Author Topic: Red dot scopes for wing shooting?  (Read 1687 times)

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Offline Bowhunter57

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« on: February 19, 2003, 02:51:57 PM »
Most red dot scopes are used for turkey and deer hunting.
Have you ever used one for wing shooting? Geese, doves, crows, etc.?
What do you think of them for wing shooting?

Thank you, Bowhunter57
Imagination is more important than knowledge. - Albert Einstein

Offline Bob_K

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« Reply #1 on: February 19, 2003, 04:53:10 PM »
When Bushnell first came out with the Holosight, they made a promotional video on it that was free for the asking.  Among other things, it showed the Holosight being used for Trap & Skeet.  Seemed to work ok in the video, but you never know if the shooter have significantly better shooting skills in order to demonstrate success.  Never got around to trying one on my shotgun other in a deer hunting setting, though.
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Offline Brian in Oregon

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« Reply #2 on: March 09, 2003, 10:13:55 AM »
I think there is a better solution..

Since a red dot sight generally has no power factor (ie it's a 1x), then you really only need the red dot, not the housing that goes around it.

I am right handed, but left eye dominant. This means I have to close my left eye to shoot, otherwise I confuse which bead to use causing crossfire.

Unit-dot http://www.uni-dot.com/index.html makes a small aluinum tube that has a red, yellow or green fiberoptic rod in the back (they're interchangable). A special adhesive, which can be removed pretty easily, holds this on the rib just behind the bead. You cannot see the colored dot, which glows under daylight, unless you are aligned with it. Your shooting eye sees it, but your other eye doesn't. This allows both eyes to remain open, preventing crossfiring.

Now in your case, this provides a clean sight picture, with a red dot, where the usual bead is. You keep your head in the same position, and thus the gun feels normal and the sight picture is normal. And it is a lot cheaper than a red dot sight. In fact, the only drawback is that it is not as accurate as a red dot sight, but I doubt for birding and turkeys it makes that much of a difference. We're not talking about rifle accuracy. And a feature of the tube is that the eye must be aligned right or you can't see the dot. This helps folks with a consistent cheekweld.

Price is around $25 or so.

As for a red dot sight, my feeling is that it makes more sense on a slug gun, or on a dedicated turkey gun or barrel.

Offline GSESLYR

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« Reply #3 on: May 05, 2003, 08:57:14 AM »
With your red dot sight you may find yourself with a very very limited field of view...and, as all good wingshooters know, field of view is everything for being able to judge target speed, range to target, and hence approximate lead...

Most good shooters in shotgun sports never really sight with the bead(or red dot sight) at all but rather look beyond the end of the gun to the target and allow their hands and body to point and break the bird...a bead on the end of the gun is often only used until the shooter is used to the gun and can become more focused on SEEING HIS TARGET...I feel like with your red dot scope you will be far too focused on "aiming" your gun and hence limit your field of view and miss ALOT of shots because of a misjudged target...

I would suggest skipping out on the Red Dot sight purchase and using the money on getting more practice on the skeet, trap, or sporting clays field...

Offline Questor

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« Reply #4 on: May 07, 2003, 07:36:20 AM »
I don't think it's a good idea for two reasons:
1) Anything that interferes with my view of the target is bad.  The mount and body of a red dot do that.
2) For fast crossing targets, I need to lead so much that the target will be outside the field of view of the scope.

If there were an advantage to it, the competition shooters would have figured it out by now.
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Offline jh45gun

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« Reply #5 on: June 14, 2003, 07:03:50 PM »
How do you know some of them haven't? I for one am going to try it as it sounds like it will work to me.  According to the article I just read it worked great on flying game and clay birds. Jim
Said I never had much use for one, never said I didn't know how to use it.

Offline daddywpb

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« Reply #6 on: June 15, 2003, 02:15:38 AM »
If you've seen Bushnell's Secrets of the Hunt TV show, the host uses a red dot sight on his shotgun for everything. Seems silly to me on a shotgun. If you want to see a red dot when you shoot, put a fiber optic front sight on your gun. It'll be a lot less expensive, and the batteries won't go dead.

Offline jh45gun

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« Reply #7 on: June 15, 2003, 10:45:45 AM »
I do not know how to explain it but the dot is by itself more on a red dot than a fiber optic and to me less distracting it looks to me like it should work fine and as the daddywpb stated  though he disagrees with the concept, the host of bushnells show uses it for everything so it must work. I like to try new things and at 51 I like old things and tried and true notions, but I am not afraid to try new things either. Clair Rees said it works great in his newest article in Shooting Illustrated a NRA  Mag. I also do not consider him full of BS like some of the writers of gun mags so I will trust his judgement. In the article he used a Holosight and 2 red dots a Aimpoint and a Burris so he was not stumping for one product either but the concept in general. Jim
Said I never had much use for one, never said I didn't know how to use it.

Offline Charlie

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« Reply #8 on: August 03, 2003, 02:07:35 PM »
I've been contemplating putting my Optima 2000 red dot on my Rem. 1100 just to see how it might work.  Since it's a "heads up" display, I'm thinking it won't necessarily be a small field of view.  I'm just not sure how to mount it as I don't want to put a large mount under a very small scope.  It worked fine on the two handguns I had it on but didn't work well on my hip as the little cover kept catching on clothing and coming off.  This topic just peaked my interest in mounting it on my 1100 again.  Anybody see any reason it won't work?

Offline jh45gun

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Red dot scopes for wing shooting?
« Reply #9 on: August 03, 2003, 02:52:44 PM »
should work fine as long as you have a base for it and I am sure that you still have the origional base. I was disatisfied with my optima as I Just got rid of it with my 45 as it was impossible to adjust. I had one of the old 3 screw ones though and I have heard that the newer ones with the 2 screws were a lot better as long as you have had no problems with yours I am sure you have the 2 screw model. Great idea for  a red dot. I wish I had one of the models that was made after all the bugs were out of them. I see no reason as to why not it will not work on your 1100 and I sure as heck would try it. Please post your results if and when you do try it. I sighted mine to shoot to point of aim with 2/3 above the center and 1/3 below for rising targets. Jim
Said I never had much use for one, never said I didn't know how to use it.