08-27-2011, 12:28 AM
The real question should be: "What do guys put on their M4's who have a choice and are in units without the regular Army BS restrictions?" I haven't seen ANY of them using ACOG's, but they did have a ton of S&B PMII Short Dots, or Eotech's for the non-magnified CQ optics. My biggest problem with the ACOG's is the tiny exit pupil and unnaturally-short eye-relief, which really sucks whether you're wearing a helmet or not. Even the 3.5x TA31, which was supposed to fix this, didn't. The guy who really wanted it from me bought it, and quickly sold it to another guy who thought it was cool. It gets the job done, but for the money, I could find better optics for my needs. I much prefer the 1-4x and 1-6xscopes that are currently flooding the market.
A little history behind the ACOG: If you look at the German FG42 paratroop rifle from WWII, they had an optic that looked very much like what the ACOG now looks like. The Brits realized that the Germans were on to something with a practical, low-magnification optic for riflemen that could take the abuse, and the EM-2 bullpup system had one. They eventually fielded the SUSAT scope, which has seen a lot of service on the SA80 bullpup rifle. The ACOG seems to be very much inspired by this crude combat optic, made with better materials and stronger internals, but still not without serious issues.
If one is looking for a practical marksman rifle optic, I would steer in the small, variable power direction, and away from the TA11-type ACOG's. That's just my input, after using several different optics designed to meet these requirements. The 1-4x Scopes tend to be very forgiving in acquiring your sight picture clearly, both in eye-relied and exit pupil. The ACOG's are neither...
A little history behind the ACOG: If you look at the German FG42 paratroop rifle from WWII, they had an optic that looked very much like what the ACOG now looks like. The Brits realized that the Germans were on to something with a practical, low-magnification optic for riflemen that could take the abuse, and the EM-2 bullpup system had one. They eventually fielded the SUSAT scope, which has seen a lot of service on the SA80 bullpup rifle. The ACOG seems to be very much inspired by this crude combat optic, made with better materials and stronger internals, but still not without serious issues.
If one is looking for a practical marksman rifle optic, I would steer in the small, variable power direction, and away from the TA11-type ACOG's. That's just my input, after using several different optics designed to meet these requirements. The 1-4x Scopes tend to be very forgiving in acquiring your sight picture clearly, both in eye-relied and exit pupil. The ACOG's are neither...