# Red dot



## remmi

Does anyone have one of these or ever used one? Curious on how red dots actually work, looked thru a friends Bushnell red dot scope and asked him the same question, what if when shooting the dot is off from center abit, either from you not being set with your cheek down or just shooter error. Since powered scopes are not legal here thought this might be something to look at.


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## duckmander

I put one on my turkey gun. I also have a buddy that has one on a 22. if the dot is on the target anywhere in the scope pull the tirgger. it is hit. go to your friend and ask him to shoot his. try it. turn the gun kind of torqueing it if you will. you will hit the target.


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## duckmander

there is some drawbacks. long range shots. say 100 yards or more. the dot may cover the target up completely. also I took it off of my turkey gun and now use fiber optic rifle sights. their batteries dont go dead.


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## alleyyooper

I have a BSA model on my bow. It works great for me for the going on 11 years I have had it. My hunting partner shot mine while target shooting and liked it well enough he bought one for his bow. It was a different brand, he complained about it nearly all the time but during low lite times it would really tick him off to the point he got rid of it.

 Al


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## darkgael

Red dots are very popular with Bullseye target shooters (and other disciplines also). They are especially helpful for those of us whose eyes have changed enough so that using iron sights is problematic. The red dot scope projects a dot onto the interior of the coated front lens so that the dot appears to be in the same field of focus as the target. Normally with iron sights, one focuses on the front sight and the target is out of focus, not so with the red dots.
Trijicon makes a reflex dot sight that does not use a battery, the RX01. Pricey.
Red Dots generally do not magnify. The dots themselves can be as small as one moa and as large as 10. Four and five as most common.
Pete


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## maximini14

I had a n Aimpoint red dot on my gun- good results at short yardage, but out here at 100 + I was missing on several occaisions. Finally determined it was me. I had allways had a scope which you "look thru". The reddots are both eyes open , focus on your target- I found I'm falling back on old habits of looking thru a scope even w/ the red dot when there's a deer suddenly apearing out there at long range and I look thru it which is not a very good optical thing to do and I missed.

Since I'm apparently too old to learn new tricks, the red dot is coming off and I am currently looking for a new, very wide field of view traditional scope to put on this gun.

Have an Aimpoint Comp 3c for sale


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## remmi

Well I tried a Bushnell red dot on my muzzle loader, its coming off and will never use one again for late season hunting of any kind.This year like most here in ND its cold during muzzleloader season. I was about a half hour into my first walk when I had a shot at a doe, pulling up on her the crosshairs were so faint that I did not feel good with the shot, I figured it was a poor battery (new but from last year), so when getting back to my truck I put in a battery bought this year, the next opportunity I had the same thing happened only I had been out in the cold a very short time. I'm not sure if this type of battey cannot hold up in the cold or what but I won't take the chance again. So anyway I had 2 good shots at deer and ended up the season with none.


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## maximini14

I have an "Aimpoint" that was on my 12 ga slug gun. What I've found is that it is primarily a close range sight - like less than 30 yds, and it is parallax free, which means the red dot is allways on tatget even if u lift your cheek off the comb ( that's why it is so effective for combat as used on M16).

But- as an older guy who is so used to looking thru a traditional scope- I find the red dot sight inaccurate at longer ranges of 100 yds or so w/ my 12 ga. The red dot is meant to be used with both eyes open- focus on your target. Just didn't work for me at longer range as its really not a scope to look thru- distorts image at distance and I miss. I imagine if one would devote a lot of time on training he could be more effective at distance. But for me, when MR BIG is waltzing out there in front of me at 125 yds with short reaction time allowed for the shot I instinctively "look thru it" and miss- twice last year-aaarrrrghhgh!!!! I had put the Aimpoint on as I thought it would help me on up-close running shots on deer, as we do drives, and they are haulin *** by ya.

I previously had a Bushnell Elite 4200 1.5 x 6 on that slug gun and was deadly at close and far ranges. Its goin back on this fall!!!!


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## darkgael

Just returning to this thread. 
Yes, Red Dot scopes are most practical when used at short ranges. A four MOA dot is going to cover four inches of that deer at 100 yards. If you happen to buy a Dot that is larger (10 MOA) then even more of the animal will be hidden. 
As to the dots being used with both eyes open,which I have read a couple of times in this thread: that is not a requirement for proper use. I keep both eyes open with any sights that I use. Many Bullseye shooters will cover the non-aiming eye when using a Dot scope and shoot their pistols remarkably accurately out to 50 yards.
With some dot scopes, keeping both eyes open while looking through the scope allows the dot to appear as if it is floating in space before/on the target. Kinda neat but it takes some getting used to.
Pete


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## Jig Master

I had two red dot sights and now have just one. I don't like them for two reasons. First of all I am concerned with battery life and walk around with the sight turned off which one time cost me a deer. Next, when the power is on, say early in the morning, I use the lowest power setting, as the sun gets stronger if I forget to turn up the power, and a deer comes along and I take aim, no dot. There are models that have crosshairs etched into the lense, that will work even with the power off, but I don't have one of those. I would rather have a 0 magnification scope than a red dot sight any day, with no battery worries, no power setting worries, and superior light gathering abilities.


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