Hey Everyone,
Got the opportunity to go down to a buddies and figure out where I wanted my rings and scope to sit on my new 700 5R.
The levels I'm using are borrowed from a buddy and had been used successfully on my hunting rifle and an AR in the past. https://www.midwayusa.com/product/5...vel-level-level-scope-crosshair-leveling-tool
I did not have a level surface to work from however I was able to use my bipod to get the rifle level (so I thought) and then level the crosshairs on a line I'd hung from a tree about 50 yards away. As noted in a second though there is a likely problem here in that I can't fit the level under the scope due to the clearance between the tube and the rail. This meant I set the scope in the rings, sighted in on the string I had hung, then removed the scope, leveled the rifle, then put the scope back on and leveled the reticle on my hanging line.
I snugged everything up and went home intending to remove each screw individually, add loc tite, then torque them all down once they were all back in. At home I put the rifle on a level table, looked through the scope at a line I hung from the wall, and found the crosshairs to be slightly off.
Where I'm running into problems though is that there is not enough clearance between the scope tube, and the top of my rail to use both bubble levels at the same time.
So at this point I take the scope off and find that with the bipod on a level surface (and both legs fully retracted) the rifle is still not level. I take this to mean that one bipod leg is slightly longer than the other, or enough of the pad on one has worn down to make a difference. Keep in mind this shouldn't have mattered originally though as I'd used the bipod to level the rifle. So this may potentially account for the scope not appearing level at home.
Now that I've got the scope off again though, I put the level back on the rail and find that the nightforce 20 MOA rail doesn't even appear to be a good base to use to level from. If I cantilever the level off to the left and get it level, then flip the bubble around to the right side, it's off by about 1/4 of a bubble.
Is there another level spot on a 700 5r I can use? The only one I can find that appears level is the very back portion of the raceway when the bolt is out, however I don't have anyway to know if that is actually level or not.
Hopefully this makes sense. This is my first foray into any kind of precision rifle and in the past I've never had any issues mounting a scope on my AR or hunting rifle using the same method.
Any tips or recommendations are appreciated. I know there are probably easier tools to use out there to do this. If I have to there's a gunsmith in Houston who mounts scopes but I'd rather spend the $ on a tool to do it properly myself than paying someone else to do it.
Thank you!
Got the opportunity to go down to a buddies and figure out where I wanted my rings and scope to sit on my new 700 5R.
The levels I'm using are borrowed from a buddy and had been used successfully on my hunting rifle and an AR in the past. https://www.midwayusa.com/product/5...vel-level-level-scope-crosshair-leveling-tool
I did not have a level surface to work from however I was able to use my bipod to get the rifle level (so I thought) and then level the crosshairs on a line I'd hung from a tree about 50 yards away. As noted in a second though there is a likely problem here in that I can't fit the level under the scope due to the clearance between the tube and the rail. This meant I set the scope in the rings, sighted in on the string I had hung, then removed the scope, leveled the rifle, then put the scope back on and leveled the reticle on my hanging line.
I snugged everything up and went home intending to remove each screw individually, add loc tite, then torque them all down once they were all back in. At home I put the rifle on a level table, looked through the scope at a line I hung from the wall, and found the crosshairs to be slightly off.
Where I'm running into problems though is that there is not enough clearance between the scope tube, and the top of my rail to use both bubble levels at the same time.
So at this point I take the scope off and find that with the bipod on a level surface (and both legs fully retracted) the rifle is still not level. I take this to mean that one bipod leg is slightly longer than the other, or enough of the pad on one has worn down to make a difference. Keep in mind this shouldn't have mattered originally though as I'd used the bipod to level the rifle. So this may potentially account for the scope not appearing level at home.
Now that I've got the scope off again though, I put the level back on the rail and find that the nightforce 20 MOA rail doesn't even appear to be a good base to use to level from. If I cantilever the level off to the left and get it level, then flip the bubble around to the right side, it's off by about 1/4 of a bubble.
Is there another level spot on a 700 5r I can use? The only one I can find that appears level is the very back portion of the raceway when the bolt is out, however I don't have anyway to know if that is actually level or not.
Hopefully this makes sense. This is my first foray into any kind of precision rifle and in the past I've never had any issues mounting a scope on my AR or hunting rifle using the same method.
Any tips or recommendations are appreciated. I know there are probably easier tools to use out there to do this. If I have to there's a gunsmith in Houston who mounts scopes but I'd rather spend the $ on a tool to do it properly myself than paying someone else to do it.
Thank you!
