Concealed Carry Corner: Red Dot Rundown

Welcome back to another edition of Concealed Carry Corner. Last week, we took a look at the best cover garments. If you happened to miss that article be sure to click the link here to give it a read. This week, I want to talk about the benefits of having a red dot sight on your carry gun. I was recently in a local hardware store that also sells firearms. The store employee was talking the guy out of a Trijicon RMRcc and told him to just keep the iron sights. It was an interesting argument but if you start carrying with an optic, it will start to show just how fast it is to find your sight with a red dot optic. Let’s take a closer look at some of the good as well as bad aspects of carrying with a red dot in our red dot rundown.

Benefits of Carrying a Red Dot

When it comes to carrying with a red dot, simplicity is the name of the game. Having a single dot that gives you a point of reference where you’re aiming instead of iron sights does become faster over time. I was one of the most stubborn individuals when it came to pistol red dots and I outright refused to carry with them for years. I totally understand why some people don’t want to try a red dot optic on their pistol. Drawing your pistol from concealment and presenting it enough times with a red dot will create a natural point of aim and your eye will naturally find the red dot without effort. With enough practice, this becomes almost instantaneous without having to physically line sights up like you would with traditional iron sights.

With the battery life of modern red dots being years at this point, there’s no concern about just leaving it on constantly and changing the battery out every couple of years just to be safe. The new RMRcc for example, has an average battery life of 4 years on medium settings so the argument of having the battery die while you carry it isn’t exactly a relevant argument anymore. Red dot sights simplify acquiring your sights to a single point and with enough practice make acquiring your sights much faster than traditional irons. There are a ton of benefits to red dot sights but they certainly aren't perfect and have their drawbacks depending on what model you go with.

Open vs Closed Red Dots

Red dot sights offer a number of benefits but they certainly aren't perfect options. Putting a red dot optic on your carry gun will require you to maintain the optic. Just like your carry gun, your carry optic will also collect dust, debris and sweat from being on your body day after day. Depending on what kind of optic you have, you will have to check and ensure a couple of different parts are clean to have everything work properly. There are two types of red dot sights.

The first would be an open style which would be where the emitter is open and projects a red dot onto a lens. An example of this is the Trijicon RMR with one piece of glass and an open emitter. These are simple and typically will have a smaller profile than closed emitters but do require occasional cleaning. I would take a Q tip and clean the emitter along with the edges of the front glass. This will allow for an unstructured view and avoid having a starry or blurred red dot. Having a starburst red dot happens when debris gets into the emitter and breaks up the dot into multiple smaller dots instead of a clean singular dot.

Closed emitters have their emitter fully enclosed in a sealed system not allowing debris to get into the emitter so you won’t have to worry about starburst patterns in your dots. Closed emitters do require less cleaning and maintenance when it comes to debris but the major downside to closed emitters like the AimPoint ACRO is the fact they are much bulkier than smaller red dots that utilize open emitter designs. If you carry something like a Glock 19 or a full-size option, having a closed emitter isn’t a bad option but for smaller carry guns, it doesn’t really work since they are bulky. When looking for a red dot, it’s important to look at the overall size and capability of your carry gun to make the right choice for your individual needs.

Iron Sights Vs Red Dots 

Some of you reading this will never trust a red dot optic or you think it’s just a toy that will end up being the latest accessory to go out of style in a few years. I will be completely honest and admit I was this way when it came to red dots on pistols. I absolutely was against any type of red dot on my pistols but after spending the last two years carrying with a red dot, my position has changed to favor them. Iron sights will always be there and continue to work no matter what but red dots with enough practice are faster than iron sights.

Finding a single point to focus on the get is faster and more accurate than consistently lining the front and rear sights up at least for me personally. Aging eyes see the most improvement when transitioning from iron sights to a red dot since depth perception isn’t a problem with a red dot. The big positive about iron sights is they are the most reliable option because they don’t require much maintenance if any and will always be there, but for accuracy and speed, a red dot is better at the end of the day.

Overall Thoughts

Although people have been putting red dot sights on their pistols for over a decade, it’s still a controversial topic for a fairly large group of people in the community. Although some may not see the benefits of a red dot, after being against pistol red dot sights for years, I am here to tell you they definitely have their place in carry firearms.

Let me know in the comments why you think red dot sights or iron sights are best for carrying concealed. I’d love to hear your opinion in the comments below. If you have questions about red dot optics or carrying in general, feel free to shoot me a message on Instagram @fridgeoperator. Stay safe out there and we will see you next week for another edition of Concealed Carry Corner.