jswledhed 57 Posted April 3, 2012 Report Share Posted April 3, 2012 I picked up a BP-02 mount some time back with the intention of mounting a red dot to an x39. I've been looking hard at the PK line from Eastwave or Kalinka, the PK-A, PK-01 and PK-23 in particular. Anyone know the advantages or disadvantages of these? Anyone ever compared these side by side or have experience with more than one? The main differences I'm reading are the blinking dot on the 23 and the automatic brightness adjustment on the 01. The A must be the bare-bones model, I guess. Recommendations? Opinions? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TX-Zen 287 Posted April 4, 2012 Report Share Posted April 4, 2012 I haven't seen much functional difference in them really, but you'll find PK01 to be the most modern of them. My favorite is PK-A for various non technical reasons but I feel that PK01-V or PK01-VM are the best of the red dot optics. I completely prefer collimators like PK-AS, Rakurs and Obzor though. PK23 is neat with the flickering dot but again to me these dots all feel and seem to perform about the same. PK-A is offset to the left somewhat, the rest are centered and you get different heights depending on which model you pick. I currently have a battery test underway but it's only been 84 hours so too soon to tell how long they're going to last http://russianoptics.net/reddot.html Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jswledhed 57 Posted April 4, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 4, 2012 Thanks for the information. Any experience regarding the reliability/effectiveness of the auto-brightness adjustment on the 01? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
shades_of_grey 1,092 Posted April 5, 2012 Report Share Posted April 5, 2012 In general, I distrust "auto-brightness" features, unless the optic has an easily accessible manual adjustment as well. The reason should be obvious. I can't say that I have direct experience with the PK-01, though. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sickness 89 Posted April 5, 2012 Report Share Posted April 5, 2012 In general, I distrust "auto-brightness" features, unless the optic has an easily accessible manual adjustment as well. The reason should be obvious. I can't say that I have direct experience with the PK-01, though. I'm with you on that, but for slightly different reasons. I've found that the auto-adjust on the optics I've tried worked fine, in both darkness and bright conditions.. though I am wary about such circuitry going awry and leaving a poorly visible reticle, I've found that isn't really a problem with the optics I've tried (no Russian ones, but I've used the Burris FFII, a Zeiss Z-point, and a few others..). The bigger issue for me is that without manual control, I can't tone down the dot. So if I want to try for a more precise shot, it is difficult if the dot is blooming. Hands free operation is nice, but I'll trade that and use a co-witness set up to deal with wash out in exchange for a more precise aiming point as needed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jswledhed 57 Posted April 5, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2012 In general, I distrust "auto-brightness" features, unless the optic has an easily accessible manual adjustment as well. The reason should be obvious. I can't say that I have direct experience with the PK-01, though. My gut instict is the same, distrust of anything "automatic". But, I am curious about it. I'm also curious what the frequency of the blinking in the is and how I would like that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
shades_of_grey 1,092 Posted April 6, 2012 Report Share Posted April 6, 2012 ...I'm also curious what the frequency of the blinking in the is and how I would like that. 8Hz Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jswledhed 57 Posted April 6, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 6, 2012 (edited) I found a vid on youtube showing the 23's blinking reticle. Not sure I much care for it. I can understand the logic behind it, but it didn't appeal to me much. I think I've pretty much settled on the PK-01V. Manual brightness control on that one. Edited April 6, 2012 by jswledhed Quote Link to post Share on other sites
topmaul 42 Posted April 19, 2012 Report Share Posted April 19, 2012 I have a PK01 on my home defense weapon that is how much I trust it. I also have a delta point with auto brightness control and found that a strobe will really screw with it but the PK01 works fine with the flashing strobe I have on my Beretta CX4 Storm Carbine. I would recomend the PK01 you don't need an manual over ride just turn it on and your all set. I had it on a bulleye pistol at one time when I was briefly into that. We were outside on a over cast day. When you start shooting you have so many seconds to get off all your rounds. Well the sun came out and all the rest of the shooters with dots lost theirs and I never even noticed the difference. I trust my PK-01 Red Dot and really like it. I would never do business with Kalinka they screwed me and they suck as far as I"m concerned. I told them to make it right for me or I would give my opinion of them each time I saw their name in a forum thread. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
shades_of_grey 1,092 Posted April 19, 2012 Report Share Posted April 19, 2012 (edited) I found a vid on youtube showing the 23's blinking reticle. Not sure I much care for it. I can understand the logic behind it, but it didn't appeal to me much. I think I've pretty much settled on the PK-01V. Manual brightness control on that one. Do you mind giving me a link for that vid so I can see how well it compares to first-hand experience? I have a feeling that it's a poor representation of the actual experience of using the optic. Of course, the PK-23 has manual brightness control as well as a 1 MOA blinking reticle, (this naturally attracts the eye, which is particularly advantageous on lower, more precise brightness settings). Edited April 19, 2012 by post-apocalyptic Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jswledhed 57 Posted April 20, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2012 (edited) Edited April 20, 2012 by jswledhed Quote Link to post Share on other sites
shades_of_grey 1,092 Posted April 21, 2012 Report Share Posted April 21, 2012 (edited) That's probably about as well as you can capture it on most cameras, but it's not the same as looking through one in person. The reticle blinks 8 times a second, and the camera is only catching some of that, so it makes it look erratic and slower than it is. It also doesn't have that "halo" around the dot, the camera is responsible for that. To the eye, the dot is crisp and very precise, (only 1 MOA), except on the highest brightness settings in a dark environment. Also, if you ordered one from Eastwave, I think you'd be getting an updated model, (what if anything changed, I don't know). Compare what's on the side of that guy's optic to mine, pictured below: Get what you want, but I can tell you that the 23 is a damn solid choice.. and that that vid doesn't do it justice. Edited April 21, 2012 by post-apocalyptic Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TX-Zen 287 Posted April 21, 2012 Report Share Posted April 21, 2012 I don't recall anyone that owns and uses a PK23 who doesn't like them, they always seem to be very well regarded. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jswledhed 57 Posted April 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 21, 2012 I appreciate the opinions and information, gents. I've ordered a PK-01V from Eastwave. Their customer service has been stellar thus far. The PK-23 will be in the back of my head for future projects. This won't be the last Saiga rifle I scope. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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