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DragonRed EOTech 552 Replica & Element Lens Protector


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The Preamble

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I've been watching the EOTech replica market for quite some time now, since I used to own a real EOTech 551 Rev. F and loved it but eventually sold it since I found it to be just too expensive to risk breaking by continuing to skirmish with it. Mind you I did skirmish with the real EOTech several times before selling it so I still remember quite well what a real one is like.

 

I love the style of EOTechs but just found a real one too expensive to be a skirmishing toy, so the replica market has been of great interest to me. However, until now there were never any replicas that met my standards for everything I wanted from them... full L3 EOTech trades, proper EOTech A65 reticle, adjustable windage and elevation, a good amount of brightness settings, something that didn't use those little button watch batteries, something lens protector compatible, and at a price that wouldn't make me feel like my money would have been better spent on a real one.

 

Enter the newest DragonRed EOTech replica.

 

 

The newest EOTech 552 replica from DragonRed ( http://www.dragonredairsoft.com ) seemed to have all these features I wanted and a few more to boot! So I took the plunge and purchased one of their new 552 replicas and a Element brand EOTech lens protector to go along with it.

 

The total for both items after shipping cost was $105, not too bad of a deal if the replica turns out to be good! I got a confirmation of shipment the next day and my package arrived a mere 3 days later with EMS Speed Post.

 

 

 

 

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The Packaging and Initial Impressions

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When I first removed the EOTech replica from the box I had a very pleasant surprise. Everything about it felt like the real EOTech I used to own! The size, weight, markings, the "beware the evil laser radiation" sticker, and the color of the finish on all the parts were spot on.

The only external details that don't match a EOTech perfectly werethe color of the L3 EOTech trademarks and the fact that the rail mount thumb screw sticks out about 1.5mm farther than it would on a real EOTech (it is flush with the hood on a real EOTech). On the replica the L3 EOTech trademarks are an off white and slightly yellowed color, where as on a real EOTech they are bright white. Other than those 2 little things every external detail seems to match a real EOTech perfectly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Manual, Basic Features, & Batteries

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First off I have confirmed that every detail in the manual is correct with the exception of the battery size, the "auto brightness adjustment" power on option, and the 2 hour cut off (It's got half an hour cut off, not 2 hour). This replica takes 2 AAA batteries and not AA batteries like the manual states, it does not feature an automatic brightness adjustment option, and it automatically shuts off after half an hour of use and not 2 hours.

 

It does however feature 20 different brightness settings for each reticle color (20 for red, 20 for green, so 40 total), the reticle will blink when the batteries become low, and it will automatically shut off after half an hour of inactivity. Also, unlike many other EOTech replicas on the market the windage and elevation are both fully adjustable.

 

When adjusting the windage and elevation I did notice one thing was a little different from a real EOTech. That being that when you turn the adjustment screws you don't feel any "clicks", it's just a smooth turn. The adjustment screws do feel very secure though so I am confident that it will stay properly sighted in when banged around during a skirmish.

 

One little thing I did notice while installing the batteries that differs from a real EOTech is that the latch ontop of the battery cover can wiggle a little bit when it's clamped all the way down. This latch would be rock solid in the closed position on a real EOTech but the replica does have a small amount of wiggle to it. Nothing major, but worth noting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Lens Protector

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Made by Element, this lens protector seems to be sized to fit both real steel EOTechs and the DragonRed replica. I've yet to confirm if it will fit other ACM varieties or the HurricanE replica, but I'm guessing that it may not since I believe only the DragonRed replica's lens and hood are spec'd to the dimensions of the real steel EOTech and the others are all a bit off.

 

That said, installation was as easy as sliding the 3 "arms" into the space between the main housing of the sight and the hood. The last 1/2" or so of pushing it in is rather difficult, so it gives a very secure and snug fit when fully installed and I'm confident that it will not fall out during even the roughest of skirmishes. You will notice from the 3rd picture that when fully installed it leaves a tiny little gap between the lens protector and the sight on the bottom edges, I can only imagine that this is to allow air movement between the sight's lense and the lens protector to prevent the lens from potentially fogging up in high heat/humidity situations.

 

The protector's lens is crystal clear and does not interfere with your vision through the sight in any way. It appears to be made of some kind of ANSI rated polycarbonate and is not too thick so it doesn't stand out much when installed. It's a little thicker than most airsoft goggle lenses though, so I think it should hold up to BB hits quite well!

 

For an extra $5 I would recommend this to anyone with a real EOTech or DragonRed replica who plans on skirmishing with them. The only downside is that I've yet to confirm if it will or will not fit any other EOTech replica.

Edited by Jin15
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===============================

The Reticle & It's Projection System

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First off, please know that I found it really impossible to get a picture of the reticle at the size it appears to the human eye. For some reason the reticle always looks incredibly small through a camera lens but I assure you that it is quite large (same size as the real EOTech reticle as far as I can tell) to the human eye.

So the following pictures will be used only to show the shape and color of the reticle...

 

 

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Like with other EOTech replicas you can switch between the colors red and green for the reticle by pressing the "NV" button in the center of the adjustment panel. On a real EOTech this would activate night vision mode, but on all the airsoft replicas it only serves to change the color of the reticle.

 

And as you can see the reticle is a very close replica of the real EOTech A65 reticle, although there are a few little differences that you will notice if you look very closely. The first of which is that between the main ring of the reticle and the 4 fins that protrude from the top/bottom/sides there is a little 1/2 to 1/4 MOA gap between the fins and the main ring. On a real EOTech this would all be one solid reticle with no gaps.

 

The reticle itself is very crisp, clear, and defined and the 1 MOA dot in the center is perfect as well. The reticle looks just as sharp as the real EOTech's reticle from my memory, if not a little sharper. The reason I say it might be a little sharper is because the method of creating the reticle is a bit different than the holographic technology used in a real EOTech. In a real EOTech the reticle is projected in the form of a many many 1 MOA square pixels, and pixels like this do have the tendency to blur a bit around the edges in certain lighting conditions.

 

The DragonRed replica on the other hand does not use holographic pixel projection technology, but instead uses a very tiny stencil type cut out of the reticle with an LED behind it is that is reflected off a series of internal mirrors to produce the reticle. While this does give you a very crisp and clear reticle it unfortunately means that you lose part of what makes a real EOTech stealthy since you have a small LED projector giving off light inside your sight. Here's a picture of of the projector I speak of and it's visible reflection when looking at the sight from the front...

 

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The picture detailing the back of the sight is is the way your eye will see the projector when looking in the back of the sight from an above angle. Fortunately once you level out your field of few and actually look through the sight on a level plane with it you can no longer see the projector at the bottom, so it won't distract you when aiming.

 

But, for a more detailed look at how exactly this mechanism works I put a backlight behind the sight and turned the flash on my camera way up to try and illuminate the inside of the sight (and you'd normally never see it this way unless you used a flashlight to look inside it)...

 

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So that should give you a pretty good idea of how this neat little projection mechanism works, but now the big question on everyone's mind is "How does it perform?"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Sight Performance

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As I said in the above column the reticle is very crisp, clear, and sharp (possibly more so than a real EOTech's reticle) due to the LED projection system used.

 

 

A common problem with EOTech replicas that real ones don't have is "ghosting", which basicly means that a second more faint reticle appears slightly off to the side of and overlapping the reticle in certain lighting conditions. I am pleased to say that this replica has almost zero ghosting in any of the lighting conditions I tested it in. I tried it in pitch black darkness, very dimly light environments, slightly dim rooms, well lit rooms, brightly light areas, and very bright natural sunlight. The only time there was any ghosting at all was in very dimly lit to pitch black rooms and it was very (very) faint and would not interfere with sighting and target acquisition at all I think.

 

It is also worth noting that in the odd event you do get a tiny amount of ghosting in a dark room, wearing prescription eye glasses can amplify the ghosting effect quite a bit, enough to make it rather distracting from the primary reticle. I'm not sure exactly why this happens, and this problem does not occur with any airsoft or paintball goggles I've tried, but it is worth knowing.

 

In extremely bright lighting conditions the rear glass lens of the sight can be somewhat reflective, but unlike many other EOTech replicas it's never enough to obscure the reticle or interfere with aiming as long as you keep both eyes open. If you keep one eye closed and look through it with extremely bright light (like a 60 lumen tactical flashlight) shining on the rear lens it can be rather distracting and may distort your view enough to make aiming difficult, but as long as you keep both eyes open you shouldn't have any problems even under the brightest of lighting conditions.

 

 

Just like the real EOTech, this replica is parallax free. Which basically means that no matter what angle you look into the sight from the reticle will always be on target once it has been sighted in. One thing I did notice about this replica in comparison to a real EOTech was that, despite the fact that they are both parallax free, the reticle on the replica seems to "drift" quite a bit less than the reticle on a real EOTech, which in my mind makes for much faster target acquisition.

I remember with my real EOTech it would often take me a few seconds to get the reticle on target since it had the tendency to drift out of my field of view when looking down the sight from time to time.

This is not the case with the DragonRed replica, every time I bring the weapon it's mounted on up to my shoulder the reticle is always visible and never drifts out of my field of view.

 

 

On the topic of brightness I think this EOTech replica really stands head and shoulders above any of the other ones I've seen. With 20 different brightness settings, if you turn the brightness up to maximum the reticle will always be visible in even the brightest sunlight and never looked washed out. Even when positioned directly in front of a 100 watt light bulb or pointed at the outer edge of the sun on sunny day the reticle was still clear and perfectly visible.

 

Another nice thing to know is that just like a real EOTech you can hold down the brightness adjustment buttons to cycle through the 20 different settings, rather than having to push the button each time you wanted to raise or lower the brightness like you would have to on other ACM clones. Mind you that you still can adjust the brightness with individual button pushes if you wanted, but it's nice that for speedy brightness adjustment you can just hold the "Down" or "Up" button down until you achieve your desired brightness setting, just like on a real EOTech.

 

The only complaint I could make about the brightness adjustment is that you can't dial it down as low as you could on a real EOTech. I found that when operating in a very dark to pitch black room the lowest brightness setting did seem a little too bright for my tastes, which resulted in that tiny amount of ghosting I spoke of earlier.

 

Lastly, there is one rather odd thing I noticed about this replica that you do not get with a real EOTech. What I speak of is that when you are looking down the sight at an object (or target) with one eye closed the space between the outer ring of the reticle and the center 1 MOA dot becomes slightly blurred. I never noticed this with both eyes open (which is how you should view a reflex sight like this) but with one eye closed that little area between the center dot and the outer ring of the reticle does look a bit blurry. The reticle is still crisp and sharp, but whatever you're looking at inside the reticle becomes a little blurred when you view it with one eye closed.

This is an issue that real EOTechs do not have, but it's not too big of a deal in my mind since I always view reflex sights with both eyes open.

 

 

 

All in all though I am extremely pleased with the performance of this sight!

While in some ways it's not quite up to par with that of a real EOTech since it lacks some of the features that make a real EOTech so valuable, for a replica that's 1/4 of the price of a real one I feel the overall quality and performance is outstanding. In some ways I actually liked it better than a real EOTech (like how the reticle doesn't drift out of view) and that really surprised me.

 

 

 

 

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A Couple Bothersome Details

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Before I wrap up this review I did want to take a moment to point out that despite how much I like this sight there were a few little things about it that bugged me. The first of which is that, as seen below, when I removed it from the box I noticed that there was a small amount of black Sharpie marking underneath the elevation adjustment knob. Nothing too major, but it was a little strange.

 

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Another thing I found bothersome with this sight was actually probably not the fault of the company that produced it, but rather the fault of the original EOTech design.

 

What I am getting at here is that when mounted to most airsoft RIS style rails the sight tends to sit a little crooked. I had this problem with my real EOTech and never did find a way to get it to mount perfectly straight on rails that were not 100% Mil-Spec. Unfortunately the DragonRed replica has the same problem as the real EOTech in this regard and did not seem to want to mount perfectly level on my low profile MP5 mount, as seen below...

 

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The picture does make it look a lot worse than it actually is (I couldn't get the camera angle quite right) so it's only tilted maybe 1 to 1.5mm at the most and it's really un-noticeable when handling the gun and looking down the sight, but it was something that bugged me a bit. But like I said before I don't think I can rightfully fault the company that produced this replica for this problem since it's a problem my real EOTech had as well.

 

 

Lastly in this category I found it slightly odd that the battery compartment cover does not slide forward all the way when the lever is locked down. There's still about a 1mm gap between the end of the battery cover and the main housing of the sight. Not really a big deal since it doesn't wobble around and is still extremely secure, but this is something you wouldn't see on a real EOTech.

There also seem to be a tiny section of rubber band glued inside each compartment in the battery cover, which I'm guessing serve as spacers to insure that the batteries stay properly aligned. Seems a little lame to me, but it's not visible from the outside so it's no biggie as far as I'm concerned.

 

 

 

 

 

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Final Thoughts

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So when it really comes down to it, at the end of the day what do we have here? It looks like an EOTech in all respects, but it's not since it lacks the holographic technology. It's about $100 so it's pretty pricey for an airsoft quality red dot, but is that all it really is? A glorified red dot?

 

In my mind, no.

 

What we have isn't just another copy of a popular military sight like all the cheap (and often heavily over priced) ACOG and Aimpoint replicas floating around out there. What I think we have is a high quality and affordable way for an airsofter to enjoy the look of an EOTech and all the features that make real EOTech's such great sights without having to pay 4 times the price to get all the high end features real EOTech's have that your average airsofter just doesn't need.

When the reticle on this EOTech replica is just as clear, crisp, and sharp as a real one and looks almost exactly the same does an airsofter really need to pay 4 times the price for a sight that uses holographic projection rather than LED projection? And how many airsofters actually own night vision goggles? Does the average airsofter really need their reflex sight to be night vision compatible?

 

To reinforce my point about it being not just another military style glorified red dot...

- It's got the half an hour auto-cut off function

- 20 different brightness settings for all lighting conditions

- Optional lens shield to protect your lens from BB hits for a mere $5 extra

- Rugged construction that can definitely take some hard hits in a skirmish with no damage

- Proper EOTech A65 style reticle makes aiming fast and easy

 

 

While there are some other airsoft grade red dot sights out there that are built to be rugged and take hard hits in a skirmish with no damage (G&P's Aimpoint replica namely) I can't think of any other airsoft red dot that has those other features, all of which are features that make the real EOTech such a great sight.

 

If you're in the military or you plan on shooting real steel with your sight than you'd probably be better served by a real EOTech, but for your average airsofter this sight will give you all the high end features you need and none of the ones you don't. And it comes at a price that won't break your budget either!

 

 

So, after this incredibly long review there is only one question that remains to be answered...

 

"Would I recommend this sight to an airsofter over a G&P red dot sight or even a real EOTech holosight?"

 

 

 

 

 

Yes, I would! ^_^

Edited by Jin15
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Can you take some pics of the reticle in the sunlight?

 

A few remarks if I may. I think your "one eye closed makes the reticle fuzzy" bit may be due to an eye problem. Could be wrong though. And the rubber glued on the battery compartment probably mimics the waterproof seal of the real eotech (though I wouldn't try it with the replica :P).

 

Excellent review btw.

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Thanks for all the replies everyone! :D

 

I think this sight is certainly worth the money of anyone who wants a high quality reflex optic for their airsoft gun.

 

It's a shame that I can't go back and edit the original post though, since I've discovered a few things that I would like to correct in the original post.

 

 

They all have to do with the lens protector really. I discovered that the slight blurriness I experienced when viewing the sight with one eye closed was actually due to the lens protector! At first it seemed crystal clear but after using it for a few days it seems to have changed a bit and is now making the view through the sight a little blurry. Not enough to majorly interfere with aiming, but it does obscure some of the finer details of your target like if your goggles were starting to fog just a little.

 

Also, the slight ghosting I experienced in a dimly lit to pitch black room completely went away when I removed the lens protector.

 

So the lens protector should protect the lens quite well, I think it's safe to expect it to cause a slight blurring of your view through the sight and may cause a tiny amount of ghosting in dark environments. Without the lens protector the sight experiences none of these issues at all.

 

 

And Dave, sure! It's supposed to rain for the next 2 days straight here in Minnesota but as soon as we have a bright sunny day again I'll take some pics of the reticle in bright sunlight ^_^

 

And Zhang, thanks for pointing that out! I don't know why I didn't notice that odd letter spacing until you pointed it out.

Edited by Jin15
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Interesting! This as Jin15 said is the version 2 of the DragonRed replica. I own the version one which does take AA's as the manual suggests. I wonder why they changed this one to take AAA's?

 

I have not noticed mine being crooked on the rails of my M4 and it was something I looked for when I first got it but meh.

 

Mine does not have the odd spacing on the trades?

 

My lever does not wobble when clamped down.

 

Weirdness :P Nice review though.

 

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great review, i received mine from dragon red this morning, very pleased with it, build quality seems spot on as does function etc. I would have liked the reticle to be a little brighter in light sunlight but it doesn't really matter as i play is quite shadowed woodland. thanks-Hugh

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Excellent review !!!

 

I like DragonRed replicas, got them (551 and 552) delivered couple weeks ago, previous version with circle and a dot. Very pleased with build quality and function. Mine 552 does take AA batteries.

 

However, I have finally decided to get a Real Steel one and give those DragonRed replicas for sale. Nothing wrong with them, they are great and perform good enough for airsoft. It was a pleasure to try them. I just want to try a Real one :)

 

Possibly, it will be a good new buy for me, as I am planning to get a firearm for a target sport very soon, and a real thing will be in that use as well.

 

 

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Are all the parts the same size as the real EOTechs? I as thinking that since I want one in FDE and DragonRed doesn't have any, I might be able to buy a replacement hood and battery compartment for the real steel and put it on this thing.

And someone brought this up sometime before, but no-one really knew. If this replica really is 1:1 to the original then theres no reason why it woulden't work.

 

Excellent review !!!

 

I like DragonRed replicas, got them (551 and 552) delivered couple weeks ago, previous version with circle and a dot. Very pleased with build quality and function. Mine 552 does take AA batteries.

 

However, I have finally decided to get a Real Steel one and give those DragonRed replicas for sale. Nothing wrong with them, they are great and perform good enough for airsoft. It was a pleasure to try them. I just want to try a Real one :)

 

Possibly, it will be a good new buy for me, as I am planning to get a firearm for a target sport very soon, and a real thing will be in that use as well.

How much are you selling them for?

 

 

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Excellent review !!!

 

I like DragonRed replicas, got them (551 and 552) delivered couple weeks ago, previous version with circle and a dot. Very pleased with build quality and function. Mine 552 does take AA batteries.

 

However, I have finally decided to get a Real Steel one and give those DragonRed replicas for sale. Nothing wrong with them, they are great and perform good enough for airsoft. It was a pleasure to try them. I just want to try a Real one :)

 

Possibly, it will be a good new buy for me, as I am planning to get a firearm for a target sport very soon, and a real thing will be in that use as well.

 

How much and when? I'd love to take that 552 off your hands.

Edited by Sarge133
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  • 3 weeks later...

So..... after reading this reviews and all the endorsements by other board members i bought one and it arrived today.

 

I don't think mine is working properly so i've got a few questions i hope you guys can help me out with.

 

1) Is the red reticle significantly less bright than the green one?

2) Are there really 20 brightness levels?

 

The one i received looks exactly the same as the one in this review. There are problems however. Using fresh batteries the red reticle is not anywhere near bright enough to use in bright sunlight and the green one is just about bright enough. In fact in bright daylight the red reticle disappears completely. There are only 8 distinct brightness levels per colour instead of 20 as has been reported. The brightness of the reticle changes as you look through the window at differnt angles. Does this sound right to you or have i gotten a lemon?

 

Worst of all, whomever assembled my one cross threaded the thumbscrew so it doesn't screw in smoothly at all and i think it will wear out completely eventually.

 

Thanks for any info guys.

 

I'm sorry if this sounds like a rant, but i was a bit annoyed when i looked up the returns policy http://www.dragonredairsoft.com/airsoft/return.action and it says that the buyer is responsible for the postage of returning and re-sending for a faulty exchange. Fair enough, that's what it says and you could argue that i should have read it before buying but really..... come on.. :( They send me a faulty product and i have to pay the extra postage for it's replacement!!!! I hope it's just a problem with english because if it's not then i'm doubtful if i'll shop from dragonred again. When i was dealing with ebaybanned they were very good about any faulty products and didn't even try to suggest that i should pay for the replacement's postage :(

Edited by tome
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Tome, I feel for you.

 

I just returned mine today for a refund as well.

 

You see, when I mounted it on my MP5 and took it to be used in it's first skirmish I decided to sight it in first. Well, long story short is that with one very gentle 1/4" turn of the windage adjustment screw the head of the screw sheared completely off. It took no force at all, like a hot knife through butter.

 

Also, the thumb screw you mentioned was very tight on mine as well. A little silicone oil cleared it right up, but it was very difficult to adjust right out of the box.

 

That said, I would no longer recommend this product. I'm sticking with a basic G&P Aimpoint replica for my red dot needs from here on out.

My greatest apologies to anyone who bought one of these replicas because of my review and later found it to be faulty in one way or another, I'm very sorry to you.

 

So my EOTech replica is in route back to DragonRed's US based returns center and I'll be sure to let you guys (and gals) know how the refund process goes.

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Jin - No worries man :) the shiny outer can hid the turd inside from any of us hehe :P

 

Let us know what happens on the refund. I've just asked for a replacement for mine, but i think i'll just get a refund as is seems mine is not the only one with a fault. I'll keep you posted on what happens with it :)

 

Edit: Interestingly my one seems to be a slightly different version as it doesn't have the space in "Enforcement" but is otherwise the same!

Edited by tome
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I just put some wd40 on the screw thread and it seems to have solved the problem. It was probably a bit of oxide in the thread that stopped it turning properly. Lucky me i guess......

 

I'll take it out with me next time i skirmish and see how it goes

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Well, USPS tracking shows that my returned package was delievered to Dragon Red's US return center yesterday morning but I haven't heard anything from them yet so I'll send them an email to check in on the status of my return and refund.

 

I'll letcha guys (and gals) know how it goes...

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Just had a play around with the protector that comes with this and in my opinion is not that great. When you look through it, what you see looks like you're looking through rising heat. So everything goes a bit wiggly :(

 

I'm going to cut my own out of polycarb i think.

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This morning DragonRed refunded the full $110 it cost me for the 552 sight, lens protector, and the shipping costs from Hong Kong! Very nice!

 

They were very quick about issuing the refund and I was quite surprised to see that they refunded not only the cost of the sight and lens protector but the expensive HK shipping as well. So kudos to DragonRed for the great customer service!

 

I won't likely be ordering another one of these ACM EOTech replicas (at least not the DragonRed version), nor will I be getting another Element lens protector for the same reason that Tome gave (that blurriness only gets worse with time), but I will be more than happy to purchase other ACM items from DragonRed again since they've proven themselves in terms of excellent customer service. ^_^

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