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FTP Alpha3 optic experiences


vgdvc

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So I have one of these (8moa)coming hopefully in about a week. It seemed to be a very good price during a Black Friday sale for the features and the fact that I believe it's built in the same Japanese manufacturing facility as the Sig Romeo3XL/Max. Supposedly the more advanced circuitry ,coating/lens, and moc features. Does anyone have one of these to compare it to the current popular quality dots on the market? Fwiw I will be happy to report here to compare it with an RTs2, cmore Slideride, romeo3 Etc once I get it in hand and put some rounds down range with it on my open pistol.

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We have them on all three of my wives Brazos Pro SX. She had been using RTS2 6 moa. Currently has about 12 matches and twice that many practice sessions on her primary gun.

Zero issues so far. Still on the first battery in all three units. Do you have any specific concerns?

PS, the shipments from FastToys arrived 3-5 days ahead of their estimate.

 

 

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Thanks for the reply. No specific concerns just the fact that they are new and don't have a big name behind them like Sig Etc. If the quality is the same as a Romeo with the same features though it will most certainly be a very good deal.

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I have 2 Alphas and one RTS2. They both share the same footprint. The Alpha's on/off buttons are easier to use and seem more positive in using. Both dots are easy on batteries. Other than the buttons both dots are very similar in size and quality.

 

 

 

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The quality seems to be the same, I have a Sig Romeo on my Pro SX. The glass is as good if not better than the Romeo. Dot is sharp and bright with more adjustment. Really prefer the "shake awake" feature with FTP.  Just ordered two of FTP Alpha 3 during the sale. I will be changing my guns to FTP.

I don't shoot much open anymore and was able to pick up the dot much more easily with the FTP.  Weird angles and SH/WH the dot is easy to find compared

to the Romeo. 

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On 12/9/2019 at 3:24 AM, vgdvc said:

So I have one of these (8moa)coming hopefully in about a week. It seemed to be a very good price during a Black Friday sale for the features and the fact that I believe it's built in the same Japanese manufacturing facility as the Sig Romeo3XL/Max. Supposedly the more advanced circuitry ,coating/lens, and moc features. Does anyone have one of these to compare it to the current popular quality dots on the market? Fwiw I will be happy to report here to compare it with an RTs2, cmore Slideride, romeo3 Etc once I get it in hand and put some rounds down range with it on my open pistol.

I’m shopping for a new optic and have been leaning towards the Romeo 3xl. Somehow missed these. Out of curiosity what was the Black Friday price.

 

Id be interested in knowing how much bigger the glass is than on a RTS2.

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39 minutes ago, AKJD said:

I’m shopping for a new optic and have been leaning towards the Romeo 3xl. Somehow missed these. Out of curiosity what was the Black Friday price.

 

Id be interested in knowing how much bigger the glass is than on a RTS2.

It was $341.00 including shipping. From pictures I've seen glass appears to be a little taller and more squared-off than the rts2 not as wide as the XL however.. When I get it and after some use hopefully I'll have some good experiences to report back with.

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On 12/10/2019 at 7:35 PM, vgdvc said:

It was $341.00 including shipping. From pictures I've seen glass appears to be a little taller and more squared-off than the rts2 not as wide as the XL however.. When I get it and after some use hopefully I'll have some good experiences to report back with.

Thanks.

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Alpha 3 vs RTS2

 

I would say the Alpha 3 is an upgrade over the RTS2.  It has much improved side buttons and 10 intensity levels with the top being very bright.  Window size is little bigger which is also nice.

inCollage_20191202_142636991.jpg

Edited by andersonj55126
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Some more info. The Alpha's footprint is slightly larger than the RTS. The Alpha's cover is soft plastic, the RTS's cover is hard plastic. The Alpha cover will fit the RTS but the RTS cover will not fit the Alpha.

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Mine appears to be very bright, in fact inside on the highest setting there is definitely some red picture framing around the perimeter of similar to what I would get with my Holosun 510c. It goes away as the brightness is adjusted down. Glass is only slightly bigger than an rts2 but more squarish gives a little more viewing area. Only had it out to zero and dry fire so far. The windage and elevation clicks are very positive. It comes with a picattiny mount. The feature with motac is nice however it seems to be a hard off after about two hours of non-use. Different than my Sig Romeo 5 motac which turns on regardless of how long it's been off. I'm hoping that's how it's designed and mine is just not an anomaly. If weather is decent on the 28th/29th I should hopefully have an opportunity to try it at match and will report back.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I own the Alpha 3 (8MOA), the DPP (2.5MOA), and the C-More RTS2 (6MOA). Here is my take: 

 

PROS

Alpha 3 - Very bright at 8MOA, even in the brightest sunlight, you will always see this dot in any weather condition. Auto shut-off, Easy adjustments, Reliability, good size window.

DPP - Very good size window, reliable, auto shut-off, Bright dot, top notch warranty and support.

C-More RTS2 - better than the slide ride, customer care, not much else :( 

 

CONS

Alpha 3 - Window could be larger to keep up with the latest LARGE windows, only 30 month warranty.

DPP - Adjusting the brightness is a PAIN. Although bright, the dot is too small at 2.5MOA where as the next step up is the 7.5MOA triangle, which is not really designed for IPSC/USPSA, it works, but it is not easy to get used to.

C-More RTS2 - Reliability (I had two RTS2's crap out in matches), dot gets faded out in direct sunlight making it difficult to find dot, even at the highest setting, no auto shut-off

 

Overall, I would highly recommend the Alpha 3. It is large enough to do the job, it has been VERY reliable for me, and the dot can ALWAYS be found in the brightest sunlight. Even though it only has a 30 month warranty, it is at up to 40% less than the Trijicon SRO, DPP, and the Romeo 3, and it is very reliable.

Edited by abb1
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5 hours ago, abb1 said:

CONS

Alpha 3 - Window could be larger to keep up with the latest LARGE windows, only one year warranty.

 

 

According to their website it has a 2 1/2 year warranty.

 

http://fasttoys.net/shop/FTP-Optics-Alpha-3-Red-Dot-Reflex-Sight/

 

Warranty/Liability:

FTP warranties the optic to be free of defects for a period of thirty (30) months from the date of purchase. Due to the fragile nature of the glass, this warranty does not cover the glass against breakage, cracks, scratches etc.  Damaged caused by improper installation, neglect or abuse of the optic will not be covered under warranty. This warranty does not apply to defects cause by unusual wear and tear, mishandling or lack of maintenance. Any attempts to disassemble or modify the optic will void the warranty. The warranty only covers the original purchaser and a copy of your purchase receipt is required.

No liability is expressed or implied for damage or injury caused by the use of this product. Warranty is limited to the replacement or repair of the original product only.

 

 

I have no idea how well they honor their warranty, but I suspect they'd be fair since they're frequently on this forum and are aware of the troubles we've all suffered with red dots.

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Had the Alpha 3 8moa out for the first time at a match today shooting Open. 250 rnds, overcast & drizzling 36-47degrees F. It performed as anticipated. Dot was super bright. No fogging. I had no issues finding/indexing it. Crisp dot 1-2 settings down from max setting. A fellow shooter let me preview his Romeo Max Xl. Glass is wider but dot had more "bloom" at same brightness. So far so good. Will send future updates in other conditions.

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15 hours ago, clw42 said:

 

 

According to their website it has a 2 1/2 year warrantyI

Thank you, I made the correction in my post. I have absolutely no concerns about their warranty as FTP is one of the best companies I have dealt with. Their shipping is fast and reasonable, and they will go out of their way to assist you and find what you are looking for. 

Edited by abb1
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1 hour ago, abb1 said:

Thank you, I made the correction in my post. I have absolutely no concerns about their warranty as FTP is one of the best companies I have dealt with. Their shipping is fast and reasonable, and they will go out of their way to assist you and find what you are looking for. 

 

Yeah, I wasn't trying to be the 'correction guy' (similar to the grammar guy).  I didn't know if maybe their policy changed.  I just bought a second Romeo 3 XL on sale, but I'm sort of wishing I snagged one of these.  The reason I didn't is because I have the R3 XL on my primary and figured I should have the same thing on my back up.  I'm not sure how much of an actual difference that would/will make.

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On 12/29/2019 at 9:11 AM, abb1 said:

 

 

 

CONS

 

C-More RTS2 -  no auto shut-off

 

the latest RTS2 version V5 now has the auto shut-off, and also motion sensor on/off (any reliability problems with the earlier versions seemed to be with ones before V4, I have not heard of alot of problems with the V4, we'll see how well the V5 with its enhanced capabilities stands up, I just bought 2 to go on my optic ready guns

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17 hours ago, race1911 said:

the latest RTS2 version V5 now has the auto shut-off, and also motion sensor on/off (any reliability problems with the earlier versions seemed to be with ones before V4, I have not heard of alot of problems with the V4, we'll see how well the V5 with its enhanced capabilities stands up, I just bought 2 to go on my optic ready guns

I had a RTS2 V4 when it first came out. It lasted about 7 months before I kept losing the dot intermittently. I had a replacement and about a year after,  I had the same problem and cost me  a match. I contacted C-More and they told me that it was probably due to the battery holder which is plastic and has been known to crack. and sure enough, it had a split in the rear at the weakest point. They sent me 3 battery trays for replacements. About three months later, I lost the dot again while shooting, and this time the tray was fine. After that, I went to the FTP Alpha 3 and no more problems. I hope that their V5 is a better product, but I am pretty much done with C-More. I need something that works 100% in matches, and I lost all confidence in the RTS2. I have the DPP on my Production Optics gun right from the start,  and NEVER had an issue with it to date.

 

Edited by abb1
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Glad you've had luck with the DPP Abb1, I had a totally opposite experience with them, very undependable...seems you and I have had the best and the worst of both RTS2 and DPP.....I also used the FTP 2, I have had 2 of them, absolutely no failures...the reason I like the FTP, RTS2 is their footprint as my Prod Optic guns are set up for that footprint and I am leaning towards the Romeo3Max as soon as I can get my hands on a couple as they also share the same mounting/footprint as the RTS2

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Everyone,


I've had a few people email and ask about what are the features that we feel make the Alpha 3 stand above the crowd so I thought I would just post it here. Some other brands feature some of the features but they don't have all of them :)
 

  • Competition Orientated Brightness Levels – Levels increase incrementally with no wasted settings for low level light or night settings. The highest settings even work in the bright desert sun! The levels are increased with one button and decreased with the other. Other optics cycle through all the settings with one button and go from bright to almost invisible accidentally when adjusting.  That's so annoying. Also, the buttons located on the side mean you don't have to worry about accidentally touching or smudging the lens like some brands that use a top mount button.
  • Anti reflective high clarity glass – Optimized for maximum light transmission while minimizing reflections. Glass is bright and clear. We spared no expense to make the glass as high quality as possible.
  • Auto shut off – Saves your battery by shutting down the optic when no motion is detected for 3 minutes. As soon as you move the optic, it will turn back on at the last illumination level
  • Soft Touch Buttons – No more having to press hard to change illumination settings or turning the optic off. Just a gentle touch is needed. You will wonder how you ever managed  to living without it!
  • Instant on button. Nothing is worse than forgetting to turn on your red dot at the line. Our optic will turn on at the last illumination setting just by pressing any of the two side buttons for a split second. Other optics like the Sig MAX require you to hold down the on button for a few seconds to turn it on. That will be an eternity on the timer when panic sets in and you can’t find the dot.
  • No locking screw required for elevation and drift. You don’t have to worry about tightening a little set screw that can get stripped or come loose. Our micro click adjustments require no locks to maintain the hold! This little screw is lost or often stripped on other brands.
  • Large Glass size with extra width in the top portion of the glass. When you track the dot under recoil, you use the top portion of the glass. Other competitors are wide at the bottom which is not very useful. Our glass design allows you to transition and track the dot much easier under recoil.
  • Change batteries without re-zeroing the optic. The slide out tray makes battery swaps quick and easy. A standard 2032 battery means not having to search for difficult to find batteries
  • Included rubber optic cover. It's ridiculous that some brands don't come with a cover at all. Ours is rubber so it doesn't crack.
Edited by FTP_Shooting_Sports
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  • 1 month later...

I have a few people ask how the Alpha 3 compares to the SRO. Here is a quick summary:
 

SRO

Window is round/egg shaped and measures 0.98 x 0.89 inches

SRO weighs 1.6 ounces

SRO features 8 brightness levels with 3-8 for daylight use and 1-2 for night vision gear

Battery = CR2032 with top loading battery

Dot Sizes = 1, 2.5 or 5 MOA dot

Motion sensor = not available

Footprint for mount = Same as RMR

Warranty = 5 years from date of manufacture

Retail Price = $ 749.00

 

FTP Optics Alpha 3

Window is tombstone shaped with window measuring 1.02 x .85 inches

FTP Alpha 3 weighs 1.46 ounces

FTP Alpha 3 features ten illumination levels optimized for daylight use

Battery = CR2032 with side loading battery tray

Dot Sizes = 6 or 8 MOA dot

Motion sensor = Yes. Dot will turn off after period of inactivity and then turn back on at same illumination level when motion it detected

Footprint for mount = Same as RTS-2 and Sig Max (please note RTS-2 mounts with blast shield will need to be clearanced)

Warranty = 30 months from date of purchase

Retail Price = $ 379.00 with free shipping

 

While the SRO is a good sight, it is not optimized for competition use. The dot sizes are much smaller and not ideal for pistol shooting in bright sunlight. Illumination levels are wasted to accommodate operators with night vision settings. The FTP dot is brighter at peak illumination levels and offers more illumination levels. The bezel of the lens on the SRO is thick and will add more protection if dropped but obscures the target more as a compromise. The glass is egg/round shaped while the FTP version is optimized to track the dot under recoil in the upper portion of the lens.  The dot sizes on the SRO are not optimal for pistol competition shooting. The SRO is heavier and the price point is much higher. The FTP Optic has a motion sensor to extend battery and diode life while the SRO does not.

 

I hope that helps!

 

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