I began using the small red glow dots on my sight in targets a couple of decades ago.
I have preferred using the 1/2" dots.
These dots are an "aid" in this respect - even though I stick them on my targets I don't always shoot at them!
Depending on light conditions the circular dots are sometimes much easier to "draw a fine bead on"! In that, I mean, sometimes my crosshairs can "dissect" these dots into pie shaped quarters VERY distinctly, and at other times they are a bit blurry behind my crosshairs.
Harder to make perfect pie slices under certain conditions is what I mean.
On these "blurry" occassions I simply go back to my preferred targets (official bench rest targets) and use the center of the smallest ring (1/2" across) for an aim point.
Sometimes even on the same day at the range I will switch back and forth from red glow dots to the black ringed 1/2" BR targets smallest circle!
I am fully convinced that the ability to hold aim point EXACTLY in the same spot (and the smaller the spot the better) for each shot of a group, is one reason "my guns" have shot so well these last couple of decades!
Recently I came across a stationary store that sells these "dots" in bulk!
They were such a good deal I decided to try some of the 3/4" dots as well as their 1/2" dots.
I got 1,008 removable 3/4" dots for $4.00!
This is much cheaper than the dots I have bought a few at a time from sporting goods stores and Gunshops.
Plus these stationary store bought dots come in their own plastic see through protective cases. No more unwinding snake like coils of dots inside my range box, THANK YOU!
If anyone is interested the dots (Color Coded Circular Labels as they are correctly called!) are made by Avery Dennison Office Products - item #05467 for the 3/4" red glow dots and item #05051 for the 1/2" red glow dots.
I was tempted to try some lime green dots but chickened out.
Has anyone else tried the lime green dots - or any other colors, and if so how did the crosshairs show up against them!
The reason I bought the 3/4" dots was because I am starting in on the fall sight in verifications of my Big Game Rifles. Word has gotten around this town now that I sight in folks Rifles that "are to busy" to sight them in for themselves!
I used to tell folks that asked me to sight in their Rifles that if they were to busy to sight in their own Rifle they were to busy to GO HUNTING!
BUT!
Since moving to Montana 9 years ago I learned that doing folks with Rifles a favor often leads to GOOD Hunting intel and sometimes invitations to places to Hunt Big Game and Varmints!
I will use the 3/4" target dots for the lower powered scopes common on most Big Game Rifles.
Anyay its a simple matter to attach one of these dots to any target and once its placed downrange I have the choice of whichever aim point allows me to "draw the finest bead" - so to speak.
What targets do you all prefer for your "fine work" at the Rifle range?
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

VG: As my eyes continue to fail, have found it to be more important than ever to taylor the aiming point size to the reticle/light conditions in order to hold group sizes down.

Have used 1" target dots for the lower powers for some time and often adjust the power on variables to fit the dot.

Thanks for the tip on the red dots @ office supply houses.

Regards,
hm

Hm1996: Yikes! Is this situation you describe, ANOTHER sign of my getting older?
I just turned 59 and indeed my vision is "changing" (getting worse!). My distance vision is still pretty good but for up close work I have been using "reading" glasses for a few years now!
My first thoughts regarding the lime green (glow) dots was - wow, I bet my black crosshairs will show up well against that light green lime like color! Then I thought maybe that light lime green color will fade or not be distinctive out at 100 or 200 yards? My guess is the lime green color will not contrast with the light colored target paper so my "pie slices" may not show up clear enough to judge when they are exactly even!
Anyway I still hold that the finer the point you can hold your crosshairs onto, the better your resulting groups will be.
This speeds up load development and removes uncertainties in my case - I believe!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

quote:

Yikes! Is this situation you describe, ANOTHER sign of my getting older?
I just turned 59 and indeed my vision is "changing" (getting worse!).

Ya got a ways to go, VG ; I just turned 70; gave up HP rifle competition w/iron sights about 6 years ago, mainly due to arthritis, but had to switch to aperature sights at about your age as I couldn't differentiate top of post sight and bottom of black bullseye.

quote:

Anyway I still hold that the finer the point you can hold your crosshairs onto, the better your resulting groups will be.

Absolutely! We do what we must to say in the game as long as we can.

Regards,
hm

quote:

Originally posted by VarmintGuy:
Hm1996: Yikes! Is this situation you describe, ANOTHER sign of my getting older?
I just turned 59 and indeed my vision is "changing" (getting worse!). My distance vision is still pretty good but for up close work I have been using "reading" glasses for a few years now!
My first thoughts regarding the lime green (glow) dots was - wow, I bet my black crosshairs will show up well against that light green lime like color! Then I thought maybe that light lime green color will fade or not be distinctive out at 100 or 200 yards? My guess is the lime green color will not contrast with the light colored target paper so my "pie slices" may not show up clear enough to judge when they are exactly even!
Anyway I still hold that the finer the point you can hold your crosshairs onto, the better your resulting groups will be.
This speeds up load development and removes uncertainties in my case - I believe!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

If that lime green dot is inside a larger black bulls eye it will really stand out for you. Good luck again on the hunt.

I like the 1/2 inch dots at one hundred and the 3/4 inch ones at two hundred.

I normally go down and get sticky dots down at Office Depot or Staples.. I forget how many are in a package, but something like a 1000 or more...

They come in handy to put on targets, that I download off of the internet, which is pretty much all I use anymore...

those dots are available in flourscent colors..

Well I have used the Birchwood Casey pasters for years only due to getting half a case of them from a sporting good close out. I think the packages came with around 200 spots to a pack, with three different sizes. For most of my shoting this has worked out well as I can use the small 1" spots at 100, the 2" spots for 200 and the 3" spots for 300 and beyond.

Recently however, purchased several pacakges of the 5.5" Caldwell Orange peel targets which have the orange backing and a black center which turns green around the edges of the bullet hole when hit. Instead of using the orange background, I generally cut the black portion out on several of them while watching tv, and they fit perfectly onto the bottom of a paper plate. This makes it much easier to keep things handy for a quick change out at the range.

I also have some 8" Birchwood spots which I have been recently using along side the Caldwell spots for ranges out past 500yds. As you mentioned it depends on which spot is showing up the clearest and sharpest as to which gets shot. We use a lot of shop towels where I work that come in 18" square boxes. A couple of these are handy for setting up two targets on, and you only have to turn them 90 degrees to have a clean target and be able to mark new hits.

When all else fails, we shoot the plate we have hanging at 500yds. It has a solid black background, with a 2.5" white spot in the center. To change the target, simply apply a quick coat of black or white pait and get back to shooting.