Holosun HS407C – Best Budget RMR Cut Reflex Sight? [Review]

Purchasing an RMR sight on a budget can be a daunting task. Tons of options exist, but very few manage to fall consistently under the $250 price point. The Holosun HS407C is one of the very few that does, and for that reason we picked one up.

In this review, you’ll get to see our experience with this RMR cut optic, and learn our thoughts on it. We spent a good amount of time with this thing, and we’ve also spent a good amount of time with it’s upgraded version the HS507C. Let’s dive in.

Is It Okay to Save Money on Your Sights?

Holosun HS407C Rear Side

Absolutely yes, and absolutely no. Weird answer right? Let me explain.

If you have purchased your handgun or rifle, and are now in the market for an optic, there’s some decisions you have to make. Those decisions are based primarily around your answers to a few questions. What is your intent with this weapon? How often are you planning to use it? What does your budget look like? Last but not least, you need to ask yourself if you’re okay with purchasing something with less features. Depending on your answers here, you should be able to make a decision.

Tons of brands exist in the optics space. Primary Arms, Trijicon, Holosun, EOTech, and Vortex, just to name a few. All of these companies produce quality optics at varying price points. When it comes time for you to make your purchase, you need to do due diligence yourself. Research each brand you’re looking at independently, and determine if their products hold up to the standard you are personally searching for. If a company with a good reputation produces a budget optic, don’t be afraid to purchase that down-graded version if it’s all you can afford.

Losing a few features to get a sight from a respected brand on your weapon is not something to be frowned upon. However, sacrificing the reliability of your weapon by using something from an unproven or unreliable manufacturer may be detrimental to your overall shooting experience. That detriment could cost you your life depending on your intent and purpose for the firearm.

In short: It is okay to purchase an optic with less features from a respected manufacturer. It is not okay to buy an unproven Chinesium optic off of Amazon for $15.

Meet the Holosun HS407C Reflex Sight.

Holosun HS407C Side View

You’ve really been eyeballing the HS507C, we get it. You either don’t have the extra cash right now, or you’re looking to shave a little bit off of your current build. Either way is fine. Let’s talk about the HS407C for a minute, and what you get with it.

Out of the box, this thing comes ready to go. If your handgun is RMR cut, then you can put the HS407C on it, the same as the 507C. Like the 507C, this thing also features shake-awake technology that turns the sight off when it’s not in use, and back on again when you pick it up.

The HS407C also boasts 100,000 hours of battery life, with a solar fail-safe that can extend that battery-life out to a projected 200,000 hours on a lower setting. Realistically speaking however, with constant use of the higher daylight settings you can expect to get about 10-20,000 hours out of your optic’s battery. That’s a little over two years if you don’t like math.

Basically, if you’ve been researching the HS507C, the only real difference you’re going to find between these two optics is that the 407C has two fewer reticle patterns than the 507C making it a little bit less versatile. With that small loss in versatility however, you can save a significant amount of money depending on when and where you make the purchase.

Here’s the specifics.

Specifications.

  • Battery Type: CR2032 3V Lithium Coin
  • Brightness: 10 Settings
  • Click Value: 1/2 MOA
  • Finish: Hardcoat Anodized
  • Material: Aluminum – 6061-T6
  • Operating Temperature: -140 – -22 Fahrenheit
  • Included Accessories: Picatinny rail adapter, battery tool
  • Night Vision Compatible: Night Vision Compatible
  • Reticle: 2 MOA Dot
  • Reticle Color: Red
  • Eye Relief: Unlimited
  • Parallax: Parallax Free
  • Size: Mini Reflex
  • Weight: 1.8 Oz
  • Holosun HS407C Range Performance.

    Holosun HS407C Range

    Our HS407C is on a custom Glock 19 that we built from scratch. If you’re interested in checking out that G19, here’s a link to see how we built it. Our experience with the HS407C from Holosun was much the same as our experience with the HS507C that we run on the MP17. Our custom Glock slide had an RMR cut straight from the Next Level Armament factory in Grand Rapids. This made it very easy to mount the sight, as the RMR mounting process is the exact same as HS407C. Depending on if your slide comes with mounting screws or not, you may need to file the screws that come with 407C down just a small amount to get a tighter fit. We’ve heard that sometimes the 407’s screws can sometimes be about 1/16 of an inch too long for some slides. This wasn’t the case for us.

    Out on the range, this optic was an absolute monster. I’ve said this in the past, and it applies today. I consider myself an above average pistol shooter, but far from an expert. With a solid red dot sight however, I feel like a professional shooter. Using the HS407C, my groups immediately tighten and my ability to acquire a target speeds up exponentially. Unfortunately, I was not able to get our actual professional shooter out on the range to shoot this optic. However, our novice shooter had much the same results as myself when using it. Their groups were tighter, and the speed of which they were able to acquire targets was also much faster.

    All in all, our range experience with the Holosun HS407C was very positive. It’s too easy to recommend this thing to anyone who is looking for a new pistol red dot while on a budget.

    HS407C vs the HS507C

    Honestly, this is a pretty common question that I’ve seen. The HS507C comes in right at $300, while the HS407C is generally around the $250 price point. Why is that? Well, to be honest with the 507C you’re getting a few extra features that make the sight more versatile. With the HS407C, you’re only getting one reticle pattern, and that’s a simple red dot. On the 507C, you’re getting an additional two reticles, one with a familiar circle and centered dot, and one one with just the circle.

    You’re thinking to yourself right now, how does two extra reticle patterns justify the extra money right now. I thought the same thing myself at first. The short version is this: the 507C is a more versatile optic. The extra reticle patterns allow the optic to be used on a wider variety of weapons with more effectiveness. While a red dot is great for a lot of weapons, for shotguns, SBRs, and automatic sub-guns, the 507C is a better choice. For just your pistol alone though, the 407C is a great choice. It really just depends on how much versatility you need out of the optic.

    You can check out our review of the Holosun HS507C at this link.

    Our Verdict on the Holosun HS407C.

    HS407C Sight Picture

    If you’re in the market for a pistol red dot sight, but have found yourself on a tight budget, we can easily recommend this optic to you. It has everything that you need in order to get your EDC pistol up to the 21st century, and even a little bit extra. While it may not have quite as many options as the 507C in comparison, it’s still equally as reliable, and equally as good at elevating your shooting game to the next level. In the opinion of this reviewer, you can purchase the Holosun HS407C in confidence.

    That’s just my opinion on the HS407C though. Let us know down in the comments if you’ve ever experienced any serious issues or cause for concern with the RMR, and maybe we’ll revisit this review. For now, our HS407C is going to live on our EDC firearm for a while. What are your thoughts on purchasing an optic while on a tight budget? Do you wait for sales, do you purchase used optics from places like eBay, or do you trust in some of the older optics from respected companies like Holosun?

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