How do you mount your scope?

fiestaman

Do you level the scope to the gun OR shoulder the gun ,look through and adjust until it's level as you see it?

Cass

Scope to gun, always.

Everyone holds their firearms at a natural degree of cant. Usually in the 5 - 10 degree mark. If you mounted your scope "level" with the way you hold it then any adjustment would result in a skewed adjustment. IOW instead of adjusting the crosshair straight up if adjusting elevation it would adjust up and right/left (depending on which is your dominant hand).

Same when adjusting for windage. You would not get a true left or right adjustment but adjustment with either up or down movement too.

If the scope is mounted straight in relation to the rifle then all adjustment are true, and while it might seem a little off when you mount it to your shoulder you can be sure that the centre of the crosshair is actually on your target after you have adjusted it.

fiestaman

Cass wrote: »

Scope to gun, always.

Everyone holds their firearms at a natural degree of cant. Usually in the 5 - 10 degree mark. If you mounted your scope "level" with the way you hold it then any adjustment would result in a skewed adjustment. IOW instead of adjusting the crosshair straight up if adjusting elevation it would adjust up and right/left (depending on which is your dominant hand).

Same when adjusting for windage. You would not get a true left or right adjustment but adjustment with either up or down movement too.

If the scope is mounted straight in relation to the rifle then all adjustment are true, and while it might seem a little off when you mount it to your shoulder you can be sure that the centre of the crosshair is actually on your target after you have adjusted it.

I've always mounted it to suit my shoulder as I thought it was correct but was only with air rifles and .22 rimfire. Have 17hmr now and was reading a few articles and mounting level is the correct way so I done this at the week end and when I look through the scope it's as if the crosshairs are at 11 & 5 (not as bad as that but that's the way it's alined) instead of 12 & 6.
So then do you tilt your rifle to counter act the cant I'm putting on it naturally? Would an adjustable butt stock level it??

Cass

fiestaman wrote: »

I've always mounted it to suit my shoulder as I thought it was correct but was only with air rifles and .22 rimfire. Have 17hmr now .................

You have a point there and i should have included it in my response above.

This cant is only noticeable at longer ranges. It can be noticed at short ranges, but it's usually with precision shooters such as BR or ISSF. For popping bunnies, etc the cant at short range is not such an issue.

when I look through the scope it's as if the crosshairs are at 11 & 5 (not as bad as that but that's the way it's aligned) instead of 12 & 6.

Two reasons for this.

1. You have mounted it correctly but you still hold it with cant and so it looks off.
2. You have mounted it incorrectly. This can happen if the surface on the rifle you use to act as the level is not actually level. It's why i use the rings, open, to get my level.

One way to check, and not fool proof, is to stand a bit back look at the rifle and scope from the butt. The crosshair of the scope should come "down" perfectly inline with the back of the bolt (the shroud). Like this:

So then do you tilt your rifle to counter act the cant I'm putting on it naturally?

If the scope is mounted perfectly level you will adjust your shooting position to to get the least amount of cant. However if the scope is mounted perfectly a little cant will not make a difference huge difference so long as the distances are not extreme. Cant is not just about how the rifle sits in comparison to the scope, but about the barrel. If the rifle is canted then the barrel is to either your right or left and so at longer ranges the shot will be slightly out to the right or left.

Would an adjustable butt stock level it??

Yes.

I use them on my rifles. I fit the butt pad with a little cant on it so when the rifle is shouldered the buttpad is canted, not the rifle. This allows for better cheek weld, better sight picture and improved shooting.

fiestaman

Thanks, in fairness I won't be shooting much past 150yrds hunting but I'd like to try abit of dialling out to 250yrds at targets so I don't know how much it would be affected at that range if I set it up to my shoulder rather than level it. Maybe a butt pad will be the answer, any recommendations for the CZ 455 thumbhole stock?

Cass

I use these:



They are cheap and cheerful, do what is needed and are adjustable for up, down, and a little right/left cant. The only thing is for looks you need to separate the base plate and trim it to the shape of your stock to give a nice finish. A few minutes with a pencil and a bench grinding wheel and you're good to go.

steyrman

Hi I have a set of wheeler engineer levels one is on the barrel and I level the action to suit once level I use the one on the barrel as being correct so fit the rings and level the scope to suit sort out eye relief one both levels are correct you have a good starting point I will put a pic up of the levels I use

fiestaman

steyrman wrote: »

Hi I have a set of wheeler engineer levels one is on the barrel and I level the action to suit once level I use the one on the barrel as being correct so fit the rings and level the scope to suit sort out eye relief one both levels are correct you have a good starting point I will put a pic up of the levels I use

Thanks. When you mount the gun then after this does it look ok or do you have to tilt the gun in your shoulder to Have the crosshairs vertical as you see it?

steyrman

Since I have started using this system I don't cant the rifle I have a bubble level on the scope when on the range you have time to sort everything ou but out stalking or foxing is more like up bang wallop tbh

Cass

One other thing.

Sometimes when mounting your scope the act of tightening the ring screws can twist the scope. It's why you should never tighten one side of the ring fully. Place the top piece of the rings back on and loosely screw down. Do not tighten fully. Tighten two screws at a time on opposite sides to each other so as to bring the top of the ring down squarely. Now your scope is back on and ready to be sighted in.

FISMA.

fiestaman wrote: »

Do you level the scope to the gun OR shoulder the gun ,look through and adjust until it's level as you see it?

Get y'erself a nice precision level, like the Wheeler mentioned. The Wheeler level is great as it is adjustable. You will definitely want to be able to level the level.

Here are the Wheeler Levels, the one you definitely need is the one on the scope.

That level is what I use this on the receiver, if it is flat, or the base.

The other larger level on the barrel is nice to have. But if you cannot find one, a plumb line will work to level the scope.

I'm trying out some glow in the dark string this week to see if it makes leveling the scope any easier.

The only fault I have with the Wheeler system is that the liquid and level's body are similar in colour which causes minimal contrast - the exact opposite of what you want.

FISMA.

Another great idea is the Arisaka Optic Leveler. I really like mine. Easy to use and effective. I bought the combo. Some of those BR scopes sit high...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAd_JWLmomI

Have a look at the Spuhr mount linked here. Notice the slot in the middle of the mount? It's used like the Arisaka leveler.

clivej

Like Fismar I have the Arisaka Optic Leveler and the Wheeler level system. Both work well to level your scope. The Arisaka Optic Leveler makes it real easy and quick.

To check that all is level put a plumb line mark on a plain target at say 100y. put an aim point at the bottom of the plumb line mark. Shot one sot at the aim point. Dial up plenty of MOA say at least 12MOA more it you can. Fire another shot at the aim point. Now the bullet will hit higher and should still be on the plumb line mark. If it's off left or right then the scope is not level.