Red dot on sunny days

[Ranger J]

On a whim I changed the regular scope I had on my .44 1894 to a cheap red dot I had laying around. (got to have something to do this time of year besides mow the lawn).  When I took it to the range on a sunny day I had to crank it up to the highest power to see the red dot well.  The problem was that thismade the red dot so large that it covered a lot of the target at 50 yards.  While the gun shoot reasonably well because of this it was not up to the standard that I got from the regular scope.  Is there a red dot or reflex ($100 or less) that is usable on low (small size dot) settings on sunny days?  44 is loaded with stout loads but not at top level.  Think just a little above WW white box.

RJ

[45-70.gov]

highest setting  on brightest  day

sounds like it is working like it should

i have been happy with my ultradot  for  over 20 years  now  [44mag win-trapper]

[Lloyd Smale]

if you buy a good one like a aimpoint or trijicon the optics have better coatings and you wont have to crank them up near as far. Even my vortex strikefire does good in bright light. Its a red only model. The one they sold that was switchable from red to green didnt do near as well.

[Glanceblamm]

Look at the Bushnell Trophy models to stay in your price range.

My Red/Green model is not only accurate, but holds up to the recoil of the .44 mag The 3moa dot works well in the bright sun with a setting of just 2 or 3. I have three more recticle choices. The crosshair is ok but kind of course, 3moa inside of a 65 moa circle tends to hide the target, and it has a 10 moa dot which may be good for a shot at a speeding car?

They also make a Red only model to include one with an auto shut off with the firearm turned sideways but I just did not trust this technology to turn the thing on when I really need it.

I, like a lot of others, have simply found that it works so well and for so long that one forgets about buying a more expensive one. The only problem that I had with mine is that I had to do three installations to keep the tube from slipping within the rings. This was cured by putting just a thin bead of the red loctite on the uppers n lowers of the ring half's. I am very happy with the 3moa dot and the green is great for dawn or dusk.

[Ranger J]

I am leaning toward putting the scope back on it.  The red dot was an interesting experiment but...My wife has a cheap Barska reflex on her 357 1894 and it isn't bad on a sunny day but it seems a little fragile looking.  One good bump against the deer stand might be all it took.  I have a friend that has an eurotec and swears by it but of course he paid $400 for it.  While I have the red dot on a Marlin 44 where I can really see the advantage of one would be on my Ruger Deerfield.  But then because of the odd Ruger scope mounting system I would have have it converted and that would involve more expense.Oh well someday when I get rich.  

RJ