For hunters and fans of sports shooting who want to increase the effectiveness of their weapons, improve the accuracy of the battle, a collimator is best for tuning. It is the 12-caliber collimator sight for fishing weapons that is the most rational version of an optical device. Aiming is carried out by elementary aiming of the beam of the mark on the target, which significantly increases the speed of manufacturing and the shooting itself. The eye of the shooter is at a safe distance from the device, which eliminates injury during kickback. And for beginner hunters, you can’t come up with a better helper. Such sights provide comfortable shooting for people with insufficient visual acuity.
Collimator sight for smoothbore weapons
This type of sight is an electronic optical device. Refers to devices of small multiplicity. In most serial samples, it is equal to unity. The mark is projected onto the front lens (exit screen) of the fixture. The label itself can have various shapes: be in the form of a point, a point in a circle, a square or intersecting lines. Each of the options is designed for a certain distance of fire: up to 100 meters, up to 400 and more than 400 meters. Brand color can be red or green. Ease of use is that the device does not block the target, transmits light and transmits a clear image.
Types and types of sights
Depending on the brand of the device, the backlight methods can be active if they use the energy of the battery, or passive. Active allow you to shoot accurately in the dark and in bad weather conditions. Active stereoscopic project a label for only one right eye. Passive can only be used during daylight hours, their brand is not bright and does not differ in contrast.
Sights are produced in two types: in the form of a tube resembling the appearance of optics, or in the form of a frame with a front lens. The tube consists of an LED emitter and two or more lenses. Such a device is more compact and lighter compared to classical optics, but slightly larger than an open type device. The advantage is good visibility of the mark in bright sunlight. All elements are reliably protected by a strong body from shaking when shooting. A 12 gauge indoor red-dot sight is not very convenient, since this type of weapon is most often used when shooting from an unstable position.
Open type devices have better visibility when shooting and significantly less weight. However, it is difficult to use them even during light precipitation. A variation is the halogen scope, although some experts attribute it to a separate type of equipment. Outwardly, it resembles the frame of an open fixture. However, the brand image is projected onto the output screen by a laser beam. Depending on the hunting conditions, the screen plate can be quickly replaced. It can be used in any weather and in fog.
Features of use
The practice shows that the sights are best installed on the quick-detachable console. If necessary, equipment can be quickly dismantled and the pursuit of game continues. The device allows you to fire from a moving vehicle, as well as hit fast moving objects. On an automatic weapon, it is usually attached to the side of the receiver. Collimator sights are very sensitive to low temperatures. In severe frost, the battery may fail, and the entire device will fail.
True Japanese quality
One of the most common are the Hakko BED collimator sights. Produces them by the Japanese company Tokyo Scope Co., LTD. This means a lot, given that almost all goods are manufactured in China. Brands of almost all industries have their own production capacities in China. Hakko collimator sights to the last screw assembled in Japan. Products are distinguished by high optical characteristics and structural strength. They are made both in closed and open versions. Both that and others provide a choice of one of four labels. In closed fixtures, 11 levels of illumination are possible.
Owners of these devices confirm that the devices are truly waterproof and shockproof, and gas filling the interior prevents fogging. The Hakko collimator sight is highly reliable and is able to withstand recoil of 12-gauge guns. The fixture involves mounting on a Weaver mounting base. Although any Hakko BED collimator sight is not critical to the distance from the shooter's eye: the most acceptable pupil distance from the exit screen is a minimum of 100 mm.
Unrivaled Holographic Sight
Many experts and professional shooters recognize the EOTech American holographic collimator sight as the best example. This is a direct descendant of a military product. The difference between these open-type devices from their counterparts is that they have a laser optical device (the mark is recorded in the form of a hologram and is highlighted by a laser), which gives considerable advantages. Firstly, the brightness of the mark can be adjusted in a wide range - the variator assumes 21 levels. This makes it possible to fire under any weather conditions. Some samples are equipped with a thermal imager and night vision. And secondly, the EOTech collimator sight has virtually no parallax effect. This was achieved thanks to a complex brand projection system. It is visible even in the rain, snow and with heavy pollution. The device remains operational in case of mechanical damage.
Long operating time is achieved due to automatic shutdown. The device can be programmed for 4 or 8 hours. An important advantage is the small size and curb weight. The device is very convenient when used on 12-gauge guns. Many devices include the use of standard batteries: AA size batteries. Batteries can be found in any store. Their replacement occurs by simple manipulation and takes no more than a minute. When changing batteries, the sight of the collimator sight is not required. Overseas products are very expensive. Top models cost over 60 thousand rubles.
Another American product
Sightmark collimator scope is much cheaper, but this does not mean that it is of low quality. Sightmark is a subsidiary of Yukon Holding, a law enforcement and defense company. The products are mainly open type, have up to 7 levels of brightness adjustment and are intended for installation on smooth-bore weapons up to 12 gauge. Mounting fixture of the “dovetail” type, the bar has a width of 11 mm. Some samples are mounted on the Weaver / Picatini base. Sights are lightweight and highly reliable. A significant part of the products is produced in China.
Patriotic is not worse
In 2009, the cobra collimator sight appeared on the market in the EKP-8-21 version. This is the first and so far the only digital optical device for civilian use. The open type device is primarily intended for installation on a semi-automatic weapon of the Bekas series. The Russian sight is mounted on a dovetail mount. The electronic circuit allows you to select four types of labels, 16 brightness options, as well as remember information about the type of label and the brightness of the glow. The maximum range of ballistic corrections is up to 600 meters. The Cobra collimator sight is highly reliable. The owners note that after several dozen shots the settings are saved and the seat is not deformed. Moreover, over time, aiming improves in low light conditions. Some owners complain that the device has considerable weight and height. The device can be used with a strap of guns – 251, – 18, – 27, – 94, “Taiga”. You can aim with either one or two eyes.
How to mount?
An important issue that overshadows the choice of the device itself is the method of attachment to weapons. Most samples of smoothbore weapons do not provide any standard devices or consoles for the installation of additional devices. The exception is the domestic “Saiga”, “Snipe”, pump-action shotguns and some samples intended for self-defense. The hunter should independently seek a technical solution. The choice is not rich: “dovetail” and the base (they are also called strips) Weaver and Picatini. The mounting of the collimator sight in the vast majority of samples involves placement on Weaver bars using integrated seats. Only sights equipped with special mounting rings can be mounted on a dovetail device. Some models are attached directly to the aiming plate of the gun. As a rule, such electronic optics have small dimensions and weight. These include the widely known compact sights Docter. The light mark of this device is clearly visible in the snow, and even against the sky. However, their value may exceed the price of the weapon itself.
Not very reliable
Domestic craftsmen mount a seat under Weaver and on a “dovetail”. For this, special adapters are made. When choosing transitional devices, each sample requires an individual approach. So, the Vologda Optical and Mechanical Plant produces the same product (VOMZ). The steel console is designed to accommodate an additional sighting device on it of any type of mount. But, for example, a collimator sight on IZH-27 of the 16th caliber can only be placed on a ventilated aiming strip with a width of up to 7 mm. Such a design leads to a significant increase in weight of the weapon and a violation of its centering. The weight of the adapter alone is more than 100 grams. According to user reviews, such a mount is not durable and begins to break apart after a dozen shots. Alternatively, you should install a not too heavy optical device. Based on this, the same collimator sight on the IL-27 should weigh no more than 90 grams. What to speak of more powerful weapons and their corresponding technical means?
To an expensive stone - a worthy setting
If you purchase an expensive optical device, it makes no sense to save money on its installation. The bar and bolted joints must have a sufficient margin of safety to not only fix a relatively heavy sighting device, but also to withstand recoil loads over a long period of operation. A 12 gauge collimator sight should be mounted only with the help of specially designed standard mounting devices. Planktail and Weaver / Picatini planks in a large assortment are available for sale and in online stores.
It is necessary to choose a product that follows the contour of the receiver. Also, the thickness of the body of the box itself should allow you to drill a hole and cut at least three turns of thread. Threading is best done with professional equipment. You should also consider the distance from the eye at which the collimator sight will be. Reviews from experienced owners indicate the need for additional treatment with thread sealant and the abutment surface of the console itself to the receiver plane. All other installation methods are money thrown away.
Sighting optics
Like any other optical device, after mounting on a gun, the sight requires shooting. The shooter should have a clear idea of where the bullet or shot will fall at a distance of 35-50 meters. Most devices are equipped with regulators. In this case, fine tuning is carried out by adjusting in two planes with the help of two rotary controllers-drums. For a certain distance, the position of the regulators should be remembered. Many people think that the so-called cold shooting is enough. In this case, ammunition with a laser target designator is used. Adjustment of the collimator sight may not give the desired result. This is due to the fact that sometimes in the hunting weapons there is a mismatch between the axes of the barrel and the chamber. A cold adjustment can turn into a shotgun adjustment. It is necessary to take into account the correction when shooting with hands, as well as tangible returns, because the 12 gauge collimator sight is most often mounted.
In another way, the optics are adjusted by fixing the barrel in a special machine or vice. The barrel is aimed at a fixed point, and after that the scope is adjusted. A cold sighting can be replaced by a procedure of several tens of test shots. Any optics requires painstaking adjustment, including a collimator sight. The reviews that connoisseurs post on thematic forums often contain advice on producing several series of four single shots. According to the results of hitting a target in a specific series, the average point of impact and its deviation from the center of the target are recorded. The scope is adjusted and after that - the next series of shots. And so on until a satisfactory result is obtained.
When shooting, adjustment is carried out using the same type of cartridges and at the same distance that will be used in real conditions. However, in practice this is not possible. It is best to shoot the device for use at several probable distances of fire, and mark the results of hits in the object with notes in a notebook. At the same time, corrections of angular indicators proportional to the firing distance are recorded.
Reviews
There is no consensus among users regarding the sight model. Reviews are diametrically opposed. The choice of sight depends on the conditions of use, the preparation of the shooter, the weapons and ammunition used. Most agree that with 12-gauge rifles it is best to use open type devices. The final choice depends on the solvency of the hunter.