NP-Optics’ journey in the thermal imaging scope industry began in August 2022. For over three years, close collaboration with global users, distributors, and professional shooters has provided us with invaluable firsthand experience. If there’s one fundamental lesson we’ve learned, it is this: the thermal optics market is inherently personalized and context-dependent. Different countries, different firearm platforms, and different tactical traditions create unique product requirements.
Our early product development phase offered a perfect case study.
Working with clients in Eastern Europe, we addressed a market dominated by AK-pattern rifles. The AK’s right-side charging handle and its design philosophy—which advocates for an extremely low sight axis to enhance shooter survivability—demanded a correspondingly low thermal scope mount. We successfully developed an ultra-low quick-detach (QD) mount with a mere 8mm rise. It was an elegant solution tailored for the AK platform.
However, when we took this same mount to North America for field testing, we encountered a new challenge. The dominant platform there is the AR-series rifle (e.g., AR-15, M4), which features a rear charging handle. This design requires clear space behind the scope for the shooter’s hand to operate. Our ultra-low AK mount proved problematic on the AR—it interfered with the charging handle or the shooter’s grip.
This contradiction became a catalyst for innovation. The result was our next-generation mount. Its key improvement is a significantly increased rail height. This design ensures the thermal scope can be mounted in the rearmost, most natural position on an AR platform while completely clearing the charging handle’s operational arc. Shooters no longer need to compromise on a poor cheek weld or eye relief to achieve a solid shooting stance.
This is more than a story about modifying a component’s dimensions. It encapsulates the NP-Optics design philosophy: True reliability stems from respecting details and embracing diversity. From the AKs of Eastern Europe to the ARs of North America, each adaptation represents our process of deeply understanding user scenarios and translating that insight into a superior product.
This is the profound reward and satisfaction we gain from developing deeply customized solutions for a diverse global user base.