Red dot sights are becoming an extremely popular accessory in the competitive pistol shooting world. Pistol shooters have long been one step behind the technology of the other shooting sports. We have only recently began to see the rise of red dots in competition, and the firearm industry is taking notice. They are building more and more pistols that come from the factory ready to mount your choice of optics. This has lead to the creation of some of the best target pistols in years. If you are looking for a target pistol you don’t have to look any farther than the Ruger Mark III.
What are The Best Ruger Mark III Red Dot Sights?
1. Vortex Venom Red Dot 3 MOA
The Vortex Venom red dot is an excellent choice for your Ruger Mark III. Vortex is known for bringing top tier quality at an affordable price. This Vortex Venom sight is no exception. This small single lens sight is perfect for any small target pistol. It will even hold up to the abuse of much larger calibers. This Vortex Venom red dot is an extremely affordable, well designed red dot that will easily mount to your Ruger Mark III.
This sight won’t add any unnecessary bulk to your pistol. Weighing in at 1.1 ounces and 1.9 inches in length you shouldn’t even feel the change of weight to your gun. This sight will take a beating and is way nicer than the price implies. The Vortex Venom has a very clear optic and is easy on your eyes. With this red dots auto setting you won’t have to worry about adjusting the intensity level. It will automatically adjust to your environment. You can use this sight any time day or night. The multicoated lens naturally reduces glare and works well in both artificial and natural sunlight.
This 3 MOA red dot is precise enough to reach out long distances. Honestly it will probably reach out farther than the Ruger Mark III is capable of shooting. You shouldn’t have an issue seeing a 3 MOA reticle. It will catch your eye quickly and speed up your shooting skills. The Vortex Venom red dot has 10 levels of brightness and an automatic mode. You can typically expect up to 550 hours of runtime on Vortex recommended brightness setting or auto setting. If you want to save a little bit of money check out the Vortex Viper as well. These sights are very similar the main difference is the size of the sight picture. The Vortex Viper also does not include an automatic mode which is a turnoff to a lot of buyers. The sturdy compact design makes the Vortex Venom on of the best pistol red dots on the market.
2.Burris Fastfire III 3 MOA Red DOt Sight
The Burris Fastfire III is another great alternative to the Vortex Venom. The Burris Fastfire III is normally priced very similarly to the Vortex sights. You get a whole heck of a lot for what you pay for the Burris Fastfire III. Like the above Vortex sights this can be used with just about any caliber. They might actually be a little overkill if you are just planning to use it with your Mark III, but it’s great to have options. This red dot is built like a tank. This sight is strong enough to be used as an everyday carry red dot if you desire. You wont have to worry about losing zero on your trips to the gun range.
The Burris Fastfire III is one of the easiest red dots to learn how to use. There are only 5 modes of operation automatic, high, medium, low and off. You don’t have as many adjustments as some of the competitors, but you shouldn’t have any issues. The automatic mode works well in almost any light conditions. Like with every red dot people with astigmatisms might see minimal ghosting with this sight. My biggest issue with this red dot is the height that it sits. You might have a difficult time cowitnessing this sight with a lot of guns. This shouldn’t really be an issue with the Ruger Mark III since it’s more of a target gun.
Like the above listed sights this one is also 3 MOA. You might be seeing a pattern since I really like 3 MOA sights on most of my pistols. They are the perfect balance between short and long range accuracy. You can easily make out this sight while still reaching out to the outer limits of the 22LR. This is one of the smallest sights on the market so it should easily work with your pistol. This sight weigh in at about 1 oz and is only 1.9 inches long. Don’t let the size full you the Burris sight can take a lot of abuse. The Burris Fastfire III is an excellent alternative if for some reason you don’t like Vortex sights. It will pair perfectly with your Ruger Mark 3.
3. Trijicon RMR Type 2 3.25 MOA
Honestly the Trijicon RMR Type 2 red dot sight is overkill for the Ruger Mark III. The only reason that I mention this sight is because it is the absolute best red dot sight you can buy for a small target pistol. If you have the money to spend also check out the Aimpoint Micro T2. As a general rule of thumb you can never go wrong with a Trijicon or Aimpoint optic. The Trijicon RMR series of sights are some of the best sights in the optic industry.
The Trijicon RMR series of red dots come in a lot of different varieties. They have an MOA choice for just about any shooter. I recommend the 3.5 MOA it is a good mid range optic. The Trijicon sight is extremely durable compared to the competition. You shouldn’t have any problems with a Trijicon sight and if you do they have an excellent warranty. Trijicon offers a lifetime warranty from manufacturer defects. I had an issue with the battery compartment on one of my sites and they treated me very fairly.
Trijicon RMR has a very slim design. I really do prefer this style sight on most of my smaller pistols. The actual weight of the different sights in the RMR series varies but they weigh approximately 1.2 oz. Where the Trijicon really shines is its battery life. You can expect to get over 4 years of continuous use out of the medium setting on this sight. You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve walked outside to shoot and realized my battery was dead. This shouldn’t happen with an RMR. If you can afford it you aren’t going to beat the Trijicon RMR.
4. Bushnell Trophy TRS-25 Red Dot Sight
Now I’m going to get into the red dots that normal people can afford. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to outfit your Ruger Mark III with a dependable red dot. The Bushnell Trophy TRS-25 is an excellent sight for the money. You might not get the same type of durability as with the more expensive optics, but this sight isn’t a wimp either. You would have to put this sight through some serious abuse to break a Bushnell Trophy. I’m talking throw it off a cliff into a river kind of abuse. For an everyday carry or traditional range gun you won’t have any trouble with this red dot.
The Bushnell Trophy is a little bit larger than some of the other sights on this list. Most of this is due to the tube style design on this red dot. A lot of people prefer this style design due to its durability. Personally I like to have the lightest scope possible on my pistols. This sight weighs in at 3.7 oz and 2.4 in so it’s definitely bigger than the other sights on this list. The Ruger Mark III weight approximately 40 grams so I highly doubt you will notice the difference in size.
Where this sight really shines is its durability. The Bushnelly Trophy is 100 percent waterproof and fogproof. It will be perfect for the Mark III and if you don’t like it on that you can put it on your hunting gun. It can withstand some very powerful calibers. You won’t have an issue with this sight holding zero. You don’t have to worry about damage from the optic smacking around or being dropped. Where you see the biggest difference between this sight and the more expensive competitors is in the battery life. You can expect to change your batteries every 6 months or so with regular use. Like the above sights this one is listed as 3 MOA. If you don’t want to spend a lot of money the Bushnell Trophy TRS-25 is an excellent red dot for your Ruger Mark III.
5. Browning Buckmark Reflex Sight
The Browning Buckmark Reflex Sight is another budget option for your Ruger Mark III. I personally don’t have a lot of experience with this sight. So take my recommendation for what it’s worth. A few of my friends have this sight on some of their target guns. I’ve never heard any complaints about this red dot and it seems like an excellent budget option for your 22LR Mark III. You really don’t need the most expensive sight for a target 22 and this sight fits the bill.
The Browning Buckmark Reflex Sight is actually very nice for the price. This sight is perfect for the casual shooter and should perform without any issues. It should hold zero with moderate use and last for a long time. Once zeroed in this sight will give you consistently good patterns. The Durability is questionable on this red dot but better than some of the cheaper units. I wouldn’t recommend this for everyday carry or more than casual range use. This sight is actually the heaviest on the list. It doesn’t look like it but it’s actually 3.25″ long and 6.6 oz. That’s not bad compared to traditional sights but it’s a little heavier than I would like.
This little sight actually has a bunch of really cool features. This sight offers four reticle patterns which are kind of fun to play around with. Different reticles is a feature that you don’t see on most expensive scopes. The different reticles are actually pretty nice when estimating the drop on fairly far off targets. The Browning red dot has 7 brightness settings that should work well with any brightness. These are designed to mount easily on weaver style rails but can be mounted on a picatinny rail. This sight is actually a great sight for your Ruger Mark III if you’re on a budget.
Choosing a Red Dot Sight?
The Ruger Mark III target pistol is an excellent candidate for a red dot sight. The Mark III actually comes from the factory with a set of accurate iron sights. The only problem with these sights is that they can be difficult to see. This severely limits your pistols reach. The Ruger Mark III is actually an extremely accurate pistol for the price. With this Ruger you can expect to shoot decent groups at 100+ yards. That is if you add a decent optic to the pistol. What more can you expect out of the 22LR cartridge.
At 100 yards I typically don’t like to use any type of magnificaton. So I like to pair my Ruger Mark III with a red dot that has a fairly low MOA. The main reason that I like red dots for this pistol is the weight factor. This pistol is fairly lightweight and a traditional heavy optic will throw off the weight of your gun.
How To Choose a Red Dot
There are three primary factors to consider when choosing a red dot for you Ruger Mark III. You need to consider the size of the optic, your budget and the Reticles MOA. Combining these three factors to best fit your needs will determine the best optic for you.
- Red Dot Size: When determining your red dot size it’s important to match optic to the gun. It wouldn’t make sense to buy a sight that doesn’t properly fit the Mark III. Since your pairing this with a 22LR target pistol you need a relatively small red dot. The weight of the optic needs to be a fraction of the guns total weight so that it’s not top heavy.
- Budget: Due to the relatively low recoil while shooting 22lr I wouldn’t recommend purchasing an overly expensive red dot. For the most part any mid range optic will work fine for the Ruger Mark III.
- Reticles MOA: Choosing the proper MOA for your scope will be the deciding factor on how far you can shoot. For the majority of people a low to mid range MOA will work good for a pistol. For most of my pistols I prefer an MOA of 2 or 3. This allows me to stretch out my range a little more than with a higher MOA.
Which Ruger Mark III Red Dot Sight Is The Best?
When shopping for a red dot you need to seriously consider your budget. The majority of people don’t have a ton of money to spend on an optic for a 22LR target pistol. The absolute best sight for your Ruger Mark III is going to be theTrijicon RMR. This sight is extremely versatile and is available in a lot of different MOA configurations. For the majority of shooters the best red dot is going to be the Vortex Venom, Vortex Viper or Burris Fastfire III. These sights offer an amazing value at a relatively modest price. If you don’t have a large budget the bushnell trophy and Browning Buckmark Reflex Sight are excellent options.