Overview

You don't need this or any sighting aid if your shotgun properly fits you and your mount is repeatable. I suppose if all I ever did was wear a tee shirt while hunting my mount would probably be pretty consistent. But the reality is that I don't dress thinking much about my gun mount, (maybe I should), and I rely on visual aids on my shotgun to align my head with the receiver.

Some shotguns offer a mid-bead. The shooter knows that the windage and elevation are correct when the beads are "stacked". But there are two problems with a mid-bead:

    1. Some ribs slope from the receiver to the muzzle to force the shooter to shoot high - maybe a 70/30 pattern or more. Adding a mid-bead without also adding a taller front sight, would cause you to shoot way high.

    2. Can't see brass or painted beads in low-light conditions.

What I did was add a tiny drop of white fingernail polish at the knee of the rib. The drop gives me a reference for centering the bead.

Aids aren't a bad thing, after all we can't all afford custom made stocks and we have to make do with the adjustment range we get from the manufacturer. And we use aids in bow hunting, (pulling against the stop, or finger touching corner of mouth, etc.) and I use a big round brass tack head on my Marlin Guide Gun to the corner of my mouth to know that my head is in the same position every shot.

Anyways, I wanted a front sight that my eye could pick up easily in dim light. I also wanted a sight wouldn't be visible to the entire avian world while I was hunting.

I'm a relatively new wingshooter and I'm not interested games like trap (boooooooorrrrrrrriiiiiiinnnnngggg). I want to optimize my shotgun for hunting.

I went with the 5" long x 2.5mm diameter green. Why? Well, I've some experience with fibre and bowhunting and rifle sights:

    1. Green is in the sweet spot of your eyes receptivity - so it will be easiest to see in very low light, or in the shade.

    2. 2.5mm keeps the brightly glowing dot from being overwhelming in your field of view.

    3. 5" is enough body fibre to pick up adequate light in low-light conditions.