Mounting red dot optics more forward

[Vincent_Diesel]

Been noticing red dots optics being mounted further forward (way beyond the ejection port), especially on competition pistols. Been told this is for overall balance, is there more to this?

 

Im struggling with fore and aft placement on my Volquartsen .22 pistol where it’s not so much about balance, but faster sight acquisition. Is there a sweet spot in terms of mounting distance from the eye that is ideal? 

[zzt]

A lot of it is personal preference.  Mounting the dot forward increases the Polar Moment, so transitions are slightly slower.  An advantage is you can see more around the sight, and less through it.  Up close to your eye the sight blocks out much of everything you cannot see through the sight.  I have no problem with that, because I don't have a dominant eye.  However, seeing less around the target with a forward mounted sight makes it easier to center the target.  It is also easier to follow Max Michael's Steel Challenge advice....move the gun, if you see white pull the trigger.  That is especially helpful on stages like S&H.

 

 

[Vincent_Diesel]

Thank you for the response and really good advice.

 

For HD setups I assumed the only place to mount red dots was behind the ejector port and was thinking nothing of it at the time. That makes total sense and feel that placement was determined by the guns design. It wasn't until I bought my 22lr pistol that I started to notice the longer rails for fore and aft movement.

 

Just going by feel before I hit the range, I tried three positions mounted on the rail. Forward, center and back. With all three locations I tested, by raising my arms from a gun pointed down position and see where the dot naturally landed. At the middle and forward locations I seemed to locate the dot faster, rear position I had to hunt for it. This is why I asked if there was a science behind mounting the RDS. Anyways, I appreciate the advice, thank you.