By: Greg Chabot
Photos Sasha Steadman
Swampfox Optics has built a reputation by offering tough but affordable optics for the shooting community. It is named after Francis Marion who was known as the “Swamp Fox” by the British during the American Revolution. I own/owned some of their products over the years and they are a great bang for one’s buck. A few years back they released a closed emitter optic called the Kraken. I purchased one and have been using it regularly for two years.
The Kraken is available with a 3MOA red or green dot. I went with the green dot as it works better for my eyes. The lens’s diameter is 16mm with 1x magnification. It is powered by one CR2032 battery with ten illumination settings, including two for night vision. It has a shake awake function and a battery life of two years in that mode. 7075 aircraft-grade aluminum is used for the chassis. Optic controls are on the left side and simple to use.
The Kraken dimensions are as follows:
Length: 1.85”
Width: 1.38”
Height: 1.27”
Weight: 2.5oz without battery
The lens is multicoated with ruby red for the red dot, and silver for green dots which provides anti-fog and scratch protection. The Kraken is parallax-free at 33 yards with unlimited eye relief. Windage and elevation adjustment range is 45 MOA for a total of 90 MOA. The Kraken is waterproof rated up to 1 meter/IPX7.
The optic is mounted by using plates that mount to the slide or Picatinny adapter. The Kraken comes with an RMR pattern or Glock MOS plate. I also purchased a rail adapter to use multiple weapon systems and test its 1500Gs shock rating.
Testing
I started out by submerging the Kraken in a bucket of water and leaving it for a few days. It passed with no water getting in. I then put the optic in a bowl of water and froze it, the optic shook awake and there was no damage to it from the ice or cold. My next test was putting it on a rifle and zeroing it. I then banged it off trees and doors to see if it would lose zero. The Kraken held its zero after it was reinstalled on the rifle. Accuracy was good with the Kraken, and I had no issues making consistent hits at 100 yards and beyond if I did my part. The dot was just a tad blurry while using with a PVS-14. That could be my older eyes, and I admit to being a slacker when it comes to training with night vision. Even with a slight blur, I was hitting the target consistently.
I’ve had this optic on multiple weapon systems, and it currently resides on a Benelli M4 that I shoot on a regular basis. The optic has held its zero on various weapons and I have full confidence in it for a dangerous situation on any weapon. You are probably wondering: did you use it on a handgun? The answer is no, the only optic-ready slides I have are for the SIG P320. When I had purchased the Kraken, Swampfox stated they were working on bringing more plates to the market for different footprints. As of this writing, I have not seen any offered.
The current plates are geared towards Glock MOS or aftermarket Glock slides. I am hoping Swampfox will get more plates out as not everyone likes or shoots Glocks. That is my only complaint about this product, which is the lack of versatility for different makes. If anyone from Swampfox is reading this, let’s get plates out for the P320 and the VP9. Besides that, it is a tough optic that hasn’t let me down and it has taken all the abuse I’ve dished out. I would have no issues taking the Kraken downrange or recommending it to friends or family.