Words and Pics: Ben Webb

Sightmark’s Wolverine FSR is a 1x28mm, red dot optic. That means it has zero magnification and a lens size of 28mm, or about an inch.

It utilises an integrated picatinny rail clamp with a removable riser block between the sight body and the rail mount. The riser block features a peep-thru hole that allows for back-up sighting, provided your iron sights are very low profile (no more than 5-6mm above the rail platform).

The clamp uses a single hexagonal nut with additional slotting to tighten and loosen.

The body of the sight features a rubberised cover for durability, giving the sight a rather smoothed, almost organic look. This cover includes windage and elevation turret protection guards, to help prevent knocks in use and also prevent snags on webbing.

The cover works pretty well in these applications and gives the sight a tactile and durable finish that is both grippy and impossible to mar by scraping or bashing or indeed dropping, as has happened on a couple of occasions.

The battery compartment sits in an underslung position to the bottom left when sighting through the FSR. It is relatively large but houses a single, cheap-o-buy and easily sourced AA battery.

There are 6x brightness settings ranging from a very faint low light mode, which gives a phenomenal 1,000,000 hrs of run time from a good quality cell; and even in the brightest mode, for use in bright daylight, you get a claimed 6 years of continuous use…

I’ve not been able to back up these claims since I’ve only had the sight in my possession for just over 6 months, but it’s still going strong on the original battery.

The dot projected is a 2MOA simple pinpoint reticule, that is sharp and precise. Some refraction does occur when the brightness is cranked up, and some splash onto the interior of the sight tube results; but this is nothing unusual.

In terms of precise shot placement, the Wolverine FSR is more than adequate for airsoft use.

The user interface is very simple, consisting of a pair of rubberised buttons with up and down arrows on them. Intuitively enough, these buttons adjust the brightness and the sight can be activated or deactivated by holding them.

There’s really no need to even consult the user manual and with the very low power consumption on hand, there’s barely necessity to turn the sight off once it’s on.

In terms of form factor the sight is comparable to an Aimpoint CompM4 being roughly the same in terms of size and also physical layout.

As mentioned, the sight has been in my possession and use for just over 6 months. In this time it has been used in a good cross-section of conditions, thanks to the wonderful and varied British weather. In these 6 months we have had -10°C temperatures and snow, ranging through to sustained 30°C+ conditions. The sight has not suffered despite exposure to these relative extremes. The lenses and tube have remained clear of fogging or condensation and the functionality has been unfaltering; all on the supplied 1 AA cell.

In addition to the efficiency and reliability of the Wolverine FSR, I am impressed by the durability. As mentioned, the rubberised cover ensures the sight remains free of scratches, dents and wear and the design shrouds the lenses to prevent chips or scratches – or complete breakage.

Because the sight is a demonstrator piece I have not taken the opportunity to experiment with how a camouflage paint job would adhere to the rubber housing. However, the coyote tan version is available if flat black is not your desired finish.

The rubber jacket is NOT removable to my knowledge and it seems to do so would destroy it. So this is also something I have not experimented with.

Zeroing can be carried out easily with the windage and elevation adjustment turrets. When the lanyarded covers are unscrewed, a large, slotted screw can be rotated. The slot is wide enough so as a coin, key or other improvised tool can be used to carry out these adjustments (which is ideal as a suitable tool is rarely ever to hand when needed).

The documentation states that adjustment is in half MOA increments and through a range of 120MOA in both directions.

As this sight is intended for real-steel firearm use, its ability to retain zero exceeds the accuracy and consistency of any of the airsoft guns I have used it on. This is not to say the guns are bad, but the inherent variability in 6mm BB ammo is naturally greater than the shift in the dot position – through either physical shifting of the clamp or internal movement.

The lenses of the Wolverine FSR are bright and clear, with only a small loss of light and a slight blue-ish tint that actually serves to improve contrast.

The sight picture is a true non-magnified view and there is only a very slight amount of lens distortion at the very extreme edges of the round lens windows. From the front, the lens glints a deep red colour and when the sight is on, a small dot of red light is visible.

There is a small amount of cast light that is worth considering for tactical applications at night. 

Despite use in confined and up close CQB situations, my Wolverine FSR has taken no noticeable damage from BB strikes although I cannot recall or have not noticed a time when the lens was struck directly; this is perhaps a decent testament to the well shrouded design of the sight.

Impacts to the main body from BBs are negligible thanks to the durable and rugged build.

The sight does suffer from a small amount of parallax shift when the angle of view changes. However, this appears to be endemic to the red dot design. Good shooting practice should really counter any shift and adopting a consistent cheek weld will prevent it from becoming an issue.

Despite acquiring this sight for long term evaluation, at £219.99 from the supplier Scott Country International, I think it offers great value for money when it comes to actual hard usage and practicality.

£200+ might seem like a lot to spend on a sight for a replica gun. However, the battery efficiency and simple durability mean that it will earn its price back in a few years; especially with some replica sights burning through expensive CR123 or Lithium button cells rapidly.

Whilst this sight probably won’t appeal to die-hard impressionists, it adds to a small but growing number of competitively priced, real-steel quality sights for practical airsoft players who demand reliable and consistent function over superficial styling.

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