Most hunters and shooters today are very familiar with the use of scopes. For long distances, these are invaluable and provide a tool to improve accuracy and increase visibility over long distances.
However, for medium to shorter distance targets, a lot of shooters still prefer to use iron sights. Many hunters will alternate between a scope and their sights depending on the distance of the shot and their ability to clearly see the target in the specific environment.
Overall, most people find it easier to use a scope than sights, particularly if they didn’t originally learn to fire a rifle or long gun using sights. The scope really simplifies the target, with the shooter required to place the desired target in the crosshairs or under the red dot in the sight.
The only challenge to this type of aiming is to ensure that the scope is properly sighted in. Several factors can impact the scope alignment, but once correctly sighted in it enhances accuracy even for novice hunters or shooters.
The Difference
With iron sights, the shooter has to focus on the target, the front sight as well the sides of the rear sight. With some types of sights, the rear sight may have a small hole that the shooter lines up with the front sight, creating a better level of accuracy.
It will be important to make sure that the sights are correctly adjusted. The rear sight is adjusted for elevation to ensure that the bullet hits right where the shooter is sighting.
To hit the center of the target, the shooter should aim slightly low or where they want to hit, allowing for the natural trajectory of the bullet to put it in right in the center of the target.
The rear sight can typically also be adjusted for windage. This refers to the amount of distance that a gun will naturally shoot to the right or the left. This is adjusted with a screw mechanism, allowing each gun to be sighted in accurately regardless of the natural inclination of shooting right or left.
For long guns, the biggest issue with iron sights is to ensure that the gun is the right size for the shooter. Guns that are too long for the shooter will not allow proper alignment of the sights, resulting in high levels of inaccuracy regardless of the shooter’s actual ability.
