Optics on a shotgun???

[Marc]

How many of you use optics on your shotgun for turkey hunting?

Has anyone tried them and gone back to the plain ol' shotgun bead?

Coming from a background of wing-shooting, optics have not been something I have really not considered until looking at the turkey forums and YouTube videos with the vast majority of hunters utilizing them...  Most all of my turkey hunting friends are in the same situation as I am, and I can think of nobody that uses optics.

*Are they primarily being used to improve accuracy at close ranges or to extend accuracy at longer
  distances?
*How difficult are they to sight in, and how accurate are they?
*Where is the aim point on the bird with optics (as opposed to where the feathers meet the neck
  using a bead)?
*How quickly can you move mount & shoot with optics (I can do so almost instantly with a bead)?
*What do you like about them and what are the main advantages over a bead?
*What do you dislike about them and what are the main disadvantages over a bead?

I have only looked at them at a sporting goods store...  Looked at some turkey decoys at some distance, and my first thought was that I personally would be tempted to shoot too far, or miscalculate shots...

I will likely stick with my shotgun bead, but maybe I am missing out???  I would love to hear the good, the bad, and the why's of using them...

[TauntoHawk]

I have fast fire reddots on all my turkey guns and couldn't imagine not using them.


I see zero disadvantages to using them. to me they are quicker, more accurate, obstruct the target less. For that they are easy to sight in and hold zero well season to season.

[compton30]

I put a Vortex Venom on my Turkey rig last season and will never go back.

As for your questions,

Aim point on the bird is the same. I think the red dot improves your accuracy at all ranges because the dot is parallax free. Wherever the dot is pointing is where your shot pattern is going, regardless of head placement. This is huge and the biggest advantage of the red dot.

You can mount, aim, and shoot just as quickly with the red dot as you can with a bead.

Mine was super easy to mount on my gun and a breeze to sight in.

I'd say the main disadvantage would be that you have to be aware of it and turn it on and off, which for me took no time at all to become a habit. Also it is battery powered but that's just a non issue in my mind.

Like I said, I'll never go back to anything other than the Venom red dot from Vortex.

[taylorjones20]

I've had the FF3 on mine a few times but I always go back to the trusty bead.  I just never cared for the red dot...

[RED NECK]

I have dabbled over the last handful of years with didfferent scopes,red dots and reflex sights on my turkey guns and always go back to fiber optic sights on them.I just prefer to have an open fiber optic like a truglo tru bead,beard buster or triviz fiber optic on my turkey shotguns.

I have killed birds with scopes,red dots,plain beads and fiber optics.I am 110% more confident and comfortable with a fiber optic sight on my guns.I took my scope off one gun this morning and a reflex off another and I am going with all fiber optics on my 7 different setups this spring.

[Mossyballs]

I have used a scope and a Reddot in past seasons. To me they make the gun feel unbalanced. I am back to a fiber optic bead only and am much happier. Great patterns at 40. Killed one a bit further opening morning due to misjudging the yardage.

I think a bead is best as long as you maintain proper head position. I think the Reddots take that factor out.

[Happy]

I have killed turkeys with both and prefere the dot. It is mainly mental but I feel I am a bit more precise with it.

[Spitten and drummen]

Ff3 on my Benelli super black eagle 12 and my Benelli m2 20ga and a simons pro diamond on my Winchester sx3. Will never use a bead again.

[Boykin Hollow]

I went with a Burris ff3 this year on my benelli 20 gauge.  Got the scope mount from Sumtoy chokes.  I probably will not go back either.  Nikon has a new scope out now that is basically the same as the burris ff3.  You may want to check the reviews on it also.  Might be hard to beat that Burris ff3 though.  It was easy to sight in using regular shells at 15 yards then 30 then 40 using my turkey loads

[Tail Feathers]

I like a red dot.  Never tried a scope tho, but the red dot is real good due to the odd positions you sometimes get into when turkey hunting.
I'm moving my Bushnell TRS25 off tho, it glows orange on the lens and I swear it caused me to get busted a couple times.

[Happy]

That's why I went with the truglo gobblestopper. I had one bust me because of the reflection once and won't use an exposed glass again.

[1iagobblergetter]

I didn't like the sights on my Encore and missed two nice birds in one day a long time ago so instead of wrapping my gun around a tree or slapping myself I topped it with a  Nikon Turkey Pro. I'll probably jinx myself,but I haven't missed a Turkey since. Nothing wrong with beads,but i put the crosshairs on him and lightly squeeze the trigger and its toes up. I dont have to worry about do i have my head down,beads lined up,etc. in the heat of the moment.
I almost always have it turned all the way down to 1.5,but if I need to I can turn it up.
If your shooting good with beads and it's not broke I probably wouldn't try to fix it imo. On that particular gun I didn't like the sights so I fixed it and would never go back..I grab this gun over several other turkey guns I own without optics whenever I turkey hunt.

[renegade19]

Started with a bead, went to a Truglo red dot.  Never looked back.  Easy to install on a Remington with a saddle mount if that's what you're shooting, easy to sight in, good sight picture.  No regrets.

[tomstopper]

Started with a bead, went to a Truglo red dot.  Never looked back.  Easy to install on a Remington with a saddle mount if that's what you're shooting, easy to sight in, good sight picture.  No regrets.

This... Used to just use bead sight but due to my diabetes and just aging, my eyes have changed and its much easier to see the dot vs. bead.

Sent from my XT1710-02 using Tapatalk

[arrow1]

I've had a Simmons 1.5x5 power Pro Diamond on my 11-87 since day one.  I wouldn't change a thing. Down they go with confidence. My belief is it keeps your cheek on the stock versus peeking over a sight on a ribbed barrel perhaps leading to misses. Each to there own of course.  If your pattern is good and your confident when bearing down on a bird that's what count.