Are ACOGs really worth $900+?

I have a 4x32 USMC A4 spec model on my 20" M16 clone. I haven't had it all that long and really haven't got to use it in a quick shooting scenario yet, but I have a plan to evaluate it.

I'm going to use it in a 3-gun match at some point, both eyes open, as a red dot at close range.

1) bring rifle on close range target
2) see the chevron, just as a "dot" through my strong side eye. the target through this eye will be blurred and not really visible.
3) see the target through my weak side eye (not looking through the scope). Your brain will superimpose the two images like usual, and the "dot" will appear close enough to on target for the purposes of shooting quickly that close up.
4) Shoot.

For more precise shots further out, of course you just look through the scope and use the recticle as intended.

I doubt it will ever be as fast as a true red dot in this scenario (due to the eye relief, field of view, etc) , but I have a theory that it can be more flexible at close range than it often gets credit for, even without the little "doctor" sight on top. And of course, it is a fine scope at medium range.

So is it worth the money? Well, depends I guess. I used to resist spending a lot of money on optics, but really, you can't hit what you can't see. To me, its worth it if it does its job to perfection and that is what you want.

The ACOG is very tough, and also has the advantage of not having any batteries to die, as it uses tritium to give the recticle a little illumination in the dark, and collects ambient light to scale the brightness to available lighting conditions.

The tritium will decay after about 10-12 years or so (I think), and at that point, you can send it back to the factory to have the tritium replaced at a cost of about $200-250 or something, based on what I've heard from others. May want to call Trijicon to be sure, but whatever info they give you will probably be outdated by the time the tritium dies anyway.

I also expect the sight would be functional in all but complete darkness, even with the tritium completely dead... but have never looked through a dead one to be sure. The vast majority of the recticle brightness comes from the light collector on top, to the point, I think, that if you are really using the tritium primarily to illuminate the recticle, it is going to be too dark to see the target anyway. Maybe there would be an exception if you were shooting from a very dark area into a very light area.

Alot of my comments here are informed speculation based on limited use of the scope so far, so hopefully someone with a little bit more extensive experience can chime in shortly.

OEG = Occluded Eye Gunsight.

It's a red dot like gadget that preceded the ACOG (and BAC ACOG) by some years. Essentially, it's the BAC without the magnified optics. It's a closed tube with a red dot lit by either tritium (night) or a fiber optic (day). Your strong eye looks into the tube and sees the dot; your weak eye looks at the target and sees that. Your brain superimposes the two images and you see a dot on your target.

They're still around as both a tipoff .22 mount and a 1" tube sight. Not nearly as popular as they once were (which really isn't saying much) and obsolete by modern standards. They do work well (assuming you can wrap your eyes around the thing; some can't), and are a very tough sight. I haven't used one on a rifle for maybe 10 years, and last I used one at all was about 6 years ago on paintball guns (which they were uniquely well suited for).

The TA31F with Bindon Aiming Concept red chevron doesn't have hash marks on the right, so I can't check the focus for you.

I tried the TA31F on my FAL yesterday (posted elsewhere) and it worked perfectly - I had no trouble with eye relief, and of course the balistics are so close to each other that the BC isn't an issue either. I'm really happy with my ACOG and the more I shoot with it, the happier I get.

In spite of the demonstration video on Trijicon's web site, I've found that I'm seeing the target and background clearly with the red chevron easily superimposed on it. For quick shots I'm not really experiencing my right eye refocusing and seeing the enlarged view. However, if I stop on a stationary target then my brain refocuses and I get the close up view. It's totally automatic and didn't take any thought at all from the first time I shouldered the weapon with the ACOG. As I said, no amount of looking through one in a store does justice to how well and easily it works on the weapon.

BTW, I'm not connected with Trijicon in any way, but if they see these posts and decide to reward me with a free ACOG I'd be glad to give them my address. ;D

One scope that has come up recently is the Elcan SpecterDr (http://elcan.com/ELCAN_Business_Areas/Sighting_Systems/Products/Day_Sights/SpecterDR.php). It's not easy to find in the civilian market. I haven't really looked too hard for it because at this point I have more scopes than rifles. However, I've seen some reticle pics on some forum and it looked like a great scope. I think it's priced around the upper end of the ACOGs ($1500 or so?). It goes from 1X to 4X with the throw of a lever. Elcan says that there is pretty much no change in the zero or the eye relief when switching between powers. It also has a pretty slick illumination system. You can switch between having a red dot illuminated or having the crosshairs illuminated.

Leupold's Mark 4 1-3x14mm CQ/T seems to be a popular scope on the market. I don't know too much about it (for the same reason as above).