Swapping scopes from one rifle to another worked again.

I've said for quite a while it is quite possible to function with more rifles than scopes. I am down to 2 scopes for 5 rifles that get shot throughout the year. Every rifle has a 20 MOA pic rail, save the .308 AR, it is wearing a 22 MOA pic rail riser on top of the flattop upper.

Last week I moved the SS 5-20 from the 7mm-08 to the gas gun for load development. To get the scope zeroed to the gas gun I took notes, "down 2.2 Mil and left .3 Mil. During load development I dialed out to 300, then dialed every hundred to 800 on Monday. Yesterday I needed the 7mm-08 put back in service, I unbolted from the gas gun, and moved the scope to the bolt action. I referenced notes, dialed the corrections and made a shot at 100 yard paper. It landed .1 Mil high

Dial down .1, loosen the turret screws, zeroed the turrets, tightened the screws, fired one more round and was good to go. So I moved a scope from rifle A to rifle B, used the scope, moved the scope from rifle B to rifle A again and was technically zeroed in one shot!

technically zeroed after one shot, the second time...the first time you zeroed the scope on those rifles it wasn't a one shot zero I assume.

Also, do you have a method of tightening the scope on the rails to ensure exact same tightening and position, and do you have the rails marked where you placed the scope? I would imagine these things matter to accuracy of the scope/rifle combo, or maybe I am wrong? QD mount?

It is good to know what you did is possible, with the correct notes though. Makes more sense switching scopes onto rifles than buying more of the same scope.

Correct, I zeroed in one shot when moving back to the original rifle. It took two shots to zero to the new rifle.

This scope is sitting in very high quality Badger Ordinance rings, that is a major part of the ability to move scopes around. I like my rings as far apart as possible after eye relief is set. In this case, the rear ring is in rear most notch on both pic rails. That is what I try to do, every time, if possible. Because, yes, especially on a 20 MOA rail it matters which notch the rings go into every time.

what scope

SWFA SS 5-20 is the one he mentioned in the OP. Not sure if they are both the same as he mentioned 2 scopes and 5 rifles

Are you using qd rings ?

Good question. Also what brand and do you torque your rings to the same inch pounds each time?

From a previous post, I think FiremanJG uses Badger Ordnance and Talley Tactical rings with EGW Picatinny rails. All quality rings and mounts.

Correct. Plus that happens to be his favorite scope. He is also a HUGE FAN of Talley Tactical rings. They are great rings with two recoil lugs that mate perfectly to picatinny rails.

I doubt he was using QR rings.

I'm still waiting on another rangefinding contest. I really enjoyed that thread.

Badger Ordinance rings, no QD mount. Just need a 1/2" socket. Put the scope in the same slot every time, torque it down the same if I have a torque wrench with me. If I Don't I use a 1/4" drive ratchet and tighten to where the nut stops. Badger rings are tough as an anvil. I've got two sets of them, a 30mm set and a 34mm set. The 30mm has the SS 5-20 in them and the 34mm has the Bushy Elite ERS in them.

The Talley Tactical rings are also very strong a d they are aluminum as opposed to steel Badgers. The recoil lugs in the Talley's make for even more stability. Those rings are currently awaiting a new scope. So I will have three scopes and five rifles with no plans to add any more scopes. There is no need to with this system. And I can only shoot one rifle at a time anyway.

Between the two scopes, which one do you like better?

Edit- I think Skylar answered that a few post's up.

I like 3.5-21 better than 5-20.
I like scaled down Horus better for making pure Golds, but that's usually only during a match.
I like locking turrets better.

But the SS has been so reliable and has very good glass it will always be more valuable to me than it will ever be on the market. I'lol always have a job for it. I'm using it today and tomorrow during a doe hunt. Just neck shot two does with it on the 7mm-08 a minute apart.

Go look in the Photos section, Buzz.

u jst tooooo bad, nice pics

somewhere

I've been kicking around the idea of doing this between my bolt 308 and ar but with some qd mount without a cantilever instead.

Which would y'all prefer to do:
A. Get the shortest qd mount and install a rider, or
B. Get a qd meant for ar height and raise the cheekrest on the boot gun.

Just looking for some opinions.

I did option "A", minus the QD mount. I've always got a 1/2" socket near by when swapping a scope from one rifle to another.

Ordered a Badger Ordinance 22 MOA riser for the gas gun. I already had the scope riding in Badger Ordinance rings. Those aren't cheap, but they are high quality.

Switching scopes works well as long as the mounts are rail type and the scope tracks true. Does not require quick detach rings, they are in many cases the same rings that can be put on and taken off without tools. Like FiremanJG said the right socket or screwdriver and good to go. The only QD rings I use are on a handgun I sometimes want to take the scope off of and a Scout Rifle for the same reason.

Have switched scopes several times but would never try it with some scopes I have owned that do not track true, one that comes to mind is the Leupold VX-II.

What r your thoughts if I went with your option A and got these instead?

http://swfa.com/Badger-Ordnance-30mm-1-Piece-Ringmount-P11817.aspx

You mean a riser on the gas gun, and a pic rail on the bolt gun, and those rings?

If so, that will work.

That is exactly what I meant.

I am now thinking about getting these exact rings with 0.885" height so I can mount directly to my 308 bolt gun AND THEN get a rider for the ar and mount these to the riser.
I think I might pull the trigger on this set up so I can just move around my swfa ss 3-15 and shoot it on multiple rifles.

Good plan.

Fireman, u haven't steered me wrong yet so I'm going to spend more money than I ever though I would on merely rings. But if this works, I'm so thinning out the scopes I have.

Do you happen to know of the manufacturer's name of a portable torque wrench? It looks like a wrench that is fair flat and small. You can apply different torques by changing the position of where the bit is. So when u get to spec it breaks over.

http://www.triadtactical.com/Borka-Tools/


Next question?

Which 22MOA riser are you using? I'm assuming BO?
Have You done this with your DPMS G2 & another .308? If so, was there much difference in POI?

Yes, Badger Ordinance riser.

Yes, the Recon.

Not another .308 gas gun. Scope from the AR to a bolt action, and back again.

Another option is using an LT120, LT112, etc by Larue. They work very well this application.

Quicker/easier? Yes, but I'm not too sure QD's will have exact precision each time, if done often, as opposed to a regular mount torqued w/precision using a tq. wrench.

Agreed.

I trust torqing a nut more than any QD mount.

Have you ever tried Bobro qd mounts? I have taken mine off and reinstalled it on the same rifle many times with correct return to zero. It uses a strong spring/cam design that theoretically should repeatedly "torque" accurately. Not sure that it would really offer any benefit over a nut and torque wrench but it is fast. I have owned a Larue qd as well and I prefer the Bobro design. Just a thought. I haven't tried it from one rifle to another but I will try your method. I've been intending to test this since watching Magpul Dynamics "Art of the precision rifle" (Todd Hodnett) series several years ago but I still haven't tried it.

I've not tried it, because I've never purchased QD mounts. I've never been in that much of a hurry.