Shield Sights is a UK based company that has been designing pistol mounted optics since 1996. The original Shield Mini Sight has been marketed in the US under several names, to include the Firepoint and JPoint. The Shield RMS (Reflex Mini Sight) is their current flagship pistol optic.
We received this optic in August of 2017 and placed it in service on a Gen 4 Glock 19 MOS. The RMS will fit on one of the MOS plates included with the Glock 19. However, if you want the lowest mounting option, you will want to purchase the RMS mounting plate from Shield Sights. The Shield mounting plate will place the RMS low enough to cowitness with factory Glock sights. The compact nature of the Shield RMS is one of its primary selling points. Not having to buy a set of suppressor sights to have a usable backup is also a point in its favor.
Mounting the Shield RMS is the same as for most slide mounted optics. The Shield MOS plate has two posts the protrude into the body of the optic. Two screws are installed from the top, through the optic into these threaded posts. The screw heads are fairly tiny and care should be taken not to strip them. Once installed, the optic should not need to be removed.
The Shield RMS used a single CR2032 coin type battery for power. There are no controls on the outside of the sight. The optic powers on as soon as the battery is inserted. Shield states that the battery should be good for two to three years of average use and over four years when stored in a dark environment. When used in a concealed carry role, I expect the battery life to be on the longer side. The optic will likely be in a dark storage container or shaded under clothing, allowing the brightness to drop to the lowest setting. In our testing, the first battery lasted for fourteen months of mixed use and storage in a dark safe. To be considered for a defensive handgun, I look for battery life of at least one year.
Battery replacement on the Shield RMS is accomplished very easily by inserting a tool (Allen key, Glock tool, etc,) into an access hole on the right side of the optic. This will disengage and push out the plastic tray containing the battery. This design doesn’t inspire confidence, but through some very hard handling we did not every experience the battery tray coming ajar. It is possible that some ham-fisted operators could damage the small locking tab holding the tray in, so care should be taken when replacing the battery. The battery will only sit in the tray in one direction. Accidentally reversing the polarity of the battery should be immediately apparent.
The brightness is controlled automatically by a photosensor in the housing. I found the auto adjustment to do a good job under most conditions. It had no problem turning up the brightness when drawing from concealment to bright sunlight. The adjustment was almost instantaneous and not perceptible to the shooter. When standing in darkness and pointing into a lit environment the RMS also did a sufficient job of managing the dot power. The only instance where the RMS struggled was when lighting up a close-range target with a high power weapon light. This is a common problem with auto brightness on most mini red dots. If the sensor is not looking “forward” then it doesn’t realize the target is well lit. Instead it compensates for the darkness it “sees” directly above the optic.
The Shield RMS is designed to co-witness with the factory sights of the Glock MOS platform when Shield’s own mounting plate is used. This simplifies the process of zeroing the optic. Shield does supply the appropriate Allen key and a marking wheel to ease the process, but without and “click” feedback we found that it is much easier to use the irons to get it close and then just “nudge” the adjustments with the Allen key to get it dead on.
I shot several thousand rounds through the Shield RMS equipped Glock 19 both with the KKM Compensator and with the factory barrel. The RMS actually had a rougher time when the pistol was equipped with the compensator. When shooting lower-power training ammunition, the G19 had the tendency to just barely eject the spend casing. When the slide slammed forward, the optic would strike the case and send it flying to the front. The dot never failed through this harsh treatment, but it did reveal two durability issues.
The first durability issue we observed was that the polymer window of the RMS took a beating from spent cases. Training ammunition is generally lower powered and this means that the occasional under-charge will just barely make it out of the chamber. When this occurs, the case will impact the slide, window or housing of the optic. If the stars align, the mouth of the case may strike the window. This will leave a fairly significant scratch on the polymer surface. These scratches are not a warranty issue and are just a limitation of a polymer window. The benefit to the polymer window is that it will be less prone to cracking.
The spent cases that struck the optic would not always impact the window. More often, they would hit the frame surrounding it. The body of the RMS is constructed from aluminum that has been anodized black. The repeated impacts from the brass did wear off some of the anodizing. This is common with many of the other optics that we have tested but seemed to occur much faster on the Shield RMS than we have seen on the Trijicon RMR.
The Shield RMS is not advertised as being waterproof or water resistant. This is the primary concern we have with this optic. I carried the RMS against my body in an appendix holster through much of the summer. It was doused in sweat numerous times and I did not experience any failures or corrosion to the unsealed battery compartment. As a concealed carry optic, it will likely be well protected from rain and snow. Care should be taken to make sure that any moisture on the outside of the pistol and optic are wiped off as soon as possible.
In order to fully test equipment, we often disregard manufacturers recommendations when a specific situation is plausible in the course of carrying a firearm. In a defensive role, it is entirely possible that the handgun or the entire shooter may be doused in water. If you are diving for cover in a gunfight, a roadside ditch may seem like a good option regardless of how much mud and water may be there. With this in mind, against manufacturer recommendations, we chucked the Glock 19 in a puddle.
I quickly removed the pistol and shook it off. Initially, the optic was still functioning. However, within several minutes the dot went out. I removed the battery and found water in the compartment. This was to be expected. There is no gasket or seal around the plastic battery carrier. A test showed that the battery still had full charge.
I left the optic with the battery removed for several weeks to see if it would dry out. This had no positive result and I believe the RMS is completely disabled at this point.
Unfortunately this ended the review of the optic. I was not able to get into any more detailed durability testing due to the complete failure. There is little doubt that this optic will not survive a drop to concrete. The housing is just not robust enough. I speculate that it may survive limited single-hand manipulations (racking the slide off the optic), but I would only suggest that in extreme situations. Making it part of your regular training day would likely severely limit the life of the optic.
Shield has announced a successor to the RMS that addresses this issue. The Waterproof Shield Mini Sight (RMSw) is available on the Shield website now and should be in the US later this year. We had the chance to look at them at the 2019 SHOT Show and the 2019 IWA Show. It appears that the RMSw will address many of the failings of the RMS.
The RMS design is a great compact optic that does little to obstruct your field of view. The fragile nature of it limits it to sport and target shooting. At this time the RMS is not suitable for a Law Enforcement or Personal Protection roles.