The turkey’s may be the same, but the gear we use to get them has certainly changed over the years. If you’re not hunting with an optic, you may be missing your opportunity.
by the Shoot-On staff
If you’re even half-way serious about your turkey hunting, you know that the game has changed a lot since your dad’s or granddad’s days. Back when, the turkey gun was probably that same one used for blowing squirrels out of trees or birds out of the air, with somewhat restrained expectations of terminal ammo performance.
Today, technology has delivered to us a new crop of shotgun and choke combinations that produce tom-taking patterns that would make Grampa blush. Then there are the serious advances in shotshell ammunition. The newest breed of bi-metal pellets, engineered wads, advanced powders, and such have extended those tight pellet clusters out to what would once have been considered obscene distances—never mind the current Tungsten Super Shot craze that is stretching .410 shotgun lethality out to 60-plus yards.
What all this longer-range tight-patterning means is that sight alignment is more critical than ever. When the shot column exhibits high density at 40 yards and beyond, aiming is even more crucial at those closer distances. This is why more and more serious turkey hunters have forgone the old-school beaded front sight setup and are now opting for red dot optics on their turkey guns.
Once such optic that has proven its mettle for many years is the Gobble•Stopper 30mm Dual Color by TRUGLO.
The Gobble•Stopper mounts to any shotgun receiver with a Weaver-style mounting system. It comes with a wide 30mm objective lens system that is housed in a lightweight CNC-machined aircraft-grade aluminum housing. The finish options are anodized matte black or Realtree camo.
The Gobble•Stopper features a 3mm center dot that can be switched between green or red to match changing hunting and light conditions. Surrounding the sighting dot is a matching-color ring that many shooters find beneficial for faster sight alignment. Click adjustments for windage and elevation make zeroing easy while retention lanyards on the turret caps keep them secure on the optic.
A rheostat-controlled brightness adjustment lets you fine-tune the Gobble•Stopper’s reticle illumination. Go bright for high-light conditions or dim for those dark mornings. Another advantage is the ability to change between red and green to better contrast with the target or background.
The TRUGLO Gobble•Stopper is water-resistant, shock-resistant, fog-proof, and comes with a limited lifetime warranty. For more details on this or other optics, visit TRUGLO.com.
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