Understanding Handgun Scopes

Purchasing a handgun scope is not exactly the same as purchasing a rifle scope. There are certain considerations that must be taken into account for a handgun, and it's important for the potential buyer to understand these considerations. This will make the process of purchasing the pistol scope that much easier and more accurate. Remember, just as you can purchase used shot guns for sale, you can also handgun scopes for sale. Be sure to check this out, before deciding which one to buy.

What Makes a Handgun Scope Unique?

Today's handguns have much higher recoil than do most rifles or other guns. It is, therefore, very important to have a scope that is specifically made for a handgun, and not to try to use a rifle scope for your handgun. Handgun scopes take great care in ensuring that they have extended eye relief so that the recoil from the gun doesn't hurt the hunter. These scopes will not only endure a great amount of recoil, but will remain accurate while doing so year after year. These scopes also offer incredibly bright, crisp sight pictures, rich visual details and great contrast.

Magnification

While you might want a high magnification for a rifle scope, you do not generally need one for a pistol scope. Usually, a 2-point scope will be plenty, unless you intend to use your handgun for long range target shooting.

Red Dot Scopes

Red dot scopes are one particular type of handgun scope that first came onto the market in the 1990s. They allow the user to find the target very quickly in all conditions, especially in low light situations. They are also not affected by side to side movement by the target as the eye moves position. This helps to make the shot more accurate. You should, however, take into consideration two disadvantages of the red dot scopes. They don't usually allow for magnification, and come in 1x. This is not such a problem, as explained above with the range that handgun shooters use. The other disadvantage is if the red dot scope runs out of battery power in the middle of your hunt or competition. This can certainly be a hassle, and is something to consider when purchasing this type of scope.

Holographic Sites

This type of handgun scope projects the reticle on a clear plane within the shooter's line of site. They create the fastest type of follow up shots of any type of handgun scope and are pretty new to the market. They were first made available by Bushnell, and are now sold by a number of companies.

Price

It's always best to spend extra money, if you can afford to do so, to get a higher caliber scope. Handgun scopes, in particular, need to be made well, as the recoil that the scope has to endure is much more extreme than it is for a regular rifle or shotgun scope. If you simply want to have a scope to shoot at rabbits once in a while, then a lower level scope will be fine. If you're hoping to mount the scope on a fancy pistol that packs a lot of power, then you will probably want to spend more to get your money's worth.