Scope level

[Matt G.]

Question how do you you verify gun level if there is no part of the gun that has a flat spot to level. The rifle is the kimber hunter. Was going to use tally lightweight rings. Thanks in advance.

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[wind gypsy]

If a reticle isn't mounted absolutely perfectly plumb with a rifle the resulting possible errors are negligible. Errors are significantly larger from not holding the reticle plumb when shooting if dialing or using holdover.

Eyeball it. If it seems the reticle is pointing down the middle of the bore/action, good enough. It's especially a waste of time if you're not going to have a level on the scope make sure your reticle/scope is plumb when shooting.

 

[Dmoua]

I use this to level the rifle and a plumb Bob to level the scope.

 

[TheM1DoesMyTalking]

Once you have your rings installed on the action, take off the top ring half and you'll have the flat surface of the bottom half of the ring/base to put a small level:

Stabila 11995 Magnetic Pocket Level PRO with Holster https://a.co/d/6pR3cVc

Set your rifle on sandbags/in a rest or cradle/in a vice and get your rifle level and keep it there. I set this up with a plumb bob down range so I don't have to move it again for the next steps.

Then install your scope loosely, and get it roughly level. I reference off the elevation knob cap or the flat spot on the bottom of the scope, using a metal ruler and a level. Tighten the ring cap screws a little to hold this.

Then, without moving the rifle, fine tune the scope leveling with the reticle and the plumb bob. Tighten it up and verify level one more time. If you didn't use loctite during that part of the process, replace one screw at a time, add loctite and torque to final setting.

That's how I've worked around setting up a round top receiver with no picatinny rail or other flat spots. I think Talley rings may have a small flat on them that could be used to verify that the rifle hasn't moved. Otherwise Wheeler sells a level that clamps on the barrel that could be set after you level the rifle and before you install the scope and lose the flats on the ring bases.

 

[Darryle]

I ordered this, saving up for a Aetec, so I will have to let y'all know

Defensive Edge Reticle level

 

[Matt G.]

Once you have your rings installed on the action, take off the top ring half and you'll have the flat surface of the bottom half of the ring/base to put a small level:

Stabila 11995 Magnetic Pocket Level PRO with Holster https://a.co/d/6pR3cVc

Set your rifle on sandbags/in a rest or cradle/in a vice and get your rifle level and keep it there. I set this up with a plumb bob down range so I don't have to move it again for the next steps.

Then install your scope loosely, and get it roughly level. I reference off the elevation knob cap or the flat spot on the bottom of the scope, using a metal ruler and a level. Tighten the ring cap screws a little to hold this.

Then, without moving the rifle, fine tune the scope leveling with the reticle and the plumb bob. Tighten it up and verify level one more time. If you didn't use loctite during that part of the process, replace one screw at a time, add loctite and torque to final setting.

That's how I've worked around setting up a round top receiver with no picatinny rail or other flat spots. I think Talley rings may have a small flat on them that could be used to verify that the rifle hasn't moved. Otherwise Wheeler sells a level that clamps on the barrel that could be set after you level the rifle and before you install the scope and lose the flats on the ring bases.

That is what I thought. But I found out I cannot trust those. I put a Level and the front and back rings do not agree.... so which ring is correct..so I have a new set on order but also thought about going with a picatinny rail system just to have adjustability and flat spot to level off of. My OCD is kicking in.

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[Darryle]

A level is an aid, a plumb line thru the optic parallel with the vertical crosshair and the center of the bore aligns them perfectly, unless you are cross-eyed, it's hard to foul up.

 

[wind gypsy]

I saw this related thread after first commenting on this one. Sharing the post here so people can see the numbers and realize that having a scope perfectly plumb with the bore has WAY less impact than having the reticle plumb to the ground. This is why i don't even bother with levels to get scopes plumb with bore much of the time even when there is flat mounting surfaces to use and I have the tools. It can be eyeballed really dang close.

Tips for Leveling Your Scope

Hey everyone, we just wanted to share our tips for leveling your rifle scope. Most of you guys may already know how to do this with your eyes closed. But if we can help someone out here then it's a success! For us, once the scope is mounted, it starts with eye relief - close your eyes, shoulder...

rokslide.com

 

[rayporter]

whether it is necessary or .........

a rock on a rope under or beside the target is just too easy to pass up for me.
the rope hangs there year round.

 

[EastHumboldt]

I sense a marketing opportunity. The Cabela’s “Rock-on-a-rope” Long range target GPS alignment system…. Just 5 easy payments of $19.99. Not sold in Arizona, Michigan, or Hawaii.

 

[EastHumboldt]

I saw this related thread after first commenting on this one. Sharing the post here so people can see the numbers and realize that having a scope perfectly plumb with the bore has WAY less impact than having the reticle plumb to the ground. This is why i don't even bother with levels to get scopes plumb with bore much of the time even when there is flat mounting surfaces to use and I have the tools. It can be eyeballed really dang close.

Tips for Leveling Your Scope

Hey everyone, we just wanted to share our tips for leveling your rifle scope. Most of you guys may already know how to do this with your eyes closed. But if we can help someone out here then it's a success! For us, once the scope is mounted, it starts with eye relief - close your eyes, shoulder...

rokslide.com

View attachment 699682

The upper two tables are easier to interpret… and my takeaway is if your vertical crosshair is plumb you’re still gonna be pretty close even if you did a bad job leveling your scope. But if your scope is mounted perfectly and you hold your rifle at a 5 degree cant, you’re gonna be off by…. Idunno I couldn’t figure it out.

 

[JGRaider]

The Reticle Tru alignment device is simple, quick, and foolproof. It aligns the reticle perfectly to the bore of the rifle every time.

Parabola LLC

parabola-llc.com

 

[wind gypsy]

The upper two tables are easier to interpret… and my takeaway is if your vertical crosshair is plumb you’re still gonna be pretty close even if you did a bad job leveling your scope.

Correct, if you did a bad job leveling your scope to your rifle

But if your scope is mounted perfectly and you hold your rifle at a 5 degree cant, you’re gonna be off by…. Idunno I couldn’t figure it out.

The error on the 3rd table is based on the assumption that you are either dialing in or holding corrections for those given angles (in MOA or MIL) with a canted reticle. The error is dependent on the amount of correction dialed into or held off from zero. Because a dialed or holdover correction doesn't correlated directly to a given yardage, the errors are represented differently. If you're not used to thinking in angular measurements and only in inches, i can see how it is confusing.

Basically the 2nd table shows if you have a 2 degree offset between scope and bore but the scope is held plumb, the windage error at a 1000 yards would be 0.628" which equates to about 0.0174 Mil. Say a 6 creedmoor shooting a 109 ELDm @ 3000fps needs roughly 6 mils elevation correction to get to 900 yards. Table 3 shows that if rifle was held canted a 2 degrees and had 6 mils elevation dialed or held, the error would be 0.21 mils which at 900 yards = roughly 6.8". So in this example having a scope canted 2 degrees if mounted perfectly plumb with bore causes over 10 times the error that having a scope mounted 2 degrees off plumb from the bore would if the scope was plumb at time of the shot. The catch is that the error grows considerably the more the hold over or elevation correction grows. None of this stuff amounts to a hill of beans for a point blank range hunter.

 

[EastHumboldt]

Thanks for taking the time. Awesome explanation.