Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics What's the best shotgun scope?

I just bought a 12-gauge shotgun with a fully-rifled barrel and a Weaver-type, one-piece mount. Right now I have a 3X Leupold on it for testing but I'd like something with a little more magnification and a ranging-type reticle. I'll be using it strictly for deer hunting with shots up to 200-225 yards.

IMHO you may be a bit optimistic.

200 yards ? You got much experience with rifled barrel, sabot slug shotgun hunting ?

Some of the new super 20 bores rifled slug guns (really rifles) are capable of that but no run of the mill 12 bore anything with a receiver mounted scope is an ethical choice beyond 50 yards.

All you need is a 1-4 Leupold shotgun model. Unless you have a Hastings type barrel mounted scope, 50 yards is about it. With the hasting type setup 100 is realistic and the accuracy is still there at 150 but the trajectory will kill you.

Killed more deer with a shotgun than I have years on the clock. As best I recall one might have been over 75 yards. You can never be too close !

For Whitetail the Federal Barnes X is the best, for bigger stuff the Brenneke Golds will crush any NA game. (but they do not shoot as flat).

Good hunting!

Been running a Zeiss Conquest 4x and been extremely happy. I've been using Winchester Partition golds and they hammer deer.

What type of accuracy are you getting with the Winchester Partition Golds? At what distance do you sight in and how's the trajectory out to 200 yards?

Nice buck, by the way.

My old Remington 1187 with factory rifled barrel with Cantilever type scope mount over the receiver would shoot 2.5" groups at 100 yards with the old Winchester Sabot rounds ten years ago. I had a 2x7 leupold on it. It was in its day as accurate as a muzzleloader.

Try a VXII 2-7x33 or a FXII 6x36 with LR duplex reticle for ranging.

Or, a Vortex Viper 2-7x32 with dots. That little Viper is a great scope for the $$.

Leupold VX II 2x7 or a VX3 2.5x8...Also Nikon Omega 3x9 Slug gun scope it has a generous 5" of eye relief.

Here is a 200 yd 5 shot group from my 12ga Browning Abolt using a VX II 2x7

Will second the Nikon suggestion. I have used them with no problems for years on 12 and 20 gauge slug guns. I like the 5 inches of eye relief for my boys, and the reticle seems to work well. We have had excellent results with the Winchester Partition Gold, and the Hornady slugs.

To be honest IMO thats not very ethical. Slugs lose much velocity & energy once they go past 125 yards. 150 is pushing it. If you want to go past the 250 mark use a rifle.

I've used 2 Nikon Prostaff 2-7x32 shotguns scopes, a VX2 2-7x32, Nikon Monarch 1.5-4x20, and a 3200 2-7x32 on shotguns. My main rig is an 1187 with 24" Hastings CL FR bbl and the 2-7x32 3200. It's pretty picky on sabots, but shoots the Win PTGs and Rem CSs fairly well(1.5-2" @ 100).

I just bought a 23" FR CL bbl for an 870 and intend to mount one of the Prostaffs on it. Have SSTs, Rem ATs, Fed BEs, and Win PTGs to try in it. I hope it shoots more slugs accurately than the Hastings bbl, that Hastings bbl will not keep some sabots on the paper at 100.

If you are looking for 200yds, I'd go with a MLer or the Savage bolt action 20ga. When we hunt IA I usually carry my ML10 or Omega for stand hunting and the shotgun for drives.

Good Luck

loder

I've used Leupold's VX3 1.75-6x32 on a slug gun and my muzzleloader and it's worked pretty well for those applications. Get a HD reticle if you plan on any low light viewing through it.

From the pictures dvdegeorge posted, it looks like the accuracy is there at 200 yards. I'm not sure what the energy would be but maybe he can elaborate.

I'd gladly use a rifle instead of a shotgun for any deer hunting at any range but there are just too many areas where rifles are prohibited, hence my question(s).

According to the Winchester web site, their 3" XP3 slug, when sighted in at 100 yards, is 6.5" low at 175. It would seem like you could sight in 2 or 3 inches high at 100 yards and have a pretty good trajectory to 175, and maybe 200 yards. The energy at 150 yards is 1,746 ft/lbs.

I'm new to this, and maybe over-optimistic, which is why I'm asking questions in advance. I don't want to wound any deer.

The 3 inch Partition is still pushing 1530 ft/lbs at 200 yards... but -8 inches and falling....

My 2-7x35 Burris FFII has took one Hell of a 'licken & keeps on 'ticken.

Plenty of energy at 200yds and beyond with Federal 2 3/4" Barnes... my longest kill was at 165yds but my buddy who's sluggun I set up for him shooting the same round has killed at 230yds.The problem with long range slug shooting isn't really the energy or trajectory but the wind drift at those ranges a steady cross wind will push a projectile quite a bit, most can't and shouldn't shoot that far if you are not proficient at doping wind and that only comes with alot of trigger time which will cost you hundreds of $'s shooting shell that cost $13-$15 per box of 5 shells BT/DT

This one was taken at Ranged 192yds Nikon 3x9 omega scope Buddy and me (he shot it)