Today’s feature is from correspondent Dave Spaulding.

In a recent edition of the TACTICAL WIRE, I offered my thoughts on the new Trijicon RMR HD. An improved carry optic based on customer feedback, it is still a duty pistol size device. Of all the comments and questions I received after the article was published, the most asked was “what carry optic would you use on a compact carry pistol?” Easy answer, folks: the Trijicon RMRcc.

The Trijicon RMRcc is a compact carry optic designed to be as low profile as possible while maintaining military-grade toughness. The author carries this trim package using the Raven Concealment Vanguard trigger guard clip holster.

The “cc” in the name stands for “concealed carry.” It is a compact optic, designed for use on smaller pistols, but offers several larger optic features. Like its big brothers, the RMRcc is built military tough. It will withstand the rigors of combat including being dropped directly on the optic window itself or the pressure of both high and low elevation. While I am not convinced these are necessary for an EDC optic, if you want the additional reassurance, you will get it with this optic.

The RMRcc comes in two versions, one with a 3.25 MOA dot while the other offers a larger 6.5 MOA dot. While I realize many folks get down in the weeds over the size of the dot, I am not one of them. If I can see it quickly, based on the lighting conditions of the moment, I am good to go. At that point, I am going to superimpose the dot and depress the trigger.

Sights of all styles have long been something contested by shooters of all ages. Irons versus dots, black sight versus colored sights, tritium versus fiber optic, but I don’t get it. All any sight system does is tell you where the muzzle is pointed. How you wish to receive this information is a personal choice. Pick what works for you and ignore all the outside clutter. I will be the first to say that carry optics are not essential. Cancel me if you wish, but I base that statement on centuries of warfare during which iron sights were used quite effectively. That does not mean they aren’t useful. I choose to use them on my carbine and pistol because they improve my performance! And maybe that is the best way to choose a piece of gear.

The RMRcc, while being quite small, still maintains tactile controls for brightness and easy click adjustments for windage and elevation.

The RMRcc has a thinner, low-profile design that helps reduce the potential for snagging. Although smaller, the RMRcc maintains all the features of the larger RMR: easy-to-use buttons, an always available 2032 battery with up to 4 years of illumination (I would change it once a year just to be sure) and a wide variety of mounting plates to fit most popular compact, concealed carry pistols.

Other features include a true color, multi coated lens for wide-band light transmission with minimal change in target area color, easily adjustable windage and elevation knobs, a button lock out mode which secures the auto-brightness setting feature but also complete user brightness settings with 8 levels of brightness. One feature the RMRcc maintains from its big brother is the bottom battery compartment, something that bothers many folks.

While it is true you should check your zero after removing your RMRcc for a battery change, this does not mean you must re-zero your unit. It has been my experience that the RMR will retain its zero after a battery change and will only require a round or two to confirm. Speaking of batteries, this is not the time to save a few bucks. When installing a new battery let me offer you two words of advice -- Duracell or Eveready.

I mounted my test RMRcc on a cut slide from Brownells. I am not a fan of mounting plates, seeing them as a weak point in the mounting process. I don’t even use the battery plate supplied by Trijicon with the unit. I use a small piece of metal right under the battery, between the battery and slide to ensure the battery maintains a tight fit. The Brownells slide is nothing fancy, just a conventional slide, rounded at the corners with forward cocking serrations. The Brownells slide fits just like a factory unit with no problems in function after transitioning internal components.

The author had to “create” an alternate back-up sighting method, using a tall colored front sight on top of a dot at the rear of the optic. Very effective at close range.

A word on the Brownell’s G43 slide, the optic cut cover plate includes the rear sight dovetail. This means when you remove it to mount your optic, there will be no rear sight dovetail. I solved this by using an Ameriglo front sight colored at the very tip. From the rear, it can be seen just cresting the rear of the optic base. I placed a white dot at this location. When I align the two, I have a crude back-up sight system that proved to be quite effective out to 10 yards or so.

The slide and optic were mounted to my Glock 43X, a compact pistol I have really come to appreciate. The grip is large enough I can get a solid grasp on it, but is still easy to conceal. I use the 15 round Shield magazines which some claim do not work reliably. This has not been my experience. My Shield magazines run and I did not receive special treatment; I bought them off their website. That said, if the Shield magazines did not exist, I would be quite happy with the factory ten rounders which are trim and easy to carry.

The Glock 43X is one of the most popular compact carry pistols available today. It’s small enough to easily conceal while offering a grip that can “fill your hand.”

My zeroing process is quite simple: I shoot off hand at ten yards on a three-inch Post It note. Once I am on there, I move back to twenty-five yards and shoot off hand at a three by five rectangle. Why off-hand instead of a bench rest? That’s the way I am going to shoot it for real so it makes sense to me. If I have to make any adjustments at twenty-five, I move back to ten to see if my grouping was affected. Once I am on at both distances, I consider it good and have the confidence I can hit at both near and far distances.

While some maintain you cannot use the carry optic up close, this has not been my experience. In fact, I find the carry optic easier to use as it GLOWS. And this glowing feature makes the dot easier to find. I like to use some of my up-close movement drills to test any carry optic, primarily my 9 in 9 Drill and the 10 in 8 Drill. Both are shot on three by five rectangles at five yards with the 10 in 8 requiring dynamic lateral movement while drawing. Both drills require the shooter to stop suddenly and shoot, something I like to test while using any carry optic. If you are going to “lose” the dot, this is where it will happen, which means DELIBERATION in its deployment is critical. A consistent path of travel, whether it be from ready, a manipulation or from the holster is an essential skill whenever you are using any carry optic. I cannot stress this enough - be more concerned about the results on the target than the read out on the timer.

While I have several holsters for my 43X, I use the Raven Concealment Vanguard the most. This trigger guard clip IWB “rig” is the trimmest package I am aware of. No, you can’t re-holster with it, but it carries light and easy, especially under light summer clothing. I carry the 43X/Vanguard on my hip, not forward of the hip and it stays solidly in place.

The Pistol Mounted Optic Tool is a very useful addition to the range bag of anyone using any type of optical device.

A quick note on a product that I was recently introduced to: The Pistol Mounted Optic Tool from Patriot Products AZ is a handy little device that worked quite well when zeroing the RMRcc. Given to me by Gunsite Instructor Freddie Blish on a recent visit, this compact little tool has just what you need to zero your carry optic which includes instructions and scales for different optics in the package. As my friend John Farnam is known to say, “highly recommended!”

The Trijicon RMRcc, like the rest of the Trijicon product line, is a tough, reliable unit that will deliver decades of service under very harsh conditions. Yes, it is a pricey piece of gear but you will only pay for it once and will likely have it the rest of your life.

— Dave Spaulding