View Full Version : Original Aimpoint
http://networkedblogs.com/yq4ER
Enjoy.
JR TACTICAL
06-06-12, 02:53
Thats crazy, its amazing the transformation they have gone through, I run a T1 and am very happy with it. Thanks for posting
This is not the original Aimpoint. The original came out in 1975, this is the G2 model.
http://www.aimpoint.com/products/discontinued-sights/product-singleview/product/Electronic/
Thanks for the correction.
All of this stuff is waaay before my time anyway.
Thanks for the correction.
All of this stuff is waaay before my time anyway.
All these old farts have me beat as well, I'm only 21. I just happened to be looking at the older models a couple weeks ago so it was still fresh in my memory.
This is not the original Aimpoint. The original came out in 1975, this is the G2 model.
I had no idea Aimpoint RDS have been around since 1975. Learned something new, thanks.
It's definitely an interesting topic to research, I was quiet surprised with my findings. The first patent filed for a "reflex" sight was right around 1900 by Howard Grubb. By 1918 the Germans had them mounted on their fighter planes. Here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reflex_sight) is the wiki page if your interested in reading more about it.
I have several old aimpoints. My newest one is a Comp M, haha.
Larry Vickers
06-13-12, 06:46
When I was in a particular US Army spec ops unit I was first issued an Aimpoint 2000- overall a very rugged red dot sight with a 1 inch tube- you had to be careful to make sure the plastic adjustment caps were in place or it would allow moisture in and eventually fog the optic
The Aimpoint 3000 came along and it was a dog; worst one I ever remember - the dot intensity adjustment knob would break off very easy
The 5000 made the jump to a bigger tube and bigger field of view- it was still long compared to what followed- the Comp series was first brought out for competition shooting ( I got my first one from Rob Leatham) and looked to be nothing more than a shortened 5000
Not too long after the US Army adopted the Aimpoint as the M68 close combat optic- the real problem with it was in order to get a longer battery life it was too dim on its brightest setting in certain conditions- this was one of the things that led my unit to start looking at Eotech
About the time Eotechs were bought, and the first zero shift issues with those came out, I found out that Aimpoint had upgraded the M68 to a much brighter red dot so the main complaint had been answered- unfortunately, for whatever reason, this new version carried the same M68 designation as the old one ( instead of something like M68A1)- so unless you knew the serial number range where the new ones started you didn't know what you were getting when issued an M68- believe it or not this one seemingly little oversight could have dramatically changed the red dot market as we know it today- an M68A1 could have made a huge impact right when the Eotech QC issues were coming to a head
Of course the Aimpoints being made today are the best ever in the history of the company- the Comp M4 series and my beloved Micro are the finest red dot optics the world has ever known
Like I said in the Aimpoint commercial ( a line I came up with) ; In the world of red dot sights there's Aimpoint and then there's everything else
Be safe
LAV
Apricotshot
06-13-12, 07:24
My dad recently gave me his old Mini-14 with a Mark III Aimpoint on it. Highspeed for 1983.
Barry in IN
06-14-12, 11:22
The MkIII is the first one I had. I bought it at a closed gun shop auction in, I think, 1985. I got it for around $100; I think they ran about $175 then.
I ordered an Aimpoint gooseneck carry handle mount from Natchez Shooting Supplies and mounted it on my SP1 AR. Having an AR back then was unusual around here. Having the Aimpoint was downright bizarre.
I rolled a running rabbit with it within a day or so and thought it was the greatest sight on the planet.
The MkIII, if I'm not mistaken, is basically the one in the link modified to having internal adjustments instead of having them in the base.
Aside from the soft plastic caps, it seemed to be a pretty rugged sight. Battery life was poor, but that was expected then. That battery was not easy to get back then, though.
It is odd looking through that small diameter thing now. It's like looking through a 7/8" .22 scope. I had to work at it to keep both eyes open.
I still have mine. I was just recently thinking about putting it on a 10-22 or maybe a Browning takedown .22 rifle. Not a thing wrong with it for that.
For that matter, I still have a Comp on one of my regular ARs. Not a Comp M or Comp C, but a Comp.
I still have my complete, functioning Aimpoint MK 3. I also have the 3X screw in magnifier for it. Dont know what to do with it.
About the time Eotechs were bought, and the first zero shift issues with those came out, I found out that Aimpoint had upgraded the M68 to a much brighter red dot so the main complaint had been answered- unfortunately, for whatever reason, this new version carried the same M68 designation as the old one ( instead of something like M68A1)- so unless you knew the serial number range where the new ones started you didn't know what you were getting when issued an M68- believe it or not this one seemingly little oversight could have dramatically changed the red dot market as we know it today- an M68A1 could have made a huge impact right when the Eotech QC issues were coming to a head
I think the DOD is now on the 3rd or 4th generation of M68 optics. We should be on something like the M68A3 by now.
I actually bought one of the G2 models recently, used but seems to be working. I have it on my M1a but haven't fired it yet.
I bought it for fun, i only payed about USD 20, but if it works properly i'll defintely use it.
Weird story about your M68's! Usually the military is painfully good at changing stuff like that...
wtheesfeld
07-05-12, 22:57
I still have my complete, functioning Aimpoint MK 3. I also have the 3X screw in magnifier for it. Dont know what to do with it.
Well you donate it to me, of course! :p
The MkIII is the first one I had. I bought it at a closed gun shop auction in, I think, 1985. I got it for around $100; I think they ran about $175 then.
I ordered an Aimpoint gooseneck carry handle mount from Natchez Shooting Supplies and mounted it on my SP1 AR. Having an AR back then was unusual around here. Having the Aimpoint was downright bizarre.
I rolled a running rabbit with it within a day or so and thought it was the greatest sight on the planet.
The MkIII, if I'm not mistaken, is basically the one in the link modified to having internal adjustments instead of having them in the base.
Aside from the soft plastic caps, it seemed to be a pretty rugged sight. Battery life was poor, but that was expected then. That battery was not easy to get back then, though.
It's still hard to find.
I'm curious--if the Mk2 was the first red dot in 1975, what was the Mk1?
I still run a ML2 on one of my carbines. Got it for a steal around 6-7 years ago and have had no issues with it.
Doc. Holiday
09-14-12, 15:07
Wow, talkin about old school. It's amazing how far we have come.
That's crazy. 1975 on the first model? I never would have believed it. I wonder how many they made and how many are still functional today.
I remember reading in Gun World magazines in the late 70s and seeing pictures of shooters installing the early Aimpoints on PPC style K frame revolvers in the Bianchi Cup matches. The whole rig was huge, I bet it was heavy, but soaked up the recoil of those puny .38 spl loads.
I remember reading in Gun World magazines in the late 70s and seeing pictures of shooters installing the early Aimpoints on PPC style K frame revolvers in the Bianchi Cup matches. The whole rig was huge, I bet it was heavy, but soaked up the recoil of those puny .38 spl loads.
I had such a setup and yes it was heavy. I still have the sight. Even the early ones were put together pretty stoutly, so I wouldn't be surprised to find a lot of them still working.
mskdgunman
09-16-12, 10:23
I had one of these early Aimpoints mounted on my very first AR-15 I bought back in 1987 in Jax. It was the shit back in the day. I wish I knew what happened to it. I figured it got lost in one of a dozen moves. I still have the AR but it's been through some changes since then :D
I didn't know that AimPoint has been in business since 1975 either. My first red dot was an AimPoint, which I purchased in 1996. They've come a long way, and Micro's ride on my rifles now.
KrampusArms
09-21-12, 23:34
Anybody have a picture of this thing mounted on a rifle?
sinlessorrow
10-12-12, 15:19
Very coll OP, i had no idea aimpoint had been around so long.
I think the DOD is now on the 3rd or 4th generation of M68 optics. We should be on something like the M68A3 by now.
Last I heard the Army started with the M4, and have now moved to the M4s.
I'm curious--if the Mk2 was the first red dot in 1975, what was the Mk1?...
As I recall, the first Aimpoint was a tube with a fiber optic in it which gathered ambient light to make the dot. You had to shoot with both eyes open. One eye picked up the red dot and the other picked up the target (the sight blocked the view to the target) and your brain merged the two views into one with the dot floating on the target.
I am a battery-phobe when it comes to firearms. My first Aimpoint is an H1 which I bought almost a year ago and I am very satisfied with it's performance and very impressed with it's battery life thus far. Aimpoint technology has certainly come a long way
I do think that those sights weren't Aimpoints, i think they were Singlepoint sights.
The first sight available commercially were the Aimpoint Electronic.
Look here:
http://www.aimpoint.com/about-aimpoint/history/
And almost repeating myself I did pick up one of these too a few weeks ago. I haven't tried it out yet though.
I have been thinking about mounting it to my M1A but the mount I have won't let me mount it without changing out one of the attachment screws.
Old skool is nice :)
As I recall, the first Aimpoint was a tube with a fiber optic in it which gathered ambient light to make the dot. You had to shoot with both eyes open. One eye picked up the red dot and the other picked up the target (the sight blocked the view to the target) and your brain merged the two views into one with the dot floating on the target.
I am a battery-phobe when it comes to firearms. My first Aimpoint is an H1 which I bought almost a year ago and I am very satisfied with it's performance and very impressed with it's battery life thus far. Aimpoint technology has certainly come a long way
Just be aware of the battery differences between the early Aimpoints and more modern ones. They don't use CR123's, though if you try hard enough, like a buddy did, you can shove them in to one. Good luck getting them out....
This thread's got me thinking about putting my old school Aimpoint back on an SP1. Think I'll have to do that.
sinlessorrow
10-18-12, 16:58
The aimpoit website has every aimpoint eer made on it.
http://www.aimpoint.com/products/discontinued-sights/product-singleview/product/Electronic/
Just be aware of the battery differences between the early Aimpoints and more modern ones. They don't use CR123's, though if you try hard enough, like a buddy did, you can shove them in to one. Good luck getting them out....
This thread's got me thinking about putting my old school Aimpoint back on an SP1. Think I'll have to do that.
Good point, the CR2's works but you need a small conductive spacer as they are somewhat too short.
Just do it :)
Good point, the CR2's works but you need a small conductive spacer as they are somewhat too short.
Just do it :)
You can make a 123 work, you just need to cut off the plastic outershell.
http://www.nitevis.com/Aimpoint_9000L_detail.htm
You can make a 123 work, you just need to cut off the plastic outershell.
http://www.nitevis.com/Aimpoint_9000L_detail.htm
I tried it earlier today without success, the plastic coating might be different on different batteries but on the Duracell 123 I tested it on the metal casing was too thick to fit my Aimpoint Electronic.
ramairthree
10-20-12, 14:23
Sometime between 87-89 I got an aim point 1000.
It used a 357 battery, and continued to work until a couple of years ago when the switch broke off. It would still work, but you had to use a needle nose to switch it. I sold it to someone rebuilding their's. I hope my micro lasts as long!
paco ramirez
10-29-12, 21:56
I picked these up brand new in box a few days ago and remembered seeing this thread.
http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc6/281553_4215120091011_1348172387_n.jpg
http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/64573_4216882335066_18185303_n.jpg
ramairthree
10-30-12, 16:21
Old school cool!
Would be awesome to have an original on a rifle of the same time period. How much do they go for if you can even find one?
Would be awesome to have an original on a rifle of the same time period. How much do they go for if you can even find one?
Look around eBay, I see them theree quite frequently. I just checked, there are a few there now.
I found an almost NIB old skool 3X last week here in Sweden and I paid 25 bucks for it :)
SousEstime
11-15-12, 14:08
As I recall, the first Aimpoint was a tube with a fiber optic in it which gathered ambient light to make the dot. You had to shoot with both eyes open. One eye picked up the red dot and the other picked up the target (the sight blocked the view to the target) and your brain merged the two views into one with the dot floating on the target.
I am a battery-phobe when it comes to firearms. My first Aimpoint is an H1 which I bought almost a year ago and I am very satisfied with it's performance and very impressed with it's battery life thus far. Aimpoint technology has certainly come a long way
First post here, figured this is as good a place as any to start...
As 2Sharp mentioned, those are OEGs. Singlepoint produced them in the 70s and in the 80s Armson produced an improved, smaller OEG. I picked up a Singlepoint earlier this year (even came with the original box!), a really neat piece of retro equipment. I've got it put in my pile of other firearms odds and ends, saving it for a Son Tay Raider GAU-5A/A build.
http://i.imgur.com/RVrk0.jpg
If you folks haven't seen the old Oxford white dots, they're also pretty cool. Ran off 2 AA batteries, projected a white dot instead of the now standard red.
That thing is top.. and at $25?? I might be on the 'bay soon.
Wow I thought my m68 was old compared to some of the new stuff. This is great.
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