Sunday, February 3, 2013

Minuteman Rifle Sighting

To quote Jihadists: "only Americans and women use sights."

So as not to "offend" our Muslim enemies, lets delve into the concept of sights. Specifically, lets talk about sights for the Patriot Rifle of Choice - the AR15 and its variants. This will not be a comparison, per se, but a simple discussion about different sights one might choose.

In a broad sense, there are two types of sighting systems - irons and optics. Irons are not necessarily constructed with iron, but the concept is the same: they are metal (or plastic) and provide a rear sight and a front sight for the shooter to line up - often of the aperture variety. Optics require no "lining up;" as a rule, one simply looks through the optic and uses the reticle to indicate the point where the bullet will strike. Optics come in magnified and non-magnified varieties - and each has its advantages and drawbacks.


Iron Sights
The most varied of the group. On an AR15, the iron sights might be a fixed carry handle like the old M16, or it might be a metal and plastic flip-up sight. It might be an iron sight designed to give the function of the old carry handle (elevation knob as well as windage), without taking up as much space on the flat top of the rifle - YHM makes a good one.

As for the flip-up sights, these can be used as a primary sight, but are more commonly employed as a backup - in case a primary optic experiences some sort of failure. As such, it is common for the flip-up sight to have a small profile when stowed.

Flip-up sights like Troy, YHM, and Magpul are excellent. These types do not have elevation settings, and so they are often sighted in at a common distance - 50/200 yards is most common. This allows the shooter an easy to remember ballistic - within 2" of point-of-aim (POA) out to 250 yards, and only 7" drop at 300 yards.

Flip-up sights like KAC and MATECH offer the slim profile when stowed, plus elevation settings for shooting out to 600 meters.


Red Dot
Probably the most common optic these days is a red dot. Many manufacturers make them, but only Trijicon, EoTech, and Aimpoint have had any significant military use. Consequently these makes are often the most expensive.

Alternately, many other manufacturers make quality red dots for far less money. Most notably, Primary Arms and Vortex.

Red dots also come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. Micro dots are most in demand at the time of this writing, but many others are popular, too.

Quick-detach mounts are available so the optic can be removed post-haste in the event of failure at a critical time. 


Scopes
Just like traditional hunting rifles, an AR15 can accommodate a scope. Scopes can have fixed magnification or variable magnifications.

Quick-detach mounts are available so the optic can be removed post-haste in the event of failure at a critical time. 


ACOG
This scope gets a category all its own. The ACOG is in common use by the USMC as well as the US Army. It offers magnification and it also gives a Ballistic Drop Coefficient (BDC) so the shooter can not only range a target out to longer distances, but also know where the bullet will impact at that range.

ACOGs are built tough. There is a running joke that they can double as a hammer if needed. This is uncommon among scopes.

ACOGs have one of several different types of reticles, including crosshair, horseshoe, and chevron. These reticles come in several different colors.

For up-close, the ACOGs using horseshoe and chevron reticles can be employed using the Bindon Aiming Concept (BAC). Alternately, an ACOG can be fit with irons atop or even a small platform from which to mount a miniature red dot.

Quick-detach mounts are available so the optic can be removed post-haste in the event of failure at a critical time.


1 - 4x Scope
This scope, too, has a category all its own. Offering most of the advantages of the ACOG, as well as a red dot, a 1-4x scope fits many uses.  Made by many popular manufacturers, including Leupold, Burris, Vortex, and others, the 1-4x also can be found in multiple price ranges. The 1-4x scope also has many different reticle types.

Quick-detach mounts are available so the optic can be removed post-haste in the event of failure at a critical time.


Budget Compact Scopes
The Burris 332 and AR-536 fall into this category, as does the Primary Arms PAC3X. These scopes, like the ACOG, have their own category. This is because they do 90% of what an ACOG does, but at half the price, or less.

Both Burris models offer a small section of picatinny rail along the top so that a miniature red dot can be mounted. All three can also be mounted just like an ACOG, so a quick-detach mount is possible. 


Specialty
Also similar to ACOGs, but also multiple times more expensive than a Burris, would be the Leupold HAMR and Elcan Spectre. These both offer BDC aiming as well as low magnification in a tough shell.


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