Anybody using them? I'm not a huge fan of optics or anything requiring a battery. How did you maximize sight radius? I'm guessing something like an AR15 sight clamped on the barrel for the front. Us old M1A guys are a little resistant to newfangled Star Wars doodads.
The stock rail sight radius isn't all that bad... It's longer than my Redhawk and I can keep that on steel at 200 meters...
I can understand trying to avoid battery powered optics to some degree, and for some red dots and such can cause flares and such in older eyes. I've seen pics of RFB's using the KT front extended rail device with a BUIS attached that is the same height as a BUIS mounted on the main receiver rail. This gives a lot more sight distance, and if I was determined to use "irons", I'd go to something like that. Frankly I think older eyes actually respond better to some form of optic, though maybe not a red dot if you have astigmatism or just want to avoid a battery. Optics along the lines of a Vortex Spitfire provide an etched reticle with the option of turning on illumination of the reticle when desired. Otherwise you have a rapidly acquired, 1X, effective reticle without the need of a battery. These still provide a compact package that is quickly deployable and easy to use.
Thanks! I guess being older makes me a bit "old school". I've preferred iron sights to glass all my life. I have a Savage A22 Magnum coming and the first thing it's getting is a trip to the gunsmith for a set of iron sights. I really like the RFB but the sight thing is pretty much a dealkiller until I see something on it that's a bit more than a "backup" sight. Unfortunately this puts the SOCOM 16 at the top of the list now.
This may be blasphemy, but here goes . If you must use iron sights, the SOCOM is probably a better bet for you. The RFB's main claim to fame is the same firepower in a much shorter package. If you are using a scope 3" away from your eye on either one, there is simply no need for the gun to be 5 feet long anymore. I don't think even the Hunter variant RFB with a quadrail will be able to get the front sight far enough away from you to be effective. The closer the front sight blade is to your eye, the larger it becomes in relation to a bullseye at 100 yards and therefore, less accurate.
Yeah, the RFB's compact length is high on my list and it being a true ambi is critical. I do insist on using iron sights. If I can see it I can hit it. I compromised on the length with the SOCOM and shooting it lefty isn't a problem since it ejects the brass at 2 o'clock. As an old M14 guy it's a platform I'm already comfortable with. I have Magpul flip-ups on my KSG and they work fine in that context but I doubt they'd be terribly effective on an RFB. There may be one on my future but for now I figuratively just pulled the trigger on a SOCOM.
I'll take my beating quietly . Still love to see the right guy hooked-up with the right gun. I know I wouldn't try to run. What's the old saying? 'you'll just die tired'.
No beatings being handed out here. It's partly a matter of what I'm willing to spend on a gun. I lusted after a KSG for a long time waiting for a good deal. Patience paid off, I scored a lightly used Gen 2 for $600. Sooner or later I'll find a good deal on an RFB. Maybe I'll reconcile my bias against glass and batteries by then.
Our combat troops trust them, that's good enough for me. I had to make the transition too. What you sight best thru may not be the most expensive either. The proof is in the seein' and shootin'. p.s. You do know this is a Kel-Tec board right? Recommending another gun is treason. I LOVE my RFB though! @theguycuttingtheswitch
I have 3 KelTecs which I love. I've never shot through an optical sight so I have room to change my mind about them. The military may issue ACOGs but they also equip M4's and M16's with some excellent "backup" sights. I'm just not willing to go optical without decent open sights JIC.
Because the top of the RFB where your cheek rests is arched, 45 degree offset open sights actually work really well... But it is also hard to go wrong with a M1A or SOCOM.
Maybe I'm a little late here, but I just put one of these on a pistol to try and I know they make a version that rides a rail... No sight radius to worry about, no batteries, dual fiber-optic and tritium for illumination. https://seeallopensight.com/shop/ Seems pretty good on my pistol so far, easier to line up and shoot than pistol irons, but not as fast a a true red dot for me at least.
I love shooting iron sights on a carbine. Heck, my favorite gun to shoot is a Rossi M92. That being said, I ditched irons on my RFB in favor of a 1-6.5 scope. Although it can be illuminated, it has a FFP etched reticle that works just fine for me. I rarely turn on the juice unless shooting at black steel plates.
I tried to use iron sights on my Mini-14, but the rear peephole sight on a mini is crap, so I shifted to an inexpensive red-dot, and now a scope. I liked the iron sights on my M1 carbine, but my eyes got worse and worse, and I had to break down and remove the rear sight and install a short rail for a red dot. All my other rifles have scopes. Again with the eyes, all my pistols have either fiber optics or dots of fluorescent orange paint on the front sights. Getting older is not for wussies.
The expense of what I consider "good" is the problem. The law of diminishing returns comes into play in a big way. The price of an ACOG floored me.
Tell me about it. I'm 65, and blind in one eye. The other eye corrects to 20/15. Like you, fiber optics and fluorescent paint are on most of my guns.
