We first got eyes-on a concept of the Sig Romeo2 a couple years back and have been anticipating the release ever since. Originally slated for a 2020 release, hammering out the final details and a global pandemic pushed the official release until sometime in 2021. What we have in our hands is marked as an engineering sample, but SIG assures us it’s a good representation of what will be on the shelf.
With the Romeo2, SIG set out to make a true hybrid of a traditional open-emitter sight and a compact sealed reflex sight. Though sealed reflex sights are physically larger, they offer a number of advantages over an open-emitter reflex sight. First and most importantly, the emitter is sealed away from environmental fouling; stray lint or pocket sand can’t block an emitter unless you manage to pile up enough to block the entire window. They’re also easier to clean and can generally be made more durable. But the Sig Romeo2 goes both ways.
Straight from the box you get what appears to be a traditional open-emitter sight that we’ve come to expect from an MRDS. Digging further in you find a shield for the open configuration, a larger shield for sealed configuration, and a polycarbonate lens with an o-rig to make that seal actually happen.
The shields cleverly cantilever from the front and are held in place by two very small fasteners that we’re sure we’ll lose if we blink too slow. Definitely going to recommend the use of appropriate thread locker (such as Loctite 222) for this one.
Also included is a clever multi-tool wrench with a flathead for windage/elevation adjustment, a small torx for the shield screws, and a T-10 bit in a 28in-lb torque limiter. SIG also took the extra step of lasering the proper torque settings on the optic body itself—bravo!
There’s an integral rear sight on the Romeo2 that corresponds to a suppressor-height front sight. There are horizontal lines to cut glare, and two perfect divots carved out if you wish to put a drop of paint in them. Brightness selection is performed via two push buttons on the left side. Access to the battery door does not require any special tools nor removal of the optic; a simple push on the recessed button pops open the battery tray.
In what’s bound to be an upset to current small, sealed reflex sights, the SIG Romeo2 does not require any special footprint. The Romeo2 will fit all SIG Pro footprints, which translates to an awful lot of Leupold Delta Point Pro mounts too. The Picatinny mount we used for this build was for a DPP, as SIG didn’t yet have mounts in stock, and it worked just fine. Some mounts may have to be modified slightly.
It can be set to an auto-off if you so desire, and there’s even a magnetic-off option (with big-name duty holsters on the way).
These power-saving measures are just bonuses though, as the battery life is 25,000 hours on the medium setting (out of 12). It’s a touch lower than we’d use, and we’ll watch what happens real-world. But seeing as how the batteries are both plentiful and easy to swap, it’ll probably be just fine.
There will be plenty that will run the Sig Romeo2 in a traditional style (that felt weird saying about MRDS’) with a pistol and sealed on a subgun. Or the reverse—you can do what you want, and that’s the entire point. If the battery life is as advertised and we don’t lose any screws, we daresay this may be the best red dot for those who can’t make up their minds or swings both ways.
Stay tuned to sigsauer.com
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I got my hands on a ROMEO2, now I can't find a mounting plate to put it on my AR type rifle. It's been said that the foot print is same as Leupold DPP, but there are two lugs caddy corner to each other, and it won't fit on the Leupold Cross Slot AR mount unless I grind one of the lugs off. Which mounting plate did you guys use to mount this ? I don't even see an available mounting plate on the SIG website for the ROMEO2.