuck]

Sounds like it's doing it's job. Making a group thats "head size" at that distance.

 

[Rob72]

Is the benefit of a red dot solely quick target acquisition?

Essentially, yes. Cheap red dots are pretty much crap though. The mount should be tight (preferrably torqed if your mount allows), and zeroing at 30 yards should be a matter of firing 1 round, with the rifle bagged, then moving the dot to cover the hole.

A free-standing "wide" group would not be surprising, if you are used to irons, because you have more vertical FOV. IOW, the tendency is to let the dot float, since you do not have a hard lower limit to refer to, basically,"chasing the dot", as folks sometimes do with CT, etc. style pistol lasers.

 

[ez bake]

I put a little red dot on my AR and me and the BIL tried to sight it in at about 30 yards. I was less than impressed with the results but I don't know what I should expect either, this is the first red dot I've ever used.

The first thing we noticed was that the red dot almost completely covers the bulls eye at that distance, so it is quite obviously not going to drive nails. But we couldn't get them any closer to center than about 4 inches, I can shoot better than that with the steel sights that came on it.

Should I keep fine tuning or am I hoping for too much?

Is the benefit of a red dot solely quick target acquisition?

What kind of red dot is it?

 

[TacticalJ]

Yes, most red dots are for great field of view and both eyes open shooting. They allow for faster target acquisition, but still should be able to be pretty accurate. i had an ncstar and i could punch 2" free hand groups at 50yds, which i would say is fairly accurate. if you want precision, then you probably don't want a red dot, unless you wanna pay for a quality peice. i have an aimpoint on my rifle, but it is used for tactical entry!

 

[Ride Da Fire]

I put a little red dot on my AR and me and the BIL tried to sight it in at about 30 yards. I was less than impressed with the results but I don't know what I should expect either, this is the first red dot I've ever used. Should I keep fine tuning or am I hoping for too much?

I don't think you can't shoot a tight group like a scope with a red dot, I know exactly what you're talking about. I had a same problem too, the tightest group I ever had was inside a 6" diameter circle at 35 yards (H&H indoor range).

With a red dot, you do lose precision. You gotta keep that in mind, its not a scope. Its a compromise. Faster acquisition, less accuracy. You might look into a model with a 2 MOA dot, assuming you have a 4 now.

What is the different between 2MOA and 4MOA at 100 yard shooting? I have an Aimpoint CompML3 2MOA mounted on my wife's AR and Eotech 1/65 MOA on mine. I can't really tell the different when I shoot.


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