Saw ACOG 1st time. Nice view 3x fixed. Love eotech. Considering holographic with flip out magnifier. Haven't sent magnifier in person, but they come 3x also. Really really leaning toward leupold HAMR. It's illuminated, 4x not 3x, one piece unlike eotech, and mounts a delta reflex on top like ACOG. Thoughts? Just can't find one to see before ordering.
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ACOG vs HAMR vs EOTECH
- Thread starter K7500
- Start date
FWIW I have held and looked thru one. I was very impressed and is what will be on top of my next build if I don't cheap out and buy the leupold patrol. I have 1x aimpoints now, want something with magnification for the next one.
I've never shot the Leupold HAMR before, but I've used a 4x ACOG TA31-C(crosshairs with fiberoptic) extensively in theater and now have it on my personal AR. The ACOG is amazing, plain and simple. It is incredibly durable, has clear glass, and the range estimation from the bullet drop stadia lines are very helpful. If you do any shooting of man-size targets in the 200m-800m range, then it is invaluable.
Now, the version I bought had the docter MRD on top. I took that off after my first trip to the range. The MRD kept hitting my eye protection and it was super annoying. Not only that, but the MRD on top of the ACOG is so far above the bore centerline, that you practically needed to aim for the chin if you wanted a center of mass shot(within 25m). Also, the fiberoptics are too bright on the ACOG. So, I covered up about 3/4 of the exposed fiberoptic with 100mph tape and left a little pull tab at the end for minor adjustments. This prevents blowing out the crosshairs with too much brightness, but still keeps it illuminated. Personally, if I did it over again I would buy the version with crosshairs and tritium instead of the fiberoptic. Also, I prefer the crosshairs over the chevron, donut, or any of the other reticles.
If you do not plan on shooting past 200m, then the ACOG is a bit silly. The 4x(or 3x) magnification does allow you to see what is going on from a situational awareness point of view, but the civilian side of things frowns on aiming a firearm at people to see what they're up to. So, within 200m, a reflex sight is the way to go in my mind. No magnification is necessary. The type of reflex sight is up to you. The EOTECH is good. It has a crisp 1moa dot and someone looking at the business end can't see the dot. However, EOTECH did have a problem with the battery connection for a while. I think they finally fixed it though. The Aimpoint M3 is my personal go to for a reflex sight. The dot is as crisp as you want it with an incredibly easy illumination adjustment compared to the EOTECH. It also is reliable and has a super long battery life. To get a little lighter, I've heard very very good things about the Aimpoint T-1 and H-1. They're pretty much both the same, but one can also be used with night vision. If I was in the market for a new red dot sight, it'd be the H-1.
Now, the version I bought had the docter MRD on top. I took that off after my first trip to the range. The MRD kept hitting my eye protection and it was super annoying. Not only that, but the MRD on top of the ACOG is so far above the bore centerline, that you practically needed to aim for the chin if you wanted a center of mass shot(within 25m). Also, the fiberoptics are too bright on the ACOG. So, I covered up about 3/4 of the exposed fiberoptic with 100mph tape and left a little pull tab at the end for minor adjustments. This prevents blowing out the crosshairs with too much brightness, but still keeps it illuminated. Personally, if I did it over again I would buy the version with crosshairs and tritium instead of the fiberoptic. Also, I prefer the crosshairs over the chevron, donut, or any of the other reticles.
If you do not plan on shooting past 200m, then the ACOG is a bit silly. The 4x(or 3x) magnification does allow you to see what is going on from a situational awareness point of view, but the civilian side of things frowns on aiming a firearm at people to see what they're up to. So, within 200m, a reflex sight is the way to go in my mind. No magnification is necessary. The type of reflex sight is up to you. The EOTECH is good. It has a crisp 1moa dot and someone looking at the business end can't see the dot. However, EOTECH did have a problem with the battery connection for a while. I think they finally fixed it though. The Aimpoint M3 is my personal go to for a reflex sight. The dot is as crisp as you want it with an incredibly easy illumination adjustment compared to the EOTECH. It also is reliable and has a super long battery life. To get a little lighter, I've heard very very good things about the Aimpoint T-1 and H-1. They're pretty much both the same, but one can also be used with night vision. If I was in the market for a new red dot sight, it'd be the H-1.
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mav
NES Member
This. Can't stand RMR's mounted on top as they break cheek weld, add weight, are too high off the bore, etc. I have an Eotech on my AR and an Aimpoint on my AK and one flip magnifier I swap between the two. It works for me and the two optics with magnifier cost less than an RMR equipped ACOG/HAMR. I like the Leupold and the ACOG for fixed power magnifiers, but I like the cost of the Aimpoint/Eotech better. Someone mentioned Elcan Spectre in a recent thread and one of the guys over at Zerohour has one mounted on his personal AR. Had a chance to check it out and I have to say, if I'm going to spend the money on an ACOG/Leupold, I may just spend a bit more and get the Elcan. It rocked...
For what it's worth, Flint Armament in Fall River has a Leupold HAMR for sale. I'm sure they would let you check it out.
Oh, thanks for mentioning that. I forgot and it was something that I also did not like about it.
I was initially very excited about the Elcan Specter when my unit got to test one out before they were fielded. However, it is an exceedingly heavy optic, and the external adjustments are prone to crap getting in them and failing, or getting changed because they were bumped. In fact, after just a couple missions, the external adjustments got stuck for some reason and the optic was deadlined. Granted, all this could happen with the M145 as well, and M145s are generally very robust. It's possible we just got a crappy Specter.
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mav
NES Member
Good to know. That's the kind of feedback you don't get until you've hauled it around in the field for a while. I'm surprised to hear they were that delicate/unreliable.
