TFB Review: Aimpoint ACRO C-2

Aimpoint is synonymous with red dot sights. Through the years, their optics have gotten progressively smaller and smaller. From sights like the Aimpoint 3000 to the CompM2 to the T-2, the trend has always been smaller. That pattern continued with the Acro, Aimpoint’s first pistol dot. That enclosed pistol dot has been reinvented into a purpose-built long gun optic with the Acro C-2.

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Disclosures: Aimpoint provided this optic. I do not have any prior relationship with the company, other than wandering through their booth at SHOT Show a few times.

Features

The Acro C-2 is a compact enclosed-emitter red dot. While the Acro was originally introduced to be a slide-mounted pistol dot, the C-2 version is meant for long guns. It has a smaller 2.5 MOA dot which plays nicer with magnifiers than the larger dots usually found in pistol dots.

Aimpoint offers the Acro C-2 with three mounting options, a Reptilia lower 1/3 mount, Scalarworks 1.7″ mount, and B&T 39mm mount. All three retail for $599. I always like it when manufacturers offer mount options from the jump instead of sticking buyers with a mount they don’t want, or no mount, and a possible scavenger hunt to track one down before you can even use the optic.

Aimpoint lists a 50,000-hour battery life for the C-2, and though the C-2 has not been on the market for 50,000 hours yet, I would trust Aimpoint on it. They have a solid track record with this kind of runtime in their red dot sights and the C-2 will almost certainly be no different. The battery is the standard 2032 cell that powers most similar optics. It sits inside a small round cover on the left side of the optic.

Windage and elevation adjustments are on the right side and top of the optic, respectively. Rather than using exposed knobs or turrets that would add bulk and snag points, the Acro C-2 uses a T-10 Torx-headed screw to control the adjustments. Aimpoint includes one in the box, which is helpfully labeled to show which direction makes which adjustment. I have a habit of forgetting to bring specific tools like that to the range and just using the set of Harbor Freight Torx wrenches that lives in my range bag. Thankfully, Aimpoint also labels the body of the optic with the adjustment directions so you are not bound to use the dedicated tool (or trial and error) to zero the C-2.

One feature I really like on the Acro C-2 is the lens covers. The front cover is opaque and opens up to 90 degrees. In that position, it is both out of the shooter’s field of view but also acts like a little baseball cap for the front lens. It sits where it can help keep rain, snow, and some glare off of the front lens. It can also lay flat on top of the optic if you prefer to keep a smaller profile.

The rear lens cover is clear and opens up a full 270 degrees so it lays flat on top of the optic. Once again, it is fully out of the field of view when opened up. By stowing forward of the rear lens, the cover will not hit the shooter in the face on a harsh recoiling gun, nor will it interfere with night vision goggles.

Alternative Mounts

The ACRO footprint has become one of the de facto standard optic footprints. Combined with a very small overall size, this opens up some interesting new mounting ideas. Many manufacturers offer mounts for putting the ACRO (or other red dots with the same mounting setup) onto guns in standard, or not-so-standard, ways.

One of those less-standard options is the Partizan Solutions ACOG ACRO adapter. Partizan Solutions is a small company run by a friend of mine, and I’ve been using these mounts with my ACOG since they hit the market. They also make a version for DPP footprints, if that is your jam.

The Partizan mount places the sight on top of the eyepiece. Depending on which ACRO footprint sight is mounted, it can be a little high, but I still have enough of my face on the gun to continue running it fast. I used the C-2 on the Partizan mount for a fair portion of my 1,000-round review of the PSA Sabre-15, and the sight ran like a champ in this configuration.

Another interesting option is a carry handle adapter from KE Arms. Russ was kind enough to hook me up with one of those, which was great news because any time I can get a carry handle involved In a review, I will! This mount bolts through the mounting hole in the carry handle. There is a hole lengthwise through the mount so that the iron sights are still usable. Some other carry handle mounts have that feature too, but they usually constrict the field of view significantly. The KE Arms mount does substantially better, and offers a great view of the iron sights.

On The Range

The Acro C-2 manages to be small, but not feel cramped to look through. Aimpoint describes the viewing window as 0.63 inches by 0.63 inches, or 16mm by 16mm. It feels larger when looking through it than those dimensions suggest though, at least in part because the window is not the standard circular tube we are all used to. The body of the C-2 does not block much view either, thanks to the thin edges.

As with most red dot sights, the most notable things about the Acro is how easy it is not to notice it while shooting. A perfect little red dot comes into view, moves to the target, and then rounds impact the target. Red dots are at their best when they do their job quiety and the Acro excels at this. It can be left on so it is ready to go when you need it, and it stays zeroed. While running drills with the ACOG mount I found myself using it for shots at longer ranges than anticipated. The dot is very crisp and defined at the edges and that helps with precision at distance. On the carry handle mount it felt a lot like one of the trendy extra-tall mounts, while still having access to excellent iron sights.

Aimpoint is known for durability, and the C-2 is no exception. Marketing materials state that the Acro C-2 survived 20,000 rounds of .40 S&W in testing, and that is quite a bit more ammo than I have the budget for. But I did use the Acro for many hundreds of rounds of 5.56 in both semi and full automatic. Many of those rounds were fired in the very short barrel of a PSA Krink, which produces a robust muzzle blast. The original Acro P-2 has also been on the market for a number of years, and thousands of them live on the slides of pistols where they are subjected to much harsher recoil cycles than rifles dish out. If there were any systematic issues with the Acro, we would have heard about it by now.

Back to this specific C-2 model. It endured the usual slate of bouncing around in the truck while mounted to an uncased rifle and the usual assortment of bangs and bumps that come along with hauling gear to and from the range. This Acro also experienced an impromptu drop test. As I switched the Acro C-2 from one mount to another, I bumped it off the table in the range stall. The sight fell from waist height onto a concrete floor, and it was totally unfazed. Aimpoint builds durable optics, and that reputation for combat durability means that more mundane mishaps like this one are no problem. And across all of the shooting and handling, I never had to adjust the zero unless I switched it between guns or I switched ammo types.

Conclusion

The Aimpoint Acro C-2 is a solid little red dot sight. It’s big enough to be the primary optic on a long gun, but small enough to run on top of a magnified scope. It is not the most affordable option on the market, but that price tag includes a major dose of dependability. Rather than boasting multiple reticles, the Acro has one dot and it’s perfect. This is a low-drama optic. If space and weight are important considerations, and if durability and reliability are more important than cost-cutting, the Acro C-2 is a tough act to beat.