Burris FastFire II Red Dot : First Look

In today’s ever expanding and changing world of weapons optics there always seems to be something new on the horizon. There are options that cost anywhere from $49 all the way to $1200 the only limitation is your wallet. Recently we had a chance to pick up the Ruger 22/45 Lite and we noticed it had a rail on top of it, so we decided it was begging for some form of small red dot optic to there. I mean they wouldn’t put it there if they didn’t want us to use it so we started the wheels of creativity spinning. We wanted to search for a cost effective and small optic for a pistol or rifle, one that was made by a reputable manufacturer, would look good and function well. The other major attribute was that it couldn’t break our budget so after much searching we decided on the Burris FastFire II.

The Burris FastFire II is a 4 MOA red dot optic that has decreased in price over the last few months, that’s not because it is somehow inferior to other optics, it’s just that it is no longer the cutting edge optic it use to be. Also many shooters feel that a 4 MOA dot is somehow beneath them, I however don’t feel that way because this optic is going on a pistol not a varmint rifle. This affordable little red dot optic would be completely at home on top of any pistol, rifle or shotgun that you own, and if it for some weird reason can’t handle the shock of whatever rifle you happen to use it on, it comes with a lifetime warranty, thats hard to beat.

SPECIFICATIONS:

MANUFACTURER: Burris

MODEL: FastFire II

MOA DOT SIZE: 4 MOA

BATTERY TYPE: CR2032

RETICLE COLOR: Red

OBJECTIVE ELEMENT SIZE: 21 mm x 15 mm

LENGTH: 1.8″

WEIGHT: 1.5 Ounces

ILLUMINATION CONTROL: Automatic

MOUNTING HARDWARE: Single screw / 1913 style Rail

OTHER SPECS: 

• Waterproof
• Lifetime Warranty
• Shockproof

One thing that stood out to me when I tore open the box and began to examine the optic, it’s smaller than I thought it would be. That isn’t bad its just an observation, up until I received the FastFire II the smallest optic I had dealt with was the Vortex SPARC. I knew the small size and weight of the Burris FastFire II was going to make it a perfect companion to my new favorite target pistol, the recently reviewed Ruger 22/45. I also plan to test the optic on my wife Smith & Wesson 15/22 and her AR-15 to see how well it performs in a rifle setting. Burris shows the FastFire II mounted on shotguns as well, but unfortunately I don’t own any shotguns so that test will have to wait until I either acquire one or find someone to donate one to me to test with.

Mounting the FastFire II was simple and straight forward, assuming you have installed anything on a 1913 style rail system. Once tightened and locked down the optic showed no noticeable wiggle either horizontally or laterally. The semi gloss black coating on the FastFire II was even and matched the factory black on the test platform Ruger 22/45 nicely. One thing that Burris also included with this optic is a plastic cover to protect the glass lenses when you are not using the optic. Now I know it might not seem like much but it’s a nice touch by Burris to help you protect your shooting investment for years to come.

Unfortunately due to a series of issues, I have yet to be able to take the FastFire II or the Ruger 22/45 to the range for any sort of extended range session. I am scheduled for some range time next week so I hope to have a decent report back to our readers next weekend. If you find yourself in the market for a small and lightweight red dot optic I would advise you to take a look at this little optic from Burris. If you shop around at vendors online such as Opticsplanet.com you can find the FastFire II for as little as $199.00, and recently Opticsplanet has had 10% off coupons making it even more affordable to cost conscious shooters.

In Closing I would like to take a second to extend a Happy Veterans Day to all my fellow Veterans across the United States and Canada. We represent cities, states and provinces from all across our great nations and we served our countries honorably in both peacetime and in conflicts. It doesn’t matter if you were a support troop or a door kicking combat troops, take this day to remember your Brothers and Sisters both those here and those that have passed. Happy Veterans Day …I raise a toast to you

Rick Dembroski

Ssgt U.S. Air Force Civil Engineering 1993-2002.