Another option for scoping a single shot

[wolfman]

Tried some aperture options for my .357, but wasn't quite satisfied with the looks or performance. Decided to try a scope on it, at least temporarily. Got the Henry Pride rail, & looked through my idle bits & pieces to find some low & medium rings (both Leupold Rifleman aluminum). The only unemployed scope in the safe was a Leupold FX-1 4x28. It's a rimfire scope, but I'm thinking (hoping?) it'll handle a steady diet of lightish .357 without problems. It's about as small & light as a decent scope can get, which I consider a good thing for this application. Parallax is set at 60 yards, again just about right for the application.
Not a big fan of having a scope really high off the bore, or the poor (usually) cheek weld it causes. Crossed my fingers that the low rings would fit, but had my doubts. Pleased to say it worked out pretty darn well.

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A bit high off the bore, but not unreasonably so. Cheek weld is still satisfactory.

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Clears the front of the rail by a frog's hair. Wouldn't have been a deal breaker- could easily remove the unused portion of railing.

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Figured hammer clearance was going to be the problem, but again it just barely clears. Can wedge enough of my thumb in there to cock & de-cock, but a hammer extension is definitely in order.


It's a good, clear little scope. Wouldn't recommend it for some of the available calibers (looking at you, .45-70) but may be an option if you're looking for something to top one of the lighter recoiling offerings. It'll stay on mine at least through hand load development, & may very well become permanent- really like the way it looks.

[North Country Gal]

I love the combo. Nice rig. I don't think being a rimfire Leupold will give you any issues at all as to holding up. Other than the parallax, it's still a standard FX. Let us know how it shoots.

[Mags]

.
That it did!

... Pleased to say it worked out pretty darn well. ...

[wolfman]

I love the combo. Nice rig. I don't think being a rimfire Leupold will give you any issues at all as to holding up. Other than the parallax, it's still a standard FX. Let us know how it shoots.

Thanks, & will do! Looking forward to finding a good recipe.

Think I am going to remove the unused section of railing... should allow the rear sight to be tapped back in.

[BigAl52]

Looks good wolfman. I have thought about doing the same on mine. I work with a guy who owns a bunch of lathes and milling machines. He also builds rifles. Was going to give him my mount and let him machine off the front end Im not using. I like the looks of yours with the 4x28. By all means get the hammer spur you will like it much better.

[ESquared]

Great looking set-up! Everything you're going to do sounds spot-on, too.

That sled looks like it would be great for lever actions, too; lots of clearance underneath.

Now all we need is a range report!

Thanks for sharing

[Yornoc3]

That looks really good, and it'll be even better when you remove that unnecessary hunk of scope base rail . There aren't many options for shorter bases available, unfortunately, for those of us using compact scopes. I, too, have found that Burris low Zee rings will clear the scope just fine, if you use a hammer spur. Weaver medium Grand Slam rings will, too. (Odd factoid: Weaver low rings are lower than everyone else's, so their medium are the same height as Burris, Leupold, Warne, etc. low.) I've used a couple of sets of the "new" made in USA Weaver Grand Slams on my single shots; I like 'em .

[BigAl52]

How about some pics of those Yornoc. We like pics

[wolfman]

That looks really good, and it'll be even better when you remove that unnecessary hunk of scope base rail .

Agreed... more I looked at it last night, more I wanted that unused section to be gone. Getting the rear sight back on will be icing on the cake- will look better without that empty dovetail, and one less gun part for me to misplace .

Btw, great tip about the Weaver rings!

[North Country Gal]

I've cut weaver rails short for the sake of using a red dot and not having a lot of extra hanging out in front on a LOT of guns. Easy to do with just a plain old hacksaw. Here's a Bushnell TRS-25 red dot on a marlin 39A with such a cut down base.

[Yornoc3]

You're right, BigAl, I do need to get out some pics. Just last week, I finally was able to fit the scope and mounts to the 30-30 single shot, as part of my carrot on a stick incentive program for knee replacement therapy. Soon, I'll be shooting - when the snow finally melts. I'll set up a picture of the three single shots, same scope base, different scopes and rings. A picture is worth a thousand words .

[wolfman]

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... now with unused rail removed & rear sight assembly back in place.

[lovesleverguns]

Wolfman, I have the .243 on order and will pair it with a Leupold VX-Freedom 2-7x33 scope. I really like your set up. Which base did you use and are the rings size low? Thanks!

[BigAl52]

I used the regular Henry SS sight base and just cut off the portion that extends out over the rear barrel sight. Used a dremel to cut mine off. Then reshaped it to my liking and painted it with satin black came out great.

[Davel91]

Hi Wolfman,

Did you fire the rifle in this setup? How did it do? Any issue with the hammer striking the scope?

[wolfman]

@lovesleverguns, sorry for the late reply... base is Henry Pride, rings are Leupold Rifleman low.
Ranger Point has a rail that looks to be lower than the HP, but it might force you into medium rings making it a wash.

@Davel91, yes & it works with no interference. My new daughter in law seems to have claimed that rifle (dowry? ), but I've since picked up another. Funds are tight after just buying & outfitting a new X, but will probably set the new ss up exactly like the one in this thread, eventually.