Rifle Scopes SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

[GunDudeUSA]

Planning to get a Schmidt & Bender 3-20x50 scope soon. Recommendations for scope rings? Brand, model, height etc.

I plan to mount it on the new DTA SRS-A1 with the adjustable cheek piece.

 

[Kruger21]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

I'd use DTA's 40MOA ring set!!

 

[GunDudeUSA]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

40MOA? I will mainly use this for 308 and maybe 338 one day. Will that be too much?

 

[Coloradocop]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

Haven't shot the rifle you're using, but I just mounted my S&B 3-20x with a Spuhr mount (20 MOA, but others are available). I've only put 100 rounds down the pipe since mounting the thing earlier this month, but I'm happy with the mount so far, and it seems very robust. Also, the Spuhr mounts have an integrated bubble level and a design that allows the attachment of other accessories as needed.

So far so good. I was a bit hesitant at first due to the price of the mounts, then I remembered that I was mounting a $3500 scope with it.

 

[sirhitalot]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

Ive got the TPS steel rings in low. I lapped them to ensure perferct fit.

 

[Early Cuyler]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Coloradocop</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Haven't shot the rifle you're using, but I just mounted my S&B 3-20x with a Spuhr mount (20 MOA, but others are available). I've only put 100 rounds down the pipe since mounting the thing earlier this month, but I'm happy with the mount so far, and it seems very robust. Also, the Spuhr mounts have an integrated bubble level and a design that allows the attachment of other accessories as needed.

So far so good. I was a bit hesitant at first due to the price of the mounts, then I remembered that I was mounting a $3500 scope with it. </div></div>

To get the most range (Using JBM, I'm assuming one mile w/300gr SMK @ 2800fps and 100yd zero) out of your setup with the 338LM you probably won't need a canted base with the 26mil of elevation you have available with the 3-20x. With the elevation range of top tier scopes today going north of 100moa, I don't see canted bases offering much advantage. They allow more of the range to be used, but how many of us honestly shoot a caliber at distances to require a canted base?

If you want to go the ring route, I can't recommend Seekins highly enough. I had my S&B in a set of Seekins rings on my R700 and I had no issues whatsoever. If you want to go canted mount, I recommend either the DTA mount or Spuhr. The DTA will be cheaper and works great. The Spuhr does the same but adds in a little versatility with potential future add-ons. The additional bubble level is helpful as well. I'll echo Coloradocop: when looking at prices for rings, remember they'll be holding a $3k scope. Buy quality.

I have a DTA SRS with a S&B 5-25x56 on top. I put mine in a Spuhr 44.4moa canted mount for really no good reason except for the RARE occasions when down the road I'll take a future 7mm variant out west to shoot beyond a mile. That and I got an email from Ron Jeremy saying it'd make my pecker bigger.

 

[pmclaine]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

Dont know if this will be helpful but...

I have a 5-25 mounted in a Spuhr 20 MOA mount on an LMT MWS. My 100 yard zero using 168 grn Nosler CC .308 over Varget at 2600 feet per second used up 7.8 mils of elevation.

I think that leaves me 18.2 mils of up to work with.

Anybody with a calculator able to tell me what will happen first - I'll run out of elevation or my .308 rounds will run out of flight?

Im guessing option 2.

 

[GunDudeUSA]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

Awesome. Thanks a lot guys. Appreciate the advice. So I'm hearing Seekins and Spuhr as the common denominator here. 20MOA should be fine with the new scopes.

 

[One-Eyed Jack]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Halcyon612</div><div class="ubbcode-body">To get the most range (Using JBM, I'm assuming one mile w/300gr SMK @ 2800fps and 100yd zero) out of your setup with the 338LM you probably won't need a canted base with the 26mil of elevation you have available with the 3-20x. With the elevation range of top tier scopes today going north of 100moa, I don't see canted bases offering much advantage. They allow more of the range to be used, but how many of us honestly shoot a caliber at distances to require a canted base?</div></div>

You are way off the mark. Assuming "one mile w/300gr SMK @ 2800fps and 100 yard zero" at sea level and standard pressure, you will need about 80MOA of up elevation from your zero.

If you start with a scope with total internal elevation travel of 100MOA ("the modern scope"), then you have 50MOA of up elevation and 50MOA of down elevation from optical center. If you zero at 100 yards, then you lose about 4MOA of up elevation, leaving only 46MOA of up elevation. But you need 80MOA of up elevation to shoot a target at a mile and will need a 35MOA (or more) canted base. The largest cant your base can have with a 100 yard zero is approximately 54MOA. So the optimum base would be about 40 or 45MOA. The 40MOA DTA rings are looking good.

I can't find data for total internal elevation travel of the S&B 3-20x PMII. If it's 100MOA (29 mils), then you can shoot 175SMKs to 1kyd with a flat base since you would have 45MOA of up elevation. You can also shoot the 300SMK above to almost 1300 yards. Shooting to ELR will require a canted base.

 

[GunDudeUSA]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

Ah. Thanks for the info. 40MOA to get the most use of the rifle then.

 

[GunDudeUSA]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

For the DTA SRS-A1 and SB 3-20x50, would you choose a 1.13" height or 1.46" height?

 

[GunDudeUSA]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

This is for Spuhr 34mm ISMS that is.

 

[pmclaine]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

For the 5-25 PMII S&B recommends a 40 plus cant. I think they call for half your total elevation.

For me realizing I was using a .308 and most often shooting at 300 yards I felt 20 MOA would be fine and I wouldnt always be down at the bottom end of the scopes travel.

Probably flawed thinking but if these things have springs and crap in them why have them always stressed to max if I dont need it?

Aries64 has a great write up on the "whys" of cant when using an S&B but it was kind of too much for my pea brain to absorb.

 

[Coloradocop]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: pmclaine</div><div class="ubbcode-body">For the 5-25 PMII S&B recommends a 40 plus cant. I think they call for half your total elevation.

For me realizing I was using a .308 and most often shooting at 300 yards I felt 20 MOA would be fine and I wouldnt always be down at the bottom end of the scopes travel.

Probably flawed thinking but if these things have springs and crap in them why have them always stressed to max if I dont need it?

Aries64 has a great write up on the "whys" of cant when using an S&B but it was kind of too much for my pea brain to absorb.
</div></div>

I pretty much agree with most of what you're saying on that issue, and mostly shoot my .308 Win beyond 300 yards. I'm also shooting a .308 Win with the 20 moa base, and from my 100 yard zero with my 175gr SMK's, I have 22.5 Mils of up elevation left in my S&B scope. I've thus far seen no argument to support why I should have gone with a more steeply canted base.

I also seem to recall my S&B owners manual stating that they didn't recommend going *beyond* half of your total elevation travel in cant, rather than recommending that you choose a base with at least that amount of cant.

Regardless, here's the thing: by the time I reach 22.5 mils of elevation travel I'd say that it's pretty safe to assume that the .308 is well beyond its 'effective range'. Based on my load, JBM states that I'll run out of elevation travel just after 1,500 yards. Personally, I think that's an unrealistically long engagement range for a .308 Win, though I'm sure there's someone who'd happily argue that point with me, and I do know people have plinked at that distance in the past.

Nevertheless, just to emphasize the falling-meteorite-like-path of the bullet at that distance: at 1520 yards my dope would call for 22.4 Mils of elevation (1 click shy of me running out of elevation travel), and at 1530 yards my dope would call for 22.7 Mils. That's a difference of 24.6 inches of drop in just 10 yards of horizontal travel at that distance with my load, and well beyond the supersonic distance. To me, that's beyond the effective range of the cartridge by a good bit, so why get a more steeply canted base?

But, hey, maybe I'm just dumb and missing something on this subject.

 

[pharm762]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

I use a 45 MoA base from Accuracy International on my AR10 platform and I can get 23 mils of elevation from a 100 yd zero

 

[60BDriver]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

Hey, Halcyon! I got that same email from Ron Jeremy!

 

[pmclaine]

Re: SchmidtBender 3-20x50 Scope Ring Recommendation

I heard Ron Jeremy is in the hospital not doing well.

Upside he is an organ donor and I have first dibs. 45 years of being Irish and Ill finally be able to use the open urinal without fear of ridicule.