There are a few available that use fiber optic light pipe [Link] but the top of the range 'tubed' use tritium and fiber elements. [Link]
Follow the links for two examples.

Years ago I had an occluded red dot reflex sight with a fiber element.
Curiously the firms name was "SinglePoint".
I have no idea if they are still around.

 

View attachment 486775
There are a few available that use fiber optic light pipe [Link] but the top of the range 'tubed' use tritium and fiber elements. [Link]
Follow the links for two examples.

Years ago I had an occluded red dot reflex sight with a fiber element.
Curiously the firms name was "SinglePoint".
I have no idea if they are still around.

Just a bit of history / random info ...

There is a series of books written by former Vietnam-era Navy SEAL and Master EOD Technician Gary R. Smith - outstanding books, I've been reading them on and off since I was 17 25+ years ago ... - 3 of them I believe - and he describes using the SinglePoint OEG " Occluded-Eye Gunsight" - and how much he absolutely loved it and while it was not widespread within the SEAL or SOF community and virtually unheard-of in the line Infantry area, he absolutely loved it and believed it made a huge difference in combat, particularly the close-combat of the Vietnamese jungles. And he thought it allowed him to apply the principles of "Quick Kill" almost on reflex and he zapped many bad guys before they could zap him (as a Pointman in particular) because of it.

Just some random info.

 

How bright a dot do you want. Tritium is good for like 30 years (half life 12.3 years; about 2.5HL). Most coin cell are good for a few years in storage, maybe equivalent of a HL.

Fiber stuff never did much for me, if there is light enough to make the fiber work its light enough to do without. YMMV.

 

My thinking too.
In my case the single point was mounted on a FN SLR.
For QR shooting it was great out to 100 meters.
Only being occluded (you couldn't look through the tube), the longer you stared at the target, the more your eyes 'fought' the dot. That's way different from an open tube or open reflex sight, which is what I use when ratting.

 

Well, I have reflex on my rifle and I like it. it's just the battery thing.. it's one more thing I have to keep up with. Have hard enough time traking the date on milk in the frig. I did put tru-glow tritium on one handgun (test drive) but not sure how useful it is; can see the sights in total darkness but can't see anything to shoot at. At my age my night vision is not what it once was either, along with my regular eye sight. The red dot reflex works pretty good for me, I just was looking for something that does not need batteries for day time use... until I get night vision. At that point I'll deal with the battery phobia.

I will add that one thing I like about the battery powered reflex I have is the selectable colors on the dot; can pick either red or green. That helps depending on target color and daylight conditions sometimes.

 

...... I just was looking for something that does not need batteries for day time use... until I get night vision. At that point I'll deal with the battery phobia.

Start dealing with it now....it's not like it used to be, battery tech and the red dots have come a LONG way.

Ever tried SeeAll sights?
NOT a red dot, but they are easy to see in the day, no batteries, and they have tritium versions as well. Takes a minute to get used to it.

SeeAll - Tritium Gun Sights

Primary Arms Prism sights are very well made and popular. They have an etched reticle, so you can still use it if/when the battery dies. Great for those that have astigmatism.

I have a 2.5X version, love it.

 

I have a Meprolight M21 scope that uses tritium without any batteries. The same one that Israel uses. No worries about EMP with it. However the dot is larger than I prefer. I consider it a 50 yard tool only.

 

Trijicon makes the RMR in a "Dual illuminated" version that uses a tritium lamp and fibre optic collector to illuminate the dot/triangle.

No batteries.

Trijicon RMR® Dual-Illuminated Red Dot Sight | Trijicon®

Stay on-target in no-light and low-light conditions with the Dual-Illuminated Trijicon RMR® red dot sight.

www.trijicon.com

But be aware, apart from being expensive, they also don't do as good a job of adjusting the dot brightness to all conditions as the battery models do.

The choice of dot size is also limited to the medium to large sizes - again due to the technical challenges of using non electric illumination sources.

 

+1 on the Trijicon. I am still using a 20-year-old RX09 reflex sight with Chevron reticle in DPMS double-throw lever quick detachable mount. Originally used on an M4, now resides on my Marlin .44 Magnum Guide Gun.

 

That chevron is quite a versatile aiming mark.

The top of the chevron is quite good for precise point blank shooting.

You can work out the distance at which you can use the centre of the bottom edge of the triangle and also the longer distance at which you should use one full chevron height below the base.

 

If you have the money, I suggest you buy
the type the Marines use that does not
require batteries.

I am too old to have ever used it. But
my daughter did and if she didn't break
it, it has to be good.

The Trijicon VC OG.

 

If you have the money, I suggest you buy
the type the Marines use that does not
require batteries.

I am too old to have ever used it. But
my daughter did and if she didn't break
it, it has to be good.

The Trijicon VC OG.

The VCOG is "powered by a single AA battery".

Trijicon VCOG® Rifle Scope | Trijicon®

Get extreme durability, accuracy and superior quality with the Trijicon VCOG®, a MIL-SPEC-grade optic ready for any application.

www.trijicon.com

 

Just be aware, if youre using anything with tritium, it only has a practical usable life of about 10-12 years. By that time, the vials are usually pretty dim and will need to be replaced. Ive always ended up replacing the night sights on my handguns at around 8 or 9 years, as they are noticeably dimmer at that point than fresh sights.

I considered getting the Trijicon dual FO/tritium low powered scopes when they first came out, but at their price point, and the longevity issue of the tritium, I didnt see the point.

Early on, the first red dots I had were the old Armson OEG type sights that used FO and tritium. They worked, but werent the best, and unless you had bright light for the FO, or eyes adjusted to the dark for the tritium, the dot was often hard to see. Forget about moving between different lighting.

I understand not wanting to use batteries, but these days, that being a problem is pretty much a non-issue. With good sights anyway. Im still using M2 series Aimpoints that are 20+ years old, and have never once had a dead battery with them. And the couple of sights on guns I use regularly, are on 24/7/365. I change the batteries once a year at the fall time change. The newer versions can run up to 5-9 years on one battery.

 

Just be aware, if youre using anything with tritium, it only has a practical usable life of about 10-12 years. By that time, the vials are usually pretty dim and will need to be replaced. Ive always ended up replacing the night sights on my handguns at around 8 or 9 years, as they are noticeably dimmer at that point than fresh sights.

I considered getting the Trijicon dual FO/tritium low powered scopes when they first came out, but at their price point, and the longevity issue of the tritium, I didnt see the point.

Early on, the first red dots I had were the old Armson OEG type sights that used FO and tritium. They worked, but werent the best, and unless you had bright light for the FO, or eyes adjusted to the dark for the tritium, the dot was often hard to see. Forget about moving between different lighting.

I understand not wanting to use batteries, but these days, that being a problem is pretty much a non-issue. With good sights anyway. Im still using M2 series Aimpoints that are 20+ years old, and have never once had a dead battery with them. And the couple of sights on guns I use regularly, are on 24/7/365. I change the batteries once a year at the fall time change. The newer versions can run up to 5-9 years on one battery.

Yep - everything is a compromise of some sort.

That is how I ended up with so much stuff..........well that is my excuse and I am sticking to it.

 

Ak103K beat me to the Armson OEG and the really old Weaver Single Point was previously mentioned.
Both can be good, when used in the right environment and methods. But definitely dated tech.

Had one of the old Meprolight single power sights (pre-M21), it was good but an offer was made and it went away years ago. By now it would have had to have gone in for a third set of vials.
And it wasn't great in bright sunlight.

 

Primary Arms Prism sights are very well made and popular. They have an etched reticle, so you can still use it if/when the battery dies. Great for those that have astigmatism. Most use the ACSS ranging reticle so you can effectively shoot longer distance with them. PA sells these sights specific to calibers, such as 5.56/5.45, 7.62x39/.300BO, and .308.

Focal Plane: prism-scope

 

Primary Arms Prism sights are very well made and popular. They have an etched reticle, so you can still use it if/when the battery dies. Great for those that have astigmatism. Most use the ACSS ranging reticle so you can effectively shoot longer distance with them. PA sells these sights specific to calibers, such as 5.56/5.45, 7.62x39/.300BO, and .308.

Focal Plane: prism-scope

I was going to say the same thing. I bought a prism scope for my AR and I absolutely love it. I have astigmatism and I know if I there is a difference because I don’t need glasses so it’s not bad enough for correction. I like the ability to swap between green and red illuminated as well as the black etched reticle when it’s turned off. Mostly I use it turned off. I am tempted to buy one for my shotgun also. Highly recommend.

 

Holosun makes a variety of optics with a solar powered feature that will apparently run on a dead battery, which is essentially no battery at all. However I cannot imagine that is a helpful optic at night. But it does give a functional battery a very very long lifespan.

 

We live in a day and age in which it is common for red dots to have a 50,000 hour battery life. This translates into being good for a couple of years. Have this type and keep a decent stock of batteries and you will be good. Even the $130ish dollar red dots commonly come with this long battery life.

 

I have a Trijicon RMR, the dot will wash out in bright light IF you are in deep shade or indoors. So use you co-witness sights. I used it for several years, then broke the glass, they rebuilt it for a bill or two. But while I was waiting I switched to my battery model, and like four years later have never switched back.

With a red dot you want to ALWAYS check it every day. I don't carry at home. But I keep my holster on my belt as it threads on. When I come home I draw my gun and put it in a holster in a drawer. When I leave I pull the gun out, check the dot, and holster it. I put new batts in every Christmas.

I have a Meprolight (or whatever) on an AR. It needs to be reconditioned. But works fine in daylight.

 

The Tritium seems to effectively last 10 years on the pistols I had those type of sights on. Gotta get 'em re-done around 10-12 years, in my personal experience (only had 2 with Tritium tipped glow sights).

I put the fiber optic light pipe, which came with multiple color choices (but I stuck with green) on my Mossy 500 SP and LOVE it! I mounted a Magpul rail and tac light on the left side, which is perfectly aligned with my left thumb, that illuminates the light pipe very brightly, as if it were powered on its own.

Definitely check that out as an option.
Any ambient light makes it glow like it's powered, because the entire length of the tube is open.

 

I don't like relying on electricity either but the high quality sights will last over a year on a CR 2032. Just replace the battery every 4th of July or holiday of your choice. The batteries are small and have a shelf life of 10 years.

 

Actually, as has been said here, many times, the high quality ones will last 5 years and more, being on 24/7.

Change them once a year, and if shtf you'll have 5 years or more to worry about it. Stick a couple extras in your pistol grip, and you'll be good to go for 10 years plus.

 

Not everyone has Trijicon finances, Vortex Spitfire has etched class, as do Primary Arms offerings. Use batteries when you can, but good to go if you dont, or batteries fail. Some other makes like Leupold have LPVO scopes that have illuminated reticle also, and Holosun has solar charging models.

 

+1 on the see all sight. I have owned 3 and like them. They require no batteries and are EXCEPTIONALLY light weight. Ive also ownwd the tritium version ans can speak to its effectivesness at night.

The original versions had a very distracting "see all" on the reticle but they fixed that quickly.

I currently use one on my crossbow and find it capable to about 50 yards once you learn how to properly holdover with it.

 

The Vortex Spitfire is a Prism Scope. It does have a battery that powers either a green or red illuminated reticle. BUT, the reticle is always there should your battery fail.

Vortex Spitfire Red Dots

With a redesigned HD optical system that cuts inches and ounces off the original platform, the new Spitfire™ models are a shooter's dream come true.

vortexoptics.com