The Meosight 3 is a miniature red dot optic, one of many that have recently hit the market. With the rising popularity of red dot equipped handguns I only expect to see more and more miniature red dots. The Meosight 3 is a teeny tiny optic that will fit perfectly on handguns, but I had a better idea. I’ve been rocking and rolling with my Mossberg 590 Shockwave for a few months now and have taken to applying a few upgrades here and there. One of these upgrades was a completely new sighting system. I figured we could test it’s mettle with a small, but powerful shotgun.
Meosight 3 Specs
The Meosight is superbly small and lightweight. It’s 1.1 inch tall and weighs a mere 1.31 ounces. It can attach to a variety of mounts, and I went with a quick detach picatinny mount on a stand pic rial on the rear of the receiver. The Meosight 3 features a 3 MOA red dot with 8 different levels of intensity. There is a single button to turn the optic on, turn it off, and increase and decrease the intensity. There is an automatic setting as well which adapts the reticle to the ambient light. The system runs off a single CR2032.
One thing I found I really loved during my Meosight 3 review is the battery compartment. It’s a side-loading compartment that allows me to easily change the battery without having to remove the optic from my gun. The battery will run for 300 hours depending on the intensity level.
Zeroing
One of the easiest aspects of my Meosight review was zeroing the system. Small optics often have some odd and occasionally difficult means to zero optics. We zeroed using Aguila mini slugs at 30 yards. I did it off hand and I wasn’t trying to be super precise. I wanted simply wanted to consistently put slugs into the chest portion of a target. You got to turn two unlocking tabs a half turn before you make adjustments. You’ll also need a small flat head screwdriver to zero the optic.
Clarity
Looking through the optic gives you a clear viewing port. The only distortion is around the edges of the lenses, you’ll notice it if you move your head to the edge of the optic. There is no discernible glare, and the optic has the MeoBright lens coating which is supposed to increase light transmission and reduce glare. Light transmission isn’t a big deal on one of these miniature red dots, but it’s perfectly sufficient.
Performance
Using and reviewing the Meosight 3 made me realize this is the perfect option for the Mossberg 590 Shockwave. This little gun isn’t the most precise, but you can be fast and it’s small for the level of power it offers. The Meosight 3 makes getting on target nice and easy at home defense ranges. It really allows you to put buckshot and slugs on target with more precision than any bead sight.
Trying to shoot slugs at even 30 yards with the tiny bead that comes on the Shockwave is a huge pain. The Meosight 3 made it possible for me to easily hit my steel targets at 30 yards pretty easy. Man sized targets at 50 yards are completely possible.
Transitions
With buckshot you can accurately transition between target quick and easy. Because you are using a red dot you are less affected by a loss of sight picture due to recoil. It’s easy to lose that little bead, but with a red dot optic I can pick it right back up. With the bead and no shoulder stock or cheek weld I’m not getting consistent sight picture. With a parallax-free red dot I had to stay behind the optic and the view of the reticle was always on the same plane.
This meant I could easily transition between targets and hit consistently in the same place. My favorite targets are clay pigeons. I wasn’t shooting trap or skeet, but just tossing them out as targets on a berm. They are small and can be hard to hit. With the red dot on the Meosight 3 I could transition between five of them and empty the shotgun, hitting all of them, in a few seconds.
The automatic intensity modes is reliable and the reticle transitions rapidly between dim and bright depending on the external light source. It transitioned seamlessly from bright to dark rooms. It transitions in less than a second.
Durability
The optic shrugged off all the abuse I tossed at it. It’s honestly a great little optic for the Mossberg 590 Shockwave. It shrugged off the recoil of birdshot, slugs, and buckshot without issue. The zero never shifted. Because it’s such a small optic it adds zero weight and hardly any bulk to the Shockwave.
Downsides
I’d really prefer two controls for the red dot intensity. If I missed the perfect setting on manual mode I’d have to cycle through all of them to get back. This was a pain. The viewing screen is also smaller than most competitors and it feels like the optic could have a more efficient screen to size ratio.
Overall
My complaints are somewhat minor. I do really like the thought process that went into building this optic. The zeroing system and side battery compartment are nice touches. The Meosight 3 feels like a premium optic, but is priced at about a hundred bucks cheaper than similar miniature red dots. The Meosight 3 is an awesome companion to the Mossberg 590 Shockwave, and a great miniature red dot optic. Check ’em out here.
You can get your very own MeoSight 3 >HERE for $399.99
