HurricanE 552 Holosight vs. Huang (G&P) 552 replica

[FlyGuy]

+1 -obviously- for any real EOTech HWS over a LED red dot clone.

Disclaimer - Yes, I know the subject was comparing 552 sights, but having both Huang 551 (practically identical to his 552) and a real EOTech 551.A65, this comparison's a valid one IMHO. However, what follows is merely my opinion and nothing more!

Huang's 551 is very good (and cheap) for what it does with minimal ghosting unless you've cranked the brightness way beyond what's needed for indoor / low-light play, in which case it's there. Outdoor you can pretty much forget it as the reticle washes out completely. Another annoyance is when you pair it up with the current crop of QD/FTS/etc. magnifier mounts. Apart from the twist-off AP 3x mount which seems to put the magnifier squarely in the middle of the sight at least on my setup, all the other mount/mag combos even with riser plates don't really properly line-up the magnifier behind the clone 551 sight either vertically, horizontally, or both which results in mild to severe optical distortion of the reticle. Also though perhaps it's due to a reflection off the back of my polycarbonate lens protector, the LED source can be seen quite easily from in front of the sight, especially in low ambient light. However that said, Huang's version looks very much the part and performs as expected within a budget that's reasonable.

For those of you who have a money tree planted somewhere on your property and can afford the real version, in the same example as above having the magnifier mount imperfectly aligned with the real EOTech 551 doesn't matter because it's a true holographic sight. There's absolutely zero optical distortion of the reticle. Oh, and no LED-based clone sight can ever exceed a real EOTech's laser-based reticle for brightness! Plus, the EOTech laser source is absolutely invisible from in front of the sight. BUT...we all know these EOTech HWS' are a (really expensive) PITA to acquire outside the USA, so there's at least one drawback right there.

A helpful tip for both sights would be to remove batteries when not in use -- leaving them in for long periods will compress the contact springs and can lead to intermittant disconnects.


'Fly

[walks]

I have a Hurricane 551 on my M4 and for the cost of a toy on a toy, it works great. sight picture is good and the batteries have lasted more then 5 months.

If you feel the need to waist money on a real 551/2/3 why not put it on a copper pusher?

[trevor]

If you feel the need to waist money on a real 551/2/3 why not put it on a copper pusher?

That's kind of a stupid comment. I have the RS 512 version and I use it every weekend on my toy since it works great so I don't see how you can say it's a waste of money. Why do people want to make it out that you can only spend money on real firearms? I know which ones get the most use, and you can switch it back and forth if you want.

[HaZarD SFD]

I have a Hurricane 552 and yes ghosting is annoying.. mcguyver your just a god and everythihng you purchase is perfect.. Now back to reality.. I think some of the hurricane first gens have ghosting issues.

[mcguyver]

Originally Posted by HaZarD SFD

mcguyver your just a god and everythihng you purchase is perfect..

Not hardly. I've owned more defective stuff than you can imagine. I have boxes of it in my basement as I type this.

And BTW:

You're a tool.

It's more likely that someone has either stuck a cheap clone in a HurricanE box with HurricanE bottom plate to make some money (gee, what a shocker), or you have a defective unit (wow, imagine that).

And I have 1st generation 552s.

And they are not the only ones I've seen.

I wonder what happens to the untis that factory builds that aren't flawless? Do they sell them to as-is, or sell cheap to someone that sells them to us for bigger profit. Doesn't matter, either way, the OP, and your's is defective. Live with it, or pitch it in the garbage. But they aren't all that way.

And BTW, real EoTechs can suffer from this as well. It's rare, and you send it back to the factory for new lens(s), but you might not get it returned (export controlled).

[HaZarD SFD]

Originally Posted by mcguyver

You're a tool.

It's more likely that someone has either stuck a cheap clone in a HurricanE box with HurricanE bottom plate to make some money (gee, what a shocker), or you have a defective unit (wow, imagine that).

And I have 1st generation 552s.

And they are not the only ones I've seen.

This was purchased from WGC and its a 100% hurricane 552.. Unfortunetly its got a ghosting issue..

[Ronan]

552's are known for ghosting issues, doesn't matter the brand.

[LUTNIT]

I run a HurricanE 553, very limited ghosting on highest settings but minimal enough that when stressed and making quick snap shots you don't even see it. It does cast light out the front but its never been a problem indoors because when they see it I am either dead or they have BB's flying at their head. You have to be looking at it pretty straight on to see it from the front.

I dislike Huangs. I have seen 3 of them break, one was shot with a 400fps gun from more than 100' away, one was bumped fairly lightly against a door frame in an indoor game, and one was hit with a 240fps TM MP7 from 20-30' away. My HurricanE has taken 400fps hits from 25-40' away and didn't even scratch (first game I used it and it didn't have a protector yet.) I am on my second set of batteries in my HurricanE after 9-10 months and I see people swapping batteries in Huang holosights mid game because they ran out after 2-3 hours.

I used to own a Bushnell first gen holosight, from before EOTech was even marketing them, ran on N-cell batteries. It was really nice but didn't go too bright so was kinda useless on sunny days but its minimum setting was perfect for pitch black areas.

I don't care about trades personally so thats a non-issue for me. I paid I think $160 for my HurricanE 553 and a real one would have cost me $600-700 (but is much nicer.) I have played around with a real EOTech 553 for a few minutes and its just dead on crystal clear and amazing for aiming (since its, you know, actually holographic instead of an RDS.) But I don't have that kind of money for a sight...yet.

*Edit*
Oh yeah, and on my HurricanE 553 you can only see the ghosting when on the brightest setting in a dark room. When on the brightest setting on a sunny day (the only time you would need to use the brightest setting) you can't see it because the daylight is so much brighter than the ghost image. Also I can't stand 552's, they are too low to the receiver so I need to mash my cheek to the point of almost being painful to look through it properly.

[Crunchmeister]

I'll second what Lutnit says about the ghosts not being noticeable when you're actually shooting. They're only distracting on the brightest settings, particularly on green with me. Once toned down a bit, they're not bright enough to throw you off or make you use the wrong reticule.

And a note on trades - I'm not a stickler for trademarks. If I can get something with them, then great. I do like authenticity. I liked that I managed to swap the trademarked parts on the 552s to have the trades on the HurricanE, to match the trademarked HK416, but I won't turn up my nose at anything because of a lack of trademarks. I take functionalityu over appearance any day. But for some people, it's a huge issue though, so had to mention it.

Defective or not, my unit has more ghosting than my Huang unit, and it seems that other peoples' HurricanEs have ghosting issues as well. Whether anyone agrees with that or not, it's still the case and I reported it fairly based on the model I have. If yours doesn't have any ghosting, then good for you. Just don't try to marginalize what I've reported in this review. I'm not making this shit up. I reported issues I have, and others have had similar experiences. People reading this review can take it as they will.

[HaZarD SFD]

I must get a new one then.. Selling my old 552 lol.

[mcguyver]

I went back and looked at both of my 552's. I could make a ghost image appear on green on the brightest setting in a dark room if I hold it at 3'+ away from my eye, or if I turn the sight a gross angle from straight. I guess I never noticed it because it never sits on my gun at that distance or position from my eye.

When it's mounted on the gun, you really can't see it.

[Capt.Flan]

Just got the Huang latest 553 full trades.

Its crap!!!! There is like 5 circles! They don't even show equally. Some part of the circle is all fade. Ghosting is very bad at any brightness level red or green. Then the vision get's all blurry.

Plus the crappy quick release don't even secure the thing well on the top receiver rail. No snap. The thing has one quick release that is almost useless!
I asked about all of this before buying it.

This is not what I expected that all!
Really I can't even use it!!

FUCK!

I am pissed!

There is some pics to show you how bad it is. My eyes hurt as I use it for 5 minutes...

This is the piece. Very nice looking. Very heavy and it feels very strong.




And now the reticle... Now note the letters on the DVD drive. They are clear so the camera is on focus. This is how I see in it.






I believe my eyes correct the view a little but still...

[Wilson]

The optics we have here are crap. Both are Chinese and both are too dim to be used in daylight.

I think genuine optics are on the list from here on out.

[trevor]

not to rub salt in your wounds but I always tell people if they want the eotech, save and buy the real deal. If they want a decent red dot the aimpoints are fine and work well. It took me buying 2 clones to find that out myself.

[Capt.Flan]

Did I get a lemon?