A Tale of Two Optics

29 Jan A Tale of Two Optics

I’ve recently become very interested in pistol optics. They seem to be steadily getting better and better, and I believe at some point in the future they will become the standard sight option on pistols. I’ve had the opportunity to shoot two different red dots mounted on different pistols, and I thought I would offer a bit of a comparison between the two.

Pistol Optic #1 | Sig Romeo1

The first optic I used is a Sig Romeo1 for a P229 DA/SA. This came directly from the Sig Sauer Pro Shop mounted directly on a new slide. When I received it, I just removed the stock slide from the pistol and mounted the new slide with the optic. I then went to the range to zero the optic. That process was surprisingly easy. Using a bench bag, spotting scope, and a buddy helped immensely. Since then I’ve only had one issue with the optic, and that was a dead battery. To be fair, it was the battery that was included with the optic. However, since I’ve only been using the optic for a few months, it is slightly concerning. The dot is a little bit large in the window, but I found it to be very easy to pick up and acquire the red dot during draws and under quick strings of fire. I’ve been fairly abusive towards the optic, using it as a slide release during one-handed manipulations and malfunction clearings, and so far have no issues to report. It’s held up very well.

Pistol Optic #2 | Swampfox Kingslayer Optic

The next optic I tried is a Swampfox Kingslayer optic. I received the red circle-dot version that has a ring around the center dot. I had it mounted to a Sig P320 subcompact. Zeroing took a little time, and I have noticed that I need to hold the dot a bit high to get the right point-of-impact. No battery issues so far, and the sight hasn’t shifted or lost it’s zero. I’ve also abused it under similar circumstances to the Romeo, and again haven’t had any issues with the optic. I’m enjoying the circle-dot as I find it a bit quicker to line up a circle over my target area when I’m trying to be fast. But I can still be precise using the center dot.

Deciding the Best Pistol Optic for you and your Handgun

Right now, if I had to choose between the two optics, I would give a slight edge to the Kingslayer. I’ve noticed that the optic window in the Romeo1 is slightly larger than the Kingslayer, which is nice. However, I like the circle-dot more than the single dot. But the larger dot is easier on the Romeo1… Either optic would be perfectly fine on any firearm. I can’t really quantify why there is a slight edge to the Kingslayer, it’s just more of a feeling after shooting both for a while. Plus the name is cool!

Tactical Dynamics: Providing Expert Insight on Handgun Accessories & Tactical Training

If you have any questions or concerns about red dots, please reach out to us or come and attend a training course. We would be more than happy to let you run our red dots for some drills and see what you think. Our lead instructors are graduates of the Sig Sauer Red Dot Instructor courses and have a wealth of knowledge to pass along. Try out an optic, and see if it is for you.