Scopes on handguns

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Maybe it's me, but I can't get a sight picture using a scope on a handgun unless I am bench resting. or resting the gun on something. How do you guys do it standing or sitting offhand???? Or is the proper way to use a scoped handgun from a rest. (I'm using a 9.5" super redhawk with a 2x Simmons which may be part of the problem.)

 

[Engineer1911]

Start with something a little lighter with a dot sight, maybe a Ruger Mk II with a 1" tube dot sight. Conventional pistol scope cross hairs are a real challenge to hold steady especially on a 6# handgun held at arms length.

There is a strong possibilty that Simmons scope will be missing the cross hairs after the first cylinder of 44 mag ammo. You will have a dot sight minus the dot. I have several Simmons scopes mounted on 22 LR or 223 Rem firearms that have given excellent service.

 

[35Rem]

limp wrister...

 

[venomballistics]

well ... your in 44 mag turf here ... my advice is not to go cheap on your optics. there are butloads of optics out there that just will not stand up to the recoil of a 44 magnum handgun.

Leupold is usually a safe bet and a good starting point. check out their line of pistol intended products and actually look through these offerings. If it means a wooden block mount with velcro rings on a toy gun, so be it. Hold and aim with it as you intend to use it till you find some optics that'll actually work.
Resreach is your friend .. Leupold is not the only one who can build a proper scope.
Actually they can all build a proper scope .... its just that not all of them actually do.
look for stuff users report holding up to the 44 magnum and meaner.
Not just a string of 25 rounds to sight in, but rather those who have pounded many rounds through their pieces. These things take time to fail and many of the joe q hunter types who fire five rounds a year at most often sing the praises of equipment that will fail, but havn't gotten to the breaking point yet.
the way I see it, if a scope can make it past 500 rounds, it'll probably be on that gun well past 5000.
IME no cheap optic ever made it past 300 atop a 44 magum

 

[Engieman]

OP - I'm not sure you can ever hold it steady, at least I never could. I had a 2X Leupold, Burris mount on my 629, beautiful set up....but the magnification makes any movement that much more noticeable, and distracting! I also found that even with the minimal weight of the scope, it made the ergonomics and hold much harder to manage, completely changed the feel of the gun. I eventually sold the scope, and installed a Leupold Delta-Point. Much, much better set up...and great for 'old eyes.' There are other red dots on the market at a cheaper price, but cannot compare to the quality, clarity and field of view of the Leupold. I also like fact that the Leupold mount is specifically made for the S&W revolver. Keeps the sight close to the bore line, streamlines the whole package. They have two versions, a 7moa Delta image (appropriate for plates, etc.), and a 3moa dot. The 3 is my choice for target, Bullseye work. Attached photo of my 627. Have one on my 625 as well.

 

[finesse_r]

In my younger days long, long ago I had a 7 ½” Ruger Super Redhawk in .44 magnum with a Leupold Gold Ring Pistol Scope. It was a Leupold Vari-X 2.5 x 8 EER silver in color. The scope worked fine, but I never did get a deer with it and finally decided the only thing that should have a scope on it was a rifle. I sold both the Ruger Super Redhawk and the pistol scope, and I only regret selling the Ruger.

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

Shooting offhand, can you hold the gun where you naturally would or are you having to bring in your hands to compensate for the scope not having quite enough eye relief? I looked at some different 2x handgun scope ratings and the Simmons had the shortest eye relief of all 2x scopes listed-- 9-17inches. If you are having to change the way you would otherwise hold the gun it can make a big difference in your ability to hold alignment while shooting offhand.

Only have one handgun scope. It's a cheapo BSA Edge 2x $50. Got it because it has a whopping 20 inches of eye relief. Shooting offhand, just raise it up and look though it with both eyes open. No problem.



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[walkin jack]

I once put a Bushnell Red Dot 1X On my Mk II. That is a very accurate pistol and I didn't really get any improvement on my targets with it. Plus the fact that in bright sunlight the dot can be hard to see. I eventually took it off and went back to the factory sights.

Still knockin' the bulls eyes out at 25yds with no problem. Maybe a traditional scope might work but I'm through with the red dots.

Start with something a little lighter with a dot sight, maybe a Ruger Mk II with a 1" tube dot sight. Conventional pistol scope cross hairs are a real challenge to hold steady especially on a 6# handgun held at arms length.

There is a strong possibilty that Simmons scope will be missing the cross hairs after the first cylinder of 44 mag ammo. You will have a dot sight minus the dot. I have several Simmons scopes mounted on 22 LR or 223 Rem firearms that have given excellent service.

 

[Brian41]

I could never properly use a scope on a handgun. I do have red dots on my Super Blackhawk and a Ruger MKII that I like real well. I've taken several deer with the SBH too.
It was the magnification with scopes that messed me up and the 1X with the red dots and both eyes open seem to work well for me at least.
BTW don't go cheap on the red dot or scope either as I had a Tasco red dot fall apart back in the boondocks while deer hunting and fortunately had my Remington 700 as well.

 

[rburg]

If ya stop usin' a 2nd rate off brand handgun, things might work out better for ya!

 

[steveno]

I have used the 2x Leupold pistol scope on TC Contenders (357 max & 41 mag) , a Ruger SST Super Blackhawk and a Ruger Government 22 auto. for a pistol scope the Leupold is the only way to go because they can take the punishment of a 44 mag with no problems. if you are going to have a scope it is a lot better from a rested position of some kind.

I have used the 4X Leupold pistol scope on TC Contenders in 223 Remington and 221 Fireball. eye relief with a 2X ain't too critical but with the 4X it drove me crazy and you had better use a rest with the 4X otherwise it will be an exercise in futility.

the other problem with a scope of handgun is portability. it isn't that big of a deal to put a sling on a TC Contender but for a revolver it ain't quite as handy.

if for some reason you have problems with a Leupold scope their customer service is first rate. I did have to send a scope back to Leupold but I had it back in 2 weeks.

 

[PALADIN85020]

Caj,

The only reason for a scope on a handgun is to get a single sighting plane. For that purpose, even a 1x scope will do. If you go anything over 1.5x, it will only magnify hand tremor and make it difficult to locate your target. And these scopes are best mounted on a really precision handgun. Although I have scoped other handguns in the past, my best success has been with this Leupold 1.5X, mounted on the XP-100 chambered for the .221 Fire Ball. It will get the job done at 100 yards and beyond; it's a fairly low recoil handgun (about like a .38 special in a light revolver), and inasmuch as it's a rifle in handgun form, it's way accurate. I've scoped a 629 8 3/8", but with the recoil and the bulk of the combined package, I was never entirely happy with it. And yes, the best way to connect with a scoped handgun is from a rest, braced sitting, or prone. You are trying to make a handgun into a rifle; it doesn't work unless you are rock steady.

John

 

[RYNO]

OP - I'm not sure you can ever hold it steady, at least I never could. I had a 2X Leupold, Burris mount on my 629, beautiful set up....but the magnification makes any movement that much more noticeable, and distracting! I also found that even with the minimal weight of the scope, it made the ergonomics and hold much harder to manage, completely changed the feel of the gun. I eventually sold the scope, and installed a Leupold Delta-Point. Much, much better set up...and great for 'old eyes.' There are other red dots on the market at a cheaper price, but cannot compare to the quality, clarity and field of view of the Leupold. I also like fact that the Leupold mount is specifically made for the S&W revolver. Keeps the sight close to the bore line, streamlines the whole package. They have two versions, a 7moa Delta image (appropriate for plates, etc.), and a 3moa dot. The 3 is my choice for target, Bullseye work. Attached photo of my 627. Have one on my 625 as well.

That sight looks just like the J-point I have on my 610, I absolutely love my J-point sight. I've shot hundreds of rounds through it without an issue, other than losing the cover..

It also has a S&W specific mount.

 

[2152hq]

I could never get used to a scope on a handgun either. Never seemed natural to hold & point. Certainly can't see much thru them!

The only rifles I have with them are the 4 that I bought that happened to come w/a scope.
I did buy a nice pre-27 that the guy had a Leupold scope on and because of that he just couldn't sell the gun. I bought the outfit for $425 just a couple of years ago and sold the scope and mount. Put the rear sight back on and I'm satisfied.

I have a brother that went to a Red-Dot on a revolver when we shot Bullseye target in the 70's and 80's. Did excellent with it. I couldn't see how! Shot all stages DA too.
Now he has a Weaver K1.5 on a Steven 520 I made up into a slug gun for him, 25" bbl. It's in pivot mts and the gun has a redfield rear peep sight to use as well.
He shoots skeet with it in the off season using the scope to keep sharp. I tried it and it's only by chance that little orange target appears in the scope let alone breaks.

 

[PALADIN85020]

I have a Weaver 1x scope mounted on a Savage 24-C over-under 20 gauge / .223. Great survival gun, and it the scope works for either rifle or shotgun. No magnification, you keep both eyes open and the single-plane sight picture is perfect.

John

 

[LouisianaJoe]

I have Contender barrels with Simmons 2-6X scopes on them. I mostly shoot them from a rest so shake is not an issue. You just have to determine the eye relief for each scope.

For hunting, I would look at a 1X either red dot or scope.

I have this on a Kel-Tec PLR-16 pistol and I can shoot 1" groups at 25 yds with it from a rest. It should work off hand too.
Bushnell Trophy TRS-25 Red Dot Sight 1x 25mm 3 MOA Dot Integral


I am considering getting one of these:
UltraDot Matchdot Red Dot Sight 30mm Tube 1x 2 4 6 8 MOA Dot Matte

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Start with something a little lighter with a dot sight, maybe a Ruger Mk II with a 1" tube dot sight. Conventional pistol scope cross hairs are a real challenge to hold steady especially on a 6# handgun held at arms length.

There is a strong possibilty that Simmons scope will be missing the cross hairs after the first cylinder of 44 mag ammo. You will have a dot sight minus the dot. I have several Simmons scopes mounted on 22 LR or 223 Rem firearms that have given excellent service.

Got your pm and thank you so much for the offer but I think I'm just gonna shoot it with open sights-it points a lot better without anything on top and it's bukly enough with out a red dot or scope. Plus I can hit well enough with open sights-if I need a rifle, I'll use my .44 carbine. Many thanks for the offer though.

 

[kwselke]

Got your pm and thank you so much for the offer but I think I'm just gonna shoot it with open sights-it points a lot better without anything on top and it's bukly enough with out a red dot or scope. Plus I can hit well enough with open sights-if I need a rifle, I'll use my .44 carbine. Many thanks for the offer though.

That's the same conclusion I came to with my scoped SuperRedhawk years ago; except I substitute different caliber carbines.

 

[Hack]

I thought the reason God created trees was to give us a place to steady our firearms?????

PS: I shoot open sights on my Thompson Contender .45-70

 

[sheepdawg]

There is a strong possibilty that Simmons scope will be missing the cross hairs after the first cylinder of 44 mag ammo. You will have a dot sight minus the dot. I have several Simmons scopes mounted on 22 LR or 223 Rem firearms that have given excellent service.

Say what??? This one's had at least 200 rounds through it since I put the Simmons on it and the crosshairs are still there.