Can I Mount a Rifle Scope on my Shotgun, or Will the Shotgun Break it?
Can I Mount a Rifle Scope on my Shotgun, or Will the Shotgun Break it? Often, folks who hunt deer in areas where only shotguns are allowed wish to put scopes on their shotguns. There are scopes made for shotgun use, but there are many others made for rifles. This often leads to the desire to mount a rifle scope on a shotgun. Is this feasible? Will the shotgun’s recoil (which is different from a rifle’s) destroy a rifle scope?Answer: A rule of thumb in the shooting world is that a rifle scope won’t be likely to stand up to the recoil of a shotgun. But is a shotgun’s recoil that much different from a rifle’s? Well, yes and no. Kickin’ A 12 gauge shotgun can kick like a mule, but it’s generally a different type of kick, with a longer push. Yet it can definitely be sharp and hard, as I experienced when shooting Brenneke 1 3/8-ounce slugs, which produced possibly the hardest kick of any long gun I had fired at the time. And when it comes to foot-pounds of recoil, a 12 gauge can generate muc
