Opinions on 4x drop switch magnifier and a red dot?

[danceswithpellets]

My pal is about to hook himself up with one of these and Im wondering if I should take the plunge as well.

Seems fairly epic. Red dot for close stuff and if you need the magnification you just flip it over and have a 4x red dot!

Anyone have any experience with this set up?

[MaciekA]

Yes.

It makes already-heavy guns dramatically heavier and is useful for wall hangers and showing your friends but not very useful for actual play. It's pretty rare in airsoft to actually really need 4X magnification and benefit from it above and beyond what most players can do with even iron sights at 150 - 200ft, so constantly switching back and forth between 1X sights and that magnifier becomes a real chore. At "airsoft distances", speed of reaction is far more important than dialing in a perfect shot. This seems to be a common question/misconception of newcomers to airsoft, especially younger people. There isn't effectively any actual sniping per se in the sport, so the return on investment from optics ones is pretty low... the return on investment from heavy, alignment-sensitive and above all *moving* optical instruments is even lower. You'll get far more mileage from bringing binoculars on the field (I see it done all the time)

In addition, the optics on the real versions of these magnifiers (as well as the sights they pair with, like the EOTechs) are made of significantly better glass (i.e. extra low dispersion or perhaps apochromatic lenses, etc) than the cheap Chinese replicas, and can thus function like they're supposed to, as opposed to a crappy image with terrible eye relief.

Finally, and this is key, these optics require fairly precise alignment and solid construction in order to function correctly. You need the magnifier to be well-aligned with the primary sight, and you need it to say there. Your friend (and perhaps yourself) may end up struggling with shimming and other techniques in order to keep it in its place....

There's a good reason that the realsteel equivalents are expensive.

[danceswithpellets]

Originally Posted by MaciekA

Yes.

It makes already-heavy guns dramatically heavier and is useful for wall hangers and showing your friends but not very useful for actual play. It's pretty rare in airsoft to actually really need 4X magnification and benefit from it above and beyond what most players can do with even iron sights at 150 - 200ft, so constantly switching back and forth between 1X sights and that magnifier becomes a real chore. At "airsoft distances", speed of reaction is far more important than dialing in a perfect shot. This seems to be a common question/misconception of newcomers to airsoft, especially younger people. There isn't effectively any actual sniping per se in the sport, so the return on investment from optics ones is pretty low... the return on investment from heavy, alignment-sensitive and above all *moving* optical instruments is even lower. You'll get far more mileage from bringing binoculars on the field (I see it done all the time)

In addition, the optics on the real versions of these magnifiers (as well as the sights they pair with, like the EOTechs) are made of significantly better glass (i.e. extra low dispersion or perhaps apochromatic lenses, etc) than the cheap Chinese replicas, and can thus function like they're supposed to, as opposed to a crappy image with terrible eye relief.

Finally, and this is key, these optics require fairly precise alignment and solid construction in order to function correctly. You need the magnifier to be well-aligned with the primary sight, and you need it to say there. Your friend (and perhaps yourself) may end up struggling with shimming and other techniques in order to keep it in its place....

There's a good reason that the realsteel equivalents are expensive.

WORD

heheh thanks man. one of my first threads I got snarked at for asking whether it was worth it to put a 4x or even a 3-9x scope on something with an effective range less than 100 yards. Never played airsoft before but Ive shot guns long enough to know that doesnt quite add up though Im sure for some uses its appropriate.


BTW my age verification should take place in a day or two. then I should get the benefit of the doubt

[SuperHog]

I have a EO 552 only on my CQB AEG. For the M4A1 AEG outdoor use, no scope, just iron sights. Just trace the bb's because it is highly visible outdoors.

Only the sniper rifles have a 3-9x zoom. Never had to go beyond 5-6X.

[nickssj21]

From what I heard, it's useless. But lets face it, it looks badass ... lol

[audi_bhoy]

Used to have a FTS magnifier combined with an EOTech replica. My goal was mainly to gather info on longer range, as to know if that guy is on our side or if that is the objective we are looking for...

[lurkingknight]

2x magnification or even 3x is handy for scouting and searching, but I found with the short dot on my g36 it was definitely a chore, not only switching from regular eyeballs to suddenly tunnel visioned scope, it's very disorienting and on top of that, you need to hit the eye relief perfectly every time to get a good sight picture in the magnifier. This is super hard on the move or when you are trying to have a quick firefight with someone. It's rare that you will get to set up into the eye relief and sit there to wait for a shot.

It does happen, but the majority of shooting can happen unmagnified, and is better if you don't.

I've started leaving my short dot at minimal magnification... it makes the gun look scary being on top of it, but that's about all it's been good for.

[ccyg8774]

Originally Posted by lurkingknight

2x magnification or even 3x is handy for scouting and searching, but I found with the short dot on my g36 it was definitely a chore, not only switching from regular eyeballs to suddenly tunnel visioned scope, it's very disorienting and on top of that, you need to hit the eye relief perfectly every time to get a good sight picture in the magnifier.

Would it be a good idea to mount a monocular on the side rail, for scouting only, and go back to iron sight when shooting?
Because it is on side rail, it will not effect the sight. Compares to a binocular, it will not occupy a hand...

[lurkingknight]

if it works for you and your way of play, I'd say go for it. Neither of my guns really allow for a handy position to mount a monocular close enough to my eye that I could get the proper eye relief every time. I'd be adding weight to my gun to put a 45 degree railpiece on, and while it doesn't seem like much, more gucci gear on your gun means you need to carry that much more weight in your arms.

I don't know about you, but just my p90 for 18 hours last weekend was more than enough for me :P Adding another half a pound in stuff to lift every time you sight to shoot is going to add up the longer the game goes. I'd rather it be in an accessible pocket so I can pull it when I need it, rather than having to lift 5-10 pounds of weapon to get to it.

[ccyg8774]

Just ordered a 30g monocular, plus a 40g mount I already have, the weight is probably fine... but the eye relief is going to be an issue. There is not much point to put it on the side rail of the handguard. Would be nice if I can mount the nomocular like the iron sight in this picture (but on the left side).

But I don't think it is worth it to get a mount of that type just for the monocular...

[Scrivah]

You def dont need any magnifying scope on an airsoft gun. Looks badass though to show to your buddies but not really practical. Might I suggest you check out a Tasco red dot. I just put one on my M4 and damn you can pick a target quick! I put the 42mm on mine as it has a much nicer field of view compared to the 30mm. All at a great price!

[Kozzie]

It really depends on how you play. When I first started playing I thought magnification was not necessary. The more I played and better I got my guns ranging I started to see a purpose for magnifying weapon optics in airsoft.

Some have better eyes than others but there comes a distance at which you can no longer see a 6mm sphere. At that point in it's flight path the bb has slowed down significantly and is much more susceptible to wind and other influences. With the nature of bb's, after it's out of sight it's really anyone's guess as to where it will end up. Having ideal magnification will allow you to actually see the bb till it hits the ground. This way you can adjust and make well placed long shots. So a person with a long ranging rifle (not necessarily just a BA or a DMR where you would more commonly see fixed magnification) can definitely benefit from optional magnification on their optic.

[lurkingknight]

I tend to lose sight of my BBs at about 150/160ft.. that's 55-60m with the naked eye. Even with my shortdot at 5x it's a bit tricky to spot, but I have a feeling it's more to do with my limited use of the optic. I would really love an indoor range to dial in my sighting skills and also my r-hops, the outdoor range I've been using to measure is outdoors and slightly inclined.

[T@NK]

find some 1~4x scope with long eye-relif, so you can use it as a dot sight at 1x and use as a scout scope at 4x.

[Drake]

I presume the OP is referring to the Elcan Specter DR knockoffs:-

First off, the magnification on the 1x-4x is whack, 4x being more ~2.5x-3x and 1x being <1x (i.e., objects in the optics are closer than they appear).

Secondly, from a lot of real world accounts I've read (of people using the real SpecterDRs) many don't bother switching back to 1x, instead using it as an occluded eye gunsight at 4x (use the scope with both eyes open: the red dot will superimpose on correctly on your sight picture even if the magnified potion is messed up. Cover the front of the scope if necessary.) So for airsoft use its a nifty gadget at best, unless you're looking to build a dead-on accurate replica/impression of/with a specific gun.

For practical use, a fixed 4X optic (like the ACOG or the earlier version SpecterDR) with a piggybacked Docter Sight is going to be a lot more useful. T@NK's suggestion is also good, scout mounted optics take getting used to but are very fast.