Advice for aging eyes and revolver

[52grain]

Folks, I want to put some kind of scope or red dot sites on my Ruger Blackhawk 44 mag pistol. I may not be able to do much better with a scope, but I'd like to try. The rings that came with this hunter model revolver are 1", so I'm limited to that. I'm trying to shoot up to 200 yards. I'm not competing in any discipline, but 200 yards is my goal. What do you recommend?

 

[fdshuster]

Leupold makes some low power handgun scopes, 4x, 6x, etc. And their lifetime warranty may prove to be worth it with the 44 magnum.

I've had problems with some red dot optics. Turn it on to the proper setting and be looking at 2 red dots. Or a splatter instead of a round dot. I would also think they are not as resistant to heavy recoil as the Leupold handgun scopes.

 

[artbosco]

For my aging eyes I've gone to Green Lasers with my pistols but 200 yards is way out of my league. 50 yards is my limit with my Kimber 45.

 

[fdshuster]

That was another thought I had. At 200 yards, unless you had a really huge target, the red dot would cover the entire target. If I were doing the buying, it would be one of the Leupold 2 to 6x handgun scopes.

 

[Ledd Slinger]

Your solution is the Burris 3-12 x 32mm hand gun scope. Plenty of magnification for 200 yards. It's the highest power LER scope I know of. Has 1" tube so should work perfectly. Has good reviews too. Here's a link to check it out
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/150557/burris-pistol-scope-3-12x-32mm-adjustable-objective-ballistic-plex-reticle-matte

Burris isnt the best there is, but they're solid. And they have an 'unconditional, no questions asked' lifetime warranty. I had an old Signature series scope years ago and it had trouble when I accidentally 'threw' it on the ground following a missed shot on a bear : Told them what was wrong, they didnt ask what happened, sent it in, and they fixed it without a word. Lost scope caps 2 times over the years too. Called them and they put them in the mail right away, free of charge. Although I purchase higher end optics nowadays, (***Burris glass is very nice though) I will always look positively on Burris because of their outstanding customer service.

 

[hogpatrol]

Leupold makes some low power handgun scopes, 4x, 6x, etc. And their lifetime warranty may prove to be worth it with the 44 magnum.

I've had problems with some red dot optics. Turn it on to the proper setting and be looking at 2 red dots. Or a splatter instead of a round dot. I would also think they are not as resistant to heavy recoil as the Leupold handgun scopes.

Starting to get the same thing with the red dot scopes, blurry, but in my case it's cataracts.

 

[Ledd Slinger]

I think the big key is to get a scope that has a 'focus'. An unmagnified dot scope and some lower power scopes do not. The Burris I mentioned has a focus, so even with bad eyes, a person should be able to get a really good sight picture and clear reticle on target.

 

[bdale]

Your solution is the Burris 3-12 x 32mm hand gun scope. Plenty of magnification for 200 yards. It's the highest power LER scope I know of. Has 1" tube so should work perfectly. Has good reviews too. Here's a link to check it out
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/150557/burris-pistol-scope-3-12x-32mm-adjustable-objective-ballistic-plex-reticle-matte

Burris isnt the best there is, but they're solid. And they have an 'unconditional, no questions asked' lifetime warranty. I had an old Signature series scope years ago and it had trouble when I accidentally 'threw' it on the ground following a missed shot on a bear : Told them what was wrong, they didnt ask what happened, sent it in, and they fixed it without a word. Lost scope caps 2 times over the years too. Called them and they put them in the mail right away, free of charge. Although I purchase higher end optics nowadays, (***Burris glass is very nice though) I will always look positively on Burris because of their outstanding customer service.

+1
I've had this same scope for years on a 284 winchester xp100 worked perfectly 3x12 Burris

 

[michaelnel]

I have two Leupold FX-II 4x28mm, one has Warne QD mounts on it for a Ruger rail. PM me if interested, as I no longer own the Ruger Bisley .44 magnum I bought it for. Excellent handgun scope!

 

[Valar]

I dont have the answer but I am watching this as my eyes are ageing too

 

[Cort]

I have used a Leupold 2X handgun scope and an UltraDot red dot scope on my pistols. The Leupold affords more precise aiming while the UltraDot affords faster sight acquisition for follow up shots. For 200 yard shooting, I would go with a variable scope of fairly high power. For short range, under 50 yards , a 1X scope is adequate but for greater distance, you will want higher power.

Cort

 

[MarkS]

The Bushnell 2X6 handgun scope is a great scope. I have 3 on guns up to 308 in a Encore 15" holds up to big cals. life time warranty.

Mark Schronce

 

[michaelnel]

I had a Bushnell 2x6 that got destroyed in short order by my .44 magnums. I noticed that the magnification got all screwed up (set on 2x it would give about 4x magnification), and the eye relief shortened to about 8 inches. I sent it in for warranty repair, Bushnell sat on it for about six weeks and sent it back unrepaired, they said it meets specs.

It most certainly does not, and I will never ever buy another Bushnell product.

 

[KWeigel]

I shoot a lot of handgun. In the neighborhood of 3000 44 mag, 1000 .357, 500 480 ruger, and 500 .500 s&w a year. If you must get a variable power scope make SURE it goes down to 2x.

 

[Sniper338]

Lasik eye surgury?

 

[FN in MT]

Be prepared for an education in just how UNSTEADY we are with a handgun. The scope really magnifies ones shakes.

I am an old revolver lover for the past 50+ years. As I've hit my mid 60's my eyes are going and I have issues too. I recall years ago reading an Elmer Keith article in G&A and he mentioned that SHORTER barrels help. A shorter barrel DOES make it easier for me to focus on the frt sight. Or to put it another way...to see it more clearly.

Not much of a fix though if you want to use a 7 1/2" Freedom Arms or an 8 3/8" Smith revolver.

I have a Leupold optical sight on the way for my SIG autos. Going to try it on a 226 X5 first. I'm hoping the small HUD type sight will work for me. I abhor a scope on a handgun...simply doesn't look "right". Then again in a few more years...May be the way I have to go.

The Leupold I'm referring to:
http://www.leupold.com/hunting-shooting/scopes/deltapoint-reflex-sights/deltapoint-pro/


Good Luck.

 

[TAJ45]

Ability to focus on frt sight? I had eyeglasses w lenses made for the distance from eye to front sight. At 6' even & normally proportioned, it was 35" eye to front sight on std 1911 & Smith 41 5.5" hvy bbl. Not a big deal working w the eye guy.

 

[Texas Solo]

Just a word of caution:
I once put a scope on a Ruger .22 pistol. I could see better, but it also magnifies shooter error. I found it impossible to hold steady.

 

[Thepng]

My dad has been slowly converting over his handgun stash to red dot sights to help his aging eyes, and I’ve jumped on the bandwagon since I shoot much better with them and consider it like future proofing. Vortex, Leupold, and holosun all work great for me up to stout 357 loads.

What are you shooting at 200 yards? I occasionally shoot handgun metallic silhouettes out to 200 with a normal red dot, and magnification is not the limiting factor for me shooting unsupported. But those are big targets!

I’ve messed around with scopes on my tc contender, and found that variable zooms tend to have pretty finicky eye relief. The ones I’m happiest with are vintage/used made in Japan fixed scopes in the 1.5 - 2.5x range.

The more experienced silhouette shooters in my club use target rifle scopes in the ‘flop’ prone position, but that’s a pretty specialized setup. I tried shooting one and felt like it was a fraction of an inch away from wacking my eye…not for me yet.