MAPLON 1x30 True Fiber Optic Green Dot Sight Sighting

A couple things about this green dot sight... first off if you look closely at the pictures, they are actually showing a couple of slightly different models. And the one i recieved is different still! Not too surprising when you consider it is a no brand (literally) chinese made product. A couple things i noticed different than in the pictures is that it uses a rotary switch on the left side rather than a push button on the battery compartment. Also the fiber optic on mine is pinned in place like a real ACOG whereas the ones in the pictures (and based on reviews ive read and seen) are glued in place or something. The glass also has a rose tint to it. I would much prefer clear, but i suppose it is meant to help the green dot stand out? I dont know.Anyway, being a cheap chinese ACOG knockoff Im not really sure what i was expecting and I have been trying to find a reason not to like it, but the fact is it actually works surprisingly well for a sub $100 optic. First off it is constructed very well. It just feels very solid the moment you pick it up. The turret caps and battery compartment have o-ring seals to keep things waterproof. The sight is removable from the base for mounting to a carry handle. The screws that hold the base to the sight did come loose after the first outing, but a little bit of loctite took care of that. As for the dot itself, wow. Im really impressed. Even indoors the fiber optic shows up pretty well without having to use the batteries (my brother has a hard time seeing it, but his eyes arent so good). Outdoors is even better. Super bright on a clear sunny day and still very visible with some clouds. Ive only had a chance to take it out 2 or 3 times since i got it over a year ago, but it seems to hold zero pretty well mounted on my .556 AR. I cant really speak for the particular models shown in the pictures and the reviews also seem to vary depending which one you get, but so far i have been pleased with mine. Probably the only bad thing I can really say is that the batteries are crap and hard to find. Rather than the typical CR pancake batteries normally used in red dots, it uses these tiny button cell batteries that will only last 2-3 hours max. And they are much harder to find. Thankfully the fiber optic works so well, you hardly need to use the backup batteries, but you will want to keep plenty on hand anyway. If you are looking for an end all be all SHTF optic, this may not be for you. But for plinking, taking to the range, having fun, its a very suitable optic and looks awesome to boot!

I have done a full video review of this optic on youtube. Look under the screen name FuYingBro and the title "1x30 True Fiber Optic Green dot sight sighting system" Or search for FAKE ACOG on my title page.In short.Does it hold a zero.223 on an AR-15... YES7.62x39mm (AK47 round) on an SKS...YESSeems like a tough little system made out of some sort of metal that I am not sure of what. Maybe aluminum. Tough light metal. The back up light is very weak. It is not the batteries that it comes with. It is the light system. I replaced the batteries in mine with high power expensive ones and didn't make it any better. When in the sun it works fine. When in a dime lite room it works fine. BUT if you have a saturation of light on your target and you are in the dime lite area is the issue. Say at a range and you are in the shade and you are aiming down range on a very sunny day. You will NOT see your dot on anything shinny or white. And hard to see on just lighter colors. Against grass, dirt, trees, you can see it ok. Again once you are in the light itself the dot is clear as day. The back up light is about worthless unless you are in a NO LIGHT situation. It is very very dim but in very low light or no light it works great. The 10moa reticle covers a 18" target at 100yards. So no precisions shots here but you can hit a man size target at that range. This sight is best at under 100yrds.ONE thing would make this a very nice CQB optic. That is if they made the back up light source a lot stronger. I would have to say 8 times stronger than what it is to get it to where you could cross bright lights and still be able to see dot. Watch my video for a good explanation of what I mean in this review and to watch it actually being fired on an AR-15 and a SKS

You know... there's very few things you find for a price that's 900% less than the flagship manufacturers and ends up being nearly just as durable and impressiveThere's a lot of el cheapo ACOG knockoffs, airsoft knockoffs, etc. Basically really cheap fakesThis isn't one of them. Nor is it a fake... it's more of it's own standalone product. It's fiber optic system that is similar to the fiber optic layout of the ACOG and design/durability... but it touches base on something Trijicon is just *now* getting into... and that's ditching that silly tritium lit reticule. Not that tritium is bad... its just not that great. Tritium is very expensive... other than the magnification lenses of a Trijicon.... most of your $$$ is going into that rather expensive slightly radioactive material that keeps the reticule lit under low light conditions. That's how fiber works... it brightens all by itself in daylight, but in low lighting or no lighting... without tritium or battery backup LED to keep light supplied, it's useless.The problems with tritium is (a) it's expensive, and (b) it has a half-life. Anyone who ever bought a SVD Dragunov or PSL knows you didn't want the surplus or ancient tritium PSO-1 scopes they were usually sold with... their half-life was pretty much up, and the lighting was so dim if it was even working at all. Everyone wanted the double-AA battery powered one. Hence, they cost more.While you do have to swap the battery every once in a great while, it provides superior lighting at all times in lowlight (even brighter than that of tritium) and is cheaply replaceable, with a still decent lifetime before battery replacement.It appears the group that manufactures this nifty little device beat Trijicon to the punch. Not only is it a true fiber optic system (unlike most knockoff brands who just toss a projection/reflective reticule in them that's entirely battery powered), but it uses a LED to power the fiber in lowlight instead of tritium, and it houses a tiny little unscrewable batter compartment under the eyepiece with a push button. Not only does the battery seem to get awesome life expectancy... it's also only powering a LED, which requires minimal battery power while providing perfect lightning for low light or no light enviornments.Trijicon themselves have recently displayed a demo model of their ACOGS using a far larger AA-battery powered device in an attempt to move away from tritium. So this is a huge advantage.While you get no magnification (you can always by a rail magnification system) on this 1x scope, the Japanese lens is beautiful. I've read some say that it's some division that makes lenses for carl zeiss optics, but can't confirm that. They reflect the reticule beautifully, and are tinted\treated for glare and mirroring reduction. They seem firm and well integrated.Not to mention the build! the aluminum casing seems top notch, feels tight, sturdy, and sealed. Feels the wait, retains the famous ACOG style, and the windage/elevation/adjustment knobs are perfect and seamless, with protective caps. Even the paint job doesn't appear to be of any weak quality. The rail system is sturdy and easily attaches to your standard picatinny mounts.It claims it's waterproof... and I wouldn't doubt it. It feels just as secure and sealed as the real deal.After 300 rounds on my Bushmaster ACR enhanced.... it held perfect zero. I've seen videos online of guys using these on .50cal barretts just to test their hold and durability, and they held up flawlessly.While you might not get the magnification found in the higher priced Trijicon ACOG, your also paying for those lenses. Because from what I can tell holding and looking over each in my hand.. it's spot on as far as build and quality go.If you don't need 2x or 4x magnification, or can settle for a rail mounted magnification system that sits ahead of this ACOG (and the space to accommodate), then definitely pick up this littler beauty. One of those diamond in the ruff's you don't want to pass on.