Tried out a Red Dot for the first time

[wbwanzer]

I bought a Vortex Venom for my Canik TP9SFx and mounted it yesterday. No problems as the gun is cut for an optic and the mount went smoothly. I took it to the range today and what a revelation! It took me about 40 rounds to get it dialed in and get used to it. After that I was shooting at least 100% more accurately, and at greater distances than I would normally shoot. It was amazing. That was the most fun I've had at the range in probably forever. I only brought 100 rounds and wished I had brought more, but trying to conserve in today's ammo reality.

I'm 70 years old but don't need glasses. I did Lasik years ago and then have had cataracts removed from both eyes in the last 10 years. But my vision isn't bad. But I had heard that the 'old guys' love the red dots. I sure do now. All future pistols purchased will be cut for an optic.

So that's my story. I'm elated right now. Just thought I would share.

 

[a2x4bbl]

Welcome to the sickness , can’t buy just one . Your probably already contemplating the next one . I know I am .

 

[Slamfire]

The joke is, the average age of a Bullseye Pistol shooter is deceased. If it were not for optical sights, the Bullseye Pistol game would be dead. And if it was not for optical sights, I would not be shooting Bullseye Pistol. Even though these Ultra Dots are 1X arrangements, I can put the dot on the target and hit something. It really made shooting pistols fun again

 

[Bill_in_TR]

I love them for target shooting and I have them on my Model 41 and my Ruger MKIII and my 10 meter air pistol. But as much as I have practiced with them I can't seem to reliably acquire the dot when I am in a hurry to line up the target like in a self defense situation. I might get it right most of the time but searching for that dot happens all to frequently if I am hurrying at all. I wouldn't want to be finding that dot in a SD situation. And yes I have practiced a good bit working on this. And as I said I do get it right most of the time. But "most" isn't enough.

 

[Nasty Canasta]

I have Holosun red dots on an AR & on my CZ TSO & love ‘em. I bought a replacement X slide for my SIG P365 with a Romeo Zero already mounted on it & proceeded to train every weekend for a couple of months with a shot timer & got my draw/fire times pretty close to my iron sight times but kept having a split second of hesitating as I searched to pick up the dot-accuracy was no better one way or the other. Because of this I’ve never conseal carried a red dot & I really wanted to. The 407Holosun with the 20MOA circle w/dot on my CZ seems a lot faster to acquire than the dot alone but won’t fit on the 365X slide without some work so it’s iron sites only for my carry guns.

 

[Kano383]

I have Holosun red dots on an AR & on my CZ TSO & love ‘em. I bought a replacement X slide for my SIG P365 with a Romeo Zero already mounted on it & proceeded to train every weekend for a couple of months with a shot timer & got my draw/fire times pretty close to my iron sight times but kept having a split second of hesitating as I searched to pick up the dot-accuracy was no better one way or the other. Because of this I’ve never conseal carried a red dot & I really wanted to. The 407Holosun with the 20MOA circle w/dot on my CZ seems a lot faster to acquire than the dot alone but won’t fit on the 365X slide without some work so it’s iron sites only for my carry guns.

The Holosun 507K fits right on 365XL slides, and it has a 32MOA circle. On a non-cut 365 slide, you can use a EGW adapter, it only needs a slight flat to be cut on the slide's top due to the dovetail being deeper than on most SIG models.

 

[Craig_AR]

But as much as I have practiced with them I can't seem to reliably acquire the dot when I am in a hurry to line up the target like in a self defense situation. I might get it right most of the time but searching for that dot happens all to frequently if I am hurrying at all. I wouldn't want to be finding that dot in a SD situation.

I've been working on a shift from iron to red dot for 8 months in my EDC (M&P 2.0c), so I relate to your challenge. Based on my progressing to better (not good yet, but better), my top advice is to seek out an instructor who specializes in RDS training. Check Jedi Scott Jedlinski's Modern Samurai site for his schedule and for his list of recommended instructors. Next, understand you should have focus on the target, not the sight or dot: the dot can be fuzzy but that is OK. Don't try to align the dot with anything other than your desired aim point on your target, or try to center it in the window. As long as the dot is anywhere in the window and on your aim point, you are ready to press the trigger. Finally, I have been having the same problem as you of finding the dot. Do a LOT of draw-and-sight dry fire with your holster, paying attention to grip and presentation. This builds a repeatable presentation position with the dot in the window.
While waiting to get to a live RDS instructor, the RDS videos on the Active Self Protection Extra YouTube channel provide a lot of good advice, including some from Jedi.

 

[doubleh]

I came to really like red dots when I had to wear bifocals plus had cataracts. Now my cataracts are gone, my distance vision is 20/20, and I still really like them. I can shoot better with them than without. I can see iron sights now but lining up one thing instead of two on the target just works better in my case.