Big performance in a small package

Mat Manning puts the compact MTC SWAT Prismatic Atom telescopic sight to the test to see how this petite optic performs against its price

- Mat Manning

As more and more shooters switch to bullpups and stubby carbines, the demand increases for diminutive optics to match their downsized guns. SWAT Prismatic scopes from MTC Optics fit that niche perfectly, and the 10x30 model, nicknamed the ‘Atom’, is the smallest option in the range, with a 12x50 version also available.

Apart from being compact — just 135mm long and a mere 434g with its supplied mount and flip-up lens cover — these telescopic sights also boast a very wide field of view. Eye relief is almost zero, which means you’d get a bit of a whack if you were to use them with anything that has a kick to it, but they are extremely well-suited to recoilless PCP airguns.

The Atom made for a nicely balanced pairing on the Brocock Ghost. A quick zeroing session in my garden range confirmed the exceptional wide-angle viewing through this Prismatic scope, as well as its bright sight picture, which is sharp right to the edges.

Anyone who thinks the scope’s £370 price is steep for the modest offering should take a look through one — it’s big on optical performance.

Zeroing was straightforward, as the Atom’s resettable windage and elevation dials pull up into their unlocked position for toolfree adjustment. Each stop adjusts the point of impact by 0.1mil. Once zeroed, simply snap the dials back down to lock them in place and prevent accidental adjustment.

As someone who has done most of his shooting over the past three decades using conventional telescopic sights with eye relief of around 100mm, nestling right into the Atom’s short rubber eyecup did feel rather alien to me.