What You Need To Know To Choose The Right Boresighter
A boresighter is a device used to align the sights or scope of a firearm to it's bore. It's main use is to ensure a shooter is able to set the sights or scope so the gun prints on paper on the first shot, reducing the amount of ammunition expended during the sight-in process. A secondary use is to verify the zero of a firearm at any time without firing a shot.
Boresighters come in two styles. The first is the collimator-type which, depending on the model, attaches to the muzzle of the gun with either a magnet or an arbor. The magnet-mount type can be used for any firearm, in any caliber with any barrel length. The arbor type will come with arbors for calibers from 22 to 45. The firearm must have a minimum barrel length of 4 inches. Once attached to the gun, the reticle or sights must be adjusted until they point to the middle of the grid pattern. This will ensure that the sights are aligned with the bore, thus the first shot will be sure to strike close to the bullseye of the target. After final sight-in, reattach the boresighter and make a record of the position of the sights or scope reticle to check the zero at a later time without firing a shot
The battery operated laser boresighter is the second style of boresighter. They come in two types. The first, being made of brass or aluminum with the same shape as a cartridge case, inserts into the chamber or cylinder of a gun and will project a laser beam through the center of the bore onto the target. Once the scope or sights are adjusted to the point of the laser spot, the firearm can be expected to impact the target on the first shot. These boresighters can be used for distances between 15 and 100 yards and are available for a wide variety of rifle and handgun cartridges from .17 HMR to .50 BMG and also 20 and 12 gauge shotguns, with any barrel length. Aimshot and NC Star are two companies that manufacture this type.
The other style of laser boresighter is made to insert into the muzzle of a gun. Adapters are available for calibers from .17 to .75 plus 12 and 20 gauges and requires at least a barrel length of 4 inches. Once tightened for a snug fit, it will project a laser beam onto a target, corresponding to the gun's bore. They can be used for boresighting a gun from 10 to 100 yards distance. Two makers of this type are Bushnell and Laserlyte. A word of caution when using this type of laser boresighter. Be especially vigilent to esure the boresighter is removed after borsighting and before shooting a live round to begin the final sight-in. There have been cases of shooters forgetting to remove the boresighter, resulting in blown barrels.
After the gun is zeroed, a laser boresighter can also be used to confirm the sight-in at any time without firing a shot. The results will be more precise than with the collimator-type boresighters. Place a target at a specific distance, such as 50 yards, and mark on the target where the sights and laser are in relation to each other. To check the zero later at any time, use the same target placed at the same distance to confirm that the relationship is still the same.
No matter which boresighter you select for sighting-in your firearms, they will all to do as intended. One of the laser boresighters may have a slight edge if accurate zero-checking is especially important, or if using open sights. Otherwise, selection may be just a matter of personal choice.
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