I just got done putting together my AR and have started looking for a good set of optics. I'm still a ways away from any final purchase but I've started somewhat narrowing down my options. The rifle is a free floated 16" SS CAR A4, , so I'm guessing my maximum range would be about 350 yards, give or take. Here are the options I have considered so far:

EOTech 512 or 522. I like the idea of a rugged, easy to use aiming device that mounts directly onto my flat top. No need for rings or a $150 mount since I have flip ups in the front and rear.

ACOG TAO1NSN. I've heard both good and bad about ACOGs. I like the idea of not having to worry about batteries and the backup/close range sight on the top. I've seen them for $800 but I heard that they are backordered beyond belief in most places.

US Optics SN-12. The idea of throwing my scope across a parking lot and not having it break appeals to me. I've read two reviews praising the scope but have yet to find any place online that stocks them. I don't like the idea that with an illuminated redicle and rings, the cost would be well in excess of $1100.

Nightforce NXS 1-4 X 24. Also on the pricy end of the spectrum. I haven't heard much about it since it's new. I don't think Nightforce even has it on their website yet.

Any others I should be considering and which one would you pick for my AR?

1. TA11.   The TA11 and TA31 are superior to the TA01* because they have the BAC reticle.   The TA11 has more flexible eye relief than the TA31/01.

2. Aimpoint M2.    It has a more consistent reliability record than the EOTech, and the batteries last forever.

-z

I concur with Zak.

i just depends... if you want to be very fast an aimpoint is what you want... it'll be a very good optic from 0-250+ on human targets...

acogs are very nice as well from aout 50m-600m...  but they also cost a grand...

usally i've found that you build a gun around an optic not the other way around...  trying to match up an optic to your gun is a lot harder than knowing what an optic requires and then building one...  

if i was you since you have a SS barrel... contour it to SPR... then make it a small lightweight portable sniper rifle... put a nice long range optic on it...  put a magpul on it constant cheek weld... cut it to 14.5in and put a vortex so you have no signature...

add a match trigger with KNS pins...

"if i was you since you have a SS barrel... contour it to SPR... then make it a small lightweight portable sniper rifle... put a nice long range optic on it... put a magpul on it constant cheek weld... cut it to 14.5in and put a vortex so you have no signature...

add a match trigger with KNS pins... "


DUDE stop...I'm pitching wood.


This sounds like a great idea.  I'm going to have to do that!

I have an Aimpoint, an Eotech (N battery one, NV capable), and a Trij TA01NSN.  I like them all, and I also like open sights.  I also used to have a Trij Reflex which was good and useable but I did not really like the slightly offset visual field, the relatively dark background, and the "washout" effect in certain bright light situations.

There is no "universal sight."  Maybe the large-aperature A2 rear sight and a blaze-orange painted front post is the best true "universal sight."  Works from 3 feet to infinity.

My "fantasy sight" would be a TA31 w/donut reticle but in 1.5x or 2x.  What I sometimes dislike about my TA01NSN and the TA31's is that the 4x is a bit too strong for really close-up use.  I hate the blurriness of a too-much-magnification optic on close targets.  Some of your most important shots are close ones.  But I love the reticle and no-battery feature of the TA31, and the overall high quality.  It would also be nice to have the TA01NSN's backup sights on top of a TA31, but I hate sights where I have to lift my face off the stock, losing a cheekweld.

Alternatively, if an Eotech was made in 1.5x that used a red fiber-optic instead of batteries to power the lighted reticle, that would really appeal to me too.

If I had to use only one?  Hmm.   Might have to be an Eotech.

But all of the sights mentioned above are good, as are others not covered.  It's really all a matter pf taste.  Try as many as you can, in actual shooting conditions, as possible, before you commit.

Ted

I would keep it at 16in.  put a vortex.  get a LaRue scope mount and get  a Nightforce 2.5-10x24 on it with NP-R2 reticle.  and you have a Recce clone like this one Recce Clone

you have a light sniper platform.

Remman

I'm waiting on a 16" rifle right now.  If I wasn't swapping my TA31 from my 20" to it, I'd be getting an Aimpoint for it, with flip-up sights front and back.  Now that I know you can use an Aimpoint as a big ghost-ring sight if the dot goes dark, I no longer fear optics powered by batteries.

Quoted: I hate the blurriness of a too-much-magnification optic on close targets.  Some of your most important shots are close ones.  But I love the reticle and no-battery feature of the TA31, and the overall high quality.  It would also be nice to

Try a TA11...

-z

Quoted: "if i was you since you have a SS barrel... contour it to SPR... then make it a small lightweight portable sniper rifle... put a nice long range optic on it... cut it to 14.5in..."

Cutting a barrel down to 14.5" defeats the purpose of using it as an SPR. SPR barrels are typically 18" long. I'd stick with a 16" SS barrel and put a Vortex or Phantom on it. Either the Aimpoint or the EOtech would be fine for what you will do with it.
If you can AFFORD the Nightforce, I say go for it. The USOptics scopes are nice too.

Quoted: My "fantasy sight" would be a TA31 w/donut reticle but in 1.5x or 2x.  What I sometimes dislike about my TA01NSN and the TA31's is that the 4x is a bit too strong for really close-up use.  I hate the blurriness of a too-much-magnification optic on close targets.  Some of your most important shots are close ones.  But I love the reticle and no-battery feature of the TA31, and the overall high quality.  It would also be nice to have the TA01NSN's backup sights on top of a TA31, but I hate sights where I have to lift my face off the stock, losing a cheekweld.

Are you describing the Compact ACOG series?  They have long eye relief and the magnification is not strong.  It's fiber-optic and it's cheaper than the full-sized ACOG series.

The back up sights on the NSN are worthless. I can hold a better group point shooting.

Aimpoint

Wow, thanks for all the replies. The Recce clone is actually something I based my rifle off of, but wanted something I could also pick up off the ground and clear a house for example. I'll probably end up giving Adco a call in the next few weeks and have them reprofile the barrel since the gun is a bit too front heavy for my taste. From everything I've heard so far, it looks like the ACOG TA31 or TA11 will probably be the way to go. Decent all around performance capable of being used both up close and at distant targets.
And don't worry, I'm not going to cut down the barrel.

me personally, i would go with the ta31 or the aimpoint. both i own and wouldnt trade them for nothing cause they're awesome optics.

a friends wife has  the 551 eotech and its cool at first (probably cause it was different) but then that goes away.

i am thinking about getting the red reticle nsn from swfa cause from what the description reads the whole crosshair is illuminated. i think this would be a nice addition to one of my carbines

but try looking through all of them first so you dont have to waste time trying to replace one for another

I do not believe the ACOG is good for up closework, whereas the AIMPOINT is perfect for that.  The magnififcation of the ACOG is definitely an advantage for target IDENTIFICATION at longer ranges, but an AIMPOINT is very accurate for aiming at all distances at which a 223 Rem is likely to be used (and beyond).  

AIMPOINTS are FAST and ACCURATE

Quoted: I do not believe the ACOG is good for up closework, whereas the AIMPOINT is perfect for that.  The magnififcation of the ACOG is definitely an advantage for target IDENTIFICATION at longer ranges, but an AIMPOINT is very accurate for aiming at all distances at which a 223 Rem is likely to be used (and beyond).   AIMPOINTS are FAST and ACCURATE

The ACOG is good for close in, just not for as many people as an Aimpoint or an Eotech.  The BAC is a more complex aiming concept that doesn't work as well for as many people as the relatively simple aiming concepts of the Aimpoint and the Eotech.

Quoted: I do not believe the ACOG is good for up closework, whereas the AIMPOINT is perfect for that.  The magnififcation of the ACOG is definitely an advantage for target IDENTIFICATION at longer ranges, but an AIMPOINT is very accurate for aiming at all distances at which a 223 Rem is likely to be used (and beyond).   AIMPOINTS are FAST and ACCURATE

If the original poster wants to shoot to 350 yards effectively at targets smaller than a full size silhouette, the ACOG is a better choice.

-z

I have a 552 on one, and 512's on two other 16" AR's.  

Recently got an IOR M2, which really amazes me... why didn't I get one of these before?  Just perfect for the AR-15.  If you have not looked at one of these, I urge you to check it out.   I never would have bought one just from seeing them in catalogs.  It was actually handling an AR-15 with an M2 that convinced me.