Description
The Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo pairs the original ARO red dot with Holosun HM3X three power magnifier and ships both in a hard case. It is a complete two optic setup for a carbine: run the dot alone for close work, flip the magnifier in behind it when the target gets small or distant. Mag5 Firearms stocks the set and ships optics direct with no transfer.
The ARO Red Dot in the Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo
The sight is an ARO-RD2: a compact tube style optic with a single 2 MOA red dot at 650 nanometres, a 0.86 inch window and half MOA adjustment clicks with 50 MOA of travel each way. Power is a CR2032 rated at 50,000 hours across twelve brightness settings, ten daylight and two night vision, with Shake Awake to sleep the optic when the rifle is still.
A 2 MOA dot is the right choice behind a magnifier and that is not an accident. Magnification multiplies the apparent size of the reticle as well as the target, so a 2 MOA dot looks like 6 MOA through a 3x magnifier. Start with a 4 or 6 MOA dot and the magnified picture is a blob covering the thing you are trying to hit.
Buying the Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo as a set rather than separately is worth it mainly for the hard case and for knowing the heights already match. Pairing a dot and a magnifier bought apart usually means discovering the co witness is wrong and ordering a spacer after the fact.
The HM3X Magnifier in the Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo
The HM3X is a fixed three power magnifier with 70 millimetres of eye relief, a 7 degree field of view and a 7.6 millimetre exit pupil. Light transmittance is 0.75 and the body is nitrogen purged against internal fogging. There is a plus or minus 3 dioptre focus ring so shooters who need correction can set it once and leave it.
It has its own windage and elevation adjustment, 50 MOA of travel at half MOA per click, which is there to align the magnified image with the dot rather than to zero anything. That matters in practice: without it, a magnifier that sits slightly off axis pushes your dot to one side of the picture.
Both units in the Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo are aluminium with a MAO finish, rated IP67 and tested to 1000G of shock. The magnifier is nitrogen purged so it will not fog internally when you carry it from a cold truck into a warm range or the other way round.
The magnifier in the Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo rides on a Picatinny flip to side quick detach, ambidextrous so it can swing left or right depending on which shoulder you shoot from. It gives absolute co witness as supplied and lower third with the included spacer, so you can match it to the ARO height rather than shimming something.
Honest Notes on the Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo
Weight is the first thing to know. The magnifier alone is 9.8 ounces and the sight is 3.38 ounces, so the pair adds over thirteen ounces to the rifle before mounts. That is a real amount of weight out on a handguard and it changes how a carbine balances. For a range or duty gun it is fine; for a lightweight hunting rifle it is not.
The second thing is that Holosun has discontinued the plain ARO line in favour of the ARO EVO. The HM3X remains current. We would rather tell you that than have you find out afterwards. It does not make the Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo a worse buy today, but spares and accessories will be designed around the EVO housing from here on.
The third is rail space. A dot and a flip to side magnifier together need a good length of top rail, and on a shorter upper you may find the magnifier crowding your rear backup sight. Measure before you order if your rail is anything less than a full length flat top.
Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo Specifications
| Model | ARO-RD2 with HM3X |
|---|---|
| UPC | 810047073925 |
| Sight Reticle | 2 MOA dot only |
| Sight Reticle Colour | Red, 650 nm |
| Sight Window | 0.86 in |
| Sight Adjustment | 0.5 MOA per click, 50 MOA travel |
| Sight Battery | CR2032, 50,000 hours |
| Sight Brightness | 10 daylight, 2 night vision |
| Sight Weight | 3.38 oz |
| Sight Dimensions | 2.48 x 1.54 x 2.63 in |
| Magnifier | HM3X, fixed 3x |
| Eye Relief | 70 mm, 2.75 in |
| Field of View | 7 degrees |
| Exit Pupil | 7.6 mm |
| Dioptre Adjustment | Plus or minus 3D |
| Transmittance | 0.75 |
| Magnifier Weight | 9.8 oz |
| Magnifier Dimensions | 4 x 1.7 x 2.5 in |
| Magnifier Mount | Picatinny flip to side QD, ambidextrous |
| Co Witness | Absolute, lower third with included spacer |
| Housings | Aluminium, MAO finish, nitrogen purged magnifier |
| Water Resistance | IP67 both units |
| Shock Rating | 1000G both units |
| Packaging | Hard case |
Buying from Mag5 Firearms
Mag5 Firearms is a family owned FFL dealer in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Optics ship straight to your door with no transfer. Holosun archive page for the ARO is published at holosun.com.
If you want the current generation sight with the same magnifier, the ARO EVO models sit alongside this set in our optics selection. Call us and we will tell you whether the Holosun ARO Red HM3X Combo or a separate pairing makes more sense for your rifle.
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