|
Forum Rules | Firearms Safety | Firearms Photos | Links | Library | Lost Password | Email Changes |
Register | FAQ | Calendar | Search | Today's Posts | Mark Forums Read |
|
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
June 22, 2018, 11:51 AM | #1 |
Senior Member
Join Date: January 21, 2016
Posts: 629
|
what's a decent compact laser?
I'd like a laser for a lightweight upper - was about to buy a truglo micro-tac in green, originally reviews looked pretty good and it's the size/weight/profile I want, but then other reviews were so bad was inclined to hold off until I sought more advice - maybe it is gonna be the one, see what I get here.. For anything good you read someone else says the opposite, very odd and hard to decipher.
Anyway - so what I want is a compact laser that is in the pistol-sized ballpark, ie say weight budget < 3 ounces. I don't want one that is part of a light or is heavy & bulky because it throws the whole rifle purpose off, basically have a short range rifle made to be low profile and easy to handle and want the laser to match. May put a light on the rifle but will be a separate add/remove accessory and not something that permanently lives on it. Budget could go up to say $300 but would be happy if I could keep it under that. Thanks in advance! |
June 22, 2018, 04:15 PM | #2 |
Senior Member
Join Date: December 28, 2013
Location: Alabama
Posts: 395
|
I have that laser sitting in a drawer. Great size but absolute junk; especially the batteries and it's underpowered. Though they recently pissed me off, The Crimson Trace CMR-206 is an excellent green laser w/ paddles, good battery, easy battery access, full legal power (5mW), and a wide window of az/el adjustment. Larger than the other but not a giant by any means. Here's mine on a 15-22.
I also have a Streamlight TLR-8 on an AR pistol. It's compact and is a 500 lumen tac-light / red laser combo. Very good quality. For the most part I'm good with TruGlo which is a kissing cousin company with Holosun and Primary Arms optics. Love the mini-laser but as I said, it has issues: Under powered. Worthless, near-proprietary "mini-batteries" Very cheap / weak battery cover screws. Very little adjustment windows for az / el. Shipping weight for the CMR-206 on Amazon is indicated to be 0.8 ounces. Shop around a little bit. There are good deals on this and of course we have the 4th sales around the corner. |
June 22, 2018, 07:12 PM | #3 |
Senior Member
Join Date: January 21, 2016
Posts: 629
|
thanks for that - gives me some stuff to look into..
Ebay, which already has a lot of that stuff cheap, has a 15% off at the moment so I may be able to get a very decent deal on any of the mentioned models. |
June 23, 2018, 06:53 AM | #4 |
Senior Member
Join Date: December 28, 2013
Location: Alabama
Posts: 395
|
I purchased two Crimson Trace Lasers from ebay. Both were good deals. Good luck.
|
June 30, 2018, 08:51 PM | #5 |
Senior Member
Join Date: January 21, 2016
Posts: 629
|
Got it in today and holy chit is this thing powerful. Tried it in the early evening when the sun was not direct briefly and was very clear at the 20 yards I beamed it around (didn't try further) then after installing it tonight I shined around off the deck and as far as I can shine (50 yards easy) and appears to be very effective at that range and longer..
No idea how it holds up or works, mounting I gotta say is kinda stupid - obviously one of those "one size fits all" things where if it was designed for a standard rail it'd be simpler and better, but it does seem to work just fine. I mounted it upside down, don't know if it matters but after lots of simulation I like it there - easy to reach, not in my view when I use the red dot, and all the fragile stuff is in one place - for instance if I rest the guard on something I'm not resting atop the laser. Thinking a small flashlight will go on the left side of the rail someplace for easy reach (and I don't care if putting down the rifle rests it on a flashlight).. Anyway - very happy with this purchase so far, will likely buy a few more - if they work anywhere near how it looks like it's gonna - hard to resist not setting up a few more guns with these! |
July 1, 2018, 05:07 PM | #6 |
Senior Member
Join Date: December 28, 2013
Location: Alabama
Posts: 395
|
206?
|
July 2, 2018, 05:50 AM | #7 |
Senior Member
Join Date: January 21, 2016
Posts: 629
|
Yep CMR-206 mounted upside down.
|
July 2, 2018, 06:18 AM | #8 |
Senior Member
Join Date: December 28, 2013
Location: Alabama
Posts: 395
|
That's a good visible laser imo. Plenty of power. As long as you have az/el adjustments, the laser doesn't care where you mount it. Hope it works for you.
|
July 2, 2018, 01:19 PM | #9 |
Senior Member
Join Date: October 21, 2009
Location: Quadling Country
Posts: 2,780
|
Don't go cheap. You will end up with a box of worthless lasers.
__________________
Thus a man should endeavor to reach this high place of courage with all his heart, and, so trying, never be backward in war. |
July 2, 2018, 03:48 PM | #10 |
Senior Member
Join Date: December 28, 2013
Location: Alabama
Posts: 395
|
He got a good one.
|
July 2, 2018, 04:30 PM | #11 |
Senior Member
Join Date: January 21, 2016
Posts: 629
|
So far it works better than I thought, visible even in direct sunlight very reasonably at 20+ yards, once you get anything other than direct sunlight seems to go forever.
Now one thing I would say though is although green is supposedly more viewable in almost all conditions, if you live someplace where everything else is very green it's kinda hard to pickup . I guess if I really cared I could mount a red one too - dual lasers haha. Unfortunately it was so hot and nasty yesterday my Sunday shooting was cut short so never even got to sight it in but power-wise and function-wise I'd say it's usable tool, well worth the ~$100. |
July 2, 2018, 04:40 PM | #12 |
Senior Member
Join Date: December 28, 2013
Location: Alabama
Posts: 395
|
Outdoors bright sun ain't too good nor was it meant to be. Of course if the objective is in the shade it'll illuminate just fine. Different materials, substances, textures, colors, etc impact the dot quality. They have great utility if you get a quality device but like anything they have their own inherent limitations.
|
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
|
|