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Man aiming a shotgun with red dot
Well, it is, and here’s what putting a red dot on your shotgun can do for you:
- You can engage targets easier.
- Gives you better aim during those deer, turkey, and waterfowl hunts.
- You don’t have to worry about losing your sight in low-light or forested settings.
Do I Really Need One, Though?
That’s really up to you. It’s certainly not going to hurt you, and there are a number of people who swear by them when shooting slugs and going deer hunting. Personally, as a turkey hunter, I think a red dot sight can make a hell of a difference. But if you’re not used to shooting with your red dot sight, it might actually slow you down when compared to the bead sight, or whatever other type of sight comes standard with your gun. So if you’re going to be using your red dot in places where speed might be a necessity, like hunting waterfowl or blasting clay pigeons out of the sky, you’ll want to get acquainted with it before putting it to practical use.
1. Your accuracy improves
If you’re a hunter then you’ve probably been in one of those situations where an animal set itself up perfectly, but you weren’t ready to take the shot. Maybe you were situated at an angle where you couldn’t reposition yourself without blowing your cover and scaring your target away, and that forces you to take a shot from an awkward angle. If you’re working with the bead sight and you’re not precisely locked on your target and ready to go, you’re probably going to miss the shot. Or, at the very least, not get that clean kill that you want. But if you’re using a red dot sight, you get a better idea of where your projectiles are going to fly.  It’ll let you know how (and if) you can squeeze off that shot from an awkward position and still hit your target…its a lot easier to put dot on the thing than to line up a bead with the thing.
2. Good Red Dots are Built to Last
No matter how tempting it may be, resist the urge to buy a low-end red dot sight that’s going to get completely scrambled by your recoil.  Yes, a good red dot like a Trijicon, an Aimpoint, or an EOTech.  They’ve been tried, tested, and used in high-stress situations and still keep on ticking – your little bit of recoil isn’t going to do anything to them. Of course, not everybody has Aimpoint money, and its a little silly to put a dot on a gun that only costs about half of what the optic does.  If you’re looking for affordable optics that work well, but won’t break the bank (or break on you) check out our affordable optic recommendations. Another good thing about red dot sights is that you’re not left in a complete jam if one ever did die on you (unlikely) in the middle of a hunt.  You just take it off and continue shooting with your bead sight. It’s as simple as that.
3. If your shotgun has a Picatinny rail then why not?
If you don’t want to go through the trouble of mounting a Picatinny rail to your shotgun, I completely understand why you wouldn’t care about a red dot.  But if your shotgun already has a rail, why would you not want to give yourself a tactical advantage?  Especially when most optics can be mounted in a few seconds.
Heck, for EOTech optics, taking your red dot on and off is as simple as pulling a lever. And keeping your red dot running smoothly is a matter of having AA or lithium batteries on hand. Everything else just sorts itself out.
If you’re someone who’s tried red dot sights years back and decided they weren’t for you, give them another go.  The technology has increased by leaps and bounds over the past couple of years. You won’t find these new sights sucking all the power out of a battery in an hour, fogging up, or cracking at the slightest brush against a tree.
They’re built tough and are designed to help you get the job done.
What You Should Look For in a Good Red Dot
Whether you want a red dot sight to help you on your hunts, improve your accuracy in shooting competitions, or you simply want a tactical advantage in a home defense situation, you’re going to need to have a red dot that’s 100% dependable.  Let’s cover some of the things you need to look at before you spend money on a red dot sight for your shotgun.Is it durable?
Your shotgun isn’t a 9mm, it’s going to kick like a donkey!  You need an optic that’s able to absorb your recoil without breaking. Remember that red dot sights are still electronics, and underneath their hard casing lies sensitive electrical components that make sure the sight works properly.  Mounting a cheapo to your shotgun and spending significant time firing slugs and other heavy loads is going to throw off your zero setting or break the sight completely if it’s not a good one.
Are the lenses sturdy?
After you get used to using a red dot, you’ll begin to really appreciate it in dimly lit settings where it’s hard to make out your target. An optic with a good set of lenses is designed to allow for maximum light transmission so that you can still functionally use your red dot optic at the crack of dawn. You also need to see how much wear and tear the lenses can handle and if they’re fog resistant or not. Most of the good red dot sights have lenses that are reinforced, scratch resistant, and strong enough to handle a little clanging and banging. But it doesn’t hurt to do your research beforehand – even EOTech had durability issues in the past (they’ve fixed them now).
Are the visuals good?
What’s the point of looking through the lenses if you can’t even make out where you’re aiming?  Always give a red dot sight a test run before you make your purchase.  Make sure that your sight is able to provide a bright picture of the reticle that’s visible in a number of different scenarios, even if it’s incredibly bright outside (or indoors).
11 Leave a Reply
Why do they not make a red dot site without a frame around the glass ?
Stumbled upon this article, read it, then stumbled over my jaw on the floor when I saw that I was the author. Same name, same spelling, same complexion, copper hair, and bearded face. Holy red dot doppelgänger! Only difference is… I would have mentioned the Sightmark Ultra Shot M-spec as a worthy wallet-friendly alternative to Eotech.
Post a picture!
Im gonna try the Mossbeg 590A1 and Truglo 30mm Dual Color combo :)
I have a citori over and under can I mount a red dot sight on this gun. Has a rid on top of the barrel
Email is michael.lonergan@mlfire .com
I have not looked at all of your items yet, but what I see it is going to be very valuable.
Wow this guy buys into Joe Bidens buy a shotgun ideology. Just point and pull the trigger. Yeah. Try that at 50 yards or even 25 with a slug.
Also. Just because a shotgun has recoil doesn't mean the red dot takes that much force. Reciprocating pistol slides produce way more energy for a sight to deal with than a shotgun.
Any advice on how to go about zeroing a red dot on a personal defense shotgun? Is there a particular distance you would recommend, or is it completely dependent on things like the maximum distance you'd be likely to shoot? For something like a carbine I'd zero based on the maximum point blank range for the round, and ideally I'd want to do the same for a shotgun, but I have no idea how to determine that for a particular round of buckshot.
10 yards, generally, is an HD zero. I set up a large cardboard target, pattern the gun once, adjust the dot so it is centered in the pattern, shoot again to make sure it's right, and I'm done.
Well, I'm one of those guys that loves shooting but doesn't have the budget to keep up. I buy budget guns so I can have access to different firearms to familiarize myself with. I figure if I can get proficient with cheap stuff, I'll be better prepared to justify the expense of better quality weapons when the Mrs starts questioning my purchases lol. That being said, I just bought my first shotgun, an H&R Pardner Pump Protector. I mounted an old Aimpoint 1000 on it last night. I figure even though it's old it's better quality than the $40 Barska I bought for my M1 carbine (I.B.M.). I bought the H&R strictly for home defense and thought a red dot would help in low light situations during an early morning/late night home invasion. After reading this article, it looks like I was on point...Aimpoint bwahahahaha Dad jokes!
You stated some powerful advantages to red dot sights and I fully agree. You failed to consider a disadvantage - reliability. Maybe its just an old school, naive way of thinking but electronics fail, batteries die (or worse leak), glass gets broken. It is hard to find anything that is as battle hardened and reliable as good old fashioned iron sights. Even if you disagree with my assessment of iron sights you can certainly appreciate the advantage of having redundant sighting systems. Kind of a belt AND braces approach. As advocates of red dots sights do you know of a way to get them to cowitness with the iron sights that come with modern shotguns. My investigation has consistently found red dot base plates the obscure the rear iron sight. I'm looking for a solution. With rifle sights, a true cowitness can be achieved but in my search some have the opinion that a 3 moa offset of the red dot carries a tactical advantage. What are your thoughts? I would also like to hear more about the differences between reflex and holographic sights.
Thanks