Scope height and neck pain.

[RayDBonz]

As the years go by, I find my neck starts to hurt if I'm behind the scope too long. I have found that raising the bipod helps.

Would raising (or lowering) the height of the scope help? If anyone has tried, I'd be interested in the result. Might save me time and money trying different rings.
Thanks!!

 

[308pirate]

I went from .9" high to 1.25" high 30 mm rings and had an immediate improvement both in comfort (neck and eyestrain) as well as better tracking under recoil.

I had to raise the stock's comb an equal amount, obviously.

I suggest buying the same ring in two or three heights from a place that accepts easy returns, trying them all, and returning all but the one that best suits you.

 

[C.R. Adams]

personally, the higher the rings, the less neck pain i experience. I feel that it place my head in an upright position and allows me to position my upper torso more comfortably as well, up off the deck.

 

[RayDBonz]

Thanks for the suggestions!

 

[Clownbuster]

As the years go by, I find my neck starts to hurt if I'm behind the scope too long. I have found that raising the bipod helps.

Would raising (or lowering) the height of the scope help? If anyone has tried, I'd be interested in the result. Might save me time and money trying different rings.
Thanks!!

Same boat here, I have gone down this road finding what works best for my very stiff, crunchy and painful neck in prone. Ended up going back to low rings but run my bipod and rear bag a little higher, and one way or another I get my chest off the deck a little more.

 

[chevy_man]

Fix your neck.

Make it as comfortable as possible. This is no magic number so it's up to you to experiment.

 

[Eustice]

There has been this idea that your scope has to be as close to your barrel as possible, otherwise the earth will shift on its axis, cats and dogs will lay together, and all your shots will miss by 10 feet at 100 yards.

The truth is your scope rings can be any height you want. The height can be accounted for in your Ballistics app and as long as the scope is level you won’t have a problem. Make sure what is on there is right for you and you are comfortable behind it.

Go to a place with a good distance and lay down behind the rifle (a range is a good place but any field will do). Have no rings in the rifle and use a stack of quarters, shims, or pieces of wood of different heights with a notch to hold the scope. See what is comfortable to get behind then measure the height of your stack. If you’ve got 8 quarters then measure what 8 quarters is in height and find rings that are close to that. A cheap caliper from harbor freight will do that.

Make sure you are measuring the proper height. Look at the rings and see how that manufacturer is measuring them. A medium height set of rings from Badger Ordnance is different from a medium height set from Seekins which is different than Nightforce which is different than ADM which is different from Spuhr. Look at the actual height number and see if it’s measured from the rail to the bottom of the ring or the rail to the middle of the ring. It’s a shame there’s not a standard in how rings are measured.

 

[xtacleone]

get an adjustable stock like Magpul PRS.

 

[Precision Underground]

Something that helps get your head in a better position is to tilt your rifle toward your head slightly (so it tilts the scope toward your head) and then level the reticle to that position. This brings the scope closer to your line of sight and reduces the amount of head tilt needed to get your eye behind the scope.

Everyone is different but I would advise against adjusting your prone position up to the point that you have to get on your elbows or lay on the rifle to get high enough. Your body needs to be connected to the ground and the rifle needs to be connected to your body. A lot of guys will connect the rifle to the ground and then connect their body to the rifle. It sounds like semantics but there’s a big difference.

 

[Steel head]

I went from .9" high to 1.25" high 30 mm rings and had an immediate improvement both in comfort (neck and eyestrain) as well as better tracking under recoil.

I had to raise the stock's comb an equal amount, obviously.

I suggest buying the same ring in two or three heights from a place that accepts easy returns, trying them all, and returning all but the one that best suits you.

I have a jacked up neck and shoulders from a crash and I find a high bipod position and high rings really helped me stay comfortable at prone.

 

[bunsen27]

I too have neck issues and going into my 2020 PDog hunt I thought I had adjusted everything correctly for minimal neck strain/tension between the ring height and adjustable comb on my KRG Bravo stock. After three days of 6+ hours a day on the rifle shooting and scanning for the little buggers I unequivocally knew the setup wasn't correct!! Thankfully KRG makes an adjustable butt pad (both vertical & cant) for the Bravo. That little addition made all the difference. It allowed me to keep the medium rings and adjustable comb where it was, but I dropped the butt pad 3/4 of an inch which raised everything else up and eliminated neck strain/tension. Higher rings are a great option if you have an adjustable comb, and a fully adjustable butt pad is not a poor choice either. I also find a slightly ( 1-2 notches) higher bipod height to be beneficial for bothe prone and bench work.

I know in the shotgun sports custom stock fitting is quite common and yields dividends. I see no reason why the same principles could not be applied to LR rifle. It's already common for Palma and small bore shooters to use fully adjustable stocks.