Trijicon RMR-Miracle Micro Reflex Sight

May 30 • News • 10603

Its a fact,  your eyes will have a harder time picking up your iron sights the older you get. With the addition of some of the latest illuminated sights that you can throw on your favorite rifle or shotgun, you’ll have no problem hitting your mark no matter how bad your eyes get. Unfortunately in the past  very few of these sights could be used effectively on a handgun. However times have changed, and the use of red dots on pistols has exploded on the market, with nearly every firearms publication showcasing a pistol with one atop. The number one miniature red dot that has been gracing the pages of these magazines is the Trijicon RMR.

Trijicon RMR

Stemming from a background of building the best rifle scopes on the face of the earth, Trijicon is no rookie when it comes to developing an optic for your gun. RMR stands for ruggedized miniature reflex sight ,which in your mind should mean “hey I can beat the heck out of this red dot sight, plus its small so I can put it on anything.” In all honesty, I would tell you that you’re right. This sight was designed for hard use. Although the RMR is a beautiful piece of technology, the housing serves one purpose and that’s function.

Some of you may be thinking, “why would I mount this red dot on my pistol?” Let me break it down for you why red dots on pistols are extremely practical. Like I noted earlier, as your eyes get older it becomes harder to line up those iron sights. The RMR allows you to naturally point your pistol at the target and quickly pick up the red dot. This may not seem like a big deal, but being a seasoned shooter I noticed how much faster it is to draw and pop off a shot with the RMR  on my pistol as opposed to traditional iron sights.

Trijicon RMR

What sets the RMR apart from the rest of the sights out there is the “ruggedized” part of its name. The 7075-T6 aluminum housing allows the shooter to perform one handed malfunction drills. Basically this means the sight is strong enough for you to rack the slide of your gun off your belt or a firm edge. This may not seem of high importance to you but when the stuff hits the fan you may not have the use of both hands and might have to rack the slide singlehandedly.

If the aging eyes or the bulletproof construction haven’t won you over than maybe the 4 year battery life will be the deciding factor. Yes you heard me correctly, 4 YEARS! If that doesn’t get you excited about this miniature red dot then I don’t know what will. With a crazy long battery life and a housing that will probably last an eternity, there’s no reason a Trijicon RMR shouldn’t be your next purchase. If you guys have more questions about the RMR, feel free to leave them in the box below.

KellyB • No Comments on Trijicon RMR-Miracle Micro Reflex Sight

3-Gun Competitor Brian Williamson’s Review of the Vortex Razor HD Scope

May 29 • News • 18307

As a sponsor of the Superstition Mystery Mountain 3 Gun Competition back in March, OpticsPlanet was allotted a shooting slot for the match. As much as we love to shoot these matches ourselves, we decided to instead offer the slot to local 3-gunner Brian Williamson. And to sweeten the pot even more, we worked with our friends at Vortex Optics to supply Brian with an excellent new optic for the event.

Here’s what  Brian had to say about his time at the Superstition Mystery Mountain 3 Gun Competition, as well as the Vortex Razor he ran:

I’ve used many brands of scopes in competition, including Trijicon Acogs, Burris 1.5-6, EOTECH and most recently a Swarovski Z6I.  I had been researching 1-6 power scopes when OpticsPlanet, along with Vortex, offered to sponsor me at the Superstition Mystery Mountain 3 Gun, and were gracious enough to send me the Vortex Razor HD Gen II with the JM-1 BDC reticle to set up and put thru the wringer at the match.   The field of view and eye relief are unbelievable on the Razor HD Gen II– with virtually zero lost “vision” around the edges of the scope.

On 6x power, the field of view is huge and better than most high end scopes I have used.  The Razor’s illuminated dot is just as bright as my Swarovski and not just daylight “visible”, but daylight “bright as hell” visible. One more thing to mention is the outstanding battery life the scope has. I have on several occasions left the dot on overnight and came to a stage the next day and it was still as bright as I left it the day before. I personally like the Razor’s smaller dot size as it lends itself to slightly more precise shooting when using the dot.  The glass in the Razor is really good.  As much as it pains me to say it and I really do love my Swarovski, the new Razor has glass that is every bit as good as my $2400 Swarovski Z6I – maybe not better, but certainly just as good.

OpticsPlanet Represented Well At Superstition Mountain Mystery 3 Gun

I also really like the Razor’s super low cap 50 moa turrets and the “lockable” illumination feature.  In my opinion, this is one of the scope’s best features – no tools or pennies needed. Never again will I be mad when at the range sighting my rifle and realize I left my readers at home. Even these old guy eyes can easily see the numbers on the turrets.

With the great eye relief and clarity, acquiring and taking distance shots is easy.  The reticle is easy to decipher and I am able to get my shots off quickly and accurately. This scope has taken my long distance shooting at major and local matches to another level.

GearExpert Really Tests The Gear!

I have used this scope in two major 3gun matches and several local matches and it has survived countless barrel dumps, banging on walls, in and out of the truck along with riding in the back on the truck in a soft canvas case on trips. I never have to worry about my zero point as it stays spot on all the time no matter what I do to this scope.  Along with such durability comes a slight bit extra weight, but really you never notice it after the clock goes off and you are in the heat of the battle on a 3 gun stage!

Brian Williamson

Shooting in the Open Division, I run a red dot scope for the closer targets in addition to the long range scope.  With the Vortex, I found myself just using it exclusively due to its ease of adjustment and acquisition of the targets. The reticle is just the right size and lends itself for super-fast target to target acquisition when on 1x power and quick adjustment to 6x power when shooting long range targets.

The scope is built like a tank and no worries if you do have a problem, because Vortex has one of best warranties in the business and its customer service is great! I don’t think you could hurt this scope unless you drop it out of a truck or beat it with a hammer.  The Razor HD Gen II 1-6×24 smokes my other scopes, and at a price point of almost $1K less. I will be fitting the rest of my rifles with the Razor HD Gen II very soon!!

Alex P • No Comments on 3-Gun Competitor Brian Williamson’s Review of the Vortex Razor HD Scope

Home Defense Shotgun on A Budget

May 21 • News • 72072

Being the “gun guy” in your family and group of friends has it privileges. One of the many great things is that you can directly affect the safety and well being of the people you care about. However what I hate most is constantly dispelling gun myths and legends. I think one of the most popular questions is “what is the best gun for ….”. To be honest the best gun for anything is A. the one that you can afford to shoot a lot and train with  and B. the gun that you shoot the best with. Since there’s no shortage of expensive guns that would take me a whole year to save up for, I thought I could bring to light one of the most effective and affordable guns money can buy.

Home Defense Shotgun on A Budget

I’m sure you’ve guessed by now that this isn’t a post about a Hi-Point and quite frankly that gun is nothing more than a paper weight. The gun that I’d like you folks to take a look at is the IAC Hawk 981R 12 gauge pump shotgun. Yes it’s a clone of the Remington 870 and yes it’s made in China. If you put that aside what you have is a 12 gauge that is half the price of an 870 and accepts all of the same parts used to trick out an 870. This cheapskate comes with an 18.5 inch barrel and a capacity of 5+1 when using 2-3/4 shells. Based on all of the rave reviews of this shotgun, the $189 price tag was a no brainer.

Home Defense Shotgun on A Budget

I don’t think I was ever so excited to get a Chinese knock-off  anything, but for some reason I was as giddy as a school girl when picking this gun up at my local FFL (Federal Firearms License). What you get is a bare bones, no frills pump shotgun with a Picatinny rail atop for mounting optics. The pictures you see above are NOT how the shotgun comes out of the box. Since it was literally half the price of a Remington 870, I knew I had some room in my budget for “improvements”.

Magpul SGA Stock

If you’re serious about shooting this shotgun a lot, then the first two things that need to be swapped out are the stock and forend. I’ll be honest with you guys, the stock and forend that came with it are “OK” at best. I wanted something that felt good in the hand and allowed me to operate the gun more effectively. The Magpul SGA stock and MOE forend for the Remington 870 fit this knock-off perfectly. The Magpul SGA stock is strange looking compared to the stocks that we’re used to, it’s like a hybrid of a pistol grip and traditional shoulder stock. With a super comfortable rubber recoil pad, adjustable length of pull and cheek riser, standard sling attachment points, and the option for quick-detach mounts, what more could you ask for?

Magpul MOE Forend

The number one way to have a malfunction with a pump action shotgun is “short-stroking” or when the shooter doesn’t bring the forend all the way back before racking it back into battery, which results in a shell not being loaded. What this means when your life is on the line and you fire off that first nervous shot , rack the pump back to load another round into the chamber, slide the forend forward, pull the trigger and nothing happens. This will not only leave you looking like a fool but will also allow the bad guy to get a shot in. The best way to fix the probability of that happening are to make sure you ram that pump all the way back every time. The Magpul MOE forend allows you too get an extremely positive grip and rack the hell out of the pump without worrying about your hand slipping off or short-stroking.

Home Defense Shotgun on A Budget Light

Since a majority of home invasions happen at night, a weapon mounted light is a necessity. I had to have a lot of different features out of a light for this shotgun: it needed to be lightweight, had to be able to withstand the violent recoil of a 12 gauge,  needed to work in a wide range of temperatures, had to run for at least 2 hours on high, and  most of all had to be high value. The Surefire G2X Pro not only does all of those things but leaves me only $60 poorer. I am by no means stuck on brand names, if I could have found a better light for cheaper I would’ve been all over it but let’s face the facts, this is the best flashlight for the money period. Mounted up using Magpul’s light mount kit, the light is right where I need it during any number of weapon manipulations.

Bushnell TRS-25

If you’re using this shotgun only for home defense, you can stop right here and you’ll have yourself an $384 weapon system that’ll stop everything from a hoard of zombies to the thief that picked the wrong house to break into. But if you want to add a little more capability to the shotgun for activities such as shooting slugs, then you’ve got to throw a red dot sight on there. I decided to slap a Bushnell TRS-25 onto this gun’s standard Picatinny rail and after dialing it in, lets just say Daniel Boone has some competition. While only setting you back just shy of a Benjamin, this red dot is bombproof and allows you to shoot with both eyes open, accurately.

Like I said earlier, the best gun is the one that you can afford to shoot a lot and the one that you can actually shoot well. As a grown male and flirting with the 6 foot mark, I am able to comfortably shoot a 12 gauge shotgun. Depending on your size and preferences, there might be a different home defense setup that works for you. Regardless, the most important thing to remember is that you need to train, train, and train some more. What’s great about the IAC Hawk is that it’s so cheap that  you can use the additional $500 you would’ve spent on an AR-15 for ammo.

What do you think about the IAC Hawk 981R 12 gauge and the accessories I’ve added to it? Let me know in the comment box below. As always guys, shoot em straight and be safe!

Jeremy L • 27 Comments on Home Defense Shotgun on A Budget

Steiner M30R LRF Binocular: German Made, Long Range Target Shooter Approved

May 8 • News • 7055

I know what you may be thinking, “we know that everything the Germans make is great, tell us something we don’t know.” In all actuality, not everything that’s born wearing the black, red, and yellow flag is that outstanding. All too often I hear of German cars that are plagued with issues that were triggered only after 10,000 miles on the odometer.  That’s not the case with the Steiner M30R 8X30 binocular sporting a built in laser range finder.

Steiner M30R LRF Binocular

Built out of a what Steiner likes to call a “Makrolon” housing, this binocular is meant to withstand an impact of 11 G’s. To put that in perspective for you, a space shuttle launch equates to around 3 G’s of force. It’s safe to say that you’d be hard pressed to damage this bino.  The designers of this remarkable optics knew that a rock solid housing would be of utmost importance to buyers that are dropping used Honda Civic money on a binocular.

The stout German protection doesn’t stop there, this unit also features a floating prism system and NBR rubber armoring. What does that all mean? The floating prism design utilizes flexible silicone lens mounts so when the klutz in you is in full effect, you don’t have to worry about cracking the high quality aka expensive glass. The NBR rubber coating has proven to be even more beneficial during my testing. Throw em on your dashboard, they stick like glue. Cursed with the sweatiest palms known to man? This rubber armor allows your hand to secure to the housing at some molecular level. It sounds like blasphemy, I know but they adhere to your hand perfectly and feel great doing it.

Steiner M30R LRF Binocular

Honestly some of the features on this binocular I don’t even have to bring up because its a given that they have them at this upper echelon. Let me get down to what makes this unit worth twice the cost of many people’s monthly mortgage. If you couldn’t tell from the third eye on the front of this unit, the “LRF” in the product title stands for laser range finder. To even call this a laser range finder would be doing this binocular a disservice. Laser range finders are what your golf buddies use in attempt to stick shots close to the pin, what this device does should be called “master of all: laser range acquirer.” The powerful class 1 laser on this unit is something of legend, something of god like ability that most of us will never full appreciate and how can we, when it lazes out to 1,860 yards. Majority of us poor souls will never have the opportunity to shoots out that far but if you are that lucky, it’s quite the peace of mind to know that your bino has the capability.

Where do I think this binocular would shine? Well Steiner glass has always been extremely popular with the military, so that would be my first educated guess. I hate you use the cliché word of “sniper” but I could see this being used by a two man sniper team or SWAT team sniper.  What I find to be the most obvious civilian choice is you long range target shooters and competitors. You may no use every bit of the range that the rangefinder is capable of but the accuracy of the beam is outstanding. What that means is the ability to put shots where you need them, especially when centimeters are the difference between you winning or losing a match.

If  what you need is :optical clarity, a laser rangefinder of Zeus like power and a housing that’ll withstand more G forces than you could ever replicate , then there’s only one real choice. The Steiner 8X30R LRF may not be the best deal on the planet, mostly because they’re out of this world. Let me know what you guys think of these god like binoculars in the comments below. As always, shoot em straight and be safe!

Jeremy L • No Comments on Steiner M30R LRF Binocular: German Made, Long Range Target Shooter Approved