I just picked up a new 1-4X optic and I passed up a pretty good deal on a PST 1-4X because I didn't like the reticule, but I'd like to do a side-by-side sometime anyways.  Anyone who has a PST 1-4X on their carbine want to take a few hours to do some <200 yard shooting for a side by side review with the Hi-Lux CMR4?  If someone has the new SWFA SS 1-4X that'd be tits, too.

I'm in Slinger and I've got a PST 1-4 MOA.  Let me know!

Will do!  I got the CMR4-AK yesterday and so far I'm pretty impressed.  We'll see if it tracks well and such but so far I think the Vortex is going to have a speed advantage at 1X due to the heavier reticle, but I think the CMR4 is going to have an advantage with ranging ability and reaching out a bit further.  I'm thinking I'll be headed out Saturday morning - range goes hot at 8am but I usually mosey on over around 9ish.

I'm not sure how I feel about the windage turret being on the left side, since with this type of reticle you're not really going to be dialing and it occludes the two-eyes-open sight picture a bit at 1X.

The Vortex has piss poor illumination.
The glass is really good for what your paying.

That hasn't been my experience.

 

Everything checked out with the tracking and such so I got it zero'd Saturday morning.  I hate setting up zeros for non-standard ranges; too much thinkin' early in the morning when its cold outside.

Part of me wishes the CMR4-AK762 used a 100M zero like the CMR4 does, but it does make a lot of sense with the drop of the 300blk and 7.62x39 relative to 5.56 and 7.62x51.  I'll have to be careful when hunting since I usually set up a 5" maximum deviation point blank zero so it is just point and click whereas this one will be +/- 10" to 250 yards.  Granted that is a realistic target size for a whitetail but I prefer to allow myself some margin for error since I tend to mess things up frequently.

Oh, and verifying my zero at 200 yards I did something I couldn't repeat if you gave me another ten thousand rounds; I landed my two shots about a half inch from each other.  This new lot of the Barnes VOR-TX was holding 21fps ES and 11fps SD over the chrono which is better than my handloads.  Yeesh; it was shooting like a laser beam.

ETA: Dammit I just was playing around with Applied Ballistics and turns out a 200M zero for this gun is a 25 yard zero.  Shit that would have made things easier than trying to hold good groups at 200 yards and get them centered a bit high of POA to set up a 218yd/200M zero.  Eh, you live you learn.

I can't see the illumination in daylight, (outdoors).
No where near as bright as an Aimpoint.

Fair enough.  I don't think I have tried to use the illumination on a super bright day and never intended to.  I wanted the illumination to aid in low light deer hunting and just use the reticle as is when there is enough light to see it.  FWIW I can see the illumination just fine on mine right now (noon, overcast) however you are correct that it is not anywhere near as bright as an aimpoint.  I guess the definition of good depends on what you want it to do.

 

FWIW I did a lot of research prior to buying and the consensus seems to be that a true red dot capable 1-nX optic does not exist in about any price range. So, that was ruled out as a design requirement on my purchase. Instead I think LaRue mounts and carrying both optics is a fine solution.

For hunting in very close quarters I use a T1 and then when the terrain opens up I switch. it is not much of an issue since the miniRDS is so small and light.