Buy Once, Cry Once.

It’s a motto often repeated, and one many struggle to learn. In the firearms world, the comment that product x is “just as good as” product y (that costs twice as much) is repeated too often to count. This is especially true when it comes to optics, and particularly those designed for hard use.

By hard use, I mean the optic can pretty much deal with anything that is thrown at it and continue to function. The optic is essentially as tough as the rifle that it’s sitting on. A great example is the ACOG. Many people recoil at the idea of spending a thousand dollars or more on a relatively low powered fixed magnification rifle scope. There are hundreds of optics on the market that have decent quality glass and reticles, and are fixed at 4x or thereabouts. For most people, these types of optics are…