What are you using, and do you wish you had something different?

I just finished a 9" .300blk build last night (Pics shortly), and am interested in the hives suggestions and opinions.

I put a SPARC AR on mine. I wanted something light, which it is and couldn't afford an Aimpoint. No review at this point, I just got it mounted have yet to get it sighted in.

I have an Aimpoint Pro on my HD gun, Colt 10.3" Mk18 SBR and it works great.  I recently mounted a Sparc AR on my 300BO SBR.  I purchased it on sale for around $150 and I really like it.  It is small, fairly light, good dot, well built, easy to use, very clear glass with no blue hue like my Aimpoints, and Lifetime warranty.  The only negative that I see is the battery life compared to the Aimpoint and it does not have an auto on feature.  My Aimpoint is bigger, heavier, and offers no real value over the Sparc AR except for that one big battery thing.  I can leave my Aimpoint Pro turned on for an entire year and it will be ready to go when I pick it up.  Just replace the battery once a year and I am good to go.  With the Sparc AR the battery life is not long enough to leave it on all the time and since it doesn't have a sleep mode or auto on mode you are forced to turn it on by depressing the little rubber button when you pick your rifle up.  That being said, the Sparc AR cost me $200 less than my Aimpoint Pro.  I could have bought two Sparc AR's and still had money left over.  Since my 300BO is not for HD I will continue to use it and enjoy it.  If Vortex addresses this in the future I will consider upgrading.

Oh yeah, before everyone chimes in about how great PA red dots are I chose Vortex because like the brand and the way the company has developed over time.  I had a bad experience with PA red dots and sold off the few that I owned and doubt I will ever purchase from them again.

Thank you guys for the thoughts so far.

Keep em coming!

I have a couple of Holosun red dots that I like quite a bit.

Eotech has been on there for like 8 years and i am happy with it. Added the magnifier for shits and giggles, it is nice for 200yds.

I'm currently running a Black Spider optic on my 10.5".  Initially I had an issue with red dot level switching.  They sent a new tail cap and so far so good.  It's just a red dot with auto off and memory set.  Takes a AAA battery which is what sold me.  

I have an old Eotech on one, but to be honest I'm liking this little Holosun HS515 that I just put on my blackout better.
couldn't really justify the bigger name and price, but this little Holosun is light quick and if I put a 3x or 6x behind it for fun it's pretty nice for long shots.
I love the large circle systems like Eotech and Holosun 500 series have. quick for ME to pickup the sights.

I'm gonna buy more of them.
My $.02
SS33

I run a Holosun 503c on my 300BO and like it very much. Currently my 10 shot 25 yd groups run 1" - 1 1/4". I will mount a Weaver T-6 to continue load development at 50 and 100yds as I don't know if I can do better than I currently am with the red dot.

I really dig my tiny RMR on my pistol. It's so light that it almost defies gravity. :)

I bought a couple of the Lucid HD7 red dots.  I liked the AAA battery use vs. others.  They work okay, till the battery goes dead.  I've pulled the pistols out of the bag after sitting in the corner or in the trunk for a few months and the batteries would be dead.  Never used, except to turn them on when the new battery was installed just to make sure they worked, and yet the battery dies in them.

I bought one of the smaller Lucid red dots (seems they don't show it on their website anymore) and the bottom of the reticle seems to fade out unless you're exactly centered on the eye piece.  Not sure about the battery life on those.

Just ordered one of the Primary Arms red dots that used the 2032 battery and is advertised to have the 50,000 hour battery life.  We'll see how that one works on the new .300 BO pistol.

I'd try my "extra" DP Pro if I saw a mount for it for the AR15.

Vortex 1x spitfire....love them. Also like the Holosun with the circle dot. Spitfire isn't super light, but I think they are great. I have 3 of the old style and 2 of the new style.

Need more!!!!

Thank you all for your suggestions and mini reviews.

I played around with a few optics i have on other builds, Aimpoint pro, Sparc, Eotech 512, and a cheap tasco i have in my parts drawer. The Aimpoint would be perfect for the fact i could just leave it on if needed.. but i would like to have something a bit smaller.

I like the look of the Sparc ar and the Holosuns.

How fast are they to turn on? Say.. in the dark?

I plan on installing a set of irons with tritium inserts, but would like something easy to manipulate in low light.. especially for the missus.

That size factor is nice..

Does the RMR co-witness with the irons?

Perfectly.

It is not hard to turn on, but you should practice to create muscle memory and realize that in the dark under stress it will be difficult to find the little rubber button and verify that it is actually turned on.  I would not be comfortable with this optic in that situation.  I owned the Mako which has the auto on feature and it worked vey well, but you are looking at a $300+ price tag with an importer who has a bad track record with customer service.  I have a Trijicon RDS on my PS90 and that is super light and requires no battery, but you are again looking at $350+ price.  If this is for HD and not just a fun gun I would look for an optic that gives long battery life or has an auto on feature.  The buy once cry once philosophy applies to my HD optics.  Yes they cost over double, but you are trusting your life to them.  If this is for a fun gun then I would say find a good deal and try it out.  If you dont like it you can sell it on the EE.  There is a $20 red dot on amazon that gets great reviews.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00Y3SZEJC/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A1HZY90HEPA6YB
YMMV

There is an RMR on mine.
It works much better than I expected since it seems a bit small at first.

Some of the holosuns have motion detection that will turn them on automatically, others have a solar panel that will automatically adjust the brightness for you and when in that mode, the optic stays on unless you turn it off, and in manual mode it stays on for 8 hours. I'm actually thinking about selling one of my holosuns with the solar panel, the HS515C... let me know if you are interested, it's practically brand new, I'm just thinking about switching to a different model.

I have a standard Primary Arms red dot on mine. I've had great luck with them and have one on our AK pistol also.

Eotech for me as well, lasted quite awhile.

What's the status of Eotech?  I know about the lawsuits and avalanche of returns.  Have they worked the thermal drift issue out?  I just use my sights for range use so thermal drift is not a big deal for me.

im'd.

Looks like i'll be picking up another Eotech, a RMR, and possibly a Holosun.
I have 2 other builds in progress (Another pistol, and a SBR) that can use whatever i don't use on this build.
These damn pistols are addicting..

Thank you all for the input.

And by all means, please do continue to discuss. I do enjoy reading the different opinions and reviews.

Vortex is coming out with a Holographic Optic any day now.  The Razor AMG UH1 It is being sold on preorder at Opticsplanet and looks very promising.

recently got a 300bo pistol as well, will be on the look-out for an optic!   getting a can on the way soon too

T2 on my go-to-war pistol.

MRO on my get-home/car/write-off pistol.

The size and weight is kind big on guns that are supposed to be a little lighter and take up less space. So, quality micro optics only. Says me.

I think a pistol, not being a long range precision weapon yearns for the speed of a red dot optic. I had a Meprolight Tru Dot RDS laying around after I replaced it with a scope on a rifle, but I really liked the optic. I felt sorry for it laying around all by itself, so I built a 300BLK pistol for it to ride high on. It's much happier nowadays!

I love my Eotech, it's fast, doesn't have green tinted glass like most red dots (I can't stand that), and it has served me well I'd buy another. I also have a Vortex Sparc 2 on another gun that I like. It's glass is clear and it'd make a great pistol optic.

I have a EOTECH 512 on my short barrel 308. Love it. Looks like that new vortex is $499 with a 2 month wait at optics planet.

What brace is that?

It's not a brace, It's a Cheek Rest.

https://www.ar15.com/forums/t_3_122/707539_My-homemade-Cheek-Rest.html

PA advanced red dot has served me well.

I have a couple optics on my rifles but will only include what would work with a pistol build
M21, great optic with no battery except prone washout and the blue hue is very noticeable and very big profile. Always on. On my ak for 2k rounds and no issues. My verdict is would not buy again, very large and washout is an issue in Arizona. Cost 400

Aimpoint t1, great optic and very light. Down side is slight blue hue and heavy cost. Plus if you buy used the warranty is not transferable. Battery life is amazing. Always on. On my 14.5 ar and no issues. 1k rounds. My verdict is would buy again for under 100 yards shooting. Cost 600

Aimpoint pro, awesome battery life. Larger profile then t1 but it does not feel as big as the m21. No blue hue that I can discern. Always on. On my scar 17 and no issues. 500 rounds. Would buy again for any distance with a magnifier. One of my favorite optics. Cost 350

Vortex strike, lower battery life but great optic, low cost in the sub 200. No issues so far. Have to push for on and off . On a 16 ar and no issues. 1.5k rounds. Would buy again since no issues but not on a hd gun since not auto off / on. Cost 190.

Vortex venom. Very light and small profile. Great optic but poor battery life. Have to push for on and off. No on anything at the moment but was on a pistol ar and no issues. 400 rounds my verdict is would buy again but same as above as not on a hd gun. Cost 200

Primary arms red dot. Same battery life as pro, clear glass. Always on. Haven't broken it but does not feel as sturdy as the other options. Very light. In my z5p with 200 rounds and no issues. Would buy again and will probably. I want more time to test it but no issues and cost around 160 for same battery life as aimpoint. Does feel less durable but not has presented as such.

I like the eo techs and still think they have one of my favorite sight pictures but avoided them after the bad press. I would like to try a meprolight rds but have t seen one locally. I plan on getting a h1 for a new build and assume same as t1 since I do not do full auto or night vision. Would like to try a H2 or t2 and get rid of the blue hue but cost is an issue. I think a led rmr might be my next purchase after the h1.

Awesome write up and evaluations.  Would a TruGlo Tru-Tec 20mm red dot be comparable to the Primary Arms you listed?  They are on Ebay for about $125 and also feature the auto on function.  I am considering one of these for my pistol shortly.

I'm using a Aimpoint T-2 micro red dot sight. 

I had a Burris Tac 30 1x4 laying around and put it on my .556 pistol for shits and grins.  I liked it so much I kept it on.

Great thread you started OP.  It's helping me figure out what I want when I build my 300 BO. Attached File

I have never had a tru tech but my first optic was a truglo multi reticle red dot. I had it on dpms panther. I think it lasted to 800ish (it was a long time ago so exact rounds is hard to measure)rounds and broke on just recoil. I actually liked the sight picture but the durability of that was pretty low with it being only exposed to basic range sessions. The only two sights that I have managed to break so far with just basic range 556 use was a trinity force and that truglo. I did break a barska on a 12 ga but that is to be expected. Between the truglo and the primary arms I would probably go primary arms as long as it's the newer stuff they have. It's basically the same red dot as the holosun gear.

I agree with Guntoter, awesome write up Kwisak.

All 3 of mine are 10.5".  The 9mm has a Primary Arms Microdot (9mm), and the other two have Holosun 503FL's (Circle dots).  One is .223 WYLDE and the other is .300BLK, both PWS barrels and pretty accurate.  I'd like to try a 3x magnifier on the last 2, the 9mm is ballistic-ally challenged, so no magnification! .  Oh and the 9mm doesn't have BUIS, the others sport Magpul BUIS.

Will post pics later.

So here's where i ended up with my build. Trijicon MRO seems to do everything I need.

Tell us more about the holstex (?) brace!