How many of you guys hunt big game with open sights? On and off since the early 60's and for about 4 years straight (in the 80's) I hunted for Texas whitetails with 2 different style 30-30's. Older Winchesters in mod. 94's and 64's. Set up with regular irons, Williams and Lyman peeps. I also hunted with a 300 Savage for a year.
I missed a couple of shots....early one morning I shot over a nice buck (I also misjudged the range) and I missed a doe at 75 yards one late evening by not being able to see through the Lyman peep. My longest shot was a nice whitetail buck at approx. 153 yards. I prefer the factory irons on these rifles and still have a 30-30 carbine sighted in with 150gr Winchester silver tips and hunt with it occasionally.

In Tanzania, Masailand, after a day in that thick crap...I pulled the scope from my .416. We were tracking the buffalo in real thick bush and I just carried a belt with ammo, leatherman tool and my open sighted rifle. Hopefully, someday, I can return to Africa. I will again hunt buffalo with an open sighted rifle.

Do any of you hunt with just irons? Seems like hunting moose or grizzly with open sights would be a nice way to hunt. Of course one has to know his own limitations in doing this.

I love open sights on a rifle. I really don't care for the bulk of a scope on any rifle, but I do realize some rifles just need to be scoped to achieve their full range potential. So to me a scope is a necessary evil on rifles to be used beyond short ranges...

When anticipating shots beyond 100-150 yards I try to use a scope. If under that I often reach for an open-sighted bolt or lever gun. They're much sleeker and lighter and easier to carry without that darned scope on there.

With my .375 Ruger RSM I can hit a pie plate at 200 yards easily with the express leaves. With my M77 .458 Ruger I can do the same with the irons. I would not generally shoot at big game with this sights but to be honest I could do it in a pinch with confidence.

With practice a good man with iron sights is not that badly handicapped...

I picked up a nicely customized P-17 Eddystone last summer with a Redfield peep. I was amazed at how accurate it is. I carried it for part of my Wisconsin deer hunt this past fall, but didn't get a chance to use it. I will take it again next year, and maybe to Texas as well. I would have no reservations taking a 200yd shot with it.

DGK

Out of 2 dozen rifles, not one of the hunting rifles wears a scope. A couple of the target rifles do, but even then they come off frequently.

Scopes are way overrated in my opinion.

Brent

I have rifles with both sighting systems, in irons I especially like peep sights. A scope has three advantages, light gathering ability , ease in sighting thru holes in the brush and magnification. Other than the scope making the rifle bulkier I see no real disadvantage in them.

I have gone to hunting with open sights and/or handgun hunting as shooting a game animal with a scope sighted rifle just does not offer me the challange it once did. The hunt is more for the experiance than the kill for me any more. I pass up a lot of shots now that I would have taken with a scoped rifle. I guess I'm just getting old!

Yep, I use iron sights and very well with them because I practice alot and I limit my shots to less than 100 yards. The rifle is lighter, better balanced, and alot more rugged with a sourdough blade out front and a Willioms or XS aperture sight on the receiver. Up here on Wolverton Mountain the woods are pretty thick so here a 75 yard shot is a real long one. Out west the fun is working in close to an elk -- anybody can shoot one at 300 yards and as Jeff Cooper says, don't tell me how far the shot was, tell me how close you got to the game. Getting close enough to smell 'em is REAL hunting and when you're that close the best choice is a tried and true peep sight.

I use a muzzle-loader with open sights, but I do not feel comfortable shooting more that 100yrds being near sighted. I hand gun with open sights and try to keep my shots within 50yrds or less, but my 300WM sports a scope and I can shoot it up to 200yrds comfortably.

It all depends on the shooters ability and one heck of a lot of practice.

I believe in one shot one kill and have no use for spray and pray hunting.