Holosun 509T Initial Impressions

Springfield Ronin gets a Dot Sight!

The Springfield Armory Ronin is available with the slide already cut for an optics mount! The sights are taller than normal and can be seen through some dot type sights. SA offers a number of different optic-mounting plates which accommodate most of the optics available.

I used my Wheeler Engineering Fat Wrench to properly torque the new mounting plate screws and to mount the Holosun 509T. It’s 15 inch-pounds for the mount and 20 inch pounds for the sight itself. This simple task only takes a few minutes. Holosun includes a great little tool that fits the mounting screws as well as the elevation and windage adjustments.

The 509T has a long-lasting CR1632 battery and also a tiny solar panel atop the titanium sight housing. It offers up to 50,000 hours of battery life and features “shake awake” technology. This sight weighs only 2.3 ounces and didn’t affect the handling of the 1911.

Holosun’s 509T has an “enclosed” emitter which protects the laser from weather and dirt. This is a great feature for a hard-use firearm. I chose the green reticle, which can be changed from a two MOA dot to a 32 MOA circle or even the dot inside the circle. It also has eight different daylight reticle settings and four that are night vision capable. It offered everything I wanted in a dot sight.

One consideration is that the holster needs to accommodate the sight. Though I have several 1911 holsters, the only one cut for a sight is my Blackhawk Serpa - no not the one with the infamous button, just a simple and sturdy weatherproof holster that clutches the 1911 firmly. I hadn’t used this holster in several years and it was nice to find something comfortable and reliable already on hand in my holster collection.

Sighting in was a simple process. At the range I went through only the second box of ammo from this pistol, CCI Blazer 230 grain FMJ ammo was used, starting at 7 yards.

The low hits were my first shots. Using the included Holosun tool, I was easily able to dial in the elevation and windage.

After I got that dialed in at 7 yards, I tried five shots at 25 yards.

I’ve shot better, but this showed me that my 7 yard sight in worked just fine for 25 yards and by then I was out of ammo.

What’s next for the Ronin now that it’s topped with the green-dot Holosun? From the beginning I saw this as my new general-purpose 45 1911 for both carry and hunting.

The 1,016 fps 230 grain handload I featured a few months ago seems to be a good starting point as a hunting load and isn’t very different from my carry load, the Hornady Critical Duty 220 grain at 975 fps.

A More Powerful 45 ACP - by Guy Miner - Guy’s Substack

We also did a video and article on that load at Ultimate Reloader:

1,000 FPS 45 ACP: 230gr Berry's Self Defense Loads (HOT!)

I believe that this 1911 equipped with the Holosun and fed the appropriate factory or handloads will give me a great option for handgun hunting and also for defense against two and four legged varmints.

I’m a law enforcement and NRA handgun and rifle instructor, a USMC veteran and a retired police officer with 12 years of SWAT experience. Catch my firearms and ammunition videos on Ultimate Reloader on Rumble and YouTube. Photos in this article are a combination of mine and those taken by Ultimate Reloader.

Shoot well, Guy Miner