So your looking for a decent red dot on the VERY cheap, that will work, not break (easily), with a decent brightness and from a company with a great costumer service, then im sure you have probably ran into a few posts online, or heard from people about a company called Primary Arms.
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Primary Arms Classic Red dot
in a American Defense
QD mount |
When I purchased this optic I couldn't find any awesome, detailed reviews that were full of pictures, and had honest truths about it after use, so here is a full review on this budget red dot.
I purchased the Primary Arms Classic red dot in November of 2013, and have now put roughly 300 rounds down range using it, and while at first I was a little bummed, I did find a easy fix for it and now it is a smooth running red dot.
Out of the box this thing looks great, nice and clean, full metal body, flip caps etc. but the packaging does shows the price. The optic shipped in a small brown box inside was the red dot, cleaning cloth, 2 sets of batteries (one in the optic, and extra in the box) and an aimpoint style bikini cap holder. Right out of the box I could tell this optic was built better then some other budget optics, but I did find myself wishing for at least one more level of brightness in the optic.
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Battery cap with streched
spring |
The first range trip with the optic and about 4 rounds down range with my AR the optic shut off. I fiddled with the optic for a second and was able to get it to come back on, fired another round and it was off again. I was pretty disappointed at this point. I pulled the battery out, grabbed my Gerber multi-tool, and proceeded to stretch the spring in the battery compartment to see if maybe that could be the problem. After the procedure the optic worked good, and I have not had this issue since.
This optic also has the option of using 2 different types of batteries which I thought was a pretty cool feature, you can use (and Primary arms ships to you) LR44 batteries, or you can also use DL1/3N batteries if you have aimpoints and want to keep them the same.
The red dot lenses, while not as clear as an aimpoint, is way better then the other optics in its price range. Only with a ever so slight blue tint, its not enough to bother me. The red dot features an ultra sharp 3 moa dot, and the dot is bright enough to see on a sunny Northern Nevada day, though as I stated before, I do wish it had just 1 more level as I have to run this on the highest setting on the bright days, so it might not be the brightest choice for some environments.
Also, you do have to purchase a mount for the optic as one does not come with it. I did happen to have an Aimpoint QRP2 mount, which is where it resides now as my back up optic.
While I would not want to do a full on torture test of this optic, I have dropped my rifle (on accident) onto the ground (Cement and Hard dirt and rocks) with the optic on the rifle and have not found any damage. While I do believe it could sustain some bangs and bumps, I am not willing to bet that it will hold up as an aimpoint or other high end optic would.
This optic has a feel of a $160 red dot, for a price point of about $70, so I would have to recommend this optic to anyone looking at red dots like the Vortex Strikefire, Bushnell, Sightmark etc. just because of the plain fact of how much you get for such a little price.
Ill give this a 4 out of 5 because of price, and build quality, but I do wish it had 1 more brightness setting.
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Primary Arms Classic Red dot:
https://www.primaryarms.com/Primary-Arms-30mm-Red-Dot-p/primary-arms-30mm-red-dot.htm
Price: $69.99 + shipping
Details (taken from site):
Our original weapons grade red dot sight with the classic shape,
3 MOA Dot, Eye Relief: Unlimited,
Optical Coating: Anti-reflex,
Uses 2 LR44 batteries, 4 batteries included,
Battery Life: 200+ hours,
Water proof - shock proof,
7 brightness levels,
Anodized aluminum tube,
Parallax free past 50 yards,
Length: 4 7/8-Inch,
Width: 2.2-Inch,
Height: 2.2-Inch,
Ring Size: 30mm,
Weight: 5 7/8 oz,
Weight in Low Mount: 7 5/8 oz,
Weight in High Mount: 9 1/8 oz,
Flip-up caps included,
One year warranty.
Mount optional
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