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Bushnell Trophy TRS-25 Red Dot Sight Review: So simple, yet so effective
A delightfully simple red dot sight. Easy to sight in, stays true, and offers 11 different levels of red dot brightness for all lighting situations.
Bushnell Trophy TRS-25 Red Dot Sight
4.7
The bottom line The TRS-25 red dot from Bushnell will increase target acquisition and increase accuracy. Once sighted in, the red dot stays true. Choose from 10 different red dot brightness levels. See full review Buy if You want a reliable and compact red dot sight with miminal parallax
Quick facts
- Mounts on Picatinny rail
- Waterproof
- Fogproof
- Shockproof
- 11 brightness levels
Pros and cons
Pros
- Easy to install and adjust
- With 11 brightness levels, you’ll be able to shoot regardless of the lighting conditions, accurately
- It stays true, even after thousands of shots
- Waterproof, fog proof, and shockproof for the toughest conditions
- Little to no parallax (a condition where the red dot appears to float and move depending on the alignment of your eye)
Cons
- Some users have reported the sight failing with heavier rounds, like 7.62
- Roughly 5% of customers seem to have problems out of the box. We recommend buying it on Amazon. This way, you can easily return the sight if it has problems within 1 year of purchase.
Bushnell Trophy TRS-25 red dot sight specifications
| Mounting | Picatinny rail |
| Color | Red |
| Brightness | 11 levels |
| Weight | 4.0 ounces |
| Length | 2.4″ |
| Power | 1 x 25mm |
Our full review
How I acquired the sight
I’m a bit of an entry-level firearm fanatic. I love guns, but I don’t want to shell out a ton of money on them. So I try and purchase the best firearms for the cost, and the same goes for attachments.
I had wanted a .22lr rifle for a while mainly because they are fun and cheap to shoot! Having a good time plinking won’t cost you an arm and a leg. So when I came across a special buy on the Savage A22 with Bushnell TRS-25 combo for a little over $200, I had to pick it up.
I recently took it to the range for the first time, and I must say, I had a blast! Not just because of the rifle, which never misfired during roughly 300 rounds, but mainly because of the TRS-25 red dot sight!
Using the TRS-25 for the first time
When I fired my first shot on this newly acquired Savage A22 with TRS-25 sight, it was close, but it wasn’t spot on. I unscrewed the caps, only to see two dials that require a flat screwdriver to adjust. Unprepared as I was, I tried using a .22lr casing to adjust them, and it worked! I turned the horizontal adjustment by one full turn and the vertical adjustment by half a turn. Close, but a bit too much. So I turned the horizontal back half a turn. I shot the target at 30 feet, bulls-eye! I moved the target back to around 50 feet, bulls-eye!
Since the Savage A22 rifle came with an aftermarket 25 round clip, it was nearly impossible to have a little fun and empty the clip in quick succession. So my final test was to see how many rounds I could land on a target’s human-sized head area. The target was about 100 feet away, as far as the range allowed.
I must say, I was impressed. I’m no marksman by any means. I visit the range maybe once every 1-2 months and usually fire different guns, mainly pistols. To land 20 out of 25 rounds in the face of this target, at 100 feet, firing all 25 rounds in less than about 12 seconds is quite impressive to me!
Brightness levels
The 11 brightness levels this sight comes with are nice. The firing range I went to was indoors, with pretty great lighting. So a lower brightness level was perfect. It allowed me to see the target without being too bright or too dull. On a bright sunny day, a higher brightness would definitely be more useful.
To adjust the brightness, you rotate the top dial to the desired level. Each brightness level had a numeric value assigned. In my opinion, 11 is a bit overkill. They could have easily narrowed it down to 5 levels, but having ample choices is a pretty good problem to have.
Conclusion
The Bushnell TRS-25 is no doubt a wonderful value for the money. It’s simple yet offers all the options and ruggedness you could want out of a red dot sight. The fact that it’s waterproof, fog-proof, and shockproof is added peace of mind. I don’t have to worry about humid conditions when I want to take something out with my gun. And I don’t have to worry about bumping into something when sharing the range lane with my wife!
Is the Bushnell TRS-25 red dot Parallax free?
Yes, it is considered a Parallax-free sight because it tremendously reduces it. In all honesty, though, no sight is truly Parallax free.
If you’re not sure what Parallax is, perhaps you unknowingly noticed it before. You mount a sight, take a look, and the dot seems to float in the air. You can tilt your head a bit, and the dot moves. You’re not quite sure when the dot is on-point or if you are aiming foot to the right. That’s Parallax.
The truth is that a scope that has no sign of Parallax virtually doesn’t exist. But, good quality scopes will dramatically reduce Parallax, and the Bushnell TRS-25 is one of them!
So if you have tried a few sights and always suffered from the floating dot, it’s time to try a Bushnell TRS-25!
Do you need a riser for a Bushnell TRS-25?
A riser is not required to mount the Bushnell TRS-25 on a firearm. But, it really comes down to personal preference and the rifle itself.
On an AR-15, a riser could lift the sight to the right height so you can still utilize the iron sights on the rifle. This is called co-witness, and it is beneficial for two reasons:
- If the red dot is aligned with the iron sights, it can dramatically increase your accuracy and target acquisition.
- It allows you to fall back on iron sights if the red dot sight fails. Perhaps the batteries died, or it has a mechanical issue. Seeing the iron sight clearly through your scope will allow you to make accurate shots, rather than having to guess.
If you are looking for a riser, this Picatinny or Weaver riser is a great buy.
Does Bushnell TRS-25 magnify?
No, it does not magnify in the sense of bringing the target closer to you. The Bushnell TRS-25 has a magnification of 1x25mm. The first number, in this case, 1, is the magnification ratio. Since it’s 1, there is no magnification at all. The last number, in this case, 25mm, is the diameter of the sight.
How does the Bushnell TRS-25 perform on an AR-15?
It performs as it should. Since I acquired the TRS-25, I have tested it on both a .22 caliber rifle and my .223 caliber AR-15. Not only is it effortless to sight in, remove the caps, and dial in the knobs (that make a nice click sound for precise adjusting), it also stays true.
The last time I sighted this TRS-25 red dot was about 400 rounds ago (a mix of .22 long rifle and .223). I have yet to notice a decline in accuracy.
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