Trijicon RMR Type 2 Green Dot Sight: Highlighted

Trijicon’s RMR (Ruggedized Miniature Reflex) sight needs no introduction, as it’s been an industry-leading sight since its debut in 2009. The company recently added to the RMR Type 2 family with a new green-dot version.

Built on a forged 7075-T6 aluminum body and weighing just 1.2 ounces—but still able to handle the rough stuff thanks to its patented shape that absorbs impacts and diverts stress away from the lens—the sight is part of the Adjustable LED group of reflex sights. This RMR family features an automatic brightness mode in addition to the ability to increase or decrease the intensity of the 3.25 m.o.a. dot manually via plus and minus buttons on the sides of the sight.

There are eight brightness settings, two of which are for night vision devices, and you can lock out the manual adjustments if you want to run the sight solely on automatic.

Green dots are much easier to see than red dots because the human eye is more sensitive to green, and for shooters with astigmatism, green dots are typically clearer. But green has lagged behind red because it’s more power hungry. However, technology is catching up, and this new sight promises two years of continuous use for its single CR2032 battery at 70 degrees at setting 4.

Adjustability

As an adjustable LED model, the sight has the ability to be turned off when not in use, and it has a battery conservation mode that will automatically adjust the dot to ambient light conditions—powering down to the lowest setting, for example, in a safe, drawer or soft case—after 16.5 hours. The fact that green dots are more visible at lower intensity settings further helps conserve battery power.

The Type 2 sights do not have a top-load battery cap, so you’ll have to reconfirm zero after changing batteries. I typically change batteries in the reflex sights on my defensive pistols every year regardless of claimed life, and having to hit the range to check the zero after a battery change is a good thing. Let’s be honest: If you’re not taking your defensive gun to the range at least that often, you’re doing it wrong.

The RMR adjustment system is the best one out there, with well-marked elevation and windage adjustments that have tactile and audible one m.o.a. clicks. That works out to a quarter-inch per click at 25 yards—less at closer distances. You don’t need any special tools to adjust the sight, and the rim of a pistol cartridge works as well as anything.

It’s harder to find brighter conditions than a cloudless summer day on the high plains, and that’s where I put the RMR through its paces, mounted on a Kimber Next Gen 1911. Where typical red dots can be a little hard to pick up in such intense light, the RMR’s green dot really stood out against the cardboard IDPA targets I was using for shooting drills as well as the dot targets on which I conducted accuracy testing. That was the case whether I was running the sight on auto or manual brightness.

Larger Dots?

I’ve been gravitating to larger dots as of late because they’re easier for me to see. I do have astigmatism and wear progressive lenses, and under some conditions I’ve found the typical three m.o.a. red dots hard to pick up. Not so with the RMR green dot. Whether it was on the draw, tracking during rapid-fire drills, transitioning between targets or between chest and head areas of the target, the green dot was super quick to acquire, sharp and easy to see.

The multicoated lens provided an excellent, color-correct view. The sight was quick to zero thanks to the excellent adjustments. When I switched to manual brightness, the plus and minus buttons were easy to access to change intensity.

If you’ve been thinking about making the move to green or are in the market for a sturdy, reliable reflex sight that will excel in all conditions, this new green-dot RMR is definitely worth considering.

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