Iron Vs Scope Will shooting well with one...

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Pond James Pond

New member
...make you a better shot with the other?

I ask this as I've recently had to remove my Burris scope to get a turret cap of whose screw was stuck. I don't want to put the scope back on until it is ready to use with all the bells and whistles attached.

However, that doesn't mean I am not itching to shoot the rifle, especially after a recent thread that included pointers on long range technique.

So, I thought to myself, "Why not put the rear sight back on and shoot iron sights for a while?"

It seems to me that if I could get half respectable groups with iron sights that would only serve to improve any shooting I do later with the aid of a scope.

Am I wrong?
Or would some range time with iron sights allow me to learn some basics that would otherwise be compensated for by a fancy 12x scope?
 
To me, the skills used to shoot well with the aperture are the same as those used to shoot well with the scoped rifle.
 
I'm a relative noob compared to many here, but I've always believed it works both ways. That is, scopes improve iron sight shooting and vice versa. However, I do believe iron sight shooting contributes more to shooting skill than sights.

A recent experience is with a young boy I'm teaching to shoot. I have two Marlin 795s. One has a scope and one has Tech Sights. He loves to shoot with the scope - "It's cool." But I set him up to shoot with a sling and the iron sights and the groups were significantly better than when he shot off bags with a scope. Of course there are many things that could account for the difference, but...

As a result of that observation I ordered a second set of Tech Sights. They just arrived and the scope is coming off the second Marlin. I'm thinking scopes add another layer of details, beyond fundamentals, that a new shooter need not deal with and that actually detract from their focus on the fundamentals.

Andrew

NRA Life Member
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"There are some ideas so preposterous that only an intellectual will believe them." - Malcolm Muggeridge
 
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+1 for what emcon5 said. Rifle shooting is rifle shooting IMHO. A good rifleman can shoot with a scope, open sights, receiver sights - what ever. Whether it's iron sights or a scope it's all about sight picture, breath control and trigger control.
I don't know if shooting with iron sights improves one's ability with a scoped rifle, but I do know that shooting more makes one a better shot.
 
Revgeo, you forgot the first step in rifleshooting fundamentals, steady position.
Also I'm of the belief that a true rifleman can shoot anything with any type of sighting systems, and there will be some that shoot some of the different sights better than other sights.
In thick brush where my shots will be close and fast, Open sights are what I use, in open pasture where the shots could be 5-500 yds I use a scoped rifle for that purpose, and is still my favorite way to hunt whitetails.:)
 
Yes, fundamentals of shooting are the core of good shooting, not the sights. It is not difficult to shoot slugs beyond 75 yrds with shotgun bead if you practice proper shooting techniques. A scope will only allow you to shoot more precisely.
 
I believe that scopes will help you shoot irons better. The main reason is that wiht a telescopic sights, the movement of the rifle becomes more noticable. This, in turn, makes the shooter learn to steady the rifle better. And a steady rifle is a more accurate rifle:cool:
 
Fundamentals ARE fundamentals, as someone else said. But, there are differences between the two (sighting systems). Scopes are "single-plane" sighting systems....one does NOT have to "line up" a front and rear sight. So, scopes are actually easier to use and master. Irons are definitely more difficult. That is one reason, I believe, that everyone seems to gravitate towards scopes (like everything else these days, EASIER is automatically the way most people go). I have gone back to irons, myself. I like the challenge - and the simplicity.

I believe that being good with irons will make you better with scopes. But, not the other way around. I'd say shoot the irons for a while. That will make you a better shooter all 'round.
 
What people have said makes sense.

All the basics will be the same and not applying them with one sighting system or the other would equate to bad form.

However, I may try iron sights for a while: I've never done so yet and I am curious.

One downside is that the whole aparatus will be lighter without the Burris and so the recoil will be a bit stouter, but I think I'll give it a go all the same... The scope can go back on later!
 
I started with iron sights and I don't even consciously line up the sights, it just happens like riding a bike. Just relax, hold properly, take the tension out of your arms, do NOT hold too long, and CALL YOUR SHOT! The bullet will find it's target.
 
Pond James Pond:

Y0u must have good eyes to be accurate with iron sights and you must concentrate on several things at once: focusing on the rifles sights and letting the target blurr. Next, you must learn to release the trigger with out disturbing your sight alignment while the sights are moving. This takes a considerable amount of practice. No one holds a rifle perfectly still.


With a scope you only have to learn to release the trigger without jerking it while the reticlle is on target.

It takes good shooting fundamentals, another subject, to be proficent with eiher sight. Witch sighting system complaments the other I'm not sure. However, I think the scope is easier to master.


Semper Fi.

Gunnery sergeant
Clifford L. Hughes
USMC REtired
 
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If you are losing your near vision and have trouble seeing the front sight then a pinhole device like this may help

pinhole.jpg
Click to expand...
 
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