Offset RDS… Position Matter?

[Screwball]

So I recently was cleaning out some rimfire stuff… which included .22 pistol conversion kits and a .22 AR that I built. AR is a dedicated Spikes upper with LW barrel. Paid a little bit for it, had it unbanned from NJ… so I sort of want to keep it. Uses a CMMG bolt with the Spikes collar, BetterMag with M&P15-22 magazines (I have a M&P15-22 pistol), with a Bushnell 3-9x scope on top.



I have a few other .22 suppressor hosts for my Rugged Oculus, but figured a 16” rifle might be a nice addition. Plus, it looks like a 14.5” due to the barrel being set back in the upper. I’m keeping the scope, but wanted to try to incorporate an offset red dot.

Zero background with anything other than traditional sights (back ups thru red dots or no back ups at all), which is why I’m asking about them. I did have offset Magpul MBUS Pro… but never shot them before getting rid of them. Shouldering them, it did feel more natural than putting a red dot on top of the primary sight.

Most of the offset red dots I see are usually off the upper receiver. Is that just for ease of mounting or to make them work? I have a Magpul forend on the rifle, which I normally run a pistol light on the left side. I put a longer polymer rail on that side just to try the light with the can… but also found a similar length metal rail in my parts bin that I put on the other (right) side. Was thinking about getting a Holosun 407 and mounting it there.



If it doesn’t give me the stability I want, I do have a railed “gas block” that I could mount a 45° mount off. And would likely make sure I could also use it off the upper (or another gun)… if I don’t like it.



More of a pest control/plinker. But like the MK3 that I’m trying just the pistol red dot, I figured .22 would be an easy way to try offset red dots to see if I’d incorporate one on a future build (or revamp of a current setup). I’d probably zero the red dot at 15 yards and check the holds from close to 25 yards… then confirm zero on the scope for 50 yards.

Scope is just a standard crosshair. I think the Holosun I was looking at had a 2 MOA dot in either red or green (prefer red, but may try green just to see).

Any issue running a red dot out in the forend/gas block area?

Or should I just say the hell with it and be happy with the 3-9x scope?

Thanks for any input.

[jbrimlow]

From an optical perspective (i.e. seeing the thing), no. You can run the dot wherever. I think most people run the dot on the receiver because it's reasonably stable and reasonably convenient. Plus, mounting the dot further back makes the window "seem" bigger, which is nice.

Mounting it further up makes it a little more annoying to reach the controls, and you'd want to be sure the mount is pretty stable. Best way to see if you like the offset is to try it and see (or find a buddy with one and try his).

[breakingtime91]

I use arisaka offsets, love the versatility. I mount mine on the receiver in front of the acog. More secure, optic is closer so window seems just as big as running the rds as primary. 50 yard zero gives me good hits with a red dot to 200 even though it's realistically only a 100 yard optic. I feel like I gain a lot with the optic offset and lose very little.

[Nephrology]

I put it on the receiver behind the ejection port just because that's the first place that I thought to mount it and it seems fine. The lens gets a little dirty but takes just a quick wipe with an alcohol pad or microfiber cloth to clean