The 3Tactix PRD3 is advertised as Riton’s every day cary micro red dot but has features that are far from ordinary. It offers 3 user selectable reticles: a 2MOA dot, a 50MOA circle-cross, and a combined circle-cross and dot. It has motion activation with a 50,000hr battery life. And a pull-out side battery tray. The PRD3 somehow manages to offer all of these features with a low-profile design which has a lower base than most side-tray battery red dots by its competitors.
I tested PRD3 on an RMR cut slide but found that the PRD3 still wasn’t low profile enough for me to use Glock factory iron sights. For testing, I mounted to my Glock via an MOS/RMR adapter plate. The PRD3 is the RMR footprint model of the 3Tactix red dot line and comes with a RMR to Picatinny 1913 adapter.
For those new to shooting pistol with red dots, I recommend multi-reticle red dots because new shooters often find it easier to find a bright circle reticle. That way, as the shooter becomes more proficient with presenting, they can simply press the + button and transition to shooting with the more precise 2MOA dot. Moreover, the circle-cross reticle can be used for action shooting or mounting the PDR3 to a shotgun to quickly bracket your target. The PRD3 offer a wide range of brightness, visible even in broad daylight.
The PRD3 has a street price comparable to single reticle red dots from Athlon and Vortex. So it’s a no-brainer for me to recommend getting a red dot with a choice in reticles.
The Ruger Precision Rimfire (RPR) is an popular entry-level chassis rifle for PRS training or NRL22. At its heart it’s a Ruger American action, which many companies make upgrade parts to customize and upgrade. One of the easiest upgrades is the knob at the end of the bolt lever.
The factory knob is a simple plastic teardrop which is functional but forgettable. The knob simply unscrews off the lever. Anarchy Outdoors sent me their Little Birtha knob which is an all aluminum dumbell shaped knob available in a variety of colors. Anarchy Outdoors makes the Little and larger Big Birtha knob for other popular rifle makes like Remington and CZ.
Not only is this one of the cheapest semi-auto 22LR available nationally, but it may be the most accurate budget rimfire. Rock Island Armory (RIA) is best known for producing Philippine made budget priced, reliably built, pistols and revolvers. I’ve heard they produce the most 1911 pistols in the world. Recently they’ve been expanding into shotguns and now the rifles. RIA lent me their TM22 to test out.
The TM22 is 22LR, semi-automatic, blowback rifle is a proprietary design produced by Derya of Turkey. It follows the general shape of an AR pattern rifle. It is compatible with AR-type grips and stocks. The receiver is made of 7075 aircraft grade aluminum. It has an MLok compatible AR handguard and is topped with a receiver length Picatinny rail.
At the rear of the receiver is a castle nut which accepts MilSpec AR buffer tubes. The model I was sent uses a non-standard fixed metal stock affixed to a fluted tube. The TM22’s action is direct blowback with a recoil spring entirely contained in the receiver. It comes in either a 20″ or 18″ barrel that is free floated in an M-Lok handguard which looks similar to an AR but which has a locking bolt on top, which connects it to the upper receiver. Some models are available with more M16A2 style furniture like an A2-esque carry handle, 2-piece round handguard, and A-frame front sight.
The TM22 comes with a pair of 10-round polymer magazines which look similar to CZ-455/457 magazines but are unfortunately proprietary.
The TM22 has a last round hold open which is also its functional bolt hold open. The bolt only stays open with an empty magazine inserted. The rifle has a left side charging handle but no bolt catch other than keeping an empty mag in the magwell. Once the mag is removed, the bolt slides closed. The rifle includes a uniquely designed chamber flag that allows the bolt to be dropped on it after pulling the bolt, to permit function checks and dry firing the trigger.
The trigger is flat faced with a light trigger pull of about 2.5lbs. In live fire testing, we found the rifle easy to shoot and surprisingly accurate. Our testing as conducted at 25yrds and 50yrds proved it shoots 1.5-2inch sized groups at 50yrds with inexpensive Armscor 22LR ammo. We had about a dozen stove pipes and FTF malfunctions were due to the ammo.
It was fun to shoot but I did find some quirks and nitpicks with this rifle. RIA/Derya should have designed it to use more widely available compatible magazines like Ruger, GSG, S&W, or cheap 3rd party magazines were available. There appears to be a new variant of the TM22 at Sportsman’s Warehouse which has have more A2-styling, with an AR buffer tube and a fixed polymer buttstock.
It is also also a bit more complicated and laborious to field strip than it should be. The TM22 requires the removal of its handguard first which would not be necessary if it utilized standard a standard AR style receiver and pins. Moreover, to clean the bolt requires the removal of the Picatinny rail. This would require the removal of any optic, so forget about maintaining zero. Is it too much to ask that a .22LR AR that is as easy to take down as a real AR?
Those nitpicks aside, the biggest selling feature of the TM22 is its low price. Even in notoriously expensive California, a RIA TM22 sells for under $200 at a local Sportsmans Warehouse. With this budget friendly and easy to shoot 22LR, RIA continues to deliver on its reputation for value.
The Athlon Helos BTR with a street price just under $400, is the most affordable LPVO that offers a side-focus parallax focus. Most LPVO’s (even Service Grade LPVOs over $2K) only offer 100-150yrds fixed focus optics. This Helos BTR was designed with the input of NRA High Power XTC “service rifle” class competition shooters.
The first sample that Athlon sent me had a very minor 1x image shift issue that most shooters would never notice unless you ran it with both eyes open. I’ve discovered image shift at 1x to be a common issue with LPVOs; I’ve even experienced this in much vaunted combat grade LPVOs from Trijicon and Vortex. I contacted Athlon, who’s excellent customer service got me a replacement quickly.
My first impression of the Helos is that of an optic in a higher price tier in terms of build and construction. It has exposed turrets are similar to high-precision turrest found on Athlon’s long range optics. The elevation turret has a one revolution zero-stop for competition. For an AR moving from the 200yrd to 600yrd target during a XTC competition, the adjustment for drop would be within it’s 23MOA rotation. Its beefier turrets also help make it a tad heavy at around 23oz.
The reticle ATSR3 SFP reticle is unique to this Athlon model offering a crosshair-with-floating dot within its circle of death. The center circle and holdover T are illuminated for day-to-dusk competitions but is not red-dot bright. Against black competition bullseyes, a brighter illumination would be welcome.
When I first got the Helos BTR, I was puzzled as to its relatively low 1-4.5x power range, which I assume comes from the heritage of NRA High Power ‘service rifle’ competitions. The current marketing trend in LPVOs to offer more-is-better with 8x, 10x, and higher magnification. I wonder why Athlon doesn’t offer a parallax focus in their 1-10 Ares ETR? Regardless, the Helos BTR is an LPVO that offers competition grade features and high quality optics at a “budget” price for an Athlon.
Discovery Optics has quietly been making high featured optics in the price tier usually considered “budget”. Discovery sent me a pre-release sample of their new ED-AR 1-8x24SFIR FFP LPVO. This is part of their top tier ED line of optics which utilize Japanese ED glass.
This is an evolution on the ED-AR 1-6×24 not just in illumination but also in the addition of a side-focus parallax adjustment knob. This feature is nearly unheard of in LPVOs. Moreover, this scope is able to focus from infinity to an unprecedented 5 yards; making this optic an option for hunting, NRL22 or precision airgun.
The overall glass quality was bright, clear and sharp. While not quite the same league as the Vortex Razor HD it come much closer than most LPVOs under $500. At launch this scope is selling for a street price of $200 on Amazon and the Discovery Optics website which makes this optic cheaper than Swampfox, Primary Arms and many other budget optics! The retail version does not include rings or a mount; I recommend mounting this on an offset mount for your AR like Discovery Optics and Monstrum QD mounts.
Like other FFP’s, the ED-AR suffers from a thin reticle at 1x. Unfortunately the ED-AR’s illuminator is typical of most LPVO’s, not quite daylight bright and only useful in low light or CQB. I would suggest Discovery offer this optic with a much thicker 1x reticle configuration similar to the Arken EP8 or the Sig TANGO MSR.
Over multiple range visits, the scope held zero. It has a lifetime warranty. With their new service office in California customer service shouldn’t be a problem. If they can keep this unit at this price point the ED-AR has the potential to change the LPVO landscape.
Maven sent me the target model of their excellent B.5 18×56 binoculars. This version has a MIL target range finding reticle (they also make an MOA version) in the left tube of the binos. These are a feature that make them useful for target range estimation and shot correction in long range shooting sports.
While it only offers 18x magnification, binoculars offer stereoscopic depth perception unlike single tube scopes; this allows you to easily determine the relative distances of objects to each other and that of ground splashes to the target. Its size and compact form make it easy to pack and transport compared to a 80mm spotting scope (which can’t easily be use handheld like binoculars).
The B.5 features bright and clear Fluorite glass for crisp details. This is a step up in price and quality than standard ED glass which has some fluorite in it but “Fluorite ED” is even sharper and more expensive. Looking through the B.5 there is little chromatic aberration from edge to edge.
Looking at my reference targets at 100yrds I was able to see far clearer than in my phone camera test footage. Something about the eye and the brain when looking through binoculars allows you to see in greater zoomed detail. I was easily able to see the .22cal holes on paper even at 100yrds.
The B.5 has dark grey silicone rubber armored body tubes and striking metallic orange accents on its reticle leveling ring and washer sections. These colored accents and the body can be customized when ordering a build-your-own model of your optic on the Maven website. No other optics company offers such a wide range of custom style options on their products.
The B.5’s does not come cheap. This and all of Maven’s optics come in at a premium price tier. But its optical performance and customizable style make it look like a winner.
Athlon Optics recently sent me a Midas TSR-1 micro reflex red dot to test. It comes standard with a Picatinny mount, which got me wondering could I use this for Olympic-style shooting?
Olympic-Style shooting became a hot topic during this summer when Turkish precision shooter Yusuf Dikeç won Silver at the Paris Olympics. Usually the Gold medal winner receives all the attention but Dikeç became an internet sensation despite his 2nd place finish. The internet was captivated by his dad-bod and his “no-fucks-given” nonchalant shooting performance. Suddenly the big guntubers were asking how hard is it to shoot Olympic-Style?
Olympic-style style matches are based on International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF) rules and are the traditional stance and style for target pistol sports. This style of shooting is alive and well in the USA at NRA Precision Pistol matches. NRA Precision Pistol includes categories for full sized pistol cartridges (9mm and .45cal) along with 22LR Olympic Style pistols.
Unlike Olympic/ISSF, NRA Precision Pistol allows the use of red dots. I enlisted the aid of my fellow club members, who compete in NRA Precision. My buddy brought out his Pardini 22LR (along with Hammerli and Walther) dominate the Olympics and ISSF. If you haven’t seen these 22LR pistol at your range it’s probably because they start at about $2900, so not your typical backyard plinker!
The Athlon TSR-1 is a compact 3MOA micro-reflex designed for Doctor/Noblex cut pistol slides (like the Vortex Viper). It is feather light at 2.8 oz with a thin profile ideal for concealed carry pistols. It has motion-activation, auto-off, and is rated for a 50,000hr runtime on a CR2032 battery. It comes with a Glock MOS adapter plate and Picatinny mount.
Tge Pardini has a rail cut on its receiver for optics. This rail is wide enough for a Picatinny but is shallower. The Athlon Picatinny mount just didn’t have a sharp enough cut on its clamp to sit precisely in the Pardini’s small grove. It was shootable but was not ideal.
For 22LR target pistols with a Picatinny rails like competition Ruger MkIV or My Advantage Arms Target 1911 slide, the Athlon TSR-1 sits securely and perfectly. So we discovered that whilst the TSR-1 will never grace a modern Olympic pistol, it’ll help you drive tacks into your target shooting Olympic-style American target guns.
Enter to win an ED-AR 1-8×24 LPVO from Discovery Optics. Subscribe to my travel channel, Moondog Go or follow me on X. Entries must be received no later than 12pm EST on September 30, 2024.
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Anarchy Outdoors sent me their Penguin Precision Grip. This grip was designed by a former US Army Ranger and law enforcement snipers. Unlike the AR-style factory grip of the Ruger Precision Rimfire (RPR), the Penguin has a vertical angle favored by precision shooters. This angle allows for a more ergonomic hand position when shooting prone or bench rested.
Moreover, the features a thumb rest and hand wrest to reduce grip fatigue and encourage more even trigger pull. The palm swell is skeletonized palm both reduce weight but I suspect to promote airflow to reduce palm sweating. Installation was similar to an AR but easier as there was no selector index pin to keep track of. It was a simple matter of unscrewing the base bolt with a long enough Allen key to reach the receiver base through the hollow grip.
Night vision goggles (NVGs) used by military combat units cost thousands of dollars. But with “Digital Night Vision” goggles have made night vision affordable for civilians; in the hundreds of dollars (and sometimes under a hundred). GTMedia sent me their newest N4 model test and it is a good example of this type of NVG.
All digital cameras are sensitive to inferred (IR) wavelengths of light outside our eye’s visual spectrum. Digital NVGs are essentially portable digital video cameras and displays. These Digital NVGs are essentially Gen 1 night vision, only able to see images with the help of active IR illumination (an inferred flashlight).
The N4 is a compact and lightweight Digital NVG unit that has the form factor of a binocular but is in reality a single lens digital camera with individual eyepieces that look at the same display. The second objective lens is actually the IR flashlight which illuminates your subjects in beam that can extend out to over 100yrds. The N4 has a built in rechargeable battery and can take both video and 10MP photos while it is being used as an NVG.
The unit is made of lightweight plastic that has a 1/4″ photo socket so it can be used on a tripod or attached with a GoPro compatible bracket to a head strap and worn over your eyes, handsfree. The unit has a focus controls for the eyepieces to see the internal low-res LCD display and for the digital camera. My unit had a slight defect in the camera focus which limited the distance of sharp focus to 20ft-60ft. GTMedia sent me a replacement unit after I sent them videos of the problem which was mechanical in nature.
In testing I was able to see a man sized figure at a distance of 100yrds but because of the IR illumination, the image was mono-chromatic. The unit is able to see in full color but it’s camera is night very high fidelity and the video footage I was able to get was lackluster; about the same as low-quality security camera footage. The footage I did manage to get felt more like an analog horror game.
The 1x through the unit is more like 5x and is disorienting and makes to walking while wearing it in the dark, awkward and potentially dangerous on rough terrain. The light weight shell makes it easier to wear and travel with but feels fare too fragile to drop. It could do with some silicone armor and a stronger GoPro bracket connection or an adapter for NVG J-arm.
The unit did work and could allow me to identify animals or intruders at night but it is not a combat optic. Because Gen 1 NVGs require in IR light source, these can be easily seen at a great distance by Gen 2 or Gen 3 NVGs and identified. In a SHTF situation, the N4 is outclassed but it is better than not having night vision. There is an old saying, “In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is the king.”
