Rifle Scopes LPVO or Red dot/magnifier for SBR

[PPK007]

Currently I have a COMP m5s on my HK MR556 A4 11” SBR. The red dot isn’t crisp to my right eye anymore due to an astigmatism I have. It gets a little cleaner with my prescription sunglasses. I was debating putting a magnifier on it OR switching to an eotech with magnifier OR putting an LPVO like the NX8 on but don’t want to be overkill. I can say that the comp m5s with magnifier is the most expensive option with the eotech being cheapest. I can get the LPVO on expert voice for a percentage off. Is this overkill for a 11” gun?

 

[jaguar0405]

If you are dealing with astigmatism, like me, don't get a red dot or a holographic sight. Instead, I would recommend the Primary Arms 1x Microprism, which has an insane eye relief of 6 inches, allowing the use of a magnifier and filling the same role as the red dot while having the crisp reticle of a prismatic sight.

 

[PPK007]

I thought about ACOG as well. The LPVO works great for me but I just wasn’t sure if that was too much for an SBR.

 

[Vivacious Stallion]

If you already have the dot a magnifier maybe isn't a terrible idea. If you get something like the aimpoint 3x-c magnifier you can adjust the focus to account for your astigmatism. I run one behind a T2.

A good lpvo though is hard to beat for general use. The PA prisms are kinda cool, but I didn't keep mine.

 

[mmlook]

NX8 1-8 are pretty badass for the size and weight

 

[Entreri]

What is your primary use for the rifle?

 

[PPK007]

What is your primary use for the rifle?

With all my ARs I mostly shoot this out to 100-200 yards. Occasional indoor range use is at a max of 30 yards. This and my SR15 are my two favorite ARs to shoot, but this is kind of taking the lead so it’ll be my all around go to gun. I plan to suppress this eventually.

I thought about taking the ATACR off my SR15 to use for this honestly because I at first didn’t want more than one rifle with an LPVO but I’m open to getting an NX8 to run this with.

 

[dpb1776]

Is it home defense or for critters outdoors or general range use? I just built an 11.5 SBR few months ago I a running a Leupold MK4 1-4.5. Really like it so far ran the VXR patrol for years no issues, so this was a nice improvement. was going to go Eotech and Magnifier but chose this especially with a military discount. Scope is super lightweight and easy to get behind

 

[PPK007]

Is it home defense or for critters outdoors or general range use? I just built an 11.5 SBR few months ago I a running a Leupold MK4 1-4.5. Really like it so far ran the VXR patrol for years no issues, so this was a nice improvement. was going to go Eotech and Magnifier but chose this especially with a military discount. Scope is super lightweight and easy to get behind

This will be for general range use and home defense. I plan to get a B&T suppressor for it soon as well.

 

[RayDBonz]

I have an older NXS 1-4x24 on mine. Works fine.

 

[PPK007]

I have an older NXS 1-4x24 on mine. Works fine.

SBR?

At this time I’m leaning towards getting an NX8 for my HK. I’d like to try a magnifier with an Aimpoint to see if it at all crisps the dot but I’ll likely sell my comp m5.

 

[PPK007]

Tried my ATACR on the HK. Feels really well balanced actually , might be overkill but I like it. As much as I’d love to run a dot on this it’s just not working in my eye. For $250-$300 more I think the NX8 with mount is worth it over eotech with magnifier

 

[jaguar0405]

Tried my ATACR on the HK. Feels really well balanced actually , might be overkill but I like it. As much as I’d love to run a dot on this it’s just not working in my eye. For $250-$300 more I think the NX8 with mount is worth it over eotech with magnifier
View attachment 8734662

Looks good! And overkill is still a kill!

 

[dms416]

My hat is off to the folks who can run an RDO/Holo with a magnifier.
In my time trying to make it work, EVERY fucking time it's been fucking trash between the image with an Aimpoint or the impact shift or just the fucking garbage optical experience with even the "most forgiving" magnifiers...so bad that I almost just want to run a fucking EOTech in front of an LPVO instead. Even the ubber-expensive Wilcox/1minout couldn't free me of the fuckery.

I think a fast, forgiving solution is necessary for serious use but for most people they're going to have a lot more fun USING the gun with an LPVO (because let's face it, if it gets used it'll be flat range).

And despite all the armchair commando BS of "you never gonna legally use it real world beyond (insert < 100y distance)" I have never EVER said the following in my career as an armed professional:

"Gee...I didn't need to see this well"

Also 11.5" rifles with no can are lame...put a can on it, and LPVO it up

 

[TylerN]

Tried my ATACR on the HK. Feels really well balanced actually , might be overkill but I like it. As much as I’d love to run a dot on this it’s just not working in my eye. For $250-$300 more I think the NX8 with mount is worth it over eotech with magnifier
View attachment 8734662

the ATACR is better than I thought it would be on an SBR. Balances well, the 1X eye box it's fairly forgiving, and the illumination is bright enough for all daylight conditions.

 

[thedude824]

I’ve developed an astigmatism too and I’m not enjoying my MRO. I haven’t noticed the problem translating to my illuminated scope reticles. I’ve read that holographic sights are awesome for astigmatism, but I haven’t tried one since developing mine.
As far as the NX8 being overkill… FOR ME.. shooting tight groups at 100 yards requires at least 8x magnification for me. I’ve got a Trijicon Credo 1-6 on my 14.5” AR and it’s not enough mag for shooting small groups. The caveat.. I’ve got 3 NX8s and 2 ATACRs. The ATACRs ALWAYS have better eye relief. For your intended purpose I would absolutely grab an NX8. ESPECIALLY for a smaller package built for maneuverability. I bought all my NF scopes through ExpertVoice as well. I’d argue that the NX8 is literally built for your situation.
I tend to be one of those buy once cry once guys. I’m likely going to replace my Credo 1-6 with an NX8 on my 14.5”, replace the Credo 1-8 on my SBR SCAR17 with an ATACR, and the Vortex on my Barrett M82 with a NF NX8 4-32x. I’m a NightForce convert/fan boy. Just so you’re aware.

 

[Makinchips208]

Just embrace the astigmatism. lol. Just a counter argument.
But I do prefer a good lpvo personally.

Stoeger addresses it here, although he is talking about pistol, he also uses red dots on his carbines.
First minute is the question, skip to 7:00 for his answer.

 

[PPK007]

My hat is off to the folks who can run an RDO/Holo with a magnifier.
In my time trying to make it work, EVERY fucking time it's been fucking trash between the image with an Aimpoint or the impact shift or just the fucking garbage optical experience with even the "most forgiving" magnifiers...so bad that I almost just want to run a fucking EOTech in front of an LPVO instead. Even the ubber-expensive Wilcox/1minout couldn't free me of the fuckery.

I think a fast, forgiving solution is necessary for serious use but for most people they're going to have a lot more fun USING the gun with an LPVO (because let's face it, if it gets used it'll be flat range).

And despite all the armchair commando BS of "you never gonna legally use it real world beyond (insert < 100y distance)" I have never EVER said the following in my career as an armed professional:

"Gee...I didn't need to see this well"

Also 11.5" rifles with no can are lame...put a can on it, and LPVO it up

It’s lame without the suppressor, I know. Was trying to hold off till tax stamps became free to get a B and T for this.


Don’t get me wrong I can still use red dots, but for the extra magnification plus the fact that I can literally have an NX8 for less than the total cost of Aimpoint dot/magnifier it seems to make a lot of sense. Granted I need more time behind an LPVO. Haven’t made my mind up just yet. I’m on a waiting list for an NX8 with the newer reticle anyway.

 

[vanrichten]

For me it depends on the intended use. My NVG dedicated guns I tend to put a red dot or Eotech on. Those are just far easier to get behind with NODs for passive aiming. If I don’t have an IR laser on it, it’ll have an LPVO.

 

[roostercogburn98]

Ran an older NXS 1-4 on my 10.5 blackout sbr for a long time. It did well for all intended purposes. Have since removed it and not sure what I will replace it with, but more than likely just a traditional red dot?

 

[PPK007]

I don’t have any NV and don’t plan to ever get it. I also like the ability to use an LPVO without turning it on. I thought about an ACOG with red dot too but that’s still more money than just going with the NX8. In rankings of cost in least expensive to most expensive here is what I have:

EOTECH/Magnifier
NX8
ACOG/Dot
Aimpoint/magnifier

 

[PPK007]

Ran an older NXS 1-4 on my 10.5 blackout sbr for a long time. It did well for all intended purposes. Have since removed it and not sure what I will replace it with, but more than likely just a traditional red dot? View attachment 8735145

I have a 10.5” 300BLK as well. It uses a T2. I shoot that the least of my ARs now. It’s more my closet gun and hosts a suppressor