3 or 6 MOA Red Dot for Pistol?

I've been using a 12 MOA dot for years on my Steel Challenge pistols. The larger the dot the quicker it seems for me to pick it up. I'm not worried about pin point accuracy since the targets are 10 and 12 inch circles and 18 X 24 plates out to 35 yards.

I recently changed my dot size to 6 MOA. Accuracy went up but speed went down.

On my Steel Challenge rifle I'm using the 6 MOA for now. The rifle is so much easier to shoot. As soon as I see the dot on white I pull the trigger. Shot my first match with it two weeks ago and had a blast.

I have a Trijicon RMR on my EDC M&P 9.
I highly recommend trying it.

The one complaint I hear often is if you have an astigmatism in your eye/eyes the dot appears to be distorted.

When it comes to optics, I remember what my grandfather told me when I was a boy, when you buy a scope or sights make sure it will benefit you as you get older too as your eye sight will diminish. As a grandfather now I see he was correct. In my opinion red dots are for quick acquisition not precision shooting, but at a minimum I would get the 6 moa for a pistol. You want to do precision shooting use a rifle. Just my 2¢.

MOA Dot is easier and faster to find in the window, but obscures more of the target, at 25 yards it may be covering more of the center ring...

3 MOA Dot is more accurate, simply because you can see more of the target behind it, but it might take longer to find in the window....

The size of the dot does not change with brightness, at least as far as I am aware on the RDS I know of, but if you turn up the dot intensity to high for the conditions, you'll get glare, so the glare will make it appear bigger to your eye, but it's not....

Being on the older side, I get 6 MOA dots since my eyesight has degraded a bit...
My son gets 3 MOA dots, and we often shoot each other pistols...

He's just as accurate with my 6 MOA and I seem to be able to find the dot quick enough on his 3 MOA...

But I also have concluded the RMR and Vortex Viper are big enough, and don't think I can get any advantage of the bigger window of the DPP, at the same time, the squarer and bigger EFLX does appeal to me and I like it...

I don't remember the brand but doesn't someone make an RDS that the reticle can be switched between 3 and 6 and a circle with dot and a cross hair.

Mercy Me said:

The size of the dot does not change with brightness, at least as far as I am aware on the RDS I know of,

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It sure does on mine (Trijicon, Sig Romeo, Holosun, Vortex). At low power, it's just a pin head. Crank it up at the same range, it is much larger. I'm not sure at what power the MOA is measured.

I have dabbled with red dot sights on hand guns and this is the only one I have that I have that still has a red dot sight on it.

I'll agree it is a personal preference thing.

I think it is a 3 MOA Tasco site.

The firearm is a 45 ACP 1911,

For short range,10-15 yards, I'm happy using iron sights. No need for the extra weight on top of the gun.

cfullgraf said:

I have dabbled with red dot sights on hand guns and this is the only one I have that I have that still has a red dot sight on it.

I'll agree it is a personal preference thing.

I think it is a 3 MOA Tasco site.

The firearm is a 45 ACP 1911,

For short range,10-15 yards, I'm happy using iron sights. No need for the extra weight on top of the gun.

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If we were limited to red dots like the one in you picture I would agree with you, but with the newer slide mounted red dots that weigh two ounces or less I disagree.

This was my first duty sized pistol with a red dot and it took less than a month of practicing with it before I was able to draw and fire it faster than my custom M&P 9 that I was using for competition, and I've always shot Glocks worse than almost any other handgun.



With the Sig P320 that replaced it I am not only faster but also more accurate than I was with the Glock, and can still easily conceal it in an appendix holster.

JEBruns said:

It sure does on mine (Trijicon, Sig Romeo, Holosun, Vortex). At low power, it's just a pin head. Crank it up at the same range, it is much larger. I'm not sure at what power the MOA is measured.

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I guess i must be doing something wrong, Thanks for the feedback.

zdc1775 said:

If we were limited to red dots like the one in you picture I would agree with you, but with the newer slide mounted red dots that weigh two ounces or less I disagree.

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I’m not saying red dot sights are bad, they are just not for me. I’ve tried the small ones on other firearms. They have all been removed and I use the iron sights.

Actually, I think I have a 22LR AR-15 with Burris red dot still installed on it but it does not get shot much.

The ProPoint stays on the 1911. If you notice, there are no sight cuts on the slide of that particular gun. The ProPoint works and is sighted in so why change.

Mercy Me said:

I guess i must be doing something wrong, Thanks for the feedback.

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It depends on the optic and what features it has. Not all optics have the auto brightness and auto MOA adjust features. Most only have auto brightness.

Here's a dot size reference for shooting bowling pins at 25 feet.

Three MOA can seem a bit small. 3.5 MOA looks noticeably better. Best of all, for my eyes, is a green triangle. No dot size is perfect for every situation, for me.

I have a 6 MOA 407k green dot that I still need to put one my pistol to try so I say 6

@Styx and @DS-10-SPEED
I consolidated your illustrations on one image. I hope you don’t mind.



It makes things handy. If you do mind I will delete it.

Derek Zeanah said:

I'm not the OP, but I'm starting to think the ACSS reticle might make some sense while learning the red dot. I like the idea of the ring that surrounds the actual reticle - if you're looking through the optic correctly then you don't see the "error ring," but if you're off you see the ring that lets you know where you ought to be.

View attachment 1191241

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It's a great reticle that is intuitive and has ranging features built in, as well as being larger than a dot but still precise.

Derek Zeanah said:

I've been researching this myself, and after watching a comparison on The Humble Marksman's youtube channel I discovered what might be another factor to consider: astigmatism.

If, like me, you have astigmatism, then you'll do better the lower the brightness is set. As 6 MOA dots are bigger and easier to pick up, you don't need to crank the brightness as high, and you may end up with a cleaner dot.

Or at least, that's what I absorbed, so when I try an optic to see if I can make it work for me I'm starting with a 6 MOA.

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Or put on vision correction and now the astigmatism is no longer a factor..gone..

Gary H said:

Or put on vision correction, and now the astigmatism is no longer a factor..gone..

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I can't speak for @Derek Zeanah, but I have really bad eyesight (not astigmatism). I don't want whether I use my irons or RDS, e.i., make accurate shots on target, in a defensive situation to depend on whether my glasses are on my face or not. I might not have my glasses on. They may break, or they may be knocked off. I honestly like to shoot at the range and practice in the worst-case scenario conditions, which is without my glasses on.

For me, if I don't have glasses on, a 3 MOA dot will disappear. It will blur to the point that my eyes can not see it unless I put my glasses back on. I will be able to see a 6 MOA dot just fine. I also more difficult for me to pick up the tiny trinium dot inside the front iron sight in low light conditions for similar reasons. I can still see it and the front sight post, but it's blurry.

Styx said:

I can't speak for @Derek Zeanah, but I have really bad eyesight (not astigmatism). I don't want whether I use my irons or RDS, e.i., make accurate shots on target, in a defensive situation to depend on whether my glasses are on my face or not. I might not have my glasses on. They may break, or they may be knocked off. I honestly like to shoot at the range and practice in the worst-case scenario conditions, which is without my glasses on.

For me, if I don't have glasses on, a 3 MOA dot will disappear. It will blur to the point that my eyes can not see it unless I put my glasses back on. I will be able to see a 6 MOA dot just fine. I also more difficult for me to pick up the tiny trinium dot inside the front iron sight in low light conditions for similar reasons. I can still see it and the front sight post, but it's blurry.

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Very good points. I never considered this as a threat scenario.

Derek Zeanah said:

Well, my problems are mixed:

• Dots aren't dots, they're blurs of one sort or another. Red is better than green.
• I wear bifocals, and the distances the lenses focus at aren't particularly conducive to getting a clear front sight
• Some days, some pistols I can see the front sight well enough to shoot nice tight groups right where I want.
• Other days/pistols, I can tilt my head up like Sergeant Murtaugh at the range and focus on the front sight using my bifocals.
• Other days/pistols, I can't get a clear sight picture regardless of what I try, so I focus on the target and try and aim using the blurred sights.

For me, even with a blobby red dot, it seems like I can be a more effective shooter with better groups with all pistols and in all lighting conditions with optics on a pistol.

Your eyes, experiences, and expectations, of course, may vary.

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It sounds like you and I share a similar problem. Some days I can see my sights just fine, but others I can’t. I have found that contrasts work best for me. A black rear sight with a white box and a front fiber optic sight or painted front sights that show some black around the color. I cannot use those front sights that are fully covered in day-glo colors. If there is some outline in black I am okay with it.

I have astigmatism and red dots and red fiber optic sights blobbed out on me. Nearly 2 years ago when I moved to WV I found an optometrist that was able to set my eyeglasses up to counter the astigmatism. Her and her partner (it’s a two optometrist office) have provided me with glasses that I can now see red dots and red FO sights just fine.
What baffles me I why my prior eye doctors I have had couldn’t provide lens correction for my astigmatism. Weird.

I wish you luck in finding what works for you.

I like the 6 moa dot myself. In fact, I dusted off a dot-sighted pistol just today..

This is 30 shots fired at 15 yds with 124 gr fmj through a Glock 43X. I can’t come close to this with open sights, and with this dot size I get no astigmatism bloom. (The dot juuust covers the red center in the mini-silhouettes head zone target.)





Things get much easier to hit using a dot. Skeptical at first, I am a true convert now!

Let us know how the new dot works for you when you get a chance to sight in and give it a go.

Stay safe.

I have a 3 MOA Vortex Venom on my .22 target gun (S&W Victory), and a 6 MOA Venom on my house/range gun (G35 MOS). After doing a lot of reading, that was what most of the people were using for the intended purpose.

I have an older reflex on a 22 plate shooter rifle. It gives you the choice of different dot types in red or green. Its great for that task or a similar situation but its not for longer distance target shooting or doing ammo test. It has a large and small dot selection and I prefer the smaller - I don't find the ring or cross hair with the dot inside options usefull as they put too much distraction in the sight picture.

I've had the optic mounted on several firearm types and find the plate shooter the best use for it. Its fast and accurate enough for that. Hitting 2 or 3 different plates a second at different ranges (15-50 yrds) is not a problem. Paralex can be an issue so a stock and proper mounting height helps with accuracy.

With older eyes focusing on the target with any dot size the dot is going to be fuzzy and look big so the proper brightness matters for the current lighting conditions more than the dot size IMO. At the same time if you focus on a large dot the target will be washed out more than when focusing on a small dot. I find trying to focus on the dot mind wrecking and timely so always focus on the target when using a reflex.

Just my take - do whats best for you.