tpter1

I'm thinking of upgrading my shotgun sight. I mostly use it for turkey, but will be using it for deer this year at my bro-in-laws. (Mostly very short range shots there...need something that's fast). Any experience with the fibre optic open sights or red dot scopes?

40cal

Here is a red dot:

http://www.mountsplus.com/miva/merch...CH/EOT-551-A65

or

http://www.uws.com/AIMPOINT/M2.html

I have both the aimpoint and the Eotech.
Both are great, both allow for fast target aquisition, and allow for use in very limited light.

I have had fiber optics on some of my handguns. They are great, when there is available light. If you are in a low-light situation, they suck since they do not have an independent light source to power the sight.

The fiber optic may improve your speed on target a bit. (Assuming there is enough light to make it stand out). The red dot's are really fast. I almost feel like I'm cheating when I use them. They really come in to their own with moving targets, or when you are moving.

If you can look at some of these at a store, i would try that. Some of the red dots can be pretty pricey.

tpter1

Thanks, 40cal. Those are a bit more pricey than I want to spend...though they are intriguing.

MJ

Can any of the military guys on here explain what is most popular over in Iraq. I see all of the guys with these on their ARs in pictures.

And say it stops working? Is it easy to take off in the heat of battle and go back to the iron sites?

40cal

Depending on the sight, you can co-witness, which means look through the tube, or glass and use your iron sights.

SteelyDan

I wouldn't be too worried about a quality red dot sight draining its battery especially in a civillian recreational environment. There are several models which feature battery lives that are thousands of hours in length.

tom turner

Hi,

I own two Bushnell Holosights and frankly, nothing is faster in the hunting woods . . . or on the range in competition against red dot "tube" sights. Here's one of mine, on permanent "marriage" to my deadly Model 29 .44mag revolver:



These things have a big, clear screen upon which a lazer dot is projected. Even if one is not directly behind the sight . . . as long as you see that dot . . . this is where the bullet is going to hit!!! This certainly isn't true of a scope!!!

FAST ON DEER?

1. On two occasions I've had THREE DEER surprise me at once . . . one time in a huge clearcut, and once in a dense hardwood bottom.

Both times the first deer was shot conventionally. Of course, after the first shot, the others start running. On both occasions I also dropped the other two! I surely couldn't do this with an auto deer rifle! The final one in the clearcut was a doe, racing at a full run! I swung the gun with a perfect red dot tracking the shoulder. BAM! After the .44 came back down from the mightly recoil of the heavy 300 grain bullet, the deer had disappeared in the wide open clear cut. It had fallen straight down instantly . . . without even the slightest kick. The memory that lasts a lifetime! PRICELESS!


2. Two seasons ago a buck snuck up and surprised me . . . just a few yards away from my ladder stand. As soon as he saw me, he "BLEW" loudly and spun around to bolt away, circling in front of me on a full run. I lifted the .44 from my lap, swung with the red dot on the display synchronized with his speed . . . then popped him when he was racing broadside between trees . . . with a shot right through the heart. DISTANCE? 35 YARDS! Another PRICELESS hunting memory!

3. Last season, a piebald buck was working though an extremely dense area . . . where you couldn't even see it was a buck . . . much less a piebald spotted in white!!! I put the rifle down and lifted the holosighted revolver pictured above and looked for ANY break in the vegetation that would give me a perfect, humane shot.

The ONLY spot possible was a tiny area about 6" wide but vertically about four feet high where he's cross in mere seconds. I put the dot in that tiny area and hoped his shoulder or neck would go through that spot. As soon as the right shoulder materialized and I could take a heart shot I touched off the round. Another perfect 35 yard heart shot.



COST? Yeah . . . a decent sighting device can cost some bucks! Then again, a crappy scope or red dot sight will COST you some bucks too . . . but the ones with hair!

In the case of this super-rare, spotted whitetail deer above, most hunters will hunt all their life and NEVER see one . . . much less get a perfect shot at one. In this case, my Bushnell Holosight becomes PRICELESS once agian to me!

T.