Primary Arms Red Dot?

[thopkins22]

I've only shot one of them, but the dot wasn't nearly as bright as an Aimpoint either.

Seems like a great solution for .22lr stuff.

[Jungo2]

Bear,
If you're really tight on cash (most people are these days) then Primary Arms is a good choice. I have some of their products and they offer an excellent cost-to-performance ratio. They do source their branded products from China, but the quality does exceed what one would normally expect out of a value-priced optic. This is an American company with a "customer first" approach. If you're not satisfied with the product or you have a problem, you're absolutely covered (I can vouch for this first-hand). Purchasing from Primary Arms is inexpensive and low-risk.

If you have a dynamic budget, then I'd refer you to the Equipment Exchange on this board and other similar forums. Some great deals are available on Eotechs, Aimpoints, Trijicons and other major optics manufacturers.
Hope this helps.

[DWood]

Why does everything have to revert to "it's not something you can bet your life on so it's crap"?

I just finished locktiting (is that even a word?) the screws that attach the riser to the PA Micro I got in the mail today. It's going on the dedicated 22LR upper that should be coming this week or next from Spike's. Not going to bet my like on that either.

"What is your purpose" is the question that begs asking when looking to purcahse new gear. Never shot a 22LR AR before, dedicated or conversion; hope this helps maintain my skills without breaking the bank. The pupose for my new set up is shooting my AR a lot, for a little $$, and this cheap RDS should do fine. And if it doesn't, no big deal. I can throw my T-1 on, but that's not the point.

[bearstalker]

I appreciate the responses from the guys who took time out of their day to answer a question that appears to have been asked a thousand times already (learned my lesson as I got an infraction).

And, irishluck73, I'm sorry. I was a smartass, but that is not who I am and I do apologize. I really do enjoy this website, and trust me, I've been reading quietly for almost two years before I registered.

[orionz06]

I have two, one rests on my .22 one is on my 5.56 Noveske upper. Rather than claiming to "run irons only" for whatever period, I accepted the fact that I would rather spend the money on handgun training and got something that would get me by until I get an H-1. It has seen around 1500 rounds, some in the rain, it has been tossed around in the hatch of my car (tearing up back roads and forgot about the gun) and it still holds its zero and works. It is not an Aimpoint, never will be an Aimpoint, but for $100, I am happy.

[petergun870]

They FAIL if your ok with that go ahead

[perna]

They FAIL if your ok with that go ahead

OH SORRY, I see that you have just been spamming the boards to up your post count so you can sell stuff on EE.

[99HMC4]

........

[opmike]

They FAIL if your ok with that go ahead

I'm sick of this crap. This isn't Arfcom or Glocktalk. PLEASE at least attempt to qualify your statements. If you're speaking from first hand experience, say it, and elaborate on what happened. If you're speaking from information you heard or read elsewhere, say it (and a link would be nice). If you never have used one, and have barely read anything about them, it might be a good idea to just be quiet and read. I have no stake in PA, or any other manufacturer for that matter. I'm simply tired of the lack of quality information. There's too much of, "I read it online from some guy who read about someone else who heard about it being junk." Hell, the item in question might be junk, but that's not necessarily the point of my little rant.

In any case,

I've been using an PA Microdot on my one of carbines for a while now. It's primarily seen a diet of .22LR, perhaps somewhere near 5,500 or so, as it's my loaner/training, plinker rig.

I'll get the obvious out of the way, and say that it is not as bright as an Aimpoint, doesn't have the battery life, the brightness selector is heavy and the detents aren't super positive. The exterior finish and overall construction is lower than Aimpoints as well, and they don't have any where near as extensive water proofing (especially the blems).

However, it has held zero, and is fulfilling its role nicely so far. The dot seems to be slightly larger than 4 MOA, but it is crisp. The lens coating has a slighter bluer hue than the Aimpoints, but it's not distracting. It is compatible with genuine Aimpoint mounts, however the location of the diode and the slightly taller body apparently will have issues for those who attempt to cowitness. If you order the PA riser, the microdot will cowitness properly. However, that mount is rather cheaply made, and is difficult to detach once you have it properly tightened. The Daniel Defense mount might be a good option to consider.

The particular carbine it is mounted will never see any serious use, and is for the range only. In that capacity, I'm more than satisfied with it. Especially factoring in the cost. I may be picking up another to toss on my Ruger MKII just for fun.

Personally, I will not mount it on my other carbine that sees serious use and is for home defense.

[perna]

You really cant blame people for instantly dismissing PA stuff, the staff here do it so you should expect it to continue.

If you go through all the threads about them, NO ONE is claiming they are a replacement or an equivalent to an aimpoint, but that ends up being why the threads get all out of hand. If those people would realize it is a great training optic which mimics an aimpoint at 1/5th of the cost, random people that have never used one would not be pissing all over them.

If someone is buying one and expecting aimpoint quality, well they are not informed and that is their own fault. I bet if they changed the case so it looked nothing like an aimpoint there would be less issues. So until people stop using "false economy" as the reason not to buy one, they will always be looked down upon for the wrong reason.