scope or red dot for hunting

[Romanarcher]

I just purchased a 686 p 7" SS .357 with the idea of deer hunting with it. I would like to put either a scope, red dot, or reflex sight on it. Since I'm new to pistol hunting, I would like any information I can get to help make my decision. Will be hunting in South Dakota and Montana with this rig.

 

[scooter123]

IMO it will depend mostly at the range you expect to be shooting at. I have J Point reflex sights mounted to 3 of my revolvers and they work very well for me out to about 40 yards where I can shoot a 4 inch or smaller groups provided I have some type of rest.

Once the target gets out to 50 yards or more, I need a scope.

BTW, for the 357 Magnum I consider 4 inches the functional limit for a clean kill on a deer. Fact is that it's slightly marginal on power at longer ranges and spending 8 or 10 hours tracking a wounded animal isn't much fun. It's why most handgun hunters that I know start with the 41 Magnum and go up, raw power does a lot to compensate for a slightly muffed shot.

The problem with any red dot sight is that the dots can cover a rather large area at long range. Yeah, many claim to have 4 MOA dots or even less, however in my experience those claims tend to be a bit optomistic.

Upside to the reflex sights such as my J Point is that it takes very little work to carve a bit of clearance in an off the rack holster and it's quite close to the bore axis so you don't have the convergence issues created by a large offset. Since in Michigan Deer hunting means brush busting it's pretty rare to take any deer more than 40 yards out, so the J Point is nearly ideal.

Upside for a scope is that the variable power offerings allow you to really refine your aim point at long ranges. However, you'll have to give up on any intake of caffiene or the shake will drive you a bit nuts.

Downside for a scope is they can make for a rather heavy package. In addition, you'll find that holsters that can accomidate a scope run to rather high cost. Finally, I would recomend that you supplement the scope with a good rangefinder and take care to acquaint yourself with the changes in POI at various ranges because even the Magnums don't approach the flat shooting characteristics of something like a 308.

 

[Mule88]

For Deer hunting, I like a red dot, its easy to pic up in dim light and I prefer it over a standard recticle. However for small game hunting the red dot can cover your target area and then I prefer the standard recticle.

 

[Sportsterguy]

I'd go with a quality Red Dot and never look back. Easy to acquire the target and deadly accurate. Tom Turner turned me onto red dots and I now have an Aimpoint on my RRA AR-15 and am looking for another Aimpoint for my .41 magnum which is a deer slayer extrodinaire. A friend of mine has a Bushness ACOG clone mounted on his Ruger MKII and at 100 yards its pretty darn easy to hit blown up balloons with and at 25 yards the little steel rams can be knocked down with ease. Another plus is you can keep both eyes open so you don't lose your peripheral vision and if you have old eyes you will be shooting like a 25 YO again.

As far as bullet choices you CANNOT go wrong with some 180 gr. Buffalo Bore 180 gr. rounds in your .357. They will take any deer in North America down with authority even with that 4" barrel using a reasonable distance. I personally prefer a 6" model 57 for deer hunting but your 4" .357 will get the job done if you do your part.

 

[scooter123]

Double Tap also offers 180 and 200 grain loads in the 357 Magnum that is suitable for Deer. According to their web site the 180 gn. load clocks at 1420 fps from a 6 inch 686, however factors such as the B/C gap can effect these test results so I tend to take specs like these with a touch of skepticism.

 

[John Eilertson]

My theory is to advise people to use scopes on rifles whenever possible. However, I've used my iron sighted M29 to tag 5 bucks. Despite that, I think you should go with a scope. It'll make carry tougher, I guess, but it should also make for better accuracy. I think a .357 needs a fairly big bullet to take down deer sized game, with a well placed shot, but you can solve that problem. There is little better than repeated practice, so I say scope it up and knock 'em down!

 

[GRIZZLYBEAR]

It depends on the range & the size of the game animal.

I have some of hunting pistols wearing red dots & some wearing scopes.

 

[M2MikeGolf]

I recommend red dot, and in particular, the Aimpoint Micro. However, Doctor and many of the others are extremely good, lightweight and offer fast acquisition. For a handgun, magnification can really cause a depth perception and parallax issue. A red-dot can give you a dimensional, both eyes open natural sight picture perfect for short range hunting.

I carried an M-4 with an Aimpoint red dot in the last years and think it was the best setup ever for combat rifles. Since we were all accustomed to iron sights back then, the red-dot was even effective for 400 meter shooting...and then some. I once qualified expert at night with one and could not believe it. Ever since, I was sold on the red dot concept, enough so that even my rifle scopes all are red-dot these days. I currently have a Aimpoint micro on a Ruger Mark II competition and am amazed at the results. I think on a hunting handgun, they would be superb. Aimpoint makes a brushed aluminum model which looks pretty good with SS handguns.

 

[one eye joe]

I'd go with a quality Red Dot and never look back. Easy to acquire the target and deadly accurate. Tom Turner turned me onto red dots and I now have an Aimpoint on my RRA AR-15 and am looking for another Aimpoint for my .41 magnum which is a deer slayer extrodinaire. A friend of mine has a Bushness ACOG clone mounted on his Ruger MKII and at 100 yards its pretty darn easy to hit blown up balloons with and at 25 yards the little steel rams can be knocked down with ease. Another plus is you can keep both eyes open so you don't lose your peripheral vision and if you have old eyes you will be shooting like a 25 YO again.

As far as bullet choices you CANNOT go wrong with some 180 gr. Buffalo Bore 180 gr. rounds in your .357. They will take any deer in North America down with authority even with that 4" barrel using a reasonable distance. I personally prefer a 6" model 57 for deer hunting but your 4" .357 will get the job done if you do your part.

I TOTALLY AGREE...........

 

[Romanarcher]

Thanks so much everyone for taking the time to help me out with all your knowledge and information. Now all I have to do is make a decision as to which one will work best for me. Great forum and so many knowledgeable people, really glad I joined.

 

[H Richard]

Red Dot's are very good for hunting, especially for any "older" shooter with age related eyesight. But, pay attention the the "Dot Size". They come in 1 minute to 8 minute that I am aware of. An 8 minute dot at 100 yards will cover a 2whole lot of deer, and not give you a decent shot. A smaller dot size, 1 to 3 minute would give you a more precise shot placement.

 

[trulyapostolic]

I recommend red dot, and in particular, the Aimpoint Micro. However, Doctor and many of the others are extremely good, lightweight and offer fast acquisition. For a handgun, magnification can really cause a depth perception and parallax issue. A red-dot can give you a dimensional, both eyes open natural sight picture perfect for short range hunting.

I carried an M-4 with an Aimpoint red dot in the last years and think it was the best setup ever for combat rifles. Since we were all accustomed to iron sights back then, the red-dot was even effective for 400 meter shooting...and then some. I once qualified expert at night with one and could not believe it. Ever since, I was sold on the red dot concept, enough so that even my rifle scopes all are red-dot these days. I currently have a Aimpoint micro on a Ruger Mark II competition and am amazed at the results. I think on a hunting handgun, they would be superb. Aimpoint makes a brushed aluminum model which looks pretty good with SS handguns.

Aimpoint is definitely at the top of the heap for red dots. They don't have the parallax issues of the cheaper brands. Trijicon performs well too. I think for most hunting applications, hunters would be better served with a red dot which is functional out past 100 yards. Sight acquisition is fast and field of view can't be beat. Most people would try to turn the scopes up to maximum magnification which is counterproductive in handgun hunting. Just my .02.

 

[jkc]

There's a special javelina season in AZ, set aside for hunters using only handguns, archery tackle, or muzzleloaders. I try to get a permit for this hunt every year, and use only handguns. I've experimented with open sights (an increasing challenge to aging eyes), conventional scopes (hard to hold steady in a dynamic environment) and red dots, settling on the Aimpoint as the hands-down winner. My current javelina rig is an Aimpoint with a two-MOA dot, and 2X magnification --- handy at close, moving targets (non-critical eye relief), deadly to 200 yards with my Contender Super 14 in .223, if I can hold steadily enough. I'll add my vote to the Aimpoint Micro recommendations!