Review: Holosun 507 Comp Dot Sight

P. E. Fitch

posted on August 28, 2023

News, Optics, Review

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Courting the attention of competitive and performance shooters, Holosun recently launched its new “big window” HS507COMP slide mounted red dot sight. The new sight’s bigger “window” provides a much clearer sight picture and makes target-focusing easier, which is part and parcel of high-performance shooting at speed. A few optics companies already offer “big window” dot sights, but Holosun’s new model is getting much attention not only for its price, but also for the amount of reticle choices it offers.

Holosun 507 Comp Overview

The HS507COMP is a multi-reticle open emitter red dot sight with an objective lens measuring 1.1x0.87-inches. The Comp’s external housing is manufactured from 7075 aluminum and uses the popular Trijicon RMR/SRO footprint. Its emitter puts out six different daytime settings and two night-vision compatible settings, all powered by a CR1632 battery (for up to 50,000 hours on setting six). Two rubberized control buttons are found on the left side of the sight’s outer housing in the exact same manner as other Holosun red dot sights. Also consistent with the rest of the Holosun family, the HS507COMP’s windage and elevation dials are slotted and their values are 1 MOA per click. The battery tray is easily accessible and side-loading, and Holosun’s Shake-Awake technology is also programmed into the HS507COMP. Even with its larger window, the HS507COMP it isn’t much bigger than standard sized Holosun 407/507 optics.

sight window

The Holosun CRS: A Reticle for Everyone

One of the most attention-grabbing aspects about the Holosun 507 Comp is the CRS system. The CRS or “competition reticle system” is the 507 Comp’s array of available reticles. The emitter projects a 2 MOA dot, an 8 MOA ring, a 20 MOA ring and a 32 MOA ring. The sight’s programming allows shooters to combine the smallest 2 MOA dot with any of the three larger rings, or simply shoot with the “empty” rings. In addition to this, shooters can opt for the classic plain 2 MOA dot, or a “multi-multi” reticle consisting of the 32 MOA ring, with the smaller 8 MOA ring inside and the 2 MOA dot in the middle. In total, the HS507COMP provides shooters with 8 different reticles. A quirk this sight has is the “opening” seen on the 8, 20 and 32 MOA rings. When projected onto the lens, the very bottom of the “rings'' have an open gap. In the case of the relatively small 8 MOA ring, the opening makes it look like a horseshoe instead of an actual ring. From a practical standpoint, these gaps did not affect my shooting ability, nor did they distract me. Whether a red dot sight needs so many reticle options seems like another debate topic following the HS507COMPs release. Personally, I think the more choices, the merrier.

“Big Time” Window

Everyone likes to bring up the Trijicon SRO when discussing the HS507COMP because the SRO is arguably the most popular slide mounted red dot sight in the “big window” category. The question is always something like “is the window on the Holosun bigger?” Technically speaking, the surface area on the HS507COMP is bigger, but in reality, they’re extremely close, and window size shouldn’t be the main reason to choose one vs the other.

Because dot-driven shooting relies primarily on hard target focus, shooters need to be able to look through their dot/sights/pistol directly at the target, and the big window of the HS507COMP definitely helps accomplish this task. Compared to other dot sights, shooters get a nice and ample sight picture that does not feel cramped. I’ve noticed both with the HS507COMP (and the SRO for that matter) that the bigger window makes target presentation easier. There’s no need to intentionally dip the gun or use extra pinky pressure to lower the muzzle. Another performance benefit I noticed is that the extra window size makes it easier to track the reticle as it moves up during recoil.

The HS507COMP + Walther PDP Full Size

sight on gun I mounted the HS507COMP sight directly to a full-size 5-inch Walther PDP 9mm striker-fired pistol. I chose the PDP as a test-gun specifically because it was designed around slide mounted dot sights and because it has a wonderful trigger right out of the box. Currently, my PDP and mounted HS507COMP have seen about 800 rounds of 9mm ammunition, factory and handloads alike. I mounted the sight on the standard Walther factory plate using the Holosun’s own screws. My maiden voyage with this dot and gun combo was Riley Bowman’s Pistol Intelligence 2-day class last June, which accounted for 500-600 rounds downrange. During class, I had no loose screws or any other issues. Besides Mr. Bowman’s class, I’ve taken the HS507COMP and Walther PDP combo to its natural habitat: a local USPSA match. It has also accompanied me to an indoor range trip or two. Lastly, the PDP with the HS507COMP has become my go-to for dry-fire practice lately.

Shooting-wise, I’ve been enjoying the 20-MOA ring with the 2-MOA-dot reticle. This combo provides a precise aiming point with a circle that is neither too big or too small, and this lends itself well to action pistol shooting matches. The 20-MOA ring’s size seems to enclose many popular targets almost perfectly, such as NRA B-8 silhouettes, IPSC head zones or even the A/C zone of IPSC targets at further distances.

In direct overhead sunlight, the HS507COMP is prone to the same phenomenon of a second “phantom” dot that also affects the Trijicon SRO. Far from a fatal flaw, it’s just something to be mindful of due to the laws of physics and how they affect light rays and glass coatings. Because the objective window is so large, I thought the 2 MOA dot on its own was too small and easy to lose during shooting. While I haven’t yet passed the 1000 round mark, I have not had any critical issues or failures to report with the HS507COMP mounted on my Walther PDP.

The Takeaway

The HS507COMP is a big window red dot sight that is reasonably affordable considering its features. It uses one of the most popular footprint mounting patterns and isn’t as bulky or protrude as much as some of its other XL-sized rivals. It’s no accident that Holosun has become one of the most popular optics companies in recent times. When it comes to slide mounted pistol dots, the company offers consumers a wide selection of reasonably priced products with good feature sets. What Holosun is doing with the HS507COMP and getting the attention of the competition world is par for the course. This big window red dot sight is still new, so there isn’t any data on long term performance in the real world yet. But with its starting retail price of $435 and the year-long interest after SHOT, the HS507COMP has generated, I predict Holosun as a winner on its hands.

Holosun HS507COMP Specifications: