Any experience with Trijicon Reflex Sight

Has anyone had any experience with the Trijicon Reflex sight. I've heard all kinds of horror stories about how it washes out and is next to useless. I've got an opportunity to make a decent purchase on one from someone who had it for one day and traded it in the next day (for it being useless in any amount of bright light). 

I would not use if for combat if I had access to an EOTech or Aimpoint they are both better. The fact that Trijicon invented the Tri-Power scope shows that they recognised the dificulty that can be encountered under certain light conditions. The Reflex that one of my friends has seems rather dark overall and I really didn't care for it but he likes it. Nice having tritium at night its always on and doesnt need batteries. 

Urimaginaryfrnd wrote: I would not use if for combat if I had access to an EOTech or Aimpoint they are both better. The fact that Trijicon invented the Tri-Power scope shows that they recognised the dificulty that can be encountered under certain light conditions. The Reflex that one of my friends has seems rather dark overall and I really didn't care for it but he likes it. Nice having tritium at night its always on and doesnt need batteries.

 

Urimaginaryfrnd,

 

Thanks for the input. I had the sight mounted on an AR-15 in a dark and dreary gun shop and instantly fell in love with the sight picture. Unfortunately, I didn't take it out in the light. From what I've read, it can completely wash out in certain light conditions. Most who've had it considered it to be overall worthless. Some tried to trade it or sell it the day after acquiring it. I liked the compact size but wouldn't even consider a sight that at least 9 out of 10 who had it tried to get rid of it.    

valleypine wrote: Has anyone had any experience with the Trijicon Reflex sight. I've heard all kinds of horror stories about how it washes out and is next to useless. I've got an opportunity to make a decent purchase on one from someone who had it for one day and traded it in the next day (for it being useless in any amount of bright light).

I have shot a ton with the Reflex Sight. I really like it.

I own an aimpoint, i have been threw 2 rifle courses with it and I like it, But i have spent a considerable amount of time debateing if I would rather own a Reflex sight.

I have shot dusk till dawn mutiple times Tradeing from a reflex sight to my Aim point, I have even shot Skeet with a reflex sight on a shotgun, I have never seen the Sight wash out, It makes me wonder if I know what washing out means, becuse I have never seen the Dot over powered under normal operateing circumstances. You could loose every sight includeing Iron Sights Shooting in to a simular colored background or in to overpowering light , that certinally is not a flaw in the Reflex sight.

What I like about the reflex


Light weight and simple. Put in on your go to rifle and forget about it.

VERY easy to sight in, Simple common up and down sight in system

Durable, Its ugly to start with so dont fear to use it like a tool if you droped your rifle this would prob be the last thing to break.

Always on Allways bright. does not Obscure your vision due to ambident light change.

What I dont like

The Monocrome  picture it provides you. All color depth is lost in that sight. Green on Green, Tan on Tan Black on Black and White on White is a problem with this sight, I know it is a both eye open Sight, but If you have a very dominate eye it could be a problem.

Does not function with my night vision gear at work. There might be a system that it does work with , but it does not work with what i have, The dot is far to bright at night to blanks out the NV gear.


IF your Curious about the Aimpoints. 


What I like the aimpoints

Clear Clean optics, So clear, You really want to keep it that way, wait, this might be a negitive as well.


The Battery last nearly forever,  something silly like 10,000s of thousands of hours. IF you left it on for half a year it would prob still be running, In a tactical sense the battery is endless.

The scope is durable and waterproof.

Works with magnifters, Almost like two scopes in one with the 3x add on.

Functions Awsome with Night vision gear. The Dot is tunable it works with our Gen 3 stuff at work , and my Gen 2 stuff at home.

What I dont like about the aimpoint

Its somewhat combersome, you know its there, Not heavy in a literal sense, but it can change the way you and your rifle move.

You can get Glare from bright lights behind you they will flash your eyes if your looking down the sight, this could be a bad thing.

Tunable Dot power means its not allways Ideal. Bright outside in the sun can be overpowering inside, you can get red glare inside the tube. Bright inside can be less then ideal transitoning to a bright outside area.

More complex Sight in process, One of the more complex scopes i have ever sighted in. Seems the dot moves horizonal as opposed to up and down left and right.

I had a Reflex on an AR for about 3 years.  I liked it ok but certainly didn't "love" it.  Mine was on a carry handle gooseneck mount and I never had any issues with reliability.  However, it was next to impossible to see the dot if I was shooting at one of those orange & white paper targets.

I decided to sell it with the hopes of getting an Aimpoint.  Ended up selling the AR 6 months later once I became addicted to shooting bolt guns at 200, 300 & 600yds

Thanks to everyone for their inputs. I seem now to be leaning toward the Trijicon, despite it's limitations, or I should say, with the understanding of it's limitations. My gun hobby consists of collecting survival rifles, or at least what my concept of a survival rifle is. My concept of a survival rifle is a 16" barrel, lightweight as possible, reliable iron sights, with optics considered to be add-ons only (nice to have, but not required). One of my rifles is a Colt Match Target Lightweight which has a 16" barrel, fixed carry handle, and lightweight barrel. No Colt rifle lighter than this one. I currently do have an Aimpoint Comp C but to mount it to this rifle would destroy my concept of a survival rifle (too heavy and bulky with scope and mounting system). I wish there was a battery operated reflex sight of the same quality as Aimpoint and the same size as the Trijicon, but there is not. This being the case, a carry handle mounted Trijicon is the only available reflex sight I consider light and compact enough to mount on this rifle without destroying my concept of a survival rifle. What that in mind, I am forced to live with the limitations of the Trijicon reflex.     

valleypine wrote: From what I've read, it can completely wash out in certain light conditions. Most who've had it considered it to be overall worthless. Some tried to trade it or sell it the day after acquiring it. I liked the compact size but wouldn't even consider a sight that at least 9 out of 10 who had it tried to get rid of it.

I'm in that group -- I opened the box in my dimly lit basement shop and held it up to the bright outside window -- and the reticle disappeared -- so I sold it without ever mounting it.  Scenarios involving lurking in the shadows for a target in the open are not gonna happen with that sight!

k2ue wrote: valleypine wrote: From what I've read, it can completely wash out in certain light conditions. Most who've had it considered it to be overall worthless. Some tried to trade it or sell it the day after acquiring it. I liked the compact size but wouldn't even consider a sight that at least 9 out of 10 who had it tried to get rid of it.     I'm in that group -- I opened the box in my dimly lit basement shop and held it up to the bright outside window -- and the reticle disappeared -- so I sold it without ever mounting it.  Scenarios involving lurking in the shadows for a target in the open are not gonna happen with that sight!

 

k2ue,

 

Thanks for the input. The used sight and mount for sale is still in the gunshop with no takers. Maybe that tells you something.

no first hand info but the local  sheriff deputies seem to like them ontop of there m4's

Hmm... I have a similiar prob w/a Burris xtreme dot - MAYBE, just Maybe, the red-dots are and were designed to function in only low-light conditions and sold only to us folks who bought into the 'hype'.  What I'm thinking is that each manufacturer is introducing products based on our perceived needs for CQB in an environment we don't even know will happen but prepare for and even some (you know who you are!) DREAM will come about; Say for instance H.R. Puffinstuff Clinton runs for public office and you choose to deny, or get a big 'ol dildo in a place you don't even feel comfortable sharing with your doctor. I presume what is a necessary condition for a forum on the subject of 'ol tired eyes or inexperience with IRON is  that we start talking about the REALITIES of what constitutes a good BACKUP in the form of optical reradiness, and compile that information in a useful manner. I know that some of the people in this forum know and understand the limitations of optics on certain platforms, let alone the viability of a low-light platform vs. iron. If you consider that rifles have come from a 'point and shoot' platform to '2 miles out'; Compound the issue with lighting and windage, well, good luck at becoming the supreme ruler of the universe with your choice of hardware.