Red dots

[CfiDave]

I have a Hawke 1x20 red dot on my Prod. Nice little red dot, has a dovetail mount. The only problem is my astigmatism, which I didn't
know I had. The red dot appears as multiple dots overlapping. The scope is not the problem, my eyes are. You may want to keep that in mind
for any red dot sight.

 

[gkgeiger]

I have a Hawke 1x20 red dot on my Prod. Nice little red dot, has a dovetail mount. The only problem is my astigmatism, which I didn't
know I had. The red dot appears as multiple dots overlapping. The scope is not the problem, my eyes are. You may want to keep that in mind
for any red dot sight.

I have the same problem. I still do better with a dot than open site but when trying to hit a 1/4” target my vision makes a difference. Sometimes the dot looks like a line.

 

[UCChris]

I also have pretty bad astigmatism, red dots usually look like a sunburst with a lot of vertical spread. This is apparently due to the way astigmatisms bends light off center in the eye. For a lot of astigmatism sufferers, if you put an aperture between your eye and the red dot, the dot will sharpen. I have thought about putting a cheap flip-up AR rear sight behind my red dot to flip up when I want a more precise shot.

 

[gkgeiger]

I also have pretty bad astigmatism, red dots usually look like a sunburst with a lot of vertical spread. This is apparently due to the way astigmatisms bends light off center in the eye. For a lot of astigmatism sufferers, if you put an aperture between your eye and the red dot, the dot will sharpen. I have thought about putting a cheap flip-up AR rear sight behind my red dot to flip up when I want a more precise shot.

If you do that, please post a picture.

 

[UCChris]

If you do that, please post a picture.

Got the rear sight ordered, I'll update this evening.

 

[Steveoo]

Been re- thinking things recently.
A good number of shooters, that wear Glasses, or have a stigmatism cannot get on with red dots, they get a glaring dot.
Many red dots can also shift theres zero. …without you having shifted it.
The reason for the zero shift is due to the tiny LED being epoxied onto a small slide which gets moved by the elevation and windage screws to re-position the point of light onto the main lens..
Tiny variations of movement from recoil potentially shifting impact.

I recently set up a ghost ring. These work as an aperture sight, allowing a much more focussed view of the foresight and target for the failing eyes..
Aperture sights are mainly intended for rifles, but with a larger aperture, they work fine on pistols…
Give one a go if you are struggling to focus …you would be surprised by the results..

I also have pretty bad astigmatism, red dots usually look like a sunburst with a lot of vertical spread. This is apparently due to the way astigmatisms bends light off center in the eye. For a lot of astigmatism sufferers, if you put an aperture between your eye and the red dot, the dot will sharpen. I have thought about putting a cheap flip-up AR rear sight behind my red dot to flip up when I want a more precise shot.

What you require is one of these new Ghost ring rear sights.
Ive had a try with one, which sharpened everything up.
There is none of the red dot blurring issues, or shifting in point of impact due to slight parallax errors, or the LED shifting due to the recoil…

 

[UCChris]

What you require is one of these new Ghost ring rear sights.
Ive had a try with one, which sharpened everything up.
There is none of the red dot blurring issues, or shifting in point of impact due to slight parallax errors, or the LED shifting due to the recoil…

For people with pretty severe astigmatisms like me, peep or aperture sights are not perfectly round either. In order for a peep sight to lot look like a semi-circle, the rear aperture has to be so large, i.e., "ghost ring" that precision goes out the window. At least that's been my experience after experimenting with almost all sighting systems out there.

 

[Steveoo]

For people with pretty severe astigmatisms like me, peep or aperture sights are not perfectly round either. In order for a peep sight to lot look like a semi-circle, the rear aperture has to be so large, i.e., "ghost ring" that precision goes out the window. At least that's been my experience after experimenting with almost all sighting systems out there.

I hear you on these ghost rings being too large, as i have found precision goes out the window much over 10 yards but by turning up a ring to reduce the diameter, i have successfully stepped them down to the point where you can flip the margin….but i agree it only goes so far in reg distortion….depends on the degree of degeneration i guess.

What do you think of this….
Recently, i wrote to some top sight manufacturers reg these issues, suggesting the idea of an ultra compact zero magnification cross hair scope. In this way we would clear the issue of magnification shake on pistols, but offering a fine cross hair instead of a red dot.
…I do not think its ever been done. …Try to imagine a 1 inch tube Hawke dot sight, but with a fine cross hair instead…no magnification but nice coated optics..

 

[UCChris]

I hear you on these ghost rings being too large, as i have found precision goes out the window much over 10 yards but by turning up a ring to reduce the diameter, i have successfully stepped them down to the point where you can flip the margin….but i agree it only goes so far in reg distortion….depends on the degree of degeneration i guess.

What do you think of this….
Recently, i wrote to some top sight manufacturers reg these issues, suggesting the idea of an ultra compact zero magnification cross hair scope. In this way we would clear the issue of magnification shake on pistols, but offering a fine cross hair instead of a red dot.
…I do not think its ever been done. …Try to imagine a 1 inch tube Hawke dot sight, but with a fine cross hair instead…no magnification but nice coated optics..

Oh, I would be all over that. I'm pretty sure I'd be ordering at least three of them immediately.

An intriguing option is the SeeAll sight, but the execution left a lot to be desired when I tried one.

 

[Simplemann]

I have a Hawke red dot and I've notice if I lower the brightness setting to the lowest that I can see the target its a better sight picture.

 

[Steveoo]

I think the trouble starts as soon as you start lighting things up..
Much calmer lower powered dots, or a none lit cross hair.
They will get there…..the dot is still in its infancy..

 

[UCChris]

If you do that, please post a picture.

It works like a charm! This is what I usually see when looking at a red dot.

Flip the rear sight up and it is damn near a crisp dot!

 

[gkgeiger]

I like the concept but would have to modify it to work on my FWB. Thanks

 

[Felinis]

You don't need to mound your red dot sight on the top of a blowback pistol. Many like the SIG p226 have a picante rail below the barrel.

 

[steve-l]

Perhaps I am misreading these comments, but I interpret confusion between a red dot sight and a reflex site. They are not the same nor do they perform the same. When I bought my first PP700SA, I also bought every sight type available as a personal test for myself. The requirements I evaluated was ease of use, repeatability, target acquisition speed and field of view. I installed and tested scopes , reflex sights, red dots with magnification and without, competition open sights and SeeAll sights. All had some disadvantages, The worst by far was the SeeAll. The best by far was the reflex sight with no magnification because it allows the fastest target acquisition and the largest field of view. The Reflex sight offers red or green and switchable dot images as well as different intensities. These work exceptionally well in lower light conditions as well as the ability to hold over or under and not lose sight of the target when compensating for the bloopy trajectory of the pellet. Interestingly, they are the least expensive of all and you do not need more than a cheap AliExpress Chinese special. They work as well as the expensive ones. As far as accuracy, I practice everyday and I consistently hold a 2" group at 25 meters off hand and I have pissed off pigeons at 100 meters from time to time.