Red Dots on Pistols

[gene10pntr]

I have a SR 9 and would like to put a Red Dot on it. Any suggestions on a mini dot that will work good and hold up? Thinking

of a Burris Fastfire II or III...any body have experience with either of these?

[mcdaniel.mac]

I have the FFIII on a G17MOS and it's great. Make sure you get the model with a top-loadig battery so you don't have to remove the entire thing to change batteries though

[VA Jim]

I agree, the Burris fastfire III is a good way to go. I’ve got 2 of them. Very compact and rugged.

[NSB]

I've got both the Burris FF3 and the Vortex Venom. They are equal in quality and features, but the Vortex has a very slightly larger "window". I can't say that that makes any practical difference, but it is what it is. I can tell you that both will withstand the recoil of any handgun or rifle you put them on. I've had each on a 44mag handgun and on a 45-70 rifle. A call to both manufacturers resulted in them both telling me there are no caliber restrictions and warranty would be a non issue. I had a Burris FF2 where you had to take it off the gun to change the battery where the FF3 you do not have to take it off. That's not as big a deal as it sounds, because the battery life is really long and taking it off and putting it back on results in almost no change in POI. I've had batteries last several seasons and that's back when I was shooting several times a week. You can get some great deals on the FF2 right now.

[contender1]

I see a lot of red dots on handguns at USPSA matches. Burris is a good compact one. It should do as you desire.

[KCSO]

Is this a match gun a fun gun or for serious work? A red dot or a laser will work just fine for stationary targets and isn't worth a hoot for leading a running man. They are no where strong enough for duty use and in my opinion neither are adjustable sights.

[gene10pntr]

It's just going to be for fun,lots of plinking and target shooting. What do you mean they're not adjustable? Can't you adjust elevation and windage on them?

[ShooterAZ]

The Fastfire 3 is completely adjustable, and is also capable of leading moving targets. Just ask the beer cans I chased around with my M1 Carbine this morning!

[NSB]

A red dot will absolutely allow you to shoot at a moving target and there's nothing weak in the design of a well made one. As I stated, I had them on 44mag and 45-70s and never had any trouble. I shot steel plate competition for years and I can tell you for a fact that no one can shoot as fast with iron/open sights as a good shooter with a red dot. I've seen the best shooters in the world shoot and they use red dots and it's amazing how fast and accurate they are. They are all adjustable. I've used them for years for deer hunting and I've shot running deer and deer at some very long distances with them. In fact, I've shot quite a few deer with them. I can shoot irons as well as anyone, and I can shoot red dots even better than irons for some things.

[KCSO]

The best shooter in the world are not carrying them into combat or as duty weapons. Show up at rifle training with a scope or a red dot and see what happens. If you tackle a suspect and roll off the curb into the dirt and the adjustable sights break off your gun... been there done that... that is why I asked what the usage is there is a whole keck of a difference between DUTY and personal use.

[NSB]

The best shooter in the world are not carrying them into combat or as duty weapons. Show up at rifle training with a scope or a red dot and see what happens. If you tackle a suspect and roll off the curb into the dirt and the adjustable sights break off your gun... been there done that... that is why I asked what the usage is there is a whole keck of a difference between DUTY and personal use.
The military is using red dots on their guns. The OP wants it for target and plinking. Read the post and answer the question.

[ShooterAZ]

The best shooter in the world are not carrying them into combat or as duty weapons. Show up at rifle training with a scope or a red dot and see what happens. If you tackle a suspect and roll off the curb into the dirt and the adjustable sights break off your gun... been there done that... that is why I asked what the usage is there is a whole keck of a difference between DUTY and personal use.

If you do a little research on this, you will find that the Eotech and the Trijicon red or amber dot sights are standard issue for the US Military and many, many PD departments. And for the record, the best shooters in the world ARE using them along with the newest generation of mini sights. The Burris Fastfire is a winner.

[bdicki]

I have a Burris FastFire III on 2 Encore pistols, a 44 Mag and a 45LC. No problems with them, I got the ones with the picatinny mount. I picked one of them up from Optic Planet with a 30% coupon for $160 and free shipping.

[M-Tecs]

The best shooter in the world are not carrying them into combat or as duty weapons. Show up at rifle training with a scope or a red dot and see what happens. If you tackle a suspect and roll off the curb into the dirt and the adjustable sights break off your gun... been there done that... that is why I asked what the usage is there is a whole keck of a difference between DUTY and personal use.

The standard issue M4 service rifle has been using red dots sights as standard issue for 10 plus years.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I don't see what the misunderstanding is here. Red Dots are the most common optic out there now and pretty much all US Military Units use them on Rifles.

I have a Fast Fire 3 on my Glock 35 and it is mounted to the rear sight dovetail, not recessed into the slide like MOS Glocks are. It works great and there is no argument on how fast the target acquisition is. Putting a Dot on a Target is simply faster that aligning sights and targets. There just isn't as much to do.

I have 6 Bushnell TRS 25's on my Carbines and when up to speed can put 2 shots on target in 1 second +/- .1 from the low ready with boring regularity... These are inexpensive optics that work well and are good value for the price. <$90.

The Burris Fast Fires are also really good for the price and the only draw back is killing the battery if you leave them on for a week or so. if you want longer battery life then the Trijicon Sights are the way to go. But they are also $600+.

More an more defensive pistols are showing up with Red Dots on them all the time. You see them on TV shows a lot now and the big shooting comps have "Carry Optics" divisions for guns with optics installed.

Once you shoot one you'll be sold, but please remember there is a Learning Curve. Once you get thru that, you won't be going back to iron sights.

Also it should be noted, that there are many sets of "Suppressor Sights" available that allow Iron Sight use thru the Optic if it fails. Best of both worlds.

Randy.

[gene10pntr]

Thanks for all the good information,will see what Optics Planet has if I can find a coupon?
Gene

[NSB]

Thanks for all the good information,will see what Optics Planet has if I can find a coupon?
Gene

Any time you buy from Optics Planet just ask for 5% off and they ALWAYS give it to you. Coupons are good, but you can get something just for asking.

[second chance]

I want one on one of my 1911's, but I want it recessed. I want it as low as possible. Anyone know where to get that done? Is that something a competent machinist can do? Gunsmiths around Jax are hard to find.

[bobthenailer]

I have about 8 mounted on semi auto pistol slides using a specific base for mounting, I recommend a Vortex Venom or a Burris FF3 (not the FF2) I also have the first MRDS the Tasco Optima and a Trijucon and Pride /fowler MRDS

[KCSO]

I am not against red dots for some usages. Years of experience shows me that the more complicated it is the less it will stand DUTY use. In 1972-76 the most replaced item on our DUTY revolvers were the adjustable sights. We went through 3-4 a year in a group of 16 sworn officers. No one had to replace a fixed sight, that is why now Cylinder and Slide makes a fixed replacement for the adjustable sights on Smith and Wessons. If the Smith and Colt adjustable sights get broken off what about the much higher red dot... ya think? Your DUTY gun is in the holster on your side in every altercation and when you are rolling around on the curb side you MAY want something that will be on target afterwords. c

I was the first to try a red dot sight on an M4 in our area and it was an excellent sight when it was sighted in, unfortunately they had to be resighted and checked every month riding in the back of a cruiser on rough roads. This is no problem for a sportsman but try and get a jaded officer out to the range for more than qualifications. Troops are NOT gun guns for the most part and do NOT take care of their equipment any more that they have to.

The last man I sent to rifle instructor school 2 years ago came back and said that the Marine teaching the class advised them NEVER to remove the iron sights from their rifles. My Chief Deputies son came back from Afganistan and said their EO Tech sights were not holding zero under field conditions.

This is my basis for my opinion on what should and should not go on a DUTY gun. Not hnting, not c/c not target shooting but DUTY. Do what you want it's your life.

[mcdaniel.mac]

I want one on one of my 1911's, but I want it recessed. I want it as low as possible. Anyone know where to get that done? Is that something a competent machinist can do? Gunsmiths around Jax are hard to find.Bowie Tactical would be my suggestion. Ship it off and have it done right.

[Speedo66]

I'm also very happy with my Bushnell TRS 25. Good inexpensive sight for my Buckmark. Light enough to be hardly noticeable.

I don't see any mention in the original post of use of the red dot for duty use. I doubt the OP will be rolling around on the ground with his.

[22cf45]

I am a bullseye shooter and most of us use UltraDot's. For our 1911's the majority mount the dot on the slide using a base like the one Clark makes, can't get any lower than that. They are simple to use and stand up well under the recoil of our 45 acp's. I've got some that are probably approaching 100,000 rounds without a hiccup.
Phil

[Kestrel4k]

It's just going to be for fun,lots of plinking and target shooting. [...]


[...] This is my basis for my opinion on what should and should not go on a DUTY gun. Not hnting, not c/c not target shooting but DUTY. Do what you want it's your life.
I confess that I find it somewhat difficult to follow this reasoning after reading what the goal of the OP is.

[John 242]

I have a SR 9 and would like to put a Red Dot on it.


I didn't see any SR-9 mounts on Burris' website: https://www.burrisoptics.com/mounting-systems/mounts-and-bases/fastfire-mounts


So, I did a little Google-Fu and found a SR-9 mount here: https://gallowayprecision.com/ruger/optic-mount-plate-for-ruger-sr9-sr9c-sr9e-sr40-sr40c-sr45-pistols/

The mounting plate linked above is made by Galloway Precision. That specific model has built in backup sights, which may be a gimmick or may be important to you. Either way, it has them. They have a similar mount that fits the SR-9 and allows you to use a Glock style base mount. I don't know if there are other mount makers for your gun, but I've ran into problems in the past with other guns where mounts weren't available and we had to order blanks and machine them to fit.

I had to fix rear sight damage to an SR-9c not too long ago. The owner had someone paint the gun for him. When rear sight was removed the dovetail was badly damaged. There's not a lot of depth to that dovetail cut and not a lot of material holding the sight in place. I would bear this in mind and be careful not to damage the dovetail when removing the factory sight.

As to which sight is better, Burris, et al, I can't help you.

[John 242]

I want one on one of my 1911's, but I want it recessed. I want it as low as possible. Anyone know where to get that done? Is that something a competent machinist can do? Gunsmiths around Jax are hard to find.

What sight cut do you have?
Are you sure you want it as low as possible?

206358

This picture is shamelessly stolen from 1911forum.com link:
https://www.1911forum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=487474

I don't know if you could get a lot lower than that. Although this looks super-complicated, I don't think this is beyond the skill of a good gunsmith-machinist. I wouldn't expect this to be a cheap job. (Although I suppose that depends on a persons definition of cheap) One thing though, cutting the slide for this style set-up is irreversible. If you find you don't like it, you're kinda stuck unless you buy an new slide.

If all you want is a mount installed in the existing dovetail, then there are plenty of factory mounts available. Burris has several for different style of dovetail cuts. https://www.burrisoptics.com/mounting-systems/mounts-and-bases/fastfire-mounts

The good thing about dovetail mounts is that if you decide that you don't like optics on your 1911, you can easily remove them and put the original sight back in. They're also cheap and easy to install, especially considering the cost of machining the slide as shown in the picture.