The world of holographic red dot sights is an exciting one. One look at the EOTech 512 and you will see why. Its drool-worthy A65 reticle will get you on target fast – without sacrificing precision. Pair it with a 3-5x magnifier to hit your target where you want at most distances.
- EOTECH 512.A65 - Holographic Weapon Sight in Back with 68MOA ring & 1 MOA dot reticle
- Mount - Compatible with both 1" Weaver and MIL-STD 1913 Rails
- Adjustable Brightness - The 512 has 20 brightness settings for use in any lighting scenario
- Water Resistant - The 512 is water resistant to 10 feet (3m)
- EOTECH HWS Prestige Warranty - Comes with 10 year limited warranty
This sight fits in at the lower end of EOTech’s holographic sight product line. Not to say the 512 isn’t a great sight – it is. It just doesn’t have some of the bells and whistles the others have. Some sights are smaller and lighter than the 512. Others are night-vision ready. If you don’t feel like paying for these extra features, the 512 is a fantastic sight at a solid price.
Let’s break the 512 down feature-by-feature:
Reticle
The EOTech 512 A65 features a 1 MOA aiming dot inside a 65 MOA circle reticle. Some versions come with the 68 MOA circle reticle. This is known as A65/1 reticle pattern, which is made up of 3 parts:
- 1 MOA dot centered on the outside ring.
- Large outside ring with 65 MOA (Minutes of Angle)
- 4 quadrant ticks at the North, South, East and West points of the outside ring
The 1 MOA dot is about half the diameter of the 2 MOA dot found in your typical red dot sight. The smaller dot gives you more precise targeting – pretty handy at longer-ranges. However, it’s not as easy to find as the 2 MOA dot. This slows down your target acquisition a bit.
This is where the outer ring becomes important. It’s a large circle, which makes it very easy to see, and gets you on-target fast. This is a great optic for close quarter combat situations you would expect in law enforcement.
It’s the best of both worlds with the outer circle for fast target acquisition and the 1 MOA center dot for precision. You should be set up to 200 yards. Add in a magnifier and you could take that out to 600 yards.
Field of View
It has a field of view of 30 yards at a 4” eye relief so this offers a great visibility. The brightness range starts at 110,000 at its brightest to 1 at the lowest. There are 20 different settings so you can control the brightness at any time according to your needs.
Night Vision
The 512 isn’t night vision compatible. However, its big brother, the EOTech 552, does work with night vision. If night vision compatibility is a must-have feature for you, the 552 is a worthwhile upgrade.
Weight & Dimensions
First, we will talk about the size of this model. The dimensions are 5.4”X2”X2.5” inches and weighs 10.1 ounces. The optical surfaces have an anti-glare coating and the window dimensions were 1.20” X 0.85” inches and the front window material was made from 1/8” solid glass and the rear window is made of shatter resistant laminate that is 3/16” thick. The unit itself is made from strong aluminum hood assembly and a very easy to used knobbed mountain kit.
Battery Life
It supports lithium and alkaline batteries. Go with lithium whenever possible. Lithium battery life is over 1,000+ continuous hours at nominal setting 12 and 600 hours using alkaline batteries. When you turn on your model 512, which takes two AA batteries, it will automatically show you how much battery you have left. It’s good practice to change your batteries regularly, even if you haven’t used your sight. Then you know it will work when you need it.
Water Proof and Fog Proof
The EOTech 512 is waterproof and is submersible up to 10 feet, so if you ever drop your it in a puddle, you can be rest assured that the scope will keep on working. It can also able to withstand temperatures from -40 to 140 degrees F.
It also has internal fog proof optics to help keep fog to a minimum so you are looking through clear glass – no matter the weather.
Parallax Free
The optics are parallax free so you will never have to center your scope and you will always get a clear shot of the item you are going to shoot at. The magnification level on this unit is 1X so you will be able to get even closer to whatever you are shooting at whether it is an animal or target. You will be able to rail mount your scope onto any hand gun or shot gun with ease and onto interfaces to 1” Picatinny or Weaver Rail.
EOTech 512 vs 552
The major advantage of the 512 compared to the 552 model is price. The 552 adds night vision and better waterproofing. A signification upgrade for sure. But, not worth the extra expense, unless you think you will need it.
Conclusion
As you can see, speed and versatility makes the EOtech 512.A65 Holographic Sight a great choice for gun owners. It’s a solid performer at close-quarters, 100 yards, 200 yards, or even up to 600 yards with magnifier.
The 512 is, a popular choice among among law enforcement and military personnel. You will amazed at how this little unit can help you hunt better whether you are a novice or an experienced hunter.