It was bound to happen at some point. I’d be dragged into the 21st century, kicking and screaming. Oh, I huffed and puffed, pissed and moaned, even hissed like a demon a little. But I grudgingly entered this new domain of technology.
What am I going on about? Pistol optics, of course!
I have an innate distrust of electronic gadgets (yes, even the laptop that I’m writing this article on). They seem to let me down when I need them most. Batteries fail, the circuitry can crap out, and the darn things just die at the worst possible moment.
So is it realistic for old shooters, dinosaurs that we are, to learn to use pistol optics? What are some of the challenges that we’ll face? Tune in, because I’m using myself as the guinea pig here.
Why a handgun optic?
Springfield Armory recently sent me a Hellcat Pro 9mm pistol for review, and I had the option of having them mount an optical sight on it. I debated with myself whether I should have them send the optic. After all, I just knew that optics can’t really be trusted. But then Springfield said they could mount the sight and even zero it in for me before they sent it.
Hell, I figured I couldn’t lose. And so it was; I received the pistol with the optic mounted and zeroed (they did a nice job, too).
With all of my gnashing of teeth, why did I elect to try out an optic? There were a few reasons. First, I was just plain curious about how efficiently they work and wanted to see if they’re actually practical. Secondly, being a writer in the firearms industry, I figured it’s high time that I become versed on these gadgets so that I can actually speak (or write) knowledgeably about them. In short, I wanted to get with the times. And dammit, Springfield was making it all too easy to get some experience with a red dot pistol sight (in this case, a Shield SMSc).
Challenges With Pistol Optics
I’m hearing from many colleagues in the industry that brand-new shooters are having a very easy time learning how to use pistol optics. Why? Because they don’t know any better. They haven’t trained for years or decades with iron sights, and so they don’t need to un-train themselves from habits built over the years.
I’ve been shooting with iron sights for approximately 50 years now. During that time, I’ve fired probably over a million rounds and practiced many more presentations using iron sights. At this point, it is such a conditioned, automatic response that I don’t need to consciously think about obtaining a sight picture. It just happens.
As a result, I’d theoretically have to fire a corresponding number of rounds (over a million) with the pistol optic in order to override the old training and reestablish a new level of automatic reaction. So, folks who are old hands at shooting, and who have been using iron sights for years, are at a disadvantage.
Oh sure, I’ve used rifle scopes and even red dot sights on rifles. However, it’s not the same thing, because of the points of contact that we have with long guns: two hands, the cheek, and the shoulder. When we properly mount a long gun, all those contact points automatically line up our sight picture, and then we just have to make very tiny adjustments (if any) to get a perfect sight picture.
With handguns, it is not the same because we have one or two points of contact: our hand(s). This makes consistently presenting the handgun all the more vital in gaining a sight picture. And using an optic while wielding the pistol with one hand is quite a bit more difficult than with two hands.
Different Mechanics
With iron sights, we ideally focus on the front sight, wherein the target is slightly blurry, to get our sight picture. For me, it’s a little different because of my vision; the front sight is a bit blurry for my eyes, so I have to focus on the target.
With a red dot, we focus on the target and then superimpose the dot onto the target. Wherever the dot is, that’s where the bullet will strike (assuming it’s properly zeroed).
Learning How to Use the Pistol Optic
Upon receiving the optic-sighted Hellcat Pro, I immediately began to draw it and try to figure out how to magically make that dot appear where I needed it to (onto the target). Well, it didn’t happen quickly.
But wait…I’d heard from so many people that optics are so much faster. For me, they were not. Immediately, I became frustrated. I thought, “These things suck!”
So I consulted some folks who are in the know. Some advocated bringing the pistol up with the muzzle dipped low, slowly raising it until the dot came into view. Others said no, that was wrong, that I should bring it up high, then settle the dot onto the target. Many claimed that the last thing I should do is to look for the iron sights and then the dot would be there.
Well, guess what technique I ended up using? You guessed it! I present the pistol, seek the iron sights, and allow the dot to be right there. Maybe it’s totally “wrong”, but it’s working for me. Mind you, 30 people will chime in explaining why this practice could cause the universe to unravel, but it works for me.
Fortunately, the Shield SMSc has a cutout that allows us to see the iron sights. So if the battery dies, we can still see our iron sights — as long as nothing else goes wrong, such as the window lens fogging up.
Some Tricks
So far, over the past month or so, I’ve done thousands upon thousands of dry fire presentations (in addition to some range work, live fire). It took me a few thousand draws before I began to feel like I’d made progress.
In case you haven’t figured it out yet, I am a total newbie with this optical pistol sight thing. Most experts won’t admit when an activity or technique is new, but I sure will.
Center Line
The most important thing that I’ve learned thus far is that, when drawing the pistol, I need to keep it on my center line when presenting. I bring it straight up my center line to my solar plexus, then press out to extension. As long as I do that, I almost always get a good sight picture with the red dot sight. If I get sloppy, I’m quite likely to end up searching for that little dot.
Consistency is key here.
Hide And Seek
At times, we may find ourselves hunting for the dot because it’s not hard to lose it in that little window. In the event that happens, the best thing to do might be to retract the pistol slightly, making sure we have it on our center line, and then press out again — all while someone is trying to kill us. Doesn’t playing Hide-And-Seek while in dire circumstances sound like a smashing good time?
What we don’t want to do is stand there, twisting our wrists, trying in vain to line that dot up with our vision.
Why is it so much easier to find the iron sights? Because as soon as the pistol comes into our line of sight, we can see the iron sights and we know precisely where they are. There’s no hunting for them and we adjust them to line up as we reach our extension.
With the dot, it is contained somewhere in that little window, but we’re not quite sure where until we are in a very narrow field of view in the window. Thus, there is a massive difference in operating iron sights versus dot sights.
Be Prepared
If you, as a dinosaur, do decide to take the plunge and embark on using pistol optics, be prepared for a very long, protracted learning curve. Don’t expect instant results. It’s going to take quite a while. You’ll need to expend a goodly supply of rounds at the range in addition to getting the presentation down with dry firing.
Can dinosaurs learn to use pistol optics? Sure, without a doubt.
The questions expound from there. How often do you get to the range to practice? Consider how much ammo can you afford (in addition to the price of the optic itself). How badly do you want to master this new weapons system? How much time can you (or want to) invest in learning this new endeavor?
These are questions to ask yourself now before you take the leap. Because you will invest substantial time and money if you’re going to do it correctly. Don’t just assume it’s the cost of the pistol optic itself.
Is it worth it for me? To be quite honest, I’m not sure yet, as I’m currently on the fence. You might not believe this, but I don’t get to the range quite as often as I really should. That likely sounds unbelievable, coming from a gun writer, but all my range time is not consumed by pistol optics; there are many other systems that I send rounds downrange with. Plus, ammo prices being what they are today make it difficult to blast 1,000 rounds of pistol ammo away just like that.
Do some research and think carefully about whether pistol optics are for you. Hopefully, this information will give you food for thought.
