Red Dot for S&W M&P 9m Shield EZ?

HI folks,

I’m new to guns and new to USCCA. So far, I’m loving my Shield EZ and USCCA. Does anyone have recommendations for red (or green) dot for a gun like mine?

Thank you!

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I find the Holosun line of green dots to be a very good value for the money.
Once you try green dots you won’t want to go back, but should train for the potential of optics malfunction. That goes for all dots.
(Train with your iron sights too, don’t just forget about them.)

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Thank you, Ron! I’ve heard that about the green dots and Holosun seems to be a top of the line purchase. :slight_smile:

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The saying “You get what you pay for” is good guidance.
While the Holosuns are not the most expensive by any means, they certainly are not built cheaply, and they are not “inexpensive”. As I said, good value.
Remember, your life may depend on it.
Enjoy your purchase, whatever you decide, and train, train, train!

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I agree with the Holosun recommendation. I have also had very good luck using Sig optical products. Vortex is another favorite with a simply terrific warranty. Good luck and don’t forget to enjoy the journey!

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And Burris.

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I second Holosun. Best quality for the money. You can treat it as a good start point.
If you value quality, the money is not a problem and want the best - Trijicon RMR is the optic you would like. :slightly_smiling_face:

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Holosun is great value. Of course Trijicon RMR are considered top quality, but with an associated price tag.
Holosun also has some nice features not always found on the top brands. Alot of their sights do not require it to be dismounted to access the battery. This is a huge feature.

I also have a Vortex sight. Very good quality and a no questions asked warranty. Very reasonably priced.

As they say decisions abound.

The one thing to check is make sure your EZ is considered “Optics Ready” meaning the slide is already milled for a red dot attachment. When you bought it did they say of it was “Optics Ready”?

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Be sure that the red dot you select has a decent battery life and a shake-awake feature so that it goes to sleep when not in use to conserve battery life.

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I have a shield with a Crimson Trace, and a Shadow Systems with Holosun. The Holosun is far and away the better optic. Mine are both red dots.

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Holosun 507k-gr-x2. That’s a slightly smaller version of the 507c x2, and has a modified rmsc footprint. The shield is a thinner profile, and iirc has a rmsc cut.

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I’m REALLY happy with the new Holosun EPS Carry. it’s a smaller version of the EPS for slimmer guns like my 48 in the pictures. It’s a fully enclosed emitter so easier to keep clean with no lint issues from concealed carry. Has all the other features that have been addressed like 50,000 hour battery life, waterproof, shake awake, multiple reticule options, auto brightness adjust, easy to change battery etc. This Holosun’s latest model is a winner. Trijicon RMR is great sight but having to take the unit off to put in a new battery was a dealbreaker for me.



As to green or red, there are studies that show green is easier to pick up for some folks. I’ve been running red my whole life and green now just looks weird to me so I chose red and can’t see any shortcomings.

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Green dot is supposedly more friendly to those with astigmatism. Personally, I can and have worked with rds for a while, but the dot isn’t a dot when I look at it…more like a starburst. It works but could be better. I may try the green dot with my 229. Unfortunately, options are limited when it comes to green dots. I’d love to see a r1p, rmr, or sro released in a 2 to 3.25 moa green.

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Interesting, I hadn’t heard about the astigmatism issue. I do know red vs. green is more critical in lasers where red dots get lost in certain colors like black during the day, green stands out against just about any background. Never really thought it was an issue with dots. Thanks for sharing, ill do some more digging on this for my personal edification.

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I can confirm the astigmatism red dot issue. I have no idea why really, but my green dot looks way more like a dot than my red dots do. My red dots look like starbursts or a comet. You can still work with them though.

Probably something to do with differing wavelengths passing through my older lenses. It seems the green light gets through the hardened lens with less distortion. Pure guess on my part.

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Holosun

My Shield Plus optics ready wears a Holosun 507K. I would buy the same again. Or the EPS Carry

I have astigmatism. Even the pile of spaghetti/star burst dots are smaller than a front sight, and the real benefit is that you don’t have to align two things you only have to see the dot (vs both front and rear sight) and that dot is in one focal plane, and that dot is the same focal plane as the target.

You literally go from three focal planes (front sight, rear sight, target) to one (target/dot together)

For me, and my eyes, the individual optics makes a bigger difference to how much the astigmatism hurts it than the color

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I bought my EZ in 2000 so it’s not “Optics Ready” but the following website has a mounting plate that looks like it will work: Optic Mount Plate for Smith & Wesson M&P 9 Shield EZ and Shield EZ 30 Super CarryPistols

One thing I noticed about that particular mount is that you will have no rear sight. This would matter if the rds malfunctions. Some people have no cowhitness,and don’t mind, but I prefer it.

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Yes, I hate that that mount gets rid of my rear sight, but I’m not sure what options are out there for me. Thank you, Levi2.

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Some here have mentioned getting an rmr…there’s almost nothing bad about them. They are fantastic optics! That said, in my area, there’s a company that’ll macine an optic cut for $125. If it were me, I’d buy a holosun (also fantastic imo) and use the difference between that and an rmr to get an optics cut on my slide. You can check in your area and see if you can find a similar company, and what they’d charge for the work.

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