"low" Red Dot/reflex style sights

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Coronach

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I'm looking for a good red dot "reflex" style sight that sits very low on the rail. I already have a OKO Holosight, which seemed to be very low, but which actually sits a smidge too high. The goal is to be able to shoot irons through the sight window without having to remove the whole affair.

Option two, of course, is to use a QD mount and not care how high it sits. I'd rather not do that, but it is an option.

I also have an Aimpoint that sits very low indeed which I might swap out for this application, if I cannot find another low-sitting Red Dot.

Thanks,
Mike
 
Dunno. All of them look close to the height of the OKO, but it's hard to say. The Hakko looks VERY low, until you look at its height with the rail adapter. Likewise with the Tasco Optima or the Docter sight.

Mike
 
Oh, the Aimpoint sits plenty low. The point is that I'm looking for an additional, reflex-style optic the sits low as well.

Mike
 
Coronach, are you opposed to buying another AimPoint? If so, is it because of the cost?

If so, consider the Hakko HAKTAC 1. It's basically an identical copy of the aimpiont comp m2 (exterior-wise anyway)...they're even getting sued over it I think. Got mine for $125 or so. It's waterproof, NV compatible (excluding cutting edge stuff, which is too sensitive), and accepts the aimpoint-specific mounts. Probably doesn't have the same battery life, but I haven't killed a battery in the 3 month I've owned it.

Disclaimer: I have no personal experience to prove the waterproof or NVG-compatible claims.

LG

EDIT: Sorry, I read your last post. You want a reflexive site, not a "red dot." There is someone (can't remember who right now) who makes a neat quick-release mount for the EOTechs that adds zero height to the optic. The add for the company was in one of the gun magazines I read about 2 months ago. Sorry I can't be of more help.
 
I might end up getting another aimpoint, but I'm kinda wanting to explore other options. That is, in all honesty, the main reason for having most of the rifles these optics will be mounted upon anyway. ;)

Mike
 
No, it won't. The EOTech itself sits pretty high. I'll eventually have an Eotech on an AR with a QD mount, maybe that one, but this is for a different rifle. Thanks, though.

Mike
 
Off the top of my head, I can't think of any dot sight that sits much lower than the OKO. I don't know how the Aimpoint sits lower when every Aimpoint mount I've seen mounts the sight relatively high compared to most other reflex type sights I've seen. What firearm are you mounting the sight to? This info might help us in finding a solution for you.
 
Off the top of my head, I can't think of any dot sight that sits much lower than the OKO. I don't know how the Aimpoint sits lower when every Aimpoint mount I've seen mounts the sight relatively high compared to most other reflex type sights I've seen. What firearm are you mounting the sight to? This info might help us in finding a solution for you.
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It will either go on an Ultimak rail for an AK, or on the topcover rail of a KTR.

As to the Aimpoint, if you get the right ring for it, the thing practically sits on the weaver rail. Check out the link above.

Mike
 
Yeah, I was looking at the Docter already. It is REALLY low, until you add that base. I'm just not interested in dropping that kind of loot if it won't work. Anyone know how far above the rail the bottom of the viewing area sits, with the base?

Mike
 
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Have someone mill you a mount that places the OKO sideways .

I've seen some USPSA Open guns done this way to keeo the dot low over the slide.
 
Have someone mill you a mount that places the OKO sideways .

I've seen some USPSA Open guns done this way to keeo the dot low over the slide.
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You'd think that if there was that much demand for it (and there seems to be), someone would have addressed this issue already, on the sight-manufacturing side. Hmm.

Zak, when you get those bases attached, if you could give me a measurement of the distance from the top of the rail to the bottom of the sight window, I'd appreciate it.

Thanks,
Mike
 
The ATN and the Hakko BED24 are both taller than the OKO. It's actually the same height as the OKO with the SC4 mount attached. The Hakko BED35 is about the same height to MAYBE just a tad taller, but not much if any. I say that only because when you put a BED35 on a Beretta storm you cannot see the irons. While I no longer have the OKO and can't put it on the Storm, another storm owner says that you could just BARELY see the tip of the irons when he installed his OKO. I've owned all three (no ATN), but only the BED35 was still around when the "Storm" came.

The Doctor Optic with the lowest available Weaver mount (not the AR mount) is lower than the OKO, and it does co-witness on a Storm (I know that's not your intended use, but it just happens to be the only firearm I have references with all these optics.)

There is the $100 less expensive JPoint which, while maybe not as robust as the Dr., general concensus seems to be that it is a good optic.

Another POSSIBILITY that may deserve further mention (but I have NO first hand experience with and I don't think they're even available yet) is the new Bushnell Holosight XLP that GunGoBoom linked in his post. They are lower then the EOTech, but I don't know how much lower. They use AAA batteries in order to get lower, plus the glass sits ahead of the electronics at an angle rather than on top of them.
 
Coronach,

I might be of assitance as I have both an AK with ultimak and a KTR with dust cover mount. I went through the same issues trying to co-witness. I tried the Hakko (both the large and small Panorama sights). Neither allowed co-witness on the KTR. I have the larger Hakko on my ultimak on a Vector underfolder. It does not co-witness. I think I tried the smaller Hakko (actually a Chinese copy) on that gun with the same result. I suspect the Ultimak would allow co-witnessing only with lower sights such as the JPoint series. I have one of those but it is presently mounted and dialed in on a Bushmaster post-ban carbon pistol. It works wonderfully for that sitting way up front and left on 24/7. I don't really want to pull it off to test it on another gun as this is likely its permanent home.

The KTR rear sight prevents almost any optic from co-witnessing as it is too low. I found a JPoint would allow a measure of co-witness, but just barely. In other words one had to adjust your hold to see the irons through the small lense. Not really acceptable. I cannot imagine a lower sight than a JPoint as the base is extremely thin. That suggested I was wasting my time trying to get co-witnessing on my KTR. It now wears an Aimpoint clone on a cantilever mount that allows one to see through the mount to use the irons. Problem solved. I have an early KTR with the short rail so it may be the situation is different when they lengthened the top rail. However the rear sight sits just as low on those. Wonderful guns aren't they? I wish I had one in 7.62 to make a set.

Hope that helps. I have a fondness for Russian optics as well, so have used them quite a bit. Currently I have a PK-AS-V on my AK-103 and 101. Wonderful sights. No co-witnessing there but as the sight works on or off, I don't mind. If you have a gun with side rail that allows it you may want that. Of course the KTR won't work due to the rear sight being in the way of the mount. I suppose you could have two dust covers. If your gun with Ultimak has a workable side rail then that is what I would do. The PK-AS-V is a great value and of course built like a tank (or rather an AK).

:D

GR
 
On my AMD-63 I have an Ultimak rail. I have replacement tritium lamps on the stock sights. I cannot find anything lower than an Aimpoint on an ARM 68 lever mount. While that mount is kinda weak, it come off quickly if necessary(though in my opinion the ML-2 is very unlikely to fail). It did NOT co witness at the 50 and 100 yards I zero'd the Aimpoint. It is not a bad thing however, IMHO to have the irons visable in the lower third of tube, as it does not block your field of vision . After all those irons are NOT ghost rings ect. Just my $.02 after fooling around this last year with the platform. :cool:
 
Coronach said:
Zak, when you get those bases attached, if you could give me a measurement of the distance from the top of the rail to the bottom of the sight window, I'd appreciate it.
Click to expand...
Sorry for the delay.

With the lowest Dr Picatinny rail mount, the distance from the top of the rail to the bottom of the sight window is approx 0.570". Distance to center of window is approx 0.80".

If you get a mount machined (like they do for low-mounting on pistol slides), the distance from the bottom of the Dr itself to the bottom of the window is only 0.350"


The 3.5 MOA dot is sufficient to hit 3gun-style steel flash targets out to 125 or 150, without problem. Haven't tried it further.
 
OK, coolio.

Thanks Zak. I'll pull out the rifles in question and take a looksie at the dimensions involved.

Mike
 
A 1" tube Ultradot mounted with the lowest 1" scope rings you can find. (only because 1" rings come in very low, whereas 30mm doesn't seem to be that low)

It'll be practically touching the rifle.


People mount these to pistols - so they're recoil tough. Price? Under $140.
 
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