RU-vid Channel for Critical Impact Group - Wisconsin. We are Wisconsin's leader in training for law enforcement and private citizens. We train individuals to protect themselves, their loved ones and their communities emphasizing principles, porocess and curriculum that is backed by evidence, not industry voodo. New or experienced, we can help you achieve your personal or professional safety goals.
Visit our webpage CRITICALIMPACTGROUP.COM for more information on training schedules, instructors bios and more.
Had a vortex StrikeFire on my AR. Advertised for 5k hours of battery life. The thing was a BEAST and are still selling like hot cakes. Great warranty too
Great video. Very well thought out. IMO the vast majority of the opinions out there that say putting locktite or vibratite or some other liquid fastener on the threads of firearms and their components will cause over tightening come from the other industries that do use these products on machine bolts and screws (automotive mechanics, engine builders come to mind). They are very aware of the increase torque values that can and do exist when assembling engines for example and the torque wrenches and other tools they use are so much more accurate and sensitive compared to the tools we diy gunsmiths use at home when putting scopes and mounts on our guns. Personally I've used locktite 243 for 30-35 years on my scope mounting and I can't ever remember running into a problem or crushed or dented a scope by using it.
It absolutely can be a thing with automotive components and fasteners of certain materials from what I’ve read, but everything I’ve seen or researched does not indicate it transfers over to the kind of fasteners we’re using on firearms
For most people who care about carrying in a high quality, comfortable holster, it is far easier to replace the optic than the holster. Holsters are still the biggest hurdle for navigate when people are selecting dot and gun combos.
Just had mine lock on a mid setting but also noticed brightness adjustment well carrying especially when seated in a vehicle with the best crossing the holster... not a huge problem with my setup and co-witnessing (FN510T) but noticed and notable.
If Vortex wakes up and shortens the shut off time like Holosun they might get a little better battery life. That 14 hours shut down time is just a dumb idea on a shake to wake optic.
Does your led emitter have a lens protecting it or is it open to the elements? Mine has nothing protecting the led amd been meaning to contact vortex about it but always slips my mind.
Holy smokes…. Mine do not either. Hadn’t noticed that, you can poke down onto the circuit board with a pick or something. That seems very odd, I need to ask about that.
@criticalimpactgroup I emailed them about it and they said that it's how they designed it. Now my fastfire3 is totally enclosed. It has a glass in front of the emitter which makes sense. The vortex don't make sense the way its designed.
One of the best things about the firearm industry is that I can support Americans when buying. There are plenty of companies who haven’t sold out to Chinese manufacturing. I’ll continue to support businesses that support Americans.
I got about 12 weeks of battery life on my Vortex ccw defender . There book says 9500 hours. But I only got about 2800 hours. May be my last Vortex red dot .
In general, I have found you will get 10-20% of actual run time compared to the advertised battery life, simply because companies base their run time on a medium setting. No one carries on medium, you can’t see the dot at that setting even on a cloudy day.
I've heard good things about Vortex Defender so definitely may be replacing my Swampfox Sentinel A which has surprised me with how well it works and I've dropped it onto floor and no problems except have to remove optic to replace battery which kinda sucks seeing all the zeroing in go down tubes .
Is really like to know the back story of the auto off time. 14 hr makes no sense at all. Hell an hour makes no sense on a shake awake! There must be some sort of issue sourcing hardare to make the change because i cant think of any reason at all a 12-14hr time would make sense on any planet 😅
In a probably functioning trigger, doesn't it reset itself? So why ride it back into place when it's going to reset on it's own. I'm just a disciple of the Bill Rogers flick and press. Mind you I came up on trigger reset so I understand both principles.
Trigger pinning comes from marksmanship training. Slow, methodical shooting looking for every last fraction of an inch. High Power competition, Service Rifle, F-Class, etc... Also sniper training, long range shooting, etc. In these disciplines trigger pinning is taught to eliminate ALL extraneous movement that holds ANY potential to throw off the shot. The problem comes, I believe, in people applying those lessons to all forms of shooting, whether or not it may actually apply. Sometimes it's just muscle memory and will take a lot of training to overcome. I basically tell myself to slap the trigger, though that's not what I'm really doing, just to speed up my movements on the trigger. I spent far too long looking for ultimate accuracy and/or nice "rapid fire" groups fired one round per breath where there is ample time to pin the trigger, reset, and fire again. "Tactical" or "combat" shooting requires a different approach and a different accuracy standard. Therefore, a different technique may be called for.
That’s actually a good point - the type of shooting you’re doing matters. I shoot a lot of long range, bolt guns, train police snipers - a “pin” in this regard can help follow through, and I absolutely do it with these kinds of guns. I’m less worried about controlling reset still especially on semi-auto precision rifles, sometimes you still have to shoot legitimately fast and accurately (not measured in seconds per round, but rounds per second), but I agree, there’s a place for precision work for at least a momentary “pin” - I’d just say it’s more about follow through and trigger control than trigger reset. Different type of shooting as you mentioned.
Nope :( I expect about 10%-20% of any optics advertised battery life, given how manufactures rate their life on a medium setting no one actually uses, but for whatever reason this is exceptionally low.
Once we start war with China over Taiwan, your "lifetime " warranty goes out the window...besides supporting communistic regimes that hate you. Trijicon and Leupold are made here. They both stand behind their products, even after the war begins.
If you are riding to reset when shooting as fast as you can, I guarantee you are still wasting time. It is physically impossible to be that precise with your finger, moving that fast. If you’re shooting splits any faster than .20, I could almost guarantee if you film your trigger slow motion, you are going well beyond reset, and probably coming completely off the trigger.
Looks good. I’ll wait for version 2. Hopefully they will come out with a green dot option and reduced shake awake time. 14 hours is a bit much. Running Vortex PST Gen II 1-6 on my rifles. Love them. Well done video by the way. Thanks for sharing.
Ran into the same issue almost immediately after buying the red dot. I also use a Tenicor holster. The Up button would be pressed against by the sweat guard and change the setting, even if the lock out was on. I simply used a dremel with a sanding stone. I marked where the button was and sanded away a spot just big enough to house the up button in the holster. I didn’t have the need to cut away the whole sweat guard. Thanks for sharing!
I designed and ran their shooting range for four years. I still run a lot of the higher end Vortex products - you can get some high performing equipment at a good price.
It does and it’s an option with positives and negatives if you use it. The 14 hour shutoff obviously is useless if you carry every day. I’m ok with a shake awake but they gotta be 99.999% sure it’s going to work when you need it.
I just got one of these and i will say, its a very well built, rugged optic. Its also extremely bright on the highest settings, like really really bright. I also have a CT Rad Micro Pro and its not even comprable in brightness or build quality.
I LOVE how bright it gets. I’m a big proponent of carrying your dot brighter than you think you’ll need it. Easier to shoot through a too bright dot than one you can’t see. Window is huge for its size, and super durable. Potentially RMR level durability. I haven’t been able to break one yet with any reasonable tests.
It’s happened with three different quality batteries now. And for what it’s worth, my Holosuns that say 50,000 hours generally make it about a year. The number any of these companies give us on a medium setting, maybe good enough for shooting indoors - usually not bright enough for carry on a sunny day. I’ve found battery life on high can be 10% or less of the number manufacturers provide.
One thing I really like about this optic is how the lens is protected by the frame. It is recessed considerably deeper than both RMR and Holosun open emitter optics. Some may not find this important or even notice, but this little feature fends off scratches when banging about as well as finger and palm prints when racking the slide. I've hardly any need to wipe the lens clean as opposed to any of my RMRs and Holosuns. Sometimes it's the little things that make a difference. My major complaint about the Vortex Defender is the wacko 14 hour shut off. WTF is up with that? Why not make it less than one hour or even better, adjustable? At 14 hours it's probably not going to shut off when I pick it up and wear it. I have Shake Awake on other optics which shut off within ten or so mintues of being set down. Pick'em up and they're always ready to go. 14 hours is practiically useless if you carry this optic regularly. Again, WTF Vortex? lol Ah well, perhaps in the next generation.
Totally see your point, but i feel like if people had the proper optic cut for the optic, meaning the sweat guard is cut away to make room for the optic, there would be no part of the holster to trigger the button. Am i wrong?
Yep. Not blaming anyone, just something people should be aware of. The biggest alternative is of course some offerings from Holosun - people may be used to the recessed buttons so may not notice the issue. It’s a fairly easy fix to modify the holster.
Did this optic mount directly onto the frame or did it require a plate? Did your standard size sights still co-witness with the optic in place, or do you need suppressor sights?
