We have been meaning to write this for a while as we get so many questions about what dot size if best for USPSA/IPSC competition. Here are our thoughts:
Most high level competitors are using 6 and 8 MOA dots. Historically for us, it's a 60 % 8 MOA to 40 % 6 MOA split. Between the two, it is a matter of personal preference but the 8 MOA will definitely outperform the 6 MOA in very bright outdoor conditions. The extra reserve brightness of the 8 MOA dots are really noticeable under sunlight conditions in FL, AZ, TX etc.
Recently, we have been getting demand from some top shooters for even larger dots. That led to the release of the 10 MOA and then the 12 MOA dots. On the surface, this sounds like they would be too big and accuracy would suffer but the actual results have been noticeable improvements in performance. How could that be?
First off, the human eye has an easier time tracking larger objects. Not only can we track them better, we also perceive them to be going slower than a smaller object going the same speed. In a sport that emphasizes speed with a large A zone, this provides for a significant advantage. Our eyes can more easily find a larger dot, we can track it easier under recoil and we perceive the dot to not be moving as much when we try to settle it enough to make a shot. In USPSA/IPSC those are all formulas to go faster. We just need an acceptable sight picture and a trigger pull that doesn't move the dot out of the A zone and we score maximum points. Top level shooters shoot the dot as it is moving, they do not wait for it to fully stop unless it is an extremely difficult shot requires that level of accuracy. Take someone from Iron sights to a red dot on the same gun and 90 % of the time they go slower? Why is that? The answer is they wait for a perfect shot which takes more time than they did with iron sights.
The FTP Alpha 3 also has one of the crispest dots in the game. Simply put, since the dot is bigger and brighter, you do not need to turn it up to the point it flares like many smaller 2.5-4.5 MOA dots. When you turn a small dot up to make it brigher, it flares into a star or other bizarre shape. Trying to aim with a star or track a star under recoil is not ideal. It's also hard to aim with a shape like that. It is much better to have a crisp round dot that has a defined edge. In fact, with our largest dots, you can often turn it down to a point that you can even see through the dot and yet still see the nice crisp round shape. You cannot do that with the smaller dots. We actually have come to call our 12 MOA dot the "crisper" as the dot it ridiculously crip. We have seen other brands where the dot isn't even circular. Some are figure 8's lying on their sides. We don't even know how you zero with something like that. That is often an issue with emitter size and shape and a small # of emitters is cheaper to make but you don't get a good shape definition.
Fact:
About 95 % of our customers that try our larger dots never go back to a small one.
Why Doesn't Everyone Else Make Larger Dots If They Are So Good?
It all boils down to consumer base. Larger dots are great for USPSA and IPSC but they are not ideal for rifles and plinkers which make up the largest customer base for red dots. Large, bright dots also are harder on battery life and everyone wants to advertise a huge battery life to the "tacticool" crowd. Competition shooters just don't matter very much to optics companies as the customer base is too small. They would rather make a small MOA dot that people can put on anything and it will be OK but not great on everything. It also costs a lot more to keep inventory of multiple dot sizes instead of just 1 or 2.
We hope you find this information helpful. We do realize that personal preferences do come into play and some people have eye issues that can can cause unforseen issues.
Keep them in the A zone
Most high level competitors are using 6 and 8 MOA dots. Historically for us, it's a 60 % 8 MOA to 40 % 6 MOA split. Between the two, it is a matter of personal preference but the 8 MOA will definitely outperform the 6 MOA in very bright outdoor conditions. The extra reserve brightness of the 8 MOA dots are really noticeable under sunlight conditions in FL, AZ, TX etc.
Recently, we have been getting demand from some top shooters for even larger dots. That led to the release of the 10 MOA and then the 12 MOA dots. On the surface, this sounds like they would be too big and accuracy would suffer but the actual results have been noticeable improvements in performance. How could that be?
First off, the human eye has an easier time tracking larger objects. Not only can we track them better, we also perceive them to be going slower than a smaller object going the same speed. In a sport that emphasizes speed with a large A zone, this provides for a significant advantage. Our eyes can more easily find a larger dot, we can track it easier under recoil and we perceive the dot to not be moving as much when we try to settle it enough to make a shot. In USPSA/IPSC those are all formulas to go faster. We just need an acceptable sight picture and a trigger pull that doesn't move the dot out of the A zone and we score maximum points. Top level shooters shoot the dot as it is moving, they do not wait for it to fully stop unless it is an extremely difficult shot requires that level of accuracy. Take someone from Iron sights to a red dot on the same gun and 90 % of the time they go slower? Why is that? The answer is they wait for a perfect shot which takes more time than they did with iron sights.
The FTP Alpha 3 also has one of the crispest dots in the game. Simply put, since the dot is bigger and brighter, you do not need to turn it up to the point it flares like many smaller 2.5-4.5 MOA dots. When you turn a small dot up to make it brigher, it flares into a star or other bizarre shape. Trying to aim with a star or track a star under recoil is not ideal. It's also hard to aim with a shape like that. It is much better to have a crisp round dot that has a defined edge. In fact, with our largest dots, you can often turn it down to a point that you can even see through the dot and yet still see the nice crisp round shape. You cannot do that with the smaller dots. We actually have come to call our 12 MOA dot the "crisper" as the dot it ridiculously crip. We have seen other brands where the dot isn't even circular. Some are figure 8's lying on their sides. We don't even know how you zero with something like that. That is often an issue with emitter size and shape and a small # of emitters is cheaper to make but you don't get a good shape definition.
Fact:
About 95 % of our customers that try our larger dots never go back to a small one.
Why Doesn't Everyone Else Make Larger Dots If They Are So Good?
It all boils down to consumer base. Larger dots are great for USPSA and IPSC but they are not ideal for rifles and plinkers which make up the largest customer base for red dots. Large, bright dots also are harder on battery life and everyone wants to advertise a huge battery life to the "tacticool" crowd. Competition shooters just don't matter very much to optics companies as the customer base is too small. They would rather make a small MOA dot that people can put on anything and it will be OK but not great on everything. It also costs a lot more to keep inventory of multiple dot sizes instead of just 1 or 2.
We hope you find this information helpful. We do realize that personal preferences do come into play and some people have eye issues that can can cause unforseen issues.
Keep them in the A zone
