Well my dealer emailed me the bad news yesterday, I was 2 sights short of getting one....  [>:/]    oh well what can you do at this point....  So looks like it will be 2009 before I get to see one..

VortexSam has spoken to me in private and demonstrated great sympathy for my situation, so +1 for customer service in that aspect...

jayro, you also have to remember they have been in this buisness for a lot longer than the strikefire.. so their reputation isnt resting soley on this, but it definitely cant help either.. and like you said it lies alot on the distributors as in your case, my dealer didnt mention backorder either until after I sent in the order.  It is a little deceiving since I had multiple places to try and order from, but I chose that one..

Well I guess I am waiting for the next shipment, please give me a heads up for when I might expect it..  

kapkanimd agreed, not soley the fault of Vortex, moreso the fault lies with SWFA. Like i said before, i would not have ordered one if SWFA stated that they were out of stock.

I find it hard to blame Vortex for backorders. Vortex took it upon themselves to provide a MUCH DESIRED product that fills the void in the market between crap clones and closer to the state of the art Aimpoints.

I NEVER had a problem receiving a StrikeFire when I wanted to order one ... just buy it from someone who has it in stock. I never waited.

I've purchased from Sportsman’s Guide before and when they inform me that the ammo is backordered for nearly 8 months I cancel that QUICK and go elsewhere for that ammo. I wanted that ammo and got it elsewhere.

I'm sure Vortex is having them made just as fast as they can be made. I'm sure Vortex is shipping them out just as fast as they receive them. From what it sounds like to me ... Vortex is even going 1 step beyond to 'ration' them equally amongst their customers.

I, as the retail customer, have no loyalty to any specific merchant ... I just wanted a StrikeFire so I bought it from someone who currently had it in stock. They’re out there … ya just have to look a little bit. Keep in mind that MANY MANY people are after them too, that’s why I’m not at all surprised that the big retailers are having a problem keeping them on the shelf.

Did a lot of research on what type of 1x red dot optic to put on my new Stag Mod 2 and settled on the Vortex StrikeForce. I just ordered one from SWFA.

I'll post a follow up after I receive it.

Could I use the low mount for my application.  I have an optics ready upper with no tower mount.  The problem is I might want to add a BUIS in the futer.  Should I go with the high mount?  It just looks too high.

Does it look like this? http://www.impactguns.com/store/604206087263.html

If so, can you measure the height from the top of the receiver rail, to the top of the short little rails? If so I should be able to gauge where the low mount will put your co-witness. The high mount would most likely be too high.

...

Do you have any plans to use different battery types?
Perhaps CR123 or AA ?
Thanks.

Possibly down the road, but nothing definite at this time.

I wonder what % of users feel that they'd prefer CR123 over CR2.
Either way, I hope you guys can put one together :) Thanks.

CR123 would be cool but after the luck i've had with my AA eotech i don't want any red dot with AA just one mans opinion and why i bought a M3 aimpoint instead of the new aa version....

I don't like the thought of a AA either. I'm no battery expert, but they don't seem to be that high quality of a battery.

Can you imagine a AA battery lasting even 5 years in a drawer? 2L76 and the DL1/3N supposedly last 10 yrs without loosing but approx 5% of its capacity.

That may be the case, but the Earth can be ringed 5 trillion times with AA batteries, so you'll always be able to find them.

THAT ASIDE, is there a consensus emerging? Is the StrikeFire a decent hard use optic -or- a range toy only?

Warning .... The cross bolt in the cheep base will break VERY EASILY! It is HOLLOW!

I use a torque wrench to put on all my scopes and have a 65 inch pound wrench I use.  Since this base has a 1/2" nut like all my scope bases I grabbed my T handle torque wrench... at about 20-25 inch pounds the bolt twisted off like it was made of brass!  On closer inspection the end of the cross bolt is HOLLOW!

The quality of the hardware is inexcusable.  Less than inferior.  To save $.05 I now have to get another base and waste hours and money on something so simple as a cross bolt.
I have NEVER broken a scope cross bolt.   HOLLOW!!!!  WHY?

It is almost like it's designed to break off.  Made in CHINA JUNK!  

Honestly, because of this I have lost faith in the quality of the entire unit.  If they use such cheep hardware on a high stress application, what about the parts on the INSIDE? Hopefully this is not an indication of the unit's quality.

When you order your Vortex red dot make sure you order a GOOD base at the same time so you don't have to waste time getting one AFTER ......  I would NOT Trust it in the field... If you plan on moving the unit from one firearm to another is WILL break and leave you up the creek with out a paddle ... Unless you have back up mounts or scope.

I am off to the hardware store to see if I can come up with something to hold me till I can purchase a GOOD base like a Warne or something that is designed to take 65 inch pounds.

No place in the instructions does it list the ridiculously low Torque limit of the cross bolt on the base.  Sure the screws into the aluminum you can't torque much as they are into tapped soft AL.  and it is SOFT!  But this took me by complete surprise.

So just a warning... Only tighten the 1/2" nut to just "snug"  I would be very careful and not even put a wrench on it.   That bolt is HOLLOW on the end!

The unit IS made in CHINA.  This was also a surprise. I thought they were made in Japan or S.Korea.

The bolt on the new batch is a known issue from my understanding the factory changed it without Vortex's knowledge/aprovale...... Call them they will make it right.

John,

The cross bolt was made incorrectly without our approval from the factory.

I feel really bad that this happened and I'm really sorry.

In any case, you shouldn't have to go out and buy any more parts. Just contact our customer service and we will send you out a new mount with a solid cross bolt.

The number is 1-800-426-0048. Again, I'm really sorry, but we will do our best to take care of you and stand behind the product.

-Sam

Sam,

I called this AM and talked to a very nice woman who was most understanding and apparently up to speed with your being "Pearl Harbored" by your supplier. She said she will get a replacement base to me ASAP.  She did not know anything about a true Co-Witness height base When I asked as that would have been my preference.

It has happened to me also, and retrofitting/recalling product is a royal pain.  I feel for you. It is also one reason I refuse to get product for my company from China.

Hopefully you are working to correct current defective inventory and working with your distributors before to many units get out in the field.  Catching this before it proliferates can save you a lot of headaches and helps your image, even though it is very painful.

A friend of mine with a moderate sized business (20 employees) went bankrupt due to a very similar situation but he chose to NOT catch it before it went to his customers. He let defective product go out to customers, and more importantly distributors.

He was going to work it on a case by case basis at the customer level. That mistake cost him his business.  Every time a bolt broke in the field he lost a customer + word spread..

Then a lawsuit from a distributor of his because he was "knowingly" selling a product with a defect. (This was because he had refused to t go to their site to fix their inventory), instead he had wanted to send the repair kits to the final customers.

Between the decline in sales and legal fees he said "screw it" and closed his business letting 20 people go.  All because of a part to save a few cents!

I have had similar things with my manufacturing company over the years.  I had some defective production get "out" to customers.. We managed to track it down and replace it before it failed. I called every customer who ordered during the time the machine was off warning them of the problem.  Customers were amazed we called warning them they MAY have a problem.  My handling problems like that has helped my company.

Customer Service does make a difference...  Thank you for a speedy resolution of the problem!  

(have you looked at the glue "line" along the rubber of the switch housing of this latest batch?)  I may PM you about it.

John,

I appreciate the feedback. We are definitely doing our best to get this resolved with our dealers and distributors ASAP.

Go ahead and PM me about the glue line. I haven't seen or heard anything wrong with that, but if you are having and issue I definitely want to know about it.

Thanks again for the feedback and I'm really sorry about your inconvenience. Hope that you get your new mount soon.

Sam

Well done Vortex

New mount arrived. It is a quality mount this time.  Came with torque spec sheet 65 inch lbs for the nut and 20 inch pounds for the top 6 screws.  It is the brand mount I was going to get to replace the supplied crummy one.  If they swap out all of the mounts with this one, this is a GOOD mount.  Not sure if it is the long term fix, but made me happy.

Speedy delivery ... Top notch Customer service!

Sam .. I hope you are enjoying The Shot Show!

Regards,

John

Glad to hear that John!

We are enjoying SHOT pretty well. It's been a fun show for us this year.

is this optic 2 MOA ??

No, it's 4MOA.

Nice pics- now if you could only deliver the product. I was told that the Strikefires would be available mid Jan. Nothing is more aggravating than recieving the dreaded "backorder" notice.

We are trying but demand has been huge, as with everything AR related since the election. We have been shipping loads of these out, but so far demand keeps out pacing supply.

We are shipping more out as we speak. I also posted a thread about a local dealer I saw had some in stock today here.

Another thread posted here about StikeFire's available at Bob Wards.

I'm also told that Camera Land has them in stock now too.

too late- what about Recob's???

I was just up at Wilderness Fish and Game again today to pick up my lower and they still had all three in their case. Did you call them? Here is the number: 608-643-2433

They told me they would ship out mail order.

just called them again and this time they said they just sold the high mount today. Said he could get another by the end of the week and would give me a call. That must be one of your hangouts. Do you do anything with Recob???   Thanx Terry G.

Too bad. I just happened to be in there recently to do some transfers because they are pretty close by.

I don't see Recob's listed as a dealer of ours, but one of our sales staff would know better than me. I would call our sales staff and talk to them directly about it. They could get them set up as a dealer if they aren't already. Our sales number is 1-800-426-0048.

Let me know if you need anything else.

FYI:
Sportsmans Guide got them in stock yesterday, I believe with the low mount.

I just ordered mine, shipping ETA is seven days.

There are coupon codes for SG that give $10 off orders over $100. I got it shipped for $122.00 with buyers club and the code.

Finally received my StrikeFire today!!!  that I ordered on Oct. 9th... quite the wait, but oh well no harm done, and Vortex and the company I ordered it from (Liberty Optics) have been been great about the whole situation and have offered any help that I needed..

First impressions...

- I was a little supprised when I saw how small the box was that It came in, guess I didnt think of how small it actually is (my first red dot by the way)
- Upon instalation, I started to remove the top of the ring mount with the supplied hex(star) key tool, everything was fine till I got to the last screw and noticed it wasnt the same as the other 5...  It was a allen screw.. Since it didnt come with an allen tool to take it off I can
 only assume that it was a mistake... unless I am oblivious to some industry standard...
- People have been complaining about the flip lens covers and using them with the doubler.... I am guessing that they have fixed this problem since It seems to work great...
- I have done no live tests, only mounted in my house in low light, but did notice the dot glaring a bit on high power, I am contributing this to low light, and it seemed to go away very well when turned down a bit
- Also in some of the pictures on here and in the instruction manual it shows a rubber attachment on top that I assume is for holding the sight adjustment knob caps when off...  I think that would be a good addition since I have sent one of the caps rolling while adjusting the
  sight to line up with my iron sights...  I am wondering if this is something that has been discontinued or just an option or something that was on the prototype for pictures....
- From the looks of it with the high AR mount, the dot is set up as being lined up with the iron sights instead of like a co-witness which I would of liked, again maybe I am missing something but I am guessing I need a higher mount..?

Overall very satisfied so far, construction seems to be top quality and cant wait to try this out at the range...  maybe, hopefully Vortex will send me out a replacement screw to match the rest of them in the mount..  :)

Will update after going to range and testing it out..

-Strange about the screw. Give us a call and we'll send you a replacement screw 1-800-426-0048.
-Initially we did have a rubber tether for the battery and W/E caps, but were informed that this was patented by Aimpoint. We didn't want to infringe on anyone, so we removed it. We might look at another way of doing it in the future that avoids infringement.
-It should be a lower 1/3 co-witness, so the irons should be in the lower 1/3 of the field of view. You shouldn't need any higher of a mount? If you want an absolute co-witness then you would need a slightly lower mount. Can you explain this a little more, because I'm not sure what you mean.

Glad you finally got your sight and don't hesitate to ask or give us a call if you need anything!

-Sam

Got mine yesterday from SWFA, Thanks,
After mounting mine I can use the bottom 1/2 of the iron sights through the high mount hole. I think this will work out very well!!
+1 to SWFA your email informing me of the backorder and est. ship date were right on.

sorry bout the confusion, I meant I wanted a lower 1/3 co-witness, but it just looked to me like it was a true (guess) witness that aligned with the iron sights..  I think it is just the angle I was looking at it it, I wont know till I get to the range I guess...
I will give a call about the screw, and also after research (playing) with it a little more last night, I am finding that the front lens cover cap does not close properly like the rear does...  what I mean is that on the rubber cap base it has a llittle rubber lip that I am guessing is for making a better h2o seal, the rear closes over it fine, but on the front it seems like the actual cap is too small to fully cover the lens and rubber lip... I have tried for along time to get it to work, but just doesnt seem big enough... it catches the lip at the top, but when you go to close it at the bottom, it just pushes the lip back....  anyone else having this problem??

Try putting a little synthetic grease around the cap rim. We found this made a world of difference.

If not, let us know because the cap shouldn't be hard to close.

-Sam

I figured out what was going on, the whole rubber cap base keeps sliding out of its position, basically I have to but forward pressure on the cap base while closing it otherwise it will just keep sliping back.. not too big of a deal, just wish it would work one handed like the rear cap...
tried silicone spray lube since I didnt have any grease on hand, didnt work too well, will try the grease when I get a chance..

Last problem, (trying not to seem like a complainer, the sight its great, just minor things that would make it perfect),  After operating the bolt a few times I am noticing that the mount base will not stay in its place and slide back and forth within the notch (like a 1/2" or whatever it is)  I am not sure if this will affect accuracy at all (I doubt it) but not matter how tight I can get the screw (by hand of course) I am able to slide the mount back and forth..?..  again, my first optical on this gun, but my BUIS does not do this and I am just not sure if this is normal or not..  I guess I could find a wrench and tighten it down, but kind of defeats the purpose of a quick mount.

Sam:  I hope I am not just being too picky, yall have been great, just want to get all the bugs figured out before I hit the range with it..

Don't worry about it. That's what I'm here for, to help customers. This forum is for you guys, so definitely let us know any time you have questions or concerns.

Anyway, definitely try the synthetic grease. I think that will do the trick. We are using stuff called Super Lube Synthetic grease. It's the gel that comes in a squeeze tube, not the spray. If that doesn't work then we can send you another cap that we will check to make sure functions correctly.

As far as the mount goes, this mount is not intended for quick detach. You should definitely use a socket wrench to tighten the bolt down. We recommend tightening it to approximately 20in-lbs. If you don't have a torque wrench that's ok, just don't crank on it really hard or you might damage the rail or mount. It should be tight enough that it doesn't move back and forth in the slot though.

If you want a quick detach mount you will have to look at something aftermarket like the ADM or LaRue mounts.

-Sam

Cool, thanks again...  Yeah I will get a hold of some grease, I have some somewhere..

Yeah I didnt really mean quick detach as much as I meant able to be taken on and off by hand w/o tools (thats what I thought the giant knob was for in comparison to an allen screw), I have no problem using a socket/wrench to tighten as I will prob not be taking it off and on very much at all...   Havent used a torque wrench lately (but I do have one), but what is in/lbs in comparison to ft/lbs??  is in/lbs what is labled on the wrench, I guess I could just go and look for myself...   to prevent further newbs from asking all these questions it would be a good Idea to include all of this in the manual (even though I guess it is pretty simple)

If I am not mistaken I believe it should be 12 inch lbs = 1 ft lbs. If I am wrong I'm sure someone will correct, but I am pretty sure that is it.

Yes, that's correct, 12in-lbs = 1ft-lb. Just make sure that you are in fact using inch pounds and not foot pounds. 20ft-lbs would probably not be good.

Video no longer works. Says it was removed by user. I'd love to buy an optic next week and would love to see video to help with my optic decision. Right now I'm stuck between three optics and leaning towards the Strikefire.

Thanks for the heads up. I got the video link fixed.

Let me know if you have any questions about the sight that I can answer to help you make your decision!

-Sam

Not sure if it's ok to post this here, but I figured more people may be interested in this sub-forum. If it's inapropriate for me to link to my add I'll gladly edit my post.

http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=7&f=142&t=652218&page=1

Well im new to this red dot stuff, and really intrested in your Strikefire, but im not sure on the mount for a Sig556 high or low.
http://www.sigsauer.com/Products/ShowCatalogProductDetails.aspx?categoryid=35&productid=114

Thanks for the help.

I am going to guess the low mount based on the picture, but I can't say for sure as I'm not familiar with the sight height on that rifle.

If you can get me the sight height from the top of the rail to the tip of the front sight post then I can tell you for sure.

You think this sight is gonna work good with a Galil and Ak? I know this is a good quality optic but will it be ok on the ak or galil?

I know that guys have used them on AK's with success. I see no reason why it wouldn't hold up well.

DocD had posted in this thread that he had success mounting it on an Ultimak rail. He said he was going to post up a thread about it, but I can't seem to find that thread. You may want to send him and IM about it to get some more details.

-Sam

I am thinking about getting one for my old AR with the A2 upper. I have a Z mount on it now, so my question is how well will the Srikefire work with the Z mount?
Will I need a Hi or LOw mount?
What would you recomend? I dont really need the " co -witnessing" , but would be nice.
Also, will it be too long to mount over the handguards?
Thanks for any help you can offer.

Not trying to compare one to another, but this is the type of set up I am looking into
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i193/Deceptiwave/49954.jpg
my AR currently
http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i193/Deceptiwave/ARscoutrail2.jpg

I am seriously considering the Strikefire for my AR with fixed handle.  I currently have a setup exactly identical to the setup shown in Deceptiwave's 2/25 post––the large pic with the Z-rail––including a sight exactly the same.  Mine is labeled a SightX, but I have seen the same device with other brand names on it.

The questions: how to mount this on a fixed handle AR?  On the handle (won't it be too high)?  On a quadrail out front (won't it be too far away)?  Whichever is the right answer to that, which height mount––the low or the high?  How do you adjust it for lower third co-witness? Is any additional hardware required?

If I may make a recommendation to Vortex, a bit more info on your web site would really be helpful, e.g., links to pics and comments showing several different ways/locations to install it, data on what "low" and "high" mount means (inches)––and when to pick one or the other.  Lastly, I REALLY wish the sight had a selection of several reticle  types, as in dot, cross-hairs, circle center with cross-hair ticks at 3,6,9,12.  I don't mean these comments to be critical––just things that struck me as I was shopping.

Thanks.

Hi,

If you have the same setup as the large picture and you want to co-witness what you would want to do is mount it on the z-rail where the sight in that picture currently sits, in front of the carry handle. You would want to get the low ring (hunt) version. I am not familiar with the measurements of that rail, so I can't say where the low ring would put your co-witness exactly, but the high ring (AR15 version) would definitely be too high. I don't think you would be able to see the front sight at all.

These are the measurements of the rings from the top of the rail to the center of the optic:

Low ring (Hunt) version: 0.8125"
High ring (AR15) version: 1.5625"

You don't want it mounted on top of the carry handle if you want to have any kind of co-witness at all. But if you don't mind not being able to co-witness use the low mount in this situation.

Most people don't recommend putting an optic on a quad rail because there is the potential that the forend could shift and change your POI.

There isn't any adjustment required for a lower third co-witness, it's just a function of where you mount it and which ring you use. On a flat top upper the distance from the top of the rail to the top of the front sight post is 1.4", so the high mount will put the dot 1.5625" above the rail, which is slightly above the front sight post. This will give you a lower third co-witness. If you can find out what the height is from the top of the z-rail to the top of the front sight post then you can compare that to the two ring heights to get an idea where the front sight will be in the field of view.

I appreciate the suggestions. Let me know if you have any other questions.

-Sam

Hmmm...thanks; good info.

I may have misled a bit...even though that is my current setup, I had kind of intended to get rid of the Z-rail when I change from that  to the Strikefire.  My thinking is this:

- with the Z-rail there, I cannot install the quad (I think I can't due to physical interference conflict with the front dropped part of the Z-rail???).  Thus, I would have no place to mount my light (essential) or the laser I have (not essential), or the vertical grip I plan to add, and think the quad facilitates that, no?

- when I had the existing sight, on the TOP of handle (rear part of the Z-rail), the sight line with eyeball was way too high, even though the SightX has quite a low profile.  I almost had to hold head/cheek above and off  the stock to see through the sight.  Thus, I am concerned about handle mounting of any sight.

-conflict: mount on handle = no co-witness = no sight if batt fails; yet at same time, don't mount on quad!  ????

All of which leads me to being quite confused at this point about which way to turn. Some data:

7/8"   (0.875) approx Z-rail front (dropped portion) top surface below Z-rail handle top surface
1-3/8  (1.375) approx center of SightX glass above Z-rail front (dropped portion) top surface
5/16  (0.3125) approx top of front sight POST INDICATOR above Z-rail front (dropped portion) top surface (this one very hard to do accurately , may be a bit more)

Above are close but not really exact due to interference of hardware with ruler and parallax.