Mounting a "red dot" sight on a shotgun isn't new, and there are aiming circles rather than dots that are extremely beneficial in specialized shotgun applications, such as turkey hunting and buckshot use, where the shotgun is aimed rather than pointed. The Redring shotgun sight, however, is a new concept in that it was designed specifically for conventional shotgunning, from clay targets to bird hunting. And, as I was to find out, it works very well for turkey.
The sight is designed to fit on any shotgun with a normal ventilated rib. Spacers are supplied for varying rib widths, and it takes just a minute to move it from one platform to another. The ring is unmistakably bold and easily acquired, with (obviously depending on choke) the diameter essentially equating to a fairly open shotgun pattern at 20 meters.
If you have an eye-dominance issue, Redring allows you to shoot with both eyes open, which is really helpful for moving targets. For beginners (or shooters with problems), that bold red ring offers a defined value for establishing lead: "On this station, stay one full ring ahead of the target."
While it's true that I'm perfectly capable of missing any flying target, I shoot with both eyes open and I know how to break targets (I just don't always do it). With 50 years of shotgunning behind me, it also isn't easy for me to learn new tricks. So as an experiment, I put the Redring on a 20-gauge Beretta and we tried it on my Kansas neighbors Mark Woods and Matt Sutherland's brand-new skeet field.
Shockingly, we passed the gun back and forth and we could all break targets with it. At first the Redring makes you a bit more deliberate than desirable. Then you get the hang of it, and with both eyes open you are only subconsciously aware of it. It just plain works.
Later I took it off the Beretta and put it on a 12-gauge 3-inch magnum Remington Model 1100 for turkey season. At the pattern board. The 1100's slightly wider rib took a different spacer, but patterns were exactly, perfectly where they should be. When we actually got into the turkey woods, aiming was fast and precise. The Redring was developed and manufactured in Sweden (the country that gave us Aimpoint). I really think the people involved in the project are on to something with this new sight.
