Question: Super Redhawk, Red Dot fit?

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Leucoandro

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I have owned a Ruger Super Redhawk in 480 Ruger for many years. It currently wears a 2x20mm Swift Pistol scope. I'm thinking it is time to change things up a bit. I plan to take the scope off of my SRH and mount in on a Benjamin 397 (177 multi-pump pellet rifle).

I want to mount a red dot on my Super Redhawk. My only condition is that the red dot mount with factory rings, preferably 30mm. I'm about ready to pull the trigger on an Ultradot 30, but wanted to make sure it would fit before ordering.

I am also considering the Aimpoint 9000SC as an alternative.

Will either of these two options fit my SRH using factory rings and mounts?

Is there another option that I am overlooking?


Charlie
 
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I have a few of the "tube style" dot optics(3 Aimpoints & 3 budget grade) and generally speaking, they work fine. I think Aimpoint is top of the line and worth the price if you have that budget. It seems to me that the cylindrical batteries like the Aimpoint uses last longer and are easier to replace than the flat style. That type of battery does require more spacing between rings due to the increase in length of the turret area of the tube. I have no experience with the UltraDot although they seem to have a significant following in the action pistol world. Those will work with most ring/base combinations. Viewing pics of the UD, it seems that the Gen 2 tubes have a longer turret area than the Gen 1 do so that might be something to consider.
UltraDot is about 1/2 to 2/3 the price of AimPoint.
 

contender

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UltraDot is an excellent choice.

Airguns require different optics than handguns due to their different physics in recoil. You can damage a normal firearm scope on an airgun.
 

Leucoandro

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Mobuck said:
I have a few of the "tube style" dot optics(3 Aimpoints & 3 budget grade) and generally speaking, they work fine. I think Aimpoint is top of the line and worth the price if you have that budget. It seems to me that the cylindrical batteries like the Aimpoint uses last longer and are easier to replace than the flat style. That type of battery does require more spacing between rings due to the increase in length of the turret area of the tube. I have no experience with the UltraDot although they seem to have a significant following in the action pistol world. Those will work with most ring/base combinations. Viewing pics of the UD, it seems that the Gen 2 tubes have a longer turret area than the Gen 1 do so that might be something to consider.
UltraDot is about 1/2 to 2/3 the price of AimPoint.

I have heard great things about the ability of UltraDot red dots to handle handgun recoil. The UltraDot model I have been considering is a GEN 1 UltraDot 30. I sure would like to know a little more about battery life on UltraDots (would I be able to run the battery for 12hours a day, for 4 days without replacing?)


I also am really fond of Aimpoints. I have used the older Aimpoint COMP M2, and newer COMP M4.

Good point about the turret/ring area on the Aimpoints. Looking at pictures of SRHs with Aimpoint 9000 optics online, I think the Aimpoint 9000SC should have enough clearance between the turret area and the rings to change batteries, but I sure would like to know for sure before buying. I really like the idea of being able to put batteries into an optic before season begins, and being able to leave the optic on the entire season without having to worry about a dead battery.

Thank you,


Charlie
 
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The Ultra Dot 30 on the Super Redhawk would be a fine choice, it's a well made optic.

I'll reiterate what Contender said. Be very careful putting a firearm scope on a pellet gun, the physics of the recoil are completely different between a firearm and a pellet gun. Air gun scopes are designed around the way the recoil happens when firing an air gun, it is completely different. IIRC, the peak recoil happens very quickly in a pellet gun (sharp ramp) versus in a firearm (slower ramp). Even though you are talking microseconds and milliseconds, it makes a big difference. I've seen many nice firearm scopes get ruined within a few shots after being mounted on a pellet gun.
 

Leucoandro

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contender said:
UltraDot is an excellent choice.

Airguns require different optics than handguns due to their different physics in recoil. You can damage a normal firearm scope on an airgun.

The UltraDot 30 is top on my list. My main question is on battery life. Aimpoints can be left in for up to 5 years before replacing the battery. That is overkill for me, though it would be nice to know I could accidentally leave my red dot on for a week or 2 and not have to worry about a dead battery while hunting. Do you know what the battery life is like on UltraDot optics?

The air rifle I am planning on putting the scope onto is a multi-pump pneumatic. Everything I have read is that air rifle scope damage is more associated with springers than pneumatic air rifles.

Thank you,


Charles
 
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Even the low budget tube dots will usually run several days if left on. I don't have an UltraDot so can't say on those but I have found AimPoints still working after several months in the case when Son forgot to turn them off.
 

Leucoandro

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contender said:
I've never tested the battery life in my UltraDot's. So far, no issues, and I haven't had to replace any yet.

Thank you. How long would you say you have run your UltraDot on the current battery?
 

Leucoandro

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I am leaning heavily towards a 4MOA dot red dot for my Ruger Super Redhawk. The thinking being that it would be for shooting deer, and maybe hogs, within 50 yards.

Any thoughts on 2MOA dot vs 4MOA dot?


Charlie
 

contender

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I have no clue as to the age of my dots & their batteries. I own more than a few of them, and never worry about such things. UltraDot seems to hold up quite well though.

Personally, I prefer the smaller MOA dots, as a 4 MOA would be a 2" dot at 50 yds. To me,, that's too much room for error. I like the 2MOA dots myself.
 
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Using our assisted sighting device, I've done a lot of aiming with a dot optic both at game and targets. I found that as long as the dot isn't significantly larger than the gun's accuracy potential (4moa dot for a 4moa shooter) aiming precision isn't an issue. Bigger dots are easier to find or see quickly.
That said, I use a 2 moa dot on my very accurate mostly range use 22/45 because a bigger dot is too imprecise for this specialized pistol.
 

98Redline

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Ultradot lists the battery life between 20 and 4000 hours. I would assume that at full brightness you get 20, and at minimum you get 4000.
Typically I run my dots closer to 50% brightness during the peak of the day and lower levels as light fades. With a set of fresh batteries at the start of the season I have never needed to replace a set mid season. Even if I did the couple of CR2032 batteries in my pack take up almost no space and can be replaced in about 2 minutes.

I will give my full throated approval to the UltraDot. Mine has stood up to 12 years of pounding from my 44 mag shooting an almost exclusive diet of full throttle hunting loads. It has never so much as flickered and has held zero like a rock.

Max Prassic (Whitworth on this forum and several others) has run Ultradots on just about every caliber out there including 475 Linebaugh and I don't think he has ever had a problem with one. He probably shoots more in a year than most of us will over the course of 10 years.
 
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