Where will optics and sights for handguns go next?

[JCN]

I’m a lover of red (and green) dots on handguns and it seems like manufacturers and sporting competitors are adopting this as standard more and more.

RDS cuts on pistols from the factory seem more commonplace and factory equipped slide ride handguns aren’t uncommon.

But when will we see handgun design evolve to maximize that?

I moved from USPSA Carry Optics to Open and there are real advantages to a frame mounted optic in both shooting at speed and durability. Dot tracking at speed is easier and more linear. Optics and mounting hardware aren’t subjected to the battering and shear forces.

Currently I have two commercially made guns that were designed with frame mounted dots:





Will we see evolution of handgun design to maximize dot performance in the future? Or will it be status quo for the foreseeable future?

I saw that Agency has an optic mount like this:



Will it be the next Timmy fad?


(*Note, this is just a for fun discussion thread not anything serious or of consequence. If you haven’t eaten your bran flakes this morning please consider placing me on ignore or self-medicating until in a happy place).

[JSGlock34]

I saw that Agency has an optic mount like this:



Will it be the next Timmy fad?

Looks like a copy of the ALG Six Second mount, which was introduced about seven years ago. It certainly did not go mainstream then and I don't see it happening now. The Roland Special configuration caught on shortly thereafter and had much more success.



I think we'll see more factory RDS pistols with compensators/porting from the factory over the next few years. I do think a design like the Alien but more affordable would find a market.

[HeavyDuty]

I think we will see an increase in small pistols with RDS directly from the factory - the SA Hellcat OSP and SIG P365X / XL are early examples, although with crap grade optics.

What I hope to see is more footprint standardization from the RDS makers, Trijicon’s choice of a nonstandard mount for the RMRcc was in my opinion a poor decision. Maybe other tier one makers will follow suit on the RMRcc footprint, but I doubt it.

I’m hoping we will see compact closed emitter options, I’d be first in line for a Micro ACRO.

On a tangent, I also think we will see more and more factory compensated pistols. The jury is still out for me on that trend, I just built my first comped pistol so I can decide for myself. Too many years of hearing “you’ll blind yourself firing from a position of retention!” to overcome.

[YVK]

I don't see any incremental changes happening until PMOs become standard with military and law enforcement. Not adopted / approved here and there but standard, hopefully behind a systematic outcomes analysis. P-F and CO divisions of USPSA and IDPA don't really reflect the prevailing attitude to optics in the larger gun world. "You don't need a dot on a carry gun", "you need to learn point shooting because that's what you gonna do in home defense" and "dots are for long distance accuracy shooting" are much more common opinion in a gun world at large.

[Rex G]

I will be evaluating my ALG 6-Second mount, with an Aimpoint T-1 or T-2, whenever I manage to start going to shooting ranges again. I still believe that it is a better mousetrap than a slide-mounted optic, though I will also be evaluating the ACRO P-1, on my G19x, for which I obtained a milled G45 slide, so, I may change my mind. Neither is something that I am likely to carry truly concealed, on a regular basis, anyway, as both are what I consider to be “bag guns.”

This is where my personal optics and sights may go next. I will not speculate what others may do. Just my $0.02.

[fatdog]

A really interesting question, if slide mounted optics are just a step on the path, and something that offers all the advantages of the frame mounted system is where designs will head next. Plus the carry comps are far more popular than they were.

Walking into the LGS and seeing a half dozen variants of what is simply a G19 sized or even subcompact 9mm full featured open gun for under $1K would be an interesting evolution. I can see it happening.

[HeavyDuty]

My bet is on this being the future in some form.

[Jim Watson]

Long ago, a commentator said of riflescopes:
The scope sighted rifle will not be fully developed until the action is made with one hole for the cartridge and one hole for the lenses.
We haven't gotten there yet.

Dueling dot base cuts is a huge drawback. Will we eventually get to an equivalent of the Picatinny rail?

[KevH]

I think (and hope) the future is closed emitter designs.

What is really needed is a closed emitter which isn't much larger than the size/profile of the Trijicon RMR.

I really really like the Aimpoint Acro. I love the way it mounts. The problem with all of them right now is that you are essentially mounting a big box on top of your slide. Fine if it lives on a Safariland/US Duty Gear duty holster. Sucks for just about everything else. The mounting method (clamp) also requires you either have the slide milled for that specific optic or you use a plate that makes the damn thing sit too high.

If some genius could find a way to make a closed emitter with a super clear lens not much larger than a 509t and with a lower base (I'm digging the Steiner concept of putting the emitter on top) and then standardize its mounting format that would be great.

[Wayne Dobbs]

Some estimates of where I think things will go and not all are compatible with each other:

1. OEM Pistol and Optics packages - coming soon, very soon
2. Common mount interface - since we've seen clones of the Aimpoint ACRO interface imitated by China Sun and Steiner, that's more or less here. I'd say there will be a .mil requirement for a common interface soon, ala Picatinny, that will force optic and firearm manufacturers to quit obstructing component compatibility from each other.
3. More miniature optics for compacts - I think this field is the ripest to exploit
4. Smaller closed emitter optics - harder engineering but something to hope for
5. Optics integrated on either a slide assembly or frame mount - hasn't happened yet but I've been tossing that idea out for several years
6. Direct milled pistols from the manufacturer - certainty in 2022