Eye relief

RugerNiner

How much distance should there be between my eye and a scope mounted on a Remington 870 Magnum, shooting saboted slugs from a 20" fully rifled barrel?

toad67

Depends on the magnification of the scope. The lower the power the more eye relief you'll be able to get away with. But 3" or so would be a start.

nononsense

RugerNiner,

Eye relief is determined by the optics not by your need or desire. You need to look up the specifications on scopes you are considering to find out what that relief distance is. In general though most average hunting scopes have approximately 3" of relief. The 870 Magnum with magnum loads will get your attention so err on the side of 'just a little more...'

My 870 slug gun uses an intermediate eye relief scope mounted on a cantilevered rail up in front of the receiver. This yields about 7 to 10 inches with my Aimpoint red dot sight. My scout scope set up is about the same although this comes from memory.

Best.

Mobuck

I'd look for a scope with 4" or more.

pip5255

here's the skinny on eye relief but I have never been able to pick up a rifle or shotgun and feel comfortable with the eye relief set by whoever mounted scope so I have all my scopes setup based on the position of my cheek on stock and my shooting eye to scope position regardless to anything anyone has written about it.


How Eye Relief Works

Eye relief is not determined by how far ahead the shooter likes to place his face, nor by how far back on the gun the scope is installed. Eye relief is the distance at which you can see a full view through the scope. If you move your eye further back from the lens, the field of view begins to constrict. The visible circle of the target area becomes smaller and more wobbly, due to parallax. Only at the precise distance for which the scope is calibrated will the entire field of view appear.


Eye Relief of Various Calibers

Generally, the more powerful the scope, the lower the eye relief. Most high-powered hunting rifles do not come with the highest-magnification scopes, but are rather equipped with variable mag scopes in the range of 3X-9X or 3.5X-10X. These scopes have an eye relief of three to four inches, which is enough to adjust for the recoil of the larger rounds.


Small Eye Relief

If eye relief is too small, it can be a hazard for the shooter. The recoil of the weapon can jolt the scope back into the shooter's eye or forehead. The metal edges of hunting scopes are sharp enough to cut through skin, and many a shooter has required stitches after a recoil bounced the scope off his head. Some scopes are equipped with rubber edging to avoid cutting, but needless to say, the impact is still far from pleasant. All shooters should be wary of insufficient eye relief when choosing a scope.


Large Eye Relief

A large eye relief spares the shooter the risk of injury, and also can make it easier for the shooter to locate the target. While scopes with a short eye relief require careful positioning of the shooter's head, scopes with larger eye relief offer a range of positions. The shooter only has to get his eye into a range of distances, far enough from the scope to be safe and close enough to be within the eye relief distance.


Variable Eye Relief

Eye relief changes on most hunting rifle scopes. Most scopes are variable magnification, and eye relief depends on magnification. When the scope is adjusted for higher magnification, the eye relief will decrease; when it is adjusted for lower magnification, the eye relief increases.


Mixing & Matching Scopes

Dangers arise when shooters choose a scope with more magnification than they need. Most higher-magnification scopes are for varmint guns, which shoot smaller rounds in the range of .22 and .223 centerfire. These rounds do not have a strong recoil, making the small eye relief safe. But when these scopes are mounted on more powerful rifles, in the class of .30-06 or .270, the small eye relief and larger recoil can be dangerous.

yoshmyster

I wonder if you can mount the scope scout style on a shotgun? Get a extra long pic. rail to mount on the reciever then hang the scope way out there.

Now if UltiMak made them for shotgun that would be cool.

spirits

I use a Mossberg 9200 slug gun which came with a canter levered weaver style mount on the barrel chamber. Since the range I shoot is about 50 yards or less when deer hunting, I used an old Nikon 4X scope (> 20 years old) which had approximately 3.5 inches of eye relief. I never had any problems but I made certain I had the butt stock shouldered correctly; and when I shoot from a bench, I use a Past Recoil pad over the shoulder.

waltermoe

Your question on how much eye relief is needed is a simple one, you want enough so that it doesn't knock your eye out on the recoil. PIP 5255 has given you a excellent run down on eye relief. I have a Remington 870 and bought a Hastings barrel for it over 30 years ago, at the same time I bought a scope for it as well, a 2 power Tasco scope. I have thought about putting a different scope on it but two things stop me, 1, it works just fine, and 2, I dread the thoughts of having to sight it in again. To me sighting in a shot gun using slugs is not fun, or should I say not pleasurable. The eye relief on my scope is 2 1/2" and I don't have any problems with it, but then I am only shooting 2 3/4" one ounce slugs.

MG1890

Simple answer: All you can get and still see thru the scope.

TWalker

I like at least 4 inches of eye relief for scopes used on shotguns or hardkicking magnum rifles. Bottom line, though, is use what works well for you. That said, short eye relief can be dangerous and who needs an eyeful of scope when you're miles from civilization and hospitals. Don't risk your vision or a bad cut and concussion not to mention embarrassment. A low powered fixed or variable scope from a major maker is well worth the money. My preference is a 2 1/2 or 2 3/4 fixed power, or a 1 1/2-5 variable from Leupold.

jaegermister

first consideration is getting the scope to mount to the barrel and not the
receiver of a shotgun. most shotguns have too much play between barrel
and receiver to produce repeated point of aim. if you can mount "securely"
to the barrel and use a scout long eye relief scope you will be ahead of the
game.
rifle scopes evolved from telescopes, ie spy glasses. and as such were adapted to
rifle receiver mount position and short eye relief . with todays advancements in optics long eye relief
is possible. you can shoot quickly and with both eyes open. even the cheap ones
seem to withstand heavy recoil, read the reviews, and you can always buy two
at the prices and have a spare. bottom dollar nc star, top dollar burris 3x12.
no scope whatever the cost can survive a hard
fall. in the field two cheap scopes ( one spare )are better than one expensive scope.

toad67

If you're going to mount the scope out on the barrel, or farther than 3"-4" than a standard scope won't work for you. You will need an extended eye relief model, or something close to a scout type model.

kimi

quote:Originally posted by pip5255
here's the skinny on eye relief but I have never been able to pick up a rifle or shotgun and feel comfortable with the eye relief set by whoever mounted scope so I have all my scopes setup based on the position of my cheek on stock and my shooting eye to scope position regardless to anything anyone has written about it.


How Eye Relief Works

Eye relief is not determined by how far ahead the shooter likes to place his face, nor by how far back on the gun the scope is installed. Eye relief is the distance at which you can see a full view through the scope. If you move your eye further back from the lens, the field of view begins to constrict. The visible circle of the target area becomes smaller and more wobbly, due to parallax. Only at the precise distance for which the scope is calibrated will the entire field of view appear.


Eye Relief of Various Calibers

Generally, the more powerful the scope, the lower the eye relief. Most high-powered hunting rifles do not come with the highest-magnification scopes, but are rather equipped with variable mag scopes in the range of 3X-9X or 3.5X-10X. These scopes have an eye relief of three to four inches, which is enough to adjust for the recoil of the larger rounds.


Small Eye Relief

If eye relief is too small, it can be a hazard for the shooter. The recoil of the weapon can jolt the scope back into the shooter's eye or forehead. The metal edges of hunting scopes are sharp enough to cut through skin, and many a shooter has required stitches after a recoil bounced the scope off his head. Some scopes are equipped with rubber edging to avoid cutting, but needless to say, the impact is still far from pleasant. All shooters should be wary of insufficient eye relief when choosing a scope.


Large Eye Relief

A large eye relief spares the shooter the risk of injury, and also can make it easier for the shooter to locate the target. While scopes with a short eye relief require careful positioning of the shooter's head, scopes with larger eye relief offer a range of positions. The shooter only has to get his eye into a range of distances, far enough from the scope to be safe and close enough to be within the eye relief distance.


Variable Eye Relief

Eye relief changes on most hunting rifle scopes. Most scopes are variable magnification, and eye relief depends on magnification. When the scope is adjusted for higher magnification, the eye relief will decrease; when it is adjusted for lower magnification, the eye relief increases.


Mixing & Matching Scopes

Dangers arise when shooters choose a scope with more magnification than they need. Most higher-magnification scopes are for varmint guns, which shoot smaller rounds in the range of .22 and .223 centerfire. These rounds do not have a strong recoil, making the small eye relief safe. But when these scopes are mounted on more powerful rifles, in the class of .30-06 or .270, the small eye relief and larger recoil can be dangerous.







There ya go.