Every time I read something about the Dr. Optic it is combined with a TA01NSN. I'm thinking of buying the TA01. Can it be mounted on this scope too?

Can it be done?  Sure, but there are no commercially availible mounts for it.  How handy are you? I bet if you got a SpecWarGear.com NSN/optima mount you could make a bottom ring that would clamp around the objective lense housing of your TA01.  

I almost forgot.  One member used a commercially availaible Doc Optic shotgun mount and screwed it to the sun shade portion of his TA01 so that the Docter was over the occualr lense.  I'll tyr to find you a link.  It looked like it worked rally well.  It put the dot sight a little further from the shoots eye like it should be.

[url]http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=3&f=18&t=159890[/url]

There is a pic of a red dot on a TA01 at the bottom of this link.

If you look at the newer TA01s you will see that they have the mounts for the NSN backup sights, the clamp groove in the rear and the dovetail in the front. They just don't install the backup sights at the factory.

Makes sense actually. Why maintain two sets of forging dies, one for the TA01 and another for the TA01NSN? A single die for both is cheaper and simpler.

So, I suspect that any pre fab mount designed for the TA01NSN would also fit a newer model TA01.

[img]www.bushmaster.com/shopping/scopes/Images/ta01.jpg[/img]

in the pic of the TA01 above there are no "lugs" on the occular housing to accept the Rear iron sight.  It is the lugs that the Optima mounts attach to.

Yeah,

You are right inkaybee, the mount I was thinking of was the one that mounted the Dr. Optic on the front, using the dovetail.

it's an optima, not dr.
if anyone knows of a useful dr optic mount, let me know. i used the jp shotgun barrel mount and a lot of elbow grease!
i considered making a protective guard (a'la eotech and oko mil/le versions) but i haven't come up with a material strong enough to be useful- that i could work to a professional finish with hand tools.

i'll take it apart and try to get some detailed pics in the next day or so.

[img]http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid61/p8df64272905f2066362ec072ff52046c/fc384d15.jpg[/img]

advantages:
-the ta01 is less costly, and may currently be more available than the ta01nsn. no useless tritium front buis sight.
-the sunshade mount is relatively easy to fabricate. a few strokes with a file and that vestigal rib on the later model ta01 is gone.
-the sunshade mount puts the dot optic away from your eye for better f.o.v and faster dot pick up.
-mounts low.
-rock solid.
-when using the primary optic, the sunshade mount is away from the tender flesh of your forehead.
-looks trim. like i was meant to be there.

disadvantages:
-only optima mounts available at this time. iirc jp has discontinued production of their shotgun barrel mount.
-only for the bold. you [u]will[/u] be drilling holes in a $600 optic.

i believe i still have my clamp-on mount from gj. if anyone is interested in it, email me.

[img]http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid30/pc3d18baf2947c8fd7c0b8d939f2e8397/fd577b97.jpg[/img]