Optics have really come a long way in recent years… And it’s exciting to me because there are some pretty high-quality options out there right now…
Two very popular choices that won’t cost you an arm and a leg are:
- The Vortex Strikefire 2 (See Price On Amazon – Over 200 Reviews)
- The Vortex Spitfire 1x (See Price On Amazon – Over 80 Reviews)
Now obviously, both of these optics are from Vortex, but because one is a red dot sight and the other is a 1x prism scope they are very different sighting systems.
So in this Vortex Strikefire Vs Spitfire comparison, we’re going to put these two sights up against each other and see how they compare in the following categories…
- Toughness And Durability
- Lens Clarity And Reticle
- Battery Life And Brightness Settings
- Extra Accessories Included With The Sight
- Price Comparison
In the end, I’ll tell you which of these two optics I prefer, and you should have all the information you need to determine if either of these sights will work for you.
Let’s jump into it!
Durability And Toughness…
Vortex Strikefire
The Vortex Strikefire 2 is a very durable red dot sight. To start off with, the sight housing is made from a tough aluminum alloy, and because it’s a large-bodied red dot, it’s incredibly rugged.
In addition to that, it has a hard anodized finish that helps protect it from the elements, and it’s fog proof and waterproof, so even if you get caught in rainy, snowy, or wet conditions, your sight will keep working.
Last, because it’s shockproof, it can easily handle the recoil from high-powered rifles, shotguns, and pistol caliber carbines. All in all, I think it’s a very tough red dot sight.
Vortex Spitfire
The Vortex Spitfire 1x is also a very durable optic. Just like with the Strikefire, the body of the optic is made from a tough aluminum alloy.
Also just like the Strikefire, it has a hard-anodized finish to protect it from the elements, and it’s fog proof and waterproof.
Last, it’s also shockproof, so recoil from any of your typical firearms won’t be a problem.
Durability And Toughness Conclusions…
Both of these optics are made by Vortex, so it’s only natural that they’re built to similar specs and with similar features.
For example, they both have a sight housing made from anodized aluminum alloy, and they’re both waterproof, fog proof, and shockproof.
Honestly, there’s really not much that separates them in this category, so I have to call it a draw.
Winner: DRAW
Lens Clarity And Reticle…
Vortex Strikefire
The lens clarity on the Vortex Strikefire 2 is very good. The lens is very clear, and it allows you to get a very clean sight picture.
You don’t get any of the annoying greenish or bluish tint that you get with some other red dot sights on the market…
…and because it’s a large red dot sight as opposed to a micro red dot you have a pretty large field of view through the optic AND you can shoot with both eyes open.
This is important because it allows you to see more of your target down range and because it allows you to be more aware of your surroundings when using your firearm.
Also, because it’s a red dot sight rather than a prism scope like the Spitfire, the eye relief on the Strikefire is unlimited.
That means it doesn’t matter how close or far your eye is in relation to the optic. You’ll be able to see clearly through it…
…and that’s something that will come in handy if you end up having to make shots quickly or from awkward shooting positions.
Now the reticle on the Strikefire 2 is a 4 MOA dot, and there are actually two models of this optic that you can choose between…
- The Bright Red Dot
- The Red/Green Dot
I personally like the color red when I’m dealing with optics and sights, but some people do prefer green and I think it’s great that Vortex gives you that option with this sight.
As for the 4 MOA dot reticle, I personally prefer a smaller reticle like a 2 MOA dot, but the advantage of having a larger 4 MOA dot is that your eye picks up the reticle very fast…
This allows you to shoot very quickly, especially at large targets that are at close range. So for that purpose, it’s a pretty useful dot size to go with.
Vortex Spitfire
The lens clarity on the Spitfire is also very good. Once again, the lens is very clear and it allows you to get a very clean sight picture.
That being said, because the Spitfire is a 1x prism scope rather than a red dot sight there are many differences from the Strikefire 2.
First of all, because it’s a 1x scope, the Spitfire has critical eye relief and an eye box. The good news is that the eye relief is a generous 3.8 inches and the eye box is also fairly forgiving.
That’s exactly what you want with a 1x scope because it means your eye doesn’t have to be in the exact same spot every time just to see clearly through your optic (this is important for fast shooting)…
…And it is very different from a red dot sight like the Strikefire, which has unlimited eye relief.
Now, the reticle on the Spitfire is called the DRT Reticle, which stands for Dual Ring Tactical Reticle…
This reticle is unique to the Spitfire, and it has a 3 MOA dot in the center, which is surrounded by a small inner ring and then a very large outer ring.
I actually like this reticle quite a bit because it’s built to allow you to shoot fast. The 3 MOA dot in the center gives you a fair amount of precision when you need it…
…but when you need to shoot at large targets up close, you simply aim by putting the large rings (which your eye picks up very fast) over your target.
All in all, it’s a very well designed reticle, and I really like it a lot. Last, I have to mention that you do have the option on the Spitfire to change the illumination color between red and green.
Like I said before, I prefer red on my sights, but if you’re someone who prefers green, it’s good to know that it’s included in this optic.
Lens Clarity And Reticle Conclusions…
This is kind of a hard category to judge because these two optics are very different. One is a red dot sight and the other is a 1x prism scope, so they both have strengths and weaknesses.
Now, they both give you a clear sight picture through the optic, which is an important feature on any sight…
…and I do prefer the unlimited eye relief on the Strikefire 2, even though the Spitfire’s eye relief is pretty generous for a prism scope.
But when it comes to the reticle, I really prefer the DRT Reticle on the Spitfire over the 4 MOA dot that you get with the Strikefire.
Again, the 4 MOA dot is a little large for my liking (although others do like it), and I just think the DRT Reticle is really cool…
So in the end, I’m going to give the win in this category to the Vortex Spitfire.
Winner: Vortex Spitfire
Battery Life And Brightness Settings…
Vortex Strikefire
The battery life on the Vortex Strikefire is different depending on which model you get…
Both models use one CR2 battery, but if you get the Red/Green Dot model, your battery life is 300 hours on the maximum brightness settings and 5,000 hours on the minimum brightness settings.
Honestly, that’s okay but it’s a little low when compared to some other popular red dot sights on the market right now.
That being said, the Bright Red Dot model gives you 80,000 hours a battery life (when it’s on brightness settings 6).
That super long battery life makes me a lot happier because it means you can leave your sight turned on all the time, which will be important if you ever need to grab your rifle in an emergency situation.
In addition to that, both models do have an automatic shut off feature in which the sight will automatically turn off after 12 hours of non-use…
…and that’s good because it will help save your battery life regardless of the model you choose to go with. Now, with both models you get 8 daylight brightness settings and 2 night vision settings…
The daylight brightness settings get extremely bright and you won’t have any problems seeing them in bright outdoor conditions (I live in the Nevada desert).
Also, I like the fact that the night vision settings are included. Most people won’t use them but some people will, and they’re included at no additional charge.
Vortex Spitfire
The Vortex Spitfire uses 1 AAA battery which only gives you 250 hours of illumination on the maximum brightness setting.
That’s fairly low, but it doesn’t concern me very much on a 1x prism scope (as opposed to on a red dot sight).
You see, a red dot sight requires battery power just to be able to see your reticle when looking through the optic…
…but on a 1x prism scope you have an etched reticle that’s always there and your battery is only important for illuminating that reticle (it will just appear black without the illumination).
So with the Spitfire, your scope is still 100% usable even if your battery dies or you don’t have a battery in the optic (a huge benefit of using a prism scope).
In addition to that, Vortex built in a feature that dims your illumination after 2 hours of non-use and completely turns it off after 12 hours of non-use.
This will help save the battery life you have, and I think it’s a pretty cool feature that they’ve included.
Now, with the Spitfire you get 10 daylight brightness settings for your illumination and the 2 night vision settings.
Once again the daylight brightness settings are very bright, and I like that the night vision settings are included at no extra cost.
Battery Life And Brightness Settings Conclusions…
Once again this is a hard category to compare these two very different sights in… The brightness settings are pretty much a draw, but things are very different when it comes to battery life.
The Strikefire 2 is a red dot sight and needs battery power for you to even see the reticle. The good news is with the Bright Red Dot model you get 80,000 hours (8 years) of battery life.
With the Spitfire the battery life is less impressive, but you don’t even need to have a battery because with a 1x prism scope you have an etched reticle.
It’s a tough call, but in the end I’m going to give the win here to the Vortex Strikefire 2 because 8 years of battery life is pretty impressive for any optic.
Winner: Vortex Strikefire 2
Extra Accessories That Come With The Optic…
Vortex Strikefire
The Vortex Strikefire 2 comes with some pretty cool accessories. First of all, you get flip up lens covers that fit snugly on to the sight and won’t easily slip off (which can get pretty annoying).
You also get an offset cantilever mount that sets you up for a lower 1/3 cowitness with backup iron sights on an AR-15 (the cantilever mount is an upgrade over the mount from the old Vortex Strikefire 1).
I really like that Vortex includes this mount because it’s pretty high quality, and it means you won’t have to spend extra money on an accessory that you’ll need to be able to use your optic.
Vortex Spitfire
The Vortex Spitfire also comes with flip up lens covers that fit snugly on to the scope…
In addition to that, it also comes with a mount that sets you up for a lower 1/3 cowitness on an AR-15. However the mount includes a removable riser which, when taken out, lowers the height of the scope.
This is a pretty cool feature because the lower 1/3 cowitness height is perfect for an AR-15, but if you want to mount your optic on a shotgun, an AK, or a pistol caliber carbine, you’ll want to mount the sight lower.
The removable riser allows you to mount your sight lower, and it makes this scope compatible with a number of firearms platforms right out of the box.
Extra Accessories Conclusions…
Both of these sights are from Vortex Optics, so they both come with removable flip up lens covers, but the included mounts are very different.
The cantilever mount included with the Strikefire is perfect for use on an AR-15, but it’s probably not the best choice if you ever want to mount this optic on other firearms platforms.
The mount that comes with the Spitfire, however, is perfect for an AR-15 but includes a removable riser that makes it more suitable for other firearms platforms as well.
So in this category I’m going to give the win to the Vortex Spitfire.
Winner: Vortex Spitfire
Price Comparison…
Unfortunately I won’t be able to give you exact numbers in this category because the prices of these sights are changing all the time.
That being said, the Vortex Strikefire 2 is typically around 40 to 50 bucks less expensive than the Vortex Spitfire. So the clear winner in this category is the Vortex Strikefire.
Winner: Vortex Strikefire 2
Vortex Strikefire Vs Spitfire – Conclusions…
Wow! This was a pretty interesting comparison for me because these two sights are very different, but here’s how it all played out…
In the Durability And Toughness category, I had to call it a draw because these two optics were about the same.
In the Lens Clarity And Reticle category, I gave the win to the Spitfire because of its unique reticle.
In the Battery Life and Brightness Settings category, the Strikefire got the win because of its impressive battery life.
In the Extra Accessories category, the Spitfire took the slight edge because of its adjustable mount…
And last, the Strikefire won in the Price Comparison…
So which of these sights do I prefer: I prefer the Vortex Spitfire…
I like the Spitfire because I think the DRT Reticle is very cool. It’s a great reticle for shooting fast, but the 3 MOA dot in the center still gives you some important precision.
I also like that the mount is adjustable, so the optic can be used on an AR 15, but also used very effectively on other firearms platforms as well.
All in all, I think it’s a great optic if you’re ok with using a 1x prism scope…
If you’re not ok with a 1x scope and you want a true red dot sight with unlimited eye relief, then go with the Vortex Strikefire because it’s still a great optic!
Either way, I hope I was able to show you the major differences between these two popular options from Vortex Optics.