scope mounting with leoplold steel rings

[Gerald P Beer]

Greetings learned group members.
I recently mounted a Leopold scope on my new old 270. At first I ordered Leopold medium ring mounts but because the objective bell touched the barrel I had to go with the high mounts. My complaint with these mounts is that they would not grip the intregal mounts on the rifle until positioned way past the center of the intregal mount. This is a 30 mm scope. The set up pictured works fine, eye relief good etc, but I would prefer to mount the scope centered on those mounts. This is the second set of Leopold mounts that I had to mount this way. The other is on a 243. I am wondering if SAKO brand mounts would fit the rifles better and if they come in 30 mm dia?

 

[bigcountry4me]

Sako makes a Optilock ringmount similar to the Leupold ringmount. It is available in 30MM. It is designed to mount further to the rear, thus potentially moving the optic perhaps into better position. The rear ring has a steel boss stop which is designed for the rear dovetail.

They are a bit pricey and slightly heavier, however, they are very strong and positive, and they come with poly inserts.

I’ve only been able to source these in low. But they are higher than Leupold mediums. There is a decent chart which might help with your particular optic. Here is how they look when mounted.

 

[Gerald P Beer]

Thank you for your reply. I notice that you too do not have the rings centered on the mount. Does the OptiLock ring position itself at the rear of the mount to take advantage of the small cut out on mount? There is no such cut out on the front. I guess there is no law that says things should be centered just a "thing" I have.

 

[bigcountry4me]

The rear ring has a stop which can be removed if you prefer to move the mount forward.

 

[Gerald P Beer]

Thank you !

 

[icebear]

Your problem is precisely the reason I dislike the Leupold and similar ring systems for Sako dovetails. The best solution I know of for 30mm is the Australian-made Lynx/Hillver system, which Sako at one time marketed as a Sako product and was also sold in the US by B-Square and Tasco. These mounts are windage adjustable and put the rings close to the ejection port, providing maximum flexibility in positioning the scope. They were made in 30mm. Unfortunately, they are hard to find. You can sometimes find them on eBay or Gunbroker.

Here's a link to a previous post.
https://sakocollectors.com/forum/threads/lynx-hillver-sako-scope-mounts.17397/#post-103104

Here they are on an AV.These are 1" rings,

 

[bloorooster]

As BC says above , Optilock ring are plentiful and available in 30mm. eBay has them from time to time.
Another option may be Millet Rings which are usually about half the price. 30 mm is available but you may have to search hard to find them. The last pair I’ve seen sold on eBay for around 50 bucks.
Leupold rings have been my last choice because of the static side deviation. They are fine if your scope choice will allow the rings to mount in the center of the dovetails. Things do get rather sideways when they are placed anywhere else.

 

[Gerald P Beer]

Your problem is precisely the reason I dislike the Leupold and similar ring systems for Sako dovetails. The best solution I know of for 30mm is the Australian-made Lynx/Hillver system, which Sako at one time marketed as a Sako product and was also sold in the US by B-Square and Tasco. These mounts are windage adjustable and put the rings close to the ejection port, providing maximum flexibility in positioning the scope. They were made in 30mm. Unfortunately, they are hard to find. You can sometimes find them on eBay or Gunbroker.

Here's a link to a previous post.
https://sakocollectors.com/forum/threads/lynx-hillver-sako-scope-mounts.17397/#post-103104

Here they are on an AV.These are 1" rings,
View attachment 33574

I see, said the blind man. It would appear from the photo that a mount is used in conjuction with rings. No doubt this is a superior set up similar to some Leopold systems I have seen. Mounting rings directly to the integral dovetail works but obviouly not as well. The easy way in seldom the best way right ?

 

[icebear]

It would appear from the photo that a mount is used in conjuction with rings.

Follow the link in my previous post for photos of that system in its original packaging. The bases and rings were packaged and sold separately.

Mounting rings directly to the integral dovetail works but obviouly not as well.

Not really. Traditional Sako rings mount directly to the dovetail and are fully adjustable for windage, allowing full freedom of placement. As far as I am concerned they are the best solution for a vintage Sako, but they were never made in 30mm so they don't fit your requirements.

 

[Gerald P Beer]

Follow the link in my previous post for photos of that system in its original packaging. The bases and rings were packaged and sold separately.


Not really. Traditional Sako rings mount directly to the dovetail and are fully adjustable for windage, allowing full freedom of placement. As far as I am concerned they are the best solution for a vintage Sako, but they were never made in 30mm so they don't fit your requirements.

Ah ha ! I already have the 30 mm scopes. 30 mm seems to be the hot item although 1" was fine for most of my life. While I have your ear, can you tell me why I see my barrel through the scope I just mounted? I dont think I like this, never noticed it before on any of my rifles.

 

[bigcountry4me]

why I see my barrel through the scope

If that’s a 2x-10x and it’s set at 2x you’ll see the barrel in sort of distorted fashion because the magnification is low. Raising the magnification to 3x it should disappear. The lower the power the more the barrel is visible. Remember, at low power don’t pay attention to the barrel distraction, focus on the cross hair.

 

[bloorooster]

If that’s a 2x-10x and it’s set at 2x you’ll see the barrel in sort of distorted fashion because the magnification is low. Raising the magnification to 3x it should disappear. The lower the power the more the barrel is visible. Remember, at low power don’t pay attention to the barrel distraction, focus on the cross hair.

You can pay just a little attention to that low power image at the bottom field of view, as it can provide an indication of parallax shift. Center the image and you reduce the parallax

 

[Gerald P Beer]

You can pay just a little attention to that low power image at the bottom field of view, as it can provide an indication of parallax shift. Center the image and you reduce the parallax

 

[Gerald P Beer]

Correct, it is at 2x I see the barrel. How does parallax come into play in this situation? Thank you in advance for explanation.

 

[bloorooster]

Correct, it is at 2x I see the barrel. How does parallax come into play in this situation? Thank you in advance for explanation.

When image shifts to the left or right, your eye is not centered in the focal plane. Moving the eye (or head) left to right is how we check for parallax with AO adjustments

 

[244HeavyL579]

Just looking at the picture I believe you have the rings on backwards. I believe the screw should be on the other side. The leupolds are tappered. If you look at the bottom of the ring base you will see. I just ran into the same issue as I noticed my father had installed the rings wrong.

 

[Gerald P Beer]

You dont say! I will check that ! Some times it seems there is just no job too simple for me to screw up!

 

[stonecreek]

Greetings learned group members.
I recently mounted a Leopold scope on my new old 270. At first I ordered Leopold medium ring mounts but because the objective bell touched the barrel I had to go with the high mounts. My complaint with these mounts is that they would not grip the intregal mounts on the rifle until positioned way past the center of the intregal mount. This is a 30 mm scope. The set up pictured works fine, eye relief good etc, but I would prefer to mount the scope centered on those mounts. This is the second set of Leopold mounts that I had to mount this way. The other is on a 243. I am wondering if SAKO brand mounts would fit the rifles better and if they come in 30 mm dia?

I can't see a blessed thing wrong with exactly how you have your scope mounted. The Leupold rings are neat, clean, and light in weight compared to many other mounts. If, as you say, the eye relief is proper, then it is totally irrelevant where the turret sits in relation to the rings, or the rings in relation to the receiver. I'd be 100% happy and leave them alone.

 

[244HeavyL579]

Stone creek the leoupold rings have a taper milled into them on the bottom. So if they don't get installed correctly you will have very little contact to receiver and potentially never be able to hold the scope still. Learned this the hard way, lol. I will take a picture of a set of leupolds when I get home tonight and hopefully it will make sense.

 

[244HeavyL579]

You dont say! I will check that ! Some times it seems there is just no job too simple for me to screw up!

I screw up all the time, lol. It's how I learn. I just looked at your picture and thought man I am just looking at this same thing on my 244. So I swapped them around and wall la it worked. Ha ha