I am looking at putting a red dot optic in a forward mount on my Arsenal AK. I see a lot of variation in dot sizes these days, even some where you can dial up or down the dot. I will likely stay with one that has a single dot size, just wondered what some thought on the best size for forward mount - 2, 4, 6, 8 MOA?

Just for giggles I think I will take my AR and move the 4 MOA Aimpoint out to the front rail and see how it works as a control.

Dot size affects acquisition speed, angle subtended, and - for those with astigmatism - flare.

A 4 MOA dot seems faster than a 2 MOA dot to my eye. Not everyone will agree with this, but most do. You can turn a smaller dot's intensity up to kinda make up for this. But that brings us to the 3rd issue.

Smaller dots seem to give more flare to us astigmatism folks mainly b/c we must have it slightly brighter. If you have no astigmatism, or yours is completely corrected pls disregard this concern. Also, flare is mostly an issue when punching paper. In use, you do what you're supposed to do: focus on the target.

Angle subtended matters only with respect to the object you are aiming at. Thus, 1 or 2 MOA might make more sense for woodchucks, but would not be an advantage on a woods deer rifle.

Shooting targets large enough for subtended angle to be immaterial, you will see zero difference in accuracy between 1, 2, 4 MOA dots. Trust me on this. Many fools think a 4 MOA dot means a 4 MOA group. Nonsense.

To summarize, I would base the decision on planned use of the rifle first, need for speed, then degree of astigmatism.

Finally, Aimpoint battery life is flat out insane. When the battery dies it does so gradually so you can just turn up the intensity. No internal kill switch destined to shut the optic off at the worst possible moment. Worth the extra money.

Sam

Good points, thanks.