Sight Gauge

are red dot sights good for deer hunting?

I will be using a mossberg 500 12 gauge with a 22" rifled barrel for deer hunting and want to know if a red dot sight will go good with the gun or do i just need to buy a scope

Public Comments

1. Lol nah, I have a mosberg 500 also! And a savenge, and a marland... just be original and hunt with a scope or plain sights,
2. No!!! Lol get the scope I have never had good results with a red dot sight. Although the scope may be more expensive it is a better decision to hunt with that... If you don't want to spend the money on a scope it is very easy to change scopes from a different gun and you could sight it in in prob like 30 minutes so I would choose a scope
3. A red dot sight is MUCH better than just using the bead sight, or vent rib. I'm guessing that your 22" rifled barrel has "rifle sights" installed, but in my experience, red dot sights, open or tube type, will BOTH be more accurate for your use. Open type red dot sights offer higher visibility than rifle sights (more head's up shooting style), while the magnification offered by tube type red dot sights offer distinct advantages as well.
4. Red dot is not something I would consider for deer hunting. Get a good scope
5. You can use a red dot sight for hunting. But i wouldn't go anything less than an EOTech red dot. The NcStar cheap ones are cheap and they have a nasty tendency to go out of alignment. A 12 gauge recoil will through it off. You'll also need to buy the right M1913 Picatinny rail to slide the sight on. EDIT: Its the cheap $29.99 NcStar red dot that get our of alignment. Read the reviews on amazon on them.
6. I personally think the Red Dot is amazing to have on a gun especially the 500. Theyre prqactically made for each other. I think a scope for a shotgun is a little rediculous. (I come from a long family of hunters and its not like they were using rifle scope on a shotgun) And It kind of makes you look like youre a bad shot if your with friends (Ive been there) But I love the red dot because you can quickly get to your target if the deer is moving. You dont need to worry about the recoil of the gun hitting your face and its alot more accurate then just using a bead sight. A red dot sight will do fine for what your using. Go for it Just make sure its on their really tight so the recoil of the gun wont kick it out of alignment.
7. Red dot and green dot do not show up well under many light conditions, if your looking for a shot scope you should take a look at Nikon Prostaff shotgun hunter it cost $150 range or Leupold VXI shotgun $210 range both are great scopes and are available at http://www.shooterscenter.com
8. I hunt in a pine thicket and my shots are rarely over 40 yards. The red dot is perfect for this type of hunting with slugs.
9. They can be... My wife has a red dot sight on her .357 Magnum, and has so far taken 2 deer with it... At her self imposed limit of 50 yards, it works just fine, and I'm sure it would work just as well on your Mossberg.