Putting a scope on a Savage MKII

[Kaiser7 33]

So over my years of airsoft, and shopping around at yard sales, I've picked up a few scopes. Obviously, I'm not dropping hundreds of dollars on some glass, but I've gotten some good deals over the years on some OK scopes. I don't hunt, and I'm not looking to get into competition (yet anyway, someday I'd like to when I have time and money), but I want to learn more about scopes and things. I feel like it would be rather fun to shoot my savage with a scope on it.

 

Well today I happened to drive down Bob's Little Sport shop in lieu of studying, and got some mounts for my savage. Also picked up some rings (Though they sold me ones that don't fit on the mounts). I happened to have a set of rings that fit perfectly, and hold my Lepers 3-9. However, while looking up installation instructions, I think I'm woefully underequipped.

 

I don't have a gun vice, and I didn't bother to lock the threads, since I'm liable to take the scope off when I go to take my gf shooting. If anything, today I just wanted to see if I had stuff. But when searching for instructions, I saw a youtube video where they had these bars for alignment, and all sorts of fancy equipment. I'm just wondering if it's necessary to do all that stuff, or if I could just mount it as I did, and then just zero it at the range. Since it's only a .22, I figure there's really no recoil or anything that would cause major issues, but I know crap about scopes.

 

Just wondering how necessary all that stuff is, and perhaps if anyone has any other advice on scopes/optics in general. 

(If this thread needs to be moved I apologize, I merely put it in rimfire because specifically that's what I was putting the scope on).

[NicePants 58]

Honestly, for a .22 rifle I wouldn't worry about all of that unless you're looking to make some sort of competition build. And even then, you'd probably be using something much more accurate than a stock MKII. Just mount it on and zero it at the range, preferably from a rest.

[kman 56]

Mount it, zero it.  All that other stuff isn't really needed, especialy if you are using a rail that should be aligned fine from the factory.

 

However, if you are putting the scope on a handgun, you need a scope that's made for a handgun.  The difference is eye relief.  You don't put a rifle scope on a handgun, you have to hold the scope too close to your eye and the recoil will drive the scope right into your eye without any shoulder stock to stop it.

 

A handgun scope should have eye relief fine with your arms holding the gun fully extended.

 

Eye relief is how far away your eye can be from the end of the scope and still see through it fine.  Rifle scopes don't have anywhere near enough for pistols.

[Scrap 4]

My Savage Mark II is a "GXP" model from Dick's Sporting Goods... DSG features the GXP across the nation.  G = wooden stock (which people deride as plain and basic and yes, it is compared to the nicer and much more expensive models, but it's extremely nice to me, features rich color and awesome checkering etc.) and XP= Combo Rifle package with scope.  I got it on sale from $199.99 to $149.99.

 

I bought a Nikon ProStaff 4-12x40mm (when that was the top of the line ProStaff, which has since been rebranded and there's a ton of new ProStaffs) and all I did was this- remove the rings by unscrewing them.  Took off the included Bushnell 3-9x40mm , put on the ProStaff.  I centered it and adjusted it for eye relief and how it felt for my body when I got behind it, then I simply put the rings back on , screwed them down, and boresighted it with a laser.  Real easy.  Then I zeroed at the range.

 

 

 

Are the rings and mounts it came with probably dirt cheap ones, yep.  Absolutely.  Is my scope more expensive than the rifle?  Also yep.  And the result is an amazingly accurate rifle with an awesome scope, all the scope I need and more, and it was super simple to do.  

 

 

 

 

*ALSO* If you buy from places like DSG, if you buy a scope in store or even wait and buy online when you can get their best deal or use a discount code, you can take it into their stores and make them mount and boresight for free (Which is nice cause they've got the professional equipment if you don't [or i don't etc.] ... top notch boresighter, nice vices and rifle rests, etc.).

[Kaiser7 33]

My Savage Mark II is a "GXP" model from Dick's Sporting Goods... DSG features the GXP across the nation.  G = wooden stock (which people deride as plain and basic and yes, it is compared to the nicer and much more expensive models, but it's extremely nice to me, features rich color and awesome checkering etc.) and XP= Combo Rifle package with scope.  I got it on sale from $199.99 to $149.99.

 

I bought a Nikon ProStaff 4-12x40mm (when that was the top of the line ProStaff, which has since been rebranded and there's a ton of new ProStaffs) and all I did was this- remove the rings by unscrewing them.  Took off the included Bushnell 3-9x40mm , put on the ProStaff.  I centered it and adjusted it for eye relief and how it felt for my body when I got behind it, then I simply put the rings back on , screwed them down, and boresighted it with a laser.  Real easy.  Then I zeroed at the range.

 

 

 

Are the rings and mounts it came with probably dirt cheap ones, yep.  Absolutely.  Is my scope more expensive than the rifle?  Also yep.  And the result is an amazingly accurate rifle with an awesome scope, all the scope I need and more, and it was super simple to do.  

 

 

 

 

*ALSO* If you buy from places like DSG, if you buy a scope in store or even wait and buy online when you can get their best deal or use a discount code, you can take it into their stores and make them mount and boresight for free (Which is nice cause they've got the professional equipment if you don't [or i don't etc.] ... top notch boresighter, nice vices and rifle rests, etc.).

 

 

Yeah, I've had a similar issue with my other guns, wanting to sight them in, but boresights seem fairly expensive, or like total garbage.Plus I know nothing about how to boresight and stuff.

 

It's hard coming from a non-gun owning family to being a gun owner. There's so much that I have to learn, and i never know what's necessary and what's not haha.

 

But yeah, I figured throwing a used scope on here would help me get used to it should i want to try it later on.

[GRIZ 3,369]

I have mounted a few dozen scopes in my time. Never used a vice or a boresight. Loc-tite the screws. Maybe used a larger than what some would consider normal backing on a target frame to see the strike of the rounds to get on target.

 

Maybe I've just been lucky.

[Kaiser7 33]

I have mounted a few dozen scopes in my time. Never used a vice or a boresight. Loc-tite the screws. Maybe used a larger than what some would consider normal backing on a target frame to see the strike of the rounds to get on target.

 

Maybe I've just been lucky.

I have no clue if Lock-tite is permanent or not. Like I mentioned, I'm probably going to use this gun to teach my gf to shoot, and it would likely be best to teach her on irons, so i'm sure i'll remove the scope. Plus I figure with a .22 rifle, there won't be any recoil that might throw the scope off to warrant locktite.

[GRIZ 3,369]

Use blue Loc-tite on something you want to be able to take apart easily. You don't need to use it but it helps keep things tight.

[DSD1026 48]

you dont "really" need to use loctite on a 22 per se..  doesnt really have the recoil to loosen it up much.  if you're gonna want to remove it to use the irons, then dont use any... 

 

as the others have mentioned, you probably dont need to use a boresight for zeroing in a 22 rifle.  I put my nikon prostaff on my 15-22, then brought it to the range to zero it.. 

[fapipa 3]

If you want to boresight it without special tools, this method worked reasonably well for me on Savage and Marlin bolt action 22s:

http://hunting.about.com/od/guns/ht/htboresight.htm

You can also shine a flashlight through the barrel, but I find that method less accurate. If you don't have a shooting rest, you can make a cradle out of a cardboard box for this.

[Kaiser7 33]

If you want to boresight it without special tools, this method worked reasonably well for me on Savage and Marlin bolt action 22s:

http://hunting.about.com/od/guns/ht/htboresight.htm

You can also shine a flashlight through the barrel, but I find that method less accurate. If you don't have a shooting rest, you can make a cradle out of a cardboard box for this.

 

 

YOU SIR ARE A GENIUS. Or at least have some awesome google-fu. I guess in retrospect this idea is pretty obvious, but i never thought of it. Glad I can do this stuff, it's awesome though, thanks for linking this!