I have begun to transition between iron sights and a mini red dot for uniformed purposes.

I will start by saying that after many years, I am faster, and more accurate shooting paper targets with iron sights (I still tend to "over aim" a little with the RDS and it slows me down, I will eventually get over it, but I tend to make small, unecessary corrections in point of aim with an RDS that dont happen with irons.)

Given that, I also have noticed that the critical timeline in a defensive shooting situation is not sight picture and trigger control, but the actual deadly force decision, which is rarely very clear cut, always occurs exceedingly quickly, and sometimes the answer changes in the middle of the engagement (I have litterally had the guy drop the gun while I was taking up slack in the trigger).

So, a couple of months ago, I was out cruising around on one of my first days actually carrying the RDS and observed the suspect vehicle from fresh robbery pull out in front of me. After getting the vehicle stopped and starting the felony stop, the advantages of the RDS were aparent.

With the RDS, I was able to simultaneously focus on the suspects' hands and the dot. The time it takes to shift focus back and forth between sights and the felon, and the requirement to refocus on the sights if the threat were to become deadly is not insignificant. Once the shooting starts, most humans will focus on the threat. It is very difficult for the human brain to shift focus away from a legitimate deadly threat, even to a set of sights. (it is even tough to make this shift while doing force on force training with SIMS rounds that I have been shot with so many times I dont really even fear them anymore)

The red dot solves this 2 plane focus issue, so while finding that dot might be tough, once you do acquire it, you do not have to shift your focus away from it to evaluate the situation.

The timing of this realization was odd, I have been using unmagnified red dots (mostly Aimpoint PRO's) on patrol rifles for a long time and have taken this advantage for granted on the rifle.

I think it just depends on how much you train. Plenty of people have talked about putting in the time and they’re faster and more accurate. I can definitely see the possibility. I am still far better with irons on various guns than RDS on a couple guns but that’s because I’m used to it. I’ve thought about spending more time with my one RDS gun on my CCW to gain proficiency in it but I love shooting my non RDS guns and feel more confident in myself with my irons. I think if you go RDS, it really does take time, but it’ll be worth it. Like said above, one thing that becomes apparent is a better field of view with the dot, being able to see under your point of aim is t possible with irons and can be very important.

quote:

Originally posted by Malysh:
I'm almost 72 and have carried daily since I was about 26 years old.

I'm not at all interested in RDS equipped pistols. I don't see
the need for them at 21 ft or closer.

Although I’m not close to 72 I have to agree with this. RDS feels like a gadget to me and they exist in all hobbies. They are money makers for the industry. If people enjoy them, more power to them. I’d rather save my money for more ammo or another pistol.

I use reading glasses to read. When I shoot with iron sights, I use glasses that have magnifiers along the top to be able to see the sights. Since I normally don't walk around with glasses on or even carry them, a red dot gives me the ability to aim that is not possible with iron sights. So the red dot is integral to my being able to carry.

I have astigmatism in both eyes so circles are challenging for me.

However I also have old-timer's eyes and the front sight is blurry to me without magnifying glasses.

A red dot is not crystal clear and perfectly circular. In fact it might be a hint egg shaped.

However I can see the dot in focus as well as the target.

With Iron Sights the combination of astigmatism and old-timer eyes makes both front and rear fuzzy, and I get ghost images of the front and rear, making it challenging to see if I have the real front image lined up with the real or astigmatism/ghost rear.

Red dots aren't instinctual yet, but I don't have that double-vision issue- unless it is a star burst pattern.