I recently bought the 3.5 MOA dot model with a cross-slot mount. Here are my early impressions:
Advantages
- The sight is extremely light, but very solidly and robustly built.
- The lens is completely clear, none of that greenish or yellowish cast that some red dots have.
- It turns off by itself after five minutes of inactivity, but springs instantly to life when you pick it up.
- The intensity of the dot varies according to light conditions, though it seems a little over bright in the covered bays of the range.
- Settings are retained by a pair of set screws, so they presumably will not change due to recoil and handling.
Drawbacks
- Elevation and windage are adjusted by turning tiny little screws (wrench provided.) The recesses are so shallow it's often difficult to tell when the wrench has purchase.
- There are no adjustment clicks. You have to eyeball the adjustment using the little lines radiating away from the screw recesses. Since each line moves the dot 7.5 MOA, it is difficult to adjust it precisely and easy to overcompensate. A further difficulty is that the screws provide very little resistance and you sometimes can't tell if the wrench is gripping, as noted above.
- The set screws, though theoretically an advantage, have to be loosened then tightened after each adjustment, which makes for a pretty tedious sight in procedure.
I initially had a lot of trouble getting it zeroed. Adjusting windage also seemed to affect elevation, and vice versa. A call to Leupold resolved this. The tech advised that only one set screw at a time should be loosened, otherwise the other adjustment screw may move slightly on its own. Also, it's important to only loosen the set screw by half a turn. This permits the adjustment screw to retain a slight degree of resistance. Even so, sight in is a fairly painstaking job.
At 25 yds the 3.5 MOA dot basically covers the 10 ring of a 5" target, a bit large for great precision, particularly given its brightness. However, for any target of about 2" or larger it is fine. The target size issue would be correspondingly greater with the 7.5 MOA model. Supposedly you can use the tip of the delta point reticle on that model for more precise aiming. Not having used one I can't say for sure, but I suspect the brightness might make that a better idea in theory than in practice.
The best thing about this sight is its extreme light weight and simplicity. No switches, no adjustments (beyond the original zeroing.) Pick it up and you're good to go. You will have to make your own judgment as to whether this is worth its not inconsiderable price.
Advantages
- The sight is extremely light, but very solidly and robustly built.
- The lens is completely clear, none of that greenish or yellowish cast that some red dots have.
- It turns off by itself after five minutes of inactivity, but springs instantly to life when you pick it up.
- The intensity of the dot varies according to light conditions, though it seems a little over bright in the covered bays of the range.
- Settings are retained by a pair of set screws, so they presumably will not change due to recoil and handling.
Drawbacks
- Elevation and windage are adjusted by turning tiny little screws (wrench provided.) The recesses are so shallow it's often difficult to tell when the wrench has purchase.
- There are no adjustment clicks. You have to eyeball the adjustment using the little lines radiating away from the screw recesses. Since each line moves the dot 7.5 MOA, it is difficult to adjust it precisely and easy to overcompensate. A further difficulty is that the screws provide very little resistance and you sometimes can't tell if the wrench is gripping, as noted above.
- The set screws, though theoretically an advantage, have to be loosened then tightened after each adjustment, which makes for a pretty tedious sight in procedure.
I initially had a lot of trouble getting it zeroed. Adjusting windage also seemed to affect elevation, and vice versa. A call to Leupold resolved this. The tech advised that only one set screw at a time should be loosened, otherwise the other adjustment screw may move slightly on its own. Also, it's important to only loosen the set screw by half a turn. This permits the adjustment screw to retain a slight degree of resistance. Even so, sight in is a fairly painstaking job.
At 25 yds the 3.5 MOA dot basically covers the 10 ring of a 5" target, a bit large for great precision, particularly given its brightness. However, for any target of about 2" or larger it is fine. The target size issue would be correspondingly greater with the 7.5 MOA model. Supposedly you can use the tip of the delta point reticle on that model for more precise aiming. Not having used one I can't say for sure, but I suspect the brightness might make that a better idea in theory than in practice.
The best thing about this sight is its extreme light weight and simplicity. No switches, no adjustments (beyond the original zeroing.) Pick it up and you're good to go. You will have to make your own judgment as to whether this is worth its not inconsiderable price.
