I recently placed a 7.5" 480 Ruger on layaway and I am debating purchasing a Ultradot Scope. It would be my first Red Dot Optic. My hunting is primarily out of a ground blind on a 2 acre greenfield surrounded by 200 acres of very very thick cut over. My greenfield is longer than wide offering the longest shot of 125 yards. My concern is whether the Ultradot will hold up to the recoil of the SRH, and are Red Dot sights accurate enough on a pistol to be used on Whitetails at ranges of say 100-125 yards? Thanks in advance.

Mine has held up to a lot of 400gr 1200fps rounds on the same gun after thousands of 320gr 1320fps 44mag rounds & a couple hundred 420gr & 1900fps 450 Marlin loads out of my guide gun. Its had 10yrs of Alaskan weather & a few pretty stout bumps & thumps. Still going strong!
By the way, you will love the 480 SRH!!!

Whitworth and several others swear by the ultradot and he uses them on a lot bigger guns than the 480. I've been using the Millet sights for a while now and had no problems on 454's, 475's and my 500 Linebaugh. The Ultradot is built better than the millet so you won't have any problems with the 480 beating it up.

No worries with the Ultradot and they come with a lifetime guarantee. I have one on my 475 Linebaugh and love it. I don't think you would have a problem out to 125 yds. If you practice, practice and then practice more.

FROSTY, I have the Ultra Dot Match Dot on my 9.5 480, for me it"s a perfect woods hammer, a great combination at that distance, recoil is not a issue with that optic.

Will the Matchdot fit between the rings of the Super Redhawk? It was my understanding that it would not and required the use of a Weigand rail?

I installed 30MM Ultradots on both my 454 and 480 SRH's and that setup works great.


I'm currently practicing for an upcoming hunt with my Ultradot topped 454 SRH and hits on a 8" steel target at 125 yards from field positions are not a problem.

Congrats on your new 480 Super Redhawk, I absolutely love mine! It shoots 400-412 grain cast bullets to my complete satisfaction.



Best of luck!

I believe the problem with factory rings is with the 30mm Ultradot 4 which I have. I use the Weigand rail. For the record I would probably not get the Ultradot 4 again, but the standard 4MOA Ultradot.

Not the factory ring spacing, no. But there are extension rings available as well as base adaptors.

Vance in AK. why would not buy the Ultradot 4 again? I am trying to decide if I should but a Ultradot 30 mm or a Ultradot Matchdot on my Ruger Redhawk with a 5.5" barrel.

I thought the selection of dot sizes would be handy, but honestly I just use the 4moa dot anymore. I love the sight just don't need that feature.

Vance in AK how far can you shoot accurately with the 4 moa dot? I thought that it may help on 100 yard shots. I do not think I would shoot over 125. Is the 4 moa good for that distance if so I will just buy the Ultradot 30 mm and save the difference in cost and spend it on ammo.

I had a 4 moa Ultradot 30 on my .500 Linebaugh SRH when I shot my moose in Maine a few years ago. My first shot was around 100 yards but all follow-up shots were around 125 yards. Granted a moose is a pretty big target but it was nearly dark.

4moa dot covers approx 4" at 100yds or 5" at 125yds. In my mind its about perfect for big game. Whitworth and some others have a lot more practical experieence in dot size.

IMHO, 125 yard shots on deer sized game aren't a problem with a 4 MOA dot. Bullet trajectory starts to become an important issue past the 100 yard mark.

I shot this N. GA whitetail with my 454 SRH and the 4 MOA 30MM Ultradot.


When I shot the deer, I did not have a rangefinder and estimated it to be a little over 100. The bullet struck the bottom of the chest cavity, breaking his right front leg. I later returned to the spot with a laser rangefinder and it turned out to be 149 yards. This is the longest shot that I have ever made on game with a revolver and wouldn't want to try it again without a steady rest and a rangefinder.

Here's another 125 yard shot; this South African kudu was taken at 126 if I remember correctly with a 3.25 MOA Trijicon RMR on my FA 454:


The point being, 125 yard shots with red dots are doable with the right gun and load and a steady rest. HTH...

I just wanted to add that while I like the options afforded by the Ultradot 4 and even the 6 (which I love), you just can't beat the simplicity of the 4 moa Ultradot 30.

I shot these two little piggies with an Ultradot 30 on my .480 SRH -- one at 53 yards and the other at 74. They're small at your feet, and tiny at those distances, still not a problem if you practice a lot.

Here's another photo that will hopefully help illustrate the issue:


As I stated earlier, I am currently practicing for an upcoming hunt so I've been shooting my Ultradot equipped 454 SRH quite a bit lately. I shot this cylinder-full at 125 yards while standing and shooting from my Bog Pod PSR shooting sticks, not the bench. 4 shots went into 1 1/4", all 6 went into 3". This is a 335 grain Cast Performance handload; my 325 grain Swift A-Frame load typically groups a little tighter but this is good enough for me.

Great shooting by all above. I think I will go with the Ultradot 30 mm.

Thanks

That is a good plan. I have a MatchDot on my SBH Hunter and like the others, found that it stays set to the 4 MOA dot size all of the time anyway.

100 yards with a 4moa dot, not a problem

Guys thanks for the great information. I really appreciate the pics of range performance and trophies harvested.

The Leupold extended Ruger style rings will work with the Ultra Match Dot 30mm. They are expensive & a little hard to find in stock. I sold my SRH, and have a set of these rings if anyone's interested? Just a heads up, they are blued, as Leupold don't offer these ring in stainless.

I haven't seen those in quite some time. I completely forgot about that option. PM en route.

Whit,
Pm sent.

I have a MatchDot II with Leupold extension rings on my .480.

Craig44, that setup looks great. Love the grip also!

Graig44, great looking rig!!