Background: This actually grew out of an earlier thread (page 6) on the topic of Magpul's new MOE handguards, but it probably rates separate consideration, now that we're seeing some new optics entering production in 2009, such as Trijicon's TR-24 or the new ultra-compact ACOG.

My comments from the other thread appear below, and while this topic has been bandied-about many times in many places, there is always room for renewed input and discussion.

I've spent most of my career as an iron sights guy, and while I have some experience with Aimpoints, the only glass I use on a regular basis is a S&B Zenith Flash Dot (1.5-6x42mm) on my hunting carbine. I'm a very young 43, but 43 nonetheless, so I'm beginning to appreciate some magnification for general range work as presbyopia begins to set in.

For close-in work, obviously that can work against you, so I wouldn't hesitate to go with a Short Dot if I thought it offered the best compromise. Trijicon has me rethinking that just a bit with the TR-24 release, and I had some earlier interest in the Nightforce NXS -- though the latter didn't offer much in the way of daylight-visible illumination.

I'm looking for variable versatility, as opposed to a 1:1 RDS -- and am willing to pay for the right product -- but I'm just not settled on what that might be. (ACOGs definitely appeal to me as well, but at what cost for close-in work? I don't really want the compexity of a Docter riding shotgun.)

So, has the game really changed that much with the promise of these new offerings from Trijicon and others, or do we figure to end the year with much the same array of basic options as we have today? My underlying question really is built on the premise that the S&B Short Dot -- the weight and cost notwithstanding -- still represents my idea of the right sort of compromise, but there is plenty of room here for dissenting views.

AC