Red Dot or Reflex Sight For AK

Dont waste your time and $$ for most anything from CTD. If you want a fairly decent "knock -off" RDS check out Primary Arms. They have an excellent selection of bot the authentic brands and they have their in-house brand of clone models. I use Aimpoints, but at one time bought a PA M3 clone as a place holder until I got my Aimpoint. A few couple of years later I still have the clone on top of one of my ARs. I have always used M3s or PRO from Aimpoint but wanted to try out a Micro so I just bought one from PA. They also have a bunch of bundle offers AK's with different mounts.

http://www.primaryarms.com

CJS06 is giving you good advice. If you get a too cheap red dot
and put it onto an Ultimak AK rail; you might cook it. Here is
another red dot option:

https://www.primaryarms.com/Vortex_StrikeFire_Red_Green_Dot_FREE_SHIPPING_p/sfrdar15.htm

Primary Arms and Vortex have super warranties and great customer service. I have two Strikefires and they work fine. One is on my
.308 AR.

Well to begin with the Ultimak alone will cost around $100 unless you've already got one. If you're looking to go beyond 100yds, I'd recommend a 1-4x scope (variable power) instead of a red dot/reflex style sight.

The red dot sights and reflex sights have no magnification, and are designed to be used in close encounters rather than long range.

Also both of the red dot sights you linked have 3MOA dots on the setting with the smallest dot in the reticle, that's 3" across at 100 yds. On a coyote, 3" is more than enough variance to mean the difference between a dead dog and a blood trail and a suffering animal, even with the 7.62x39 round.

A_Matthew said:

Yeah, I've been looking at the link CJS06 gave me, and I really like what I'm seeing. I really like the looks of PA's reflex sight, only it isn't waterproof. So I've been looking more and more at their red dot. I was also wondering if any of you have used this mount.

https://www.primaryarms.com/Primary_Arms_Micro_Dot_Midwest_Industries_Han_p/md06_mibundle.htm

Is it worth the extra money for the handguard with the rail? Or should I just go with the Ultimak for $13 less.

Rail Driver, that's something I haven't thought of yet. Could you mount a 1-4x on the Ultimak? If you could, I might just go that route.

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Yes you can, as long as you find a long eye relief scope (a pistol scope would work well)

The microdot package is a good one, but I still recommend the Ultimak. Either way you're going to spend close to $200 to put an optic and a rail on there (depending on the optic you choose).

I actually just got a primary arms M3 on my AK.

I shot about 100 rounds through it this weekend and I really liked it for 70 bucks shipped. Mine is mounted on a Texas Weapon Systems rail ($140 but highly recommended and they sell a ghost ring sight with it) which puts it in the "normal" place for a scope and keeps it a helluva lot cooler so I can't speak to the heat factor. I had a 6" group at 100 yards but you might be able to do better, my eyes are crap. This was shooting supported off my "unipod" AKA the magazine. I have got better with my irons but like they said, these sights aren't precision instruments. The sight held zero perfectly and I tried to test for parallax error at 20 yards. I think it really might be parallax free

Before that I had a Baraska reflex sight. I paid 80 for it at the local shop and I can say that the PA unit is at least twice as nice as far as clarity, roundness of the dot and all that. I still have the baraska and I am just gonna put it on my .22 for fun once in a while.

A reflex sight is generally a bad idea on an AK. They have a "window" that sits over the body of the sight, which means that they are taller than a tube-type red dot. Most are intended to have the proper height when mounted on an AR flat top, which puts them much too high to get cheek weld on an AK.

However, with a tube body red dot like an Aimpoint or one of those Primary or Vortex clones, mounted on an Ultimak in a low ring, it is at the proper height without having to build up your cheek rest... you can actually see your iron sights right through the red dot, which is called co-witness. It is a good thing because if your red dot goes TU you can just use your irons right through it without having to remove the sight or anything.

I have a Vortex Strike Fire on my SKS and even with the 2X multiplier that comes with it I think it's a 50 yard sight. Others may see better than me and get more out of it. On my AR I have a Leupold 1.5-4X30 tactical scope and in my opinion it's a 100 yard scope. To shoot varmints at a 100 yards I would want a scope like a 3X9. For deer a 4 power would do. Don

After some bad experiences with less expensive red dots, I think a person needs to evaluate how important having a reliable optic on their AK is. If it's just a plinking gun, go ahead and buy the $40-$150 optic. If, however, you plan to rely on the AK for defense, then it is not uncommon to spend more than the AK for a reliable optical sight. Red dots, or fiber optic sights are usually less expensive than the more sophisiticated combat sights, but are great on an AK. I use two different sights on mine, a Trijicon Reflex, and a Zeiss Z-Point. I can recommend both; the Reflex is cheaper, older, and can be found used for $250-$300. The Z-Point is up there with the best of its type, and is in the $400-$450 range, and not often found used. I think both are durable enough to qualify as a combat sight, especially for civilian defensive rifles. The regular, cheaper red dots rely on older technology (and/or Chinese manufacture), often go dead too soon in extreme cold, or just don't hold up to shock as well as the higher quality ones.

I avoid those 'optics' from CTD. Eben if they last thru a mag or two on the AK, one drop and they are dead. Battery life will also be minimal.

The PA optics are a good choice if you're on a limited budget. They aslo have the advantage that when you get more funds, you can swap to a Aimpoint Micro and use the same mount.

Having owned both the PA Micro clone optic and a T1 Aimpoint Micro, what you're giving up is a battery life of days instead of years, robustness, brightness range, and clarity.

If it's a fun gun you might use to try and pop a song dog or two, no biggie. If people might die cuz you optic is crapped out, get the Aimpoint.

BSW

Primary Arms and Vortex offer the best "cheap" red dot sights, the rest are largely a waste of time and money.

I don't own one of those^^^, but I would..............................great optic.

Leupold DeltaPoint on Ultimak Rail
The only problem is that you cannot co-witness the irons with this installed, just keep the star wrench handy.

Pic of the dot

I have a budget of about ~$100.

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At your price range, I would definetly go with a red-dot. While you can find a decent, inexpensive red dot with a bit of research, IMO no one makes a good, cheap reflex sight. Any reflex sight at that price is guaranteed to be junk.

As others have said, though, you might actually be better off with a low power conventional scope for your stated purposes.

Bushnell TRS-25 is my recommendation. Stands up to the recoil of a 7,62x39 and holds zero exceptionally well after removal of gas tube. It's also in your price range.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/59...oa-dot-with-integral-weaver-style-mount-matte

irons, they make 20-30 round mags for a reason

JHenry said:

irons, they make 20-30 round mags for a reason

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How fast is your acquisition with those iron sights?

The problem with a scope mounted high enough to see the irons under it is that there is no way you will be able to get into a proper shooting position with your cheek rested on the stock with the scope that high. It might work for shooting beer cans at 25 yards, but you can forget about any kind of precision, which kind of defeats the purpose of a scope IMO. And then if you put a big cheek riser on your stock high enough to get cheek weld with the scope, it has to be removed to use the irons, which defeats the purpose of being able to quickly use the irons.

One option you might consider is a scout scope. That is a long eye relief scope that is designed to be mounted farther forward than a regular scope. The nice things about them on an AK are 1) they are really quick to get sight picture with, 2) they leave you a lot of peripheral vision compared to a traditional scope that is close to your eye, and 3) you can mount them low enough that you don't have to use a cheek riser to get a proper cheek weld. You can mount the scout scope in some quick detach rings if you want, so you can pop it off quickly to use the irons. Burris, Leatherwood, and Leupold all make Scout scopes at various price points.

Another option you might consider is an offset red dot sight. That is a backup red dot that is mounted at 45 degrees, next to your scope. If you need to shoot close quarters, you just rotate the rifle and use the red dot. No its not an ideal position, but that matters less for close and fast shooting. Google "offset red dot sight" and you will see what I'm talking about. You can use that with pretty much any scope mounting method. you can either get the offset mount that attaches on a picatinny rail under your scope, or you can get some scope rings that have a picatinny rail on them and attach one there. That would work fine with a receiver-mounted scope and a cheek riser on the stock.

But honestly, if you have OK eyesight, a red dot is perfectly fine out to 250 yards or so with an AK. With a 25/200m zero, you will hit real close to point of aim out to that distance. I personally think that a simple co-witnessed tube bodied red dot sight makes the most sense on an AK. But different strokes for different folks -- some guys need the help of a scope to be able to see the target.

On the Ultimak mount that I have on an AK, I can see the iron sights THROUGH the Z-Point sight that I use. Very simple, in the event the battery fails or it gets damaged. Plus, it removes in about 2 seconds with accurate replacement zero.

SharpsDressedMan said:

On the Ultimak mount that I have on an AK, I can see the iron sights THROUGH the Z-Point sight that I use. Very simple, in the event the battery fails or it gets damaged. Plus, it removes in about 2 seconds with accurate replacement zero.

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Cool thing about the ultimak is the cowitnessing.