Tax Time: Top 5 Red Dot Optics To Spend Your Refund On

As the old saying goes, there are three certainties in life: death, taxes, and getting a tax refund. OK, the refund isn't actually a certainty. But if you are lucky enough to get one this year, Steve and Caleb suggest spending it on a new red dot optic. They've picked out FIVE excellent candidates.

1. The EOTech HWS is technically a holographic sight, but c'mon, its reticle is a red dot. And it is a long-proven, tried-and-true system. Because of its holographic technology, the EOTech XPS3 has a fine, crisp dot smaller than 2 MOA. Definitely built exclusively for use on long guns, and definitely proven to take a lotta knocks and bangs in adverse conditions. Much like choosing IBM in the 1960s, you can't go wrong with an EOTech!

2. Also meant for rifle use, the Aimpoint Duty RDS is a true red dot sight, so the dot can't be smaller than 2 MOA. That's just fine for a wide variety of applications. If you're looking for a well-built, durable sight with high(er)-end performance, but your tax refund isn't big enough to cover a high-end price, the Aimpoint Duty RDS is the optic to get.

3. Aimpoint's Acro P-2 is designed primarily for use on pistols, but you can get an M1913 Picatinny adapter for putting it on a shotgun, AR-15, or other rifle. The Acro P-2 is built to take the vigorous snap of recoil in stride. Aimpoint torture-tested one with 20,000 rounds of .40 S&W, and that P-2 kept on tickin'. It has a 3 MOA dot, easy-to-operate buttons, and a battery you can change without taking the sight off the gun. Not that you need to change that CR-2032 very often because average battery life is 5 YEARS.

4. The Trijicon RMR sight is the gold standard of micro red dot sights for pistols. The RMR is so popular that there's a ton of mounts and adapters available for it. Many aftermarket slides and complete pistols now come from the factory with an RMR mounting slot. Plus, the rugged RMR is built to stand up to hard use.

5. Holosun red dot sights are surprisingly AFFORDABLE, but they don't skimp on robustness, features, and quality. The "deck" of the Holosun EPS (Enclosed Pistol Sight) is so low you can use it in conjunction with standard-height iron sights. No need to spend the extra spondulicks for suppressor-height sights. The EPS MRS model has a solar panel on top, so you're not draining your battery when there's bright ambient light. Red or green reticles in various dot sizes are available. All EPS sights fit a Shield RMS mount. Plus, they come with an adapter plate for mounting to an RMR mount. The EPS Carry model fits ONLY the RMS footprint.

[Redacted-Information]

How can you NOT immediately mention the matching shirts?

[goosecouple]

I let a Vietnam veteran try my RDS on an AR. After shooting a couple rounds, he said, "Sh*t, you can't miss with this thing. If you missed, you suck !"

[nunyabinness]

I love it when Caleb gets a bit "sassy" 🤣 ..."we're grouping it in, deal with it!"

[marco]

Love the wardrobe and Brownells in Grinnel, Iowa. You guys are awesome, I have 3 RMR’s, tough as hell.

[carlk]

I've heard of being on the same page, but shirts? LOL, love it gents! Thank you and keep up the get content and style.

[timoanez]

My 2 personal picks for my duty pistol, shotgun, rifle red dots is Trijicon and Holosun, they are bomb proof.

[jaydunbar]

I’m telling my wife it was you Caleb when I’ve got to explain the gunsmith bill for drilling and tapping a musket

[AlphaRomeoOneFive]

Holosun is killing the game. Just picked up the EPS MRS Carry for a new G43 P80 build

[MADMAX]

Like a couple of well seasoned, well informed twinkies. Thank you sirs.

[norikotakaya]

Have to admit, I’m an EOTECH fanboy, as I’ve been using these holographic sights for _years._ I’ve never had trouble from any of them. There is one exception though… I do own a Trijicon TA31RCO ACOG for my M16A4 clone.

[detsportsfan]

Got a Holosun 510c green dot for my M&P Sport II, very good! Eotech would have been nice, but Holosun is still good quality, and not nearly as expensive.

[halfinchholes]

Thank you for the review. I'll stick with irons, ACOG, and scope as required. I know eventually, I will need to mount one on my Glock 20. Keep up the great content.

[patrickseaman]

You should do two shows: (1) Pistol optics best for astigmatism (2) Rifle optics best for astigmatism

[sonjohn]

Waiting for trijicon to release an enclosed emitter 💯

[shadyp-zvuf]

PLEASE MAKE AN EOTECH WERE YOU CAN CHANGE THE 🏆 #1

[cudaoptics]

How about spending your refund on a CUDA RX-795 with IntelliDOT? It's always ready, so you never have to worry about it. It has manual and automatic battery level checks and diagnostics, buttonless tap controls, instant-on/enhanced shutoff, micro speaker audio, the ability to personalize your intensity, and more. And thanks to an internal accelerometer which understands its orientation, it can even turn off and stay off when holstered vertically and still in motion. Try THAT, ShakeAwake!

[geoffreyjones]

I gotta have one of those shirts, sir

[M--GT]

"Tax time, " indeed. Lol Just bought a Vortex Crossfire I'm pretty happy with, and I'm about to pick up a Surefire, so...

[The_John_Galt]

P-2 is battery change.
Brass Facts has a great video on this.

[hypotenuse]

rmr/sro have 1moa dot options but the eotech does look cleaner when target focused