Tango Down Aimpoint ACRO P2-CAP Review [2024]

The Aimpoint ACRO P-2 is an optic that I have a lot of experience with. I’ve owned a handful of them over the years, and slowly phased out my P-1s with them. It’s an optic that was a vertical upgrade over the P-1, but it retained one really bad element from the P-1. That would be the crappy battery cap. The P-1 had a cap that used an unusual slot width, which meant that it was very easy to gall it up when trying to change a battery. The P-2 solved this by, well, they didn’t. However, the aftermarket stepped in. Tango Down created a replacement battery cap that solves the problem. What is their P-2 Battery Cap, and is it required if you have a P-2?

The P-2 Cap Issue

The fundamental issue with the P-2’s OEM battery cap is simple. It’s made from plastic. The cap, the threads, the body, all plastic. When I asked Aimpoint about this at SHOT 2023, they told me that it was a measure to save 1 gram of weight on the optic, as part of some contract for a European military.

Regardless of that statement holding any ground, the design is bad. The OEM cap is made from a soft material, but the slot on it is very wide too. As such, most normal flathead drivers will jump out of the slot. Which means that you f*ck up the plastic cap. It’s a crap design, but Tango Down has a fix.

The Tango Down P2-CAP

The TD P2-CAP is simply a replacement battery cap made entirely from aluminum, and with a standard size slot for your screwdriver. It’s an extremely simple product that fixes the worst quality of the P-2. It’s marketed for being more durable, and better in “Severe Duty Conditions”, such as extreme cold, heat, and impact. Well, I’m not surprised by those claims, as it is certainly better made than the OEM cap. Price directly from TD is $19.95.

On top of the better material, the shape of the driver slot is better. It’s back to a cruciform shape (like the P-1), but it’s deeper and thinner. As such, actually tightening and loosening the cap is much easier to do, and you’re much less likely to gall it up when doing so.

Dimensionally, it is a little taller than the OEM cap. The TD comes in at 5.94mm high, while the OEM is 4.92mm tall. It really doesn’t make much of a difference on a long gun, and I’ve not had any issues with my handgun mounted P-2.

Weight is heavier on the TD cap, but it’s a whopping 4 grams. For reference, that’s 0.141096 ounces. It’s basically nothing. Now, the OEM cap is so light that my scale can’t even pick it up to the closest gram.

So, it’s a really simple product. Oh, and like the Ford Model-T, it comes in any color you want, as long as that color is black. How have my two TD caps held up so far?

Out In the Field

I’ve had two P2-CAPs on my P-2s. One P-2 is mounted onto my G45 pistol, and the other P-2 is on my Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol. Since starting my testing of these battery caps, I’ve done a fair bit of shooting.

On the A300, I’ve put about 500 rounds through the shotgun. It’s been a lot of birdshot, but plenty of buckshot too, and some slugs. All of my shooting with the A300 has been done with the P-2 on board, and by extension, the TD P2-CAP.

On my G45, I’ve also got about 500 rounds through the gun since adding the TD P2-CAP. Now, this is a handgun, which means two things. It means that it’s getting carried on my body, battery cap side towards my gut. It also means that we’ve got more g-forces getting imparted onto the optic, due to it being mounted to the reciprocating slide. In the video below, I’ve got a drill video of the Hateful Eight in which the TD cap is on my gun.

So far, I’ve run into no issues with the TD caps. I’m not surprised at all. These are a simple, drop-in upgrade for the P-2. I’ve shot in some high heat (for people, not really for tools), and I’ve shot with these in the rain. They’ve gotten tossed around (the A300 mostly), and carried a fair bit (with the G45). I’ve not had a failure yet, and I doubt I will.

I do have a little bit of the anodizing coming off of both of the caps, but it’s inline with wear on the optics themselves.

The Verdict

If you have a P-2, get this battery cap. It fixes the biggest issue with the optic, with no downsides. How often do you find something that just is a complete upgrade to something you already like?

Further Reading & Patreon Link

If you want to see more of our optic reviews, they can be found below:

• Trijicon RMR Type 2 Review
• Trijicon SRO Red Dot Sight Review
• How Bad Is The Dual Illuminated RMR? [2022]
• Aimpoint ACRO P-1 Review

If you’d like to support me on Patreon, I’ve got the link for that here. Nearly everything that I do on Primer Peak is paid for out of my own pocket (such as the optic reviewed here), and my content is not shilled or driven by manufacturers or companies. If you decide to donate, I’d really appreciate it, as it would allow for me to continue to bring you quality work.