Pistol scope suggestions

[Coach1]

I am sad to report that my experiments with red lasers and red dot holo sights (outdoors) have not been productive. My eyes will not see tiny red dots wherever they are.

So my next fun experiment is to mount a pistol scope on my MKIII 22/45.. I think. I have seen a few comments elsewhere about 2X and 4X pistol scopes.
It seems that these are typically ring mounted (1inch tubes) and the rings would have to attach to the Ruger's weaver rail. I think they are single focal length (at infinity?).

So, what does the forum team have as commentary and recommendations for type / brand?

Blast away, have fun, Be safe.

[bearandoldman]

I am sad to report that my experiments with red lasers and red dot holo sights (outdoors) have not been productive. My eyes will not see tiny red dots wherever they are.

So my next fun experiment is to mount a pistol scope on my MKIII 22/45.. I think. I have seen a few comments elsewhere about 2X and 4X pistol scopes.
It seems that these are typically ring mounted (1inch tubes) and the rings would have to attach to the Ruger's weaver rail. I think they are single focal length (at infinity?).

So, what does the forum team have as commentary and recommendations for type / brand?

Blast away, have fun, Be safe.

Recently bought an NcStar 2-7x32 on eBa y for $47.99 shipped and put it on my Great Eight MarkII 22/45. Worked great, so good that I had a Weigand rail put on my .38/.357 60th Anniversary Blackhawk and works great there also,just ordered another one to put back on the 22/45. Used the rings that came with the scope.

[blue68f100]

When you start using magnification you will see all of your movement. In most case you will be shooing off of a rest. If your not going to use a rest you need to find a pistol scope that offers you full arm extension (or how you will use it) focal length. Nikon with the ER series offers this, Leopold also has a longer eye relief. Most pistol scopes have a focal length <12". As the magnification goes up in general the eye relief goes down. If your going to use a rest you can also use rifle scopes too. I have mounted a 3x9 on my MKIII one time just for play. You do need to keep the end of the scope back from the muzzle to keep the lens clean of powder residue.

The plus side if using a hi-power scope is you no longer need a spotting scope.

[charlesb]

I've been using a Burris 2x handgun scope on my MkIII for a quite a while now, it goes on my walks around the farm with me, most mornings.

I forget what I paid for it but whatever it was, it was a great deal. I am very happy with this scope.

( Click image to see it full-size. )



It has stainless rings now, and the front sight is gone.

On my .357 Maximum Contender I have a Bushnell 2-7x variable, but I've noticed that I always use it in 2x.

At higher magnification, your shakes are magnified too, a real confidence sapper. With handguns I tend to shoot better with low magnification, but with rifles its a different story.

[Coach1]

Thanks all. I will do some research re: the brands / models you posted.
This may take a little careful analysis.. and trying things out at the next gun show in town. I visited my favorite LGS on Saturday and they did not have any pistol scope on hand just now (BSA seems to be their brand to sell). I think I will lean toward the single magnification - 2X - type. I do not use a rest at the range for pistol practice. So, the shakes and shorter eye relief associate with higher power magnification will limit to the lower gain scopes.

I would gladly welcome any other suggestions or opinions.

[Yleefox]

My suggestion Coach, if you're going to hand hold the pistol is as little magnification as you can get. You will find it much easier to shoot with a 2x vs a 7x for instance.

I use a Burris 2x7, set on 7 on my t/c contender. It requires some effort to align the crosshairs and eye, in the same manner each shot. I also use a rifle scope on the pistol (barrel chambered in .223) and it works great with a bipod. I sight through it in the same manner as if it were mounted on a rifle, with the exception of their is no stock to lean my cheek against. Recoil will cause it to just bump my eye protection.

Hope my rambling will help

Y

[Pete D.]

Coach: I am thinking that, if you cannot see the dot in a red dot scope - turned up bright - then you are going to have the same difficulty seeing crosshairs. For outdoor use, a tube-type red dot, like an Ultradot, may be a better choice than a holo.
"Finding the dot" is a common problem when using that type of sight the first few times. It becomes easy to do in short order.
Others have commented about avoiding magnification - remember everything gets magnified, including all of your normal oscillations.

Give the red dots another try or two - there is a good reason that that type of scope has replaced traditional glass on match guns.
Burris used to make a "Bullseye Pistol Scope" which offered a 1.1X actual magnification (could be had at 1.7X also) . It was fairly popular amongst Conventional Pistol shooters until red dots came along - which were smaller, lighter and easier to see.
The Burris scope was sold by Gil Hebard. As far as I know, it is no longer made.

Pete

PS- About NCStar dot sights. I bought two of them because they were so affordable. Neither worked at all when taken from the box.
Very poor quality.
p

[blue68f100]

Coach, Does your red dot have a larger Dots you can set it at. Some have as large as a 5 moa but 3moa is std on most.

When using a dot scope don't focus on the dot, focus on the target. When you get things align up the dot will appear. Hunting for the dot will give you eye strain and makes it harder.

Now my dad has a retina degeneration which gives him a blind spot in one eye. There is nothing they can do for that, so he moved from rifles to shotguns. I tried to get him to shoot right handed so he can use his good eye but he want do it. Have you checked to see if your non-shooting eye can see things better.

If your having problems with your current dot sight a holographic site more than likely will give you the same results and a std scope may yield the same. And are harder to see if the lighting is wrong. I think the only other option would be a laser beam......

Do you have a rifle with a scope on it you can look through to see if you can see the cross hairs? If not go to your LGS and look through some scopes and see if you can see through them. If you have problem on that I'm afraid your SOL. If you can see through them most have atleast 1 pistol scope. Hold it up and take a peak, you will then need to see how close or far you need to be in order to see through it.

Good luck....

[snuffy]

I've scopes & red dots. Dots seem to be sensitive to individuals internal eye issues like astigmatism, onset of cataracts, prescription needs ~ otherwise most personal stuff that is less noticeable w/conventional optics ~ even dry eye. Its an 'expectation' thing. Its called red dot and we expect it to be red (usually not an issue) and a round dot. But for many of us, due to the above, the dot may not appear perfectly round, but flared, distorted slightly and that troubles us. Once had an EO Tech w/dot-circle reticle that was grainy due to my clouding/cataract issue. I realize and accept this and don't allow myself to get obsessive compulsive w/it. However, dots are like q u i c k compared to other sighting arrangements.

As for scopes on MK II MK III, I opted for the ruger style base used for the MK II allowing use of the OEM Ruger rings. Thats just a personal issue. w/me as have ruger rings on all my Rem/Winchester/ABolt rifles too.
That said, I like the Bushnell family of variable power scopes like the Elite 3200 and Trophy on my handguns. Reason being they're dependable and of good value and until just recently, very little change/shift in eye relief if any, w/change of power. I say just recently as they've updated their line and shifted away from the constant eye-relief feature on the Trophy (now Trophy XLT) and replacing the Elite 3200 line w/Elite and not 100% certain if the feature carried over into the replacing Elite series or not. Typically the Elite 3200/Elite are out of my budget line but picked up a couple on their recent clearance.Of course one can avoid all that w/a simple fixed power scope.

My take is if I could only have one, it would be Ultra Dot 30mm tube type red dot and I'm like about 2yrs away from needing cataract surgery ~ thats just me ~ they're all good.

[Coach1]

Dave.. Thanks for all the interest. I have a Red Dot (AIM ) with selectable reticules and brightness. I picked it up at a gun show. I thought I had a winner. In my bonus room and back yard I could see the Dot readily. But it is only suitable for a rifle or shotgun (not my MkIII). The geometry of the sight is such that one cannot crank it down enough to get POA close to POI at 30 feet. I may try it on my shooting buddy's brand new M&P AR 15-22 this weekend.

I then tried an NC Star red dot holo. I can see it well enough in the bonus room but outdoors is beyond me. My son-in-law sees it ok. So I think that is just my older eyes having limits with small red dots in daylight.

I shoot my Ruger 10/22 using a 3x9 40mm scope and have no trouble seeing the cross-hairs. Y took this rifle / scope combination to the range last weekend and will do so again. I forgot how much fun that little rifle is. BTW, the RO let us fire about 30 M855 green tip 5.56 rounds thru his DPMS Panther Arms AR-15 . Awesome!

Snuffy, Thanks for the info and references. I will definably check out a Ultra Dot 30mm tube type red dot. I have read that Green Dots are easier to see for many folk. So I will investigate them also.

Thanks to all.

[arizona-hermit]

Snuffy, Thanks for the info and references. I will definably check out a Ultra Dot 30mm tube type red dot. I have read that Green Dots are easier to see for many folk. So I will investigate them also.

Thanks to all.

Coach,

I too have problems seeing thru scopes and red dots, but mounted an Ultra Dot 30mm on my Ruger MKII, 10 incher and absolutely LOVE it.

[Redleg]

I mounted an Aimpoint H-1 on my Ruger Mark III and it is an extremely good red-dot sight; maybe the best.

Before you give up on red-dot sights you might give it a try. The tube-type of red-dot has certain advantages over the holographic/reflex variety.

[Coach1]

Thanks again, guys. Last Saturday, my LGS had a red dot tube scope (1X) already mounted on a MK II he had on consignment. I checked it out in the store and could see it well enough at the highest brightness setting. So, I agree that the tube type red dot may have an advantage for me versus the open holo red dot sight. I will definitely include that type in my research / assessment.

[Redleg]

Thanks again, guys. Last Saturday, my LGS had a red dot tube scope (1X) already mounted on a MK II he had on consignment. I checked it out in the store and could see it well enough at the highest brightness setting. So, I agree that the tube type red dot may have an advantage for me versus the open holo red dot sight. I will definitely include that type in my research / assessment.

Good luck with your adventure. I tried three red-dot sights before settling on the Aimpoint H-1. Here are my reviews of it and two other red-dot sights on Amazon.com:

Amazon.com: Roger J. Buffington's review of Aimpoint H-1 4 MOA Micro Sight

Amazon.com: Roger J. Buffington's review of Leupold DeltaPoint Reflex Sight (All Mount...

Amazon.com: Roger J. Buffington's review of Truglo® Multi - Reticle / Dual Color Open ...

If you enjoy any of these reviews I would appreciate a "helpful" click on Amazon.

[stork]

Redleg,
Have you played with the tracking on your H-1?

If so, is it repeatable? (my concern is clicking up & down when going back & forth from 50 yards to 25 yards and back without having to run several shots through the pistol to settle the scope in).

Are they click adjustments (both tactile and audible)?

Any issues with bright sun vs indoors?

Any data on it holding up on a slide mount on a 1911?

I currently run 6 Ultra Dots on a variety of 22's & 45's and absolutely love the durability and crisp dot. But, every single one will not track reliably. On the 22's it's not an issue-If I could hold hard enough there is maybe only 1 click difference between the centers of the x at 25 and 50 yards. This is not the case with the 45, there should be 6 clicks difference when using the best loads for the respective distances.

While I'm not crazy about spending more on one dot as I did for 4 other Ultra Dots, if it does what I need I would pick one up.

FWIW