Sights are set on Riton Optics

• Posted on 30 July 2018
• By Write Winger
• 0

WW: Let’s make it happen! Thanks a lot for your time, I’ll return the favor and take a little time myself to see which Riton optic would work for me. Just hearing the back story and how you got to where you are gives me a greater sense of trust in the product, so thanks again. I appreciate it.

I’ve been in the market for optics for a long time but I never pulled the trigger, mostly because I didn’t feel as if I deserved to use them until I proved to myself that I was proficient enough with irons. Being cautiously confident and a bit of a perfectionist, I always feel like I’m at 90% with room for improvement, so I never allowed myself to switch to optics. At least that’s what I tell myself anyway.

But if I were to really be honest - given the choice to buy good optics or another gun for the same amount of money... the next gun always won. That, and being unsure about how much time, energy, research, and money I wanted to invest in finding what would work for me personally.

Writing about all things gun related for Firearms Unknown affords me some interesting opportunities, though, like being introduced to Brady Speth, owner of Riton Optics, a line of optics Firearms Unknown recently started carrying. Why not talk to someone who’s made it his business and passion? So I set up an interview:

WW: I’m not 100% sure where I wanted to go with this, whether we just talk about your products or background, but maybe your background is most important because it can tell the story of WHY you got into the optics business, and how that translates into what you strive to offer, or the void you want to fill in what you found lacking in most products.

Brady Speth: Sure, well, I’m originally from Montana, I’ve been a hunter since I was five or six years old. I’ve been a user of optics my entire life, but growing up you had to graduate to optics after proving yourself with irons.

WW: I understand that one completely.

Brady Speth: I joined the military at 19 where it was my first time using optics for applications other than hunting. After the military, I finished my degree and then I moved into federal law enforcement. Along the way I learned the internals of how optics work. I got into consulting for the user aspect of scopes and their design - stuff as simple as using an optic with gloves, use in the cold, using it while you are covered in mud or blood - and how that translated to the engineering aspect of design.

WW: And if you could do that for someone else, you could do it for yourself?

Brady Speth: I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit, and I wanted to put my own tweak on it and design what I wanted out of a scope. So I started designing what I wanted in a scope and then I was able to have some prototypes made and used contacts I had in military and law enforcement to start testing my ideas.

WW: And they basically did your R&D?

Brady Speth: Exactly. I have an incredible circle of friends and contacts that are always willing to lend a helping hand. Especially for a Veteran/LEO owned company. They were my research and development team. I’d ship them out to, say, Army sniper units in Alaska for testing under freezing conditions. Everything new I would come up with I would send to trusted people, and our R&D is done in real world applications. SWAT, SEALs, you name it. And I’ll tell you, these guys have no problem telling you what they really think of your product, and that’s a good thing. It’s been such an incredible asset to tap into the best people in the world, having them involved in our testing and design process. And after I got their feedback and made whatever changes that needed to be made, then and only then I knew I was ready to launch into market.

WW: How’s that been? I mean, new company, going through the process of getting your product manufactured, quality control, etc?

Brady Speth: It’s been an adventure for sure. I have been fortunate to have incredible people around me in and out of my organization that have guided and helped me and I have assembled a team at Riton that I am incredibly proud of. Their efforts every single day is what is making us successful. We’re based out of Tucson, AZ and everything goes through our facility first before it goes to market. We inspect every single scope - not just pulling a few samples to inspect and hope the rest of the batch is good, but every single one. High end to low end, we still want a quality product in your hands no matter how much you spend. I made military wages, I get it, I was a consumer and I still am. If you can only afford a $200 scope, I’m going to give you the best $200 product you can buy.

WW: Love it, you’re scratching my itch as a potential customer. I can’t NOT ask about that warranty. Unlimited lifetime?

Brady Speth: Unlimited lifetime warranty. Our name is on it, if our product doesn’t perform like it should, we replace it in 48 hours with a new one. If you have a hunt you’re going on in a week and there’s a problem with our scope, you can’t wait six weeks for warranty work, we’re shipping it right out to you. Now let’s be reasonable, it’s built incredibly durable, but it is a finely tuned instrument so things happen and we want to be there to help if/when they do.

WW: So don’t run it over with your truck?

Brady Speth: We’ve done that, with a military HMMWV actually. We don’t suggest it {laughs} but it will take the punishment and keep working.

WW: Goals, where do you see Riton Optics in the immediate future, or five, ten years down the line?

Brady Speth: We’re only 27 months in retail sales, but I want to be the optics solution for everyone. I’m not a second place kinda guy; I’m happy to go up against the bigger names. We’re just going to keep growing and building based on customer feedback. We’re completely driven by our customers, so if a product isn’t what our customers want, we scrap it and make a new product. It’s as simple as that. That is what is fueling our growth and something we will never lose touch with.

WW: I don’t know if you heard, but Firearms Unknown was another optic company’s dealer of the year.

Brady Speth: Yeah I heard that - I’d like Firearms Unknown to be Riton’s Dealer of the Year too!

WW: Let’s make it happen! Thanks a lot for your time, I’ll return the favor and take a little time myself to see which Riton optic would work for me. Just hearing the back story and how you got to where you are gives me a greater sense of trust in the product, so thanks again. I appreciate it.

Brady Speth: Anytime!