Precision, timing, and smart tactics.
Without these three elements, you might as well forget about a good Airsoft session.
Now, imagine feeling ripe and ready to take your brand new Airsoft gun, complete with a pricey but highly recommended optic device, to a skirmish.
A skirmish is a single-day Airsoft event with multiple game modes and objectives—all of which are meant to confirm which side won what game.
Things are getting heated up, your adrenaline is pumping, but just as the excitement begins to mount—crack!
Next thing you know, your spirit is crushed, and your heart is sinking to your boots as you stare into your shattered glass aiming sight.
You hadn’t even gotten fully immersed in the game.
Yet, here you are, about to be stuck with a poor player experience if you do decide to go on with the skirmish. Plus, there’s the grim prospect of having to replace whichever optic device you’d been using, whether that’s a red or green dot sight.
That’s because of the three elements crucial to an excellent Airsoft game, precision, particularly in aiming, is well facilitated by the use of optic devices that include sights and scopes.
Without some kind of sight or scope, it becomes tricky to aim since your naked eye can’t predict the direction of your shot as well as it can with such accessories.
Now, you’re a strategic fella who doesn’t want to keep replacing your sights or scopes every time they get shattered or scratched by BB shots.
Because you also know your essential Airsoft tips, you aren’t likely to dismiss the following tips on maintaining your sight protectors in the best possible condition.
Table of Contents
- Properly Clean Your Sight Protectors
- Always Check That Your Sight Protectors Fit Well
- Store Your Sight Protectors With Care
- Frequently Asked Questions
Properly Clean Your Sight Protectors
You might be thinking that you’re officially set because you got your hands on some ‘unbreakable’ sight protectors.
This might be the case, but you still need to clean them the correct way.
Before we get into the nitty-gritty of cleaning sight protectors, however, you need to know that the process changes depending on the kind of protector you’re using:
- Glass
- Polycarbonate
Cleaning Glass Sight Protectors
After a hard day’s work ducking enemy fire and foiling ambushes, you’re going to be covered in dust, dirt, and sweat. So will your Airsoft replica, and so will your glass sight protector, if it has survived the entire day.
To ensure your glass sight protectors always look fresh and new:
- Wash and dry your hands. By first cleaning your hands of any dirt or debris, you ensure nothing unwanted gets transferred to your protectors while you clean them.
- Gently run lukewarm water over the protector glasses. Doing so removes any dust and debris that could potentially scratch the glasses as you clean them.
- Apply a dollop of lotion-free dishwashing liquid on your protectors. You could decide to add the liquid to your fingertips if it is particularly concentrated. You don’t want to use dishwashing liquid that has lotion, as doing so may leave residue on your glass protector.
- Gently rub both sides of the glass to clean out any remaining dirt.
- Rinse your glass sight protectors thoroughly. Taking care not to leave any soap behind will ensure no smudges remain.
- Shake off excess water. If you don’t want the protectors to air dry, you may use a microfiber cloth or a lint-free cotton towel to dry them while ensuring you don’t leave any scratches.
Expert Tip: You may use white vinegar for a streak-free finish if you really want to have your glass protectors shine. A suitable commercial glass cleaner may also help, though following the steps above will usually do the trick.
Cleaning Polycarbonate Sight Protectors
Unlike mere glass sight protectors, high-quality polycarbonate protectors are much tougher. Some products even claim to have 250 times the impact resistance of glass.
Since polycarbonate is scratch sensitive, ensure that the protector you go for has a scratch-resistant layer at the very least. Black Lion Sight Guards such as the Stealth Loose Shield are great examples of premium polycarbonate sight protectors with such protection.
To ensure your polycarbonate sight protectors are nice and clean:
- Use warm water and a gentle detergent to clean them.
- Go with a clean, soft microfiber cloth. A microfiber piece of cloth will ensure all dirt particles are trapped in the fibers, thus stopping them from scratching the polycarbonate. Rinse it out frequently.
- Don’t use harsh chemical cleaning agents such as Glassex or white spirits to clean your polycarbonate protectors. These chemicals don’t dissolve dust and sand particles. Instead, they move the particles back and forth over your cloth and end up scratching your protectors.
- Don’t use acetone, benzene, or other thinners as these agents not only soften the polycarbonate but also leave a permanent haze on its surface.
Always Check That Your Sight Protectors Fit Well
There’s nothing like an ill-fitted sight protector to give you false confidence as you go about fevered gameplay—only for you to be brought crashing down from your high horse by a shattered optic device.
To avoid both the embarrassment and the cost that go with completely unavoidable mistakes, always ensure that your sight protector is well fitted on your Airsoft gun.
A great way to confirm this is to check that the protector stand you use is firmly fixed on your gun and that the sight protector itself is also stable in its stand.
A wobbly sight protector or even protector stand doesn’t provide the best condition for your sight protector to serve your needs, as it’ll likely require constant modifications while in the midst of war.
Additionally, an unstable sight protector is more likely to break or become completely detached—none of which are outcomes that’ll serve you.
Doing your due diligence before any wargames begin will, therefore, save you much pain and heartache when you’re downrange. A distracted soldier is a dead soldier, as they say.
Store Your Sight Protectors With Care
How you store your sight protectors after either packing up before heading for home in the aftermath of a skirmish-filled day or cleaning them determines how well they’ll hold up over time.
Glass protectors, in particular, are fragile enough to warrant being put in a hard case.
Polycarbonate protectors, on the other hand, may be stored in a velvet sachet or pouch to minimize or eliminate the possibility of getting scratched. This would be ideal before they’re packaged away with the rest of your Airsoft gear.
Other dos and don’ts of storing your sight protectors include:
- Do get a backup case so that you always have one on hand in case you forget your primary case or it breaks down.
- Don’t leave your sight protectors baking in the sun or some other hot area.
- Don’t set your sight protectors close to sinks or water sources as they might get splashed or smudged.
- Don’t put your protectors into bags of any kind without first securing them in a hard case.
Lastly, sight protectors may have been designed for the sole purpose of protecting your likely more expensive Airsoft optic devices, but you should still use common sense to ensure you aren’t scratching or crushing them unnecessarily while they’re in storage.
After all, you can only protect your optic devices for so long before they’re exposed to the real danger of falls and BB shots when you’re using impaired sight protectors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Optic Devices Are Recommended for Airsoft?
Airsoft players can generally choose from either one of two optic choices:
- Reflex and holographic sights
- Telescopic sights
Reflex and holographic sights help you create an easier and quicker aim reference even as you maintain proper awareness of your surroundings. This is much more advantageous than using traditional backup iron sights.
Telescopic sights, on the other hand, give you a visual advantage since they help you zoom your view. Also known as scopes, telescopic sights allow you to observe, measure, and calculate, thus making it possible to fire precise shots.
What’s the Difference Between Glass and Polycarbonate Sight Protectors?
As the table below shows, there are certain similarities and differences between glass and polycarbonate sight protectors worth keeping in mind.
| Glass | Polycarbonate | |
| Clarity/Transparency | Crystal clear | Crystal clear |
| Strength/Toughness | Fragile | |
| Sensitivity to Scratches | Resistant to scratches | Sensitive to scratches (go for products with a scratch-resistant layer) |
Why Get an Airsoft Sight Protector?
In a word, safety and common sense. That’s because when you install a pricey optic device on your Airsoft gun, you don’t want to keep replacing the handy unit every time an enemy fires your way.
“It’s always easier to replace a sight protector than a more expensive sight”
— Yoda 😉
Airsoft sight protectors keep your optics clear of scratches or cracks, which makes for a great player experience—and boosts your chances of winning more skirmishes.
Now, if you’re wondering why getting an optic for your Airsoft games is a big deal in the first place, you need to remember that one of the goals of Airsoft is precision, followed by timing and smart tactics.
You can’t be precise—and neither can you be said to be smart or strategic, if your aiming device is smudged, blown out, or scratched when there was something you could have done about it.
Speaking of smart tactics, check out our guide on close-quarters combat or close-quarters battle (CQB) as well as woodland Airsoft tactics if you’re thrilled about enhancing your chances of taking out as many opponents as you can and winning battles.
