My first Bolt Gun.

[bbbass]

When I came back from divorce and thought I could only afford 1 rifle,

I bought a Ruger M77 Stainless with kevlar stock in .308

Because:

I wanted a short action for less weight
Stainless for rust prevention and ease of cleaning
kevlar for wet conditions
.308 for availability of loads, boolits for reloading, ability to load down for target
ease of working the trigger over
ballistic data
low recoil (important for new shooters and old guys like me)

I've taken lots of deer and elk wid it.

 

[No_Regerts]

Not sure what that means, but ok.

Parallax is a phenomenon that occurs, mostly in scopes of higher magnification, where the position of the crosshairs appears to change when you move your head without moving your gun. This is an effect of focus, or lack thereof. Most scopes are focused to be free of parallax at 100 yards. If shooting further at high magnification, the scope needs to have its parallax adjusted to avoid that perceived movement of the crosshairs.

If you shoot with your head in a different position than your head was during your zero, you could trick yourself into thinking you're aiming somewhere you're not.

 

[Glock Jock]

I see. I've heard the term but never got a definition.

 

[Glock Jock]

And are the mounts for the rings as important as the rings or do they simply come as a set?

 

[No_Regerts]

And are the mounts for the rings as important as the rings or do they simply come as a set?

There are general classes of mounts and rings and they are somewhat non-brand specific. Weaver/picatiny compatible, Redfield and Dual Dovetail are basic styles. Some guns have proprietary type mounts and rings like the Ruger 77. Some brands of rings and bases like Talley and DNZ have their own style of mounts.

There are some styles that are stronger than others. The redfield style with rear mount windage screws have never been a favorite of mine. Ive had that system fail. Dual dovetails are solid as a rock but can be a pain to square. I like them when they are an option. "Tactical" style rings will be weaver/picatiny compatible and are very strong, but bulky. I prefer steel over aluminum, especially with hard kickers.

 

[Glock Jock]

Sounds good. I'm a very experienced tech that builds complex automation equipment so I think I can do this with some direction and a couple new tools. Any suggestions on which Loctite if any for base or rings? I have Loctite blue and red.

 

[No_Regerts]

Sounds good. I'm a very experienced tech that builds complex automation equipment so I think I can do this with some direction and a couple new tools. Any suggestions on which Loctite if any for base or rings? I have Loctite blue and red.

Either is fine. I use blue on rings and bases. I've seen others use red with no ill effects. Scope mounting isn't rocket surgery as long as you have everything torqued properly and everything is square.

 

[Glock Jock]

I like the Wheeler tool. Can probably use it for other stuff too. I would probably go with the blue too.

 

[Ura-Ki]

For best results, Make sure to check the fit of what ever mounts you choose! It's not as uncommon as you think to find mounts that are not a perfect fit! Easiest way is to rubber cement fine sand paper to the top of the receiver and hand lap the mounts over there respective mounting position, once satisfied that the mounts are true to the receiver, apply lock tite and torque the mounts evenly! Then install your rings of choice and square them and install your scope, lapping the rings as needed! Make sure to align your scope before applying lock tite and final torqueing!

 

[Glock Jock]

Ok, but I'm not familiar with lapping.

 

[DirectDrive]

Ok, but I'm not familiar with lapping.

Some say you do, some say you don't.
Trouble is, you don't know until you take the scope off.

So, either don't take off (or move scope) or lap to be sure.

 

[tac]

As an Oregon Boy, you'd really be thinking of Leupold or Bushnell for a scope [Beaverton] and Warne for rings [Tualatin], right?

tac

 

[Pete F]

Leupold told me that it is unnecessary to lap their dove tail steel rings mounted on a good receiver. I did have some ring marks on a scope that I took off of my Ruger M77, steel rings that came with the rifle. I used a hard stone to remove the offending metal. Checking the rings for imperfections before mounting is a good idea. Warne also recommends not lapping their vertically split rings.

Since it sounds like you do not have much experience with mounting scopes, a gunsmith may be a good idea. He/She could mount it correctly and do the initial bore-sighting. It would be nice to find someone to actually show you how it is done.

As far as scope brand and power, 3-9x used to be the standard for hunting and still works well - I have two. I chose the 4.5-14x with parallax adjustment due to failing eyesight and it seems like it is the new 3-9x since long range shooting has become so popular. It works well for me, but like others have said, it should be what works for you. My Leupold VX-3 CDS (Custom Dial System) is a good midrange scope to use as a comparator for other scopes that you may look at. My rule of thumb is to spend at least as much on the scope as the rifle cost. Some say three times the cost.

 

[DirectDrive]

I have noticed quite consistently, that scope ring mfrs all say that their rings don't any need lapping.
To say otherwise would be a wee bit counter-productive.

 

[bsa1917hunter]

Was looking at this too. And I wasn't set on the .308 as much as a place to start. The .270, .30-06 and .300 WinMag were the other choices.

Browning® X-Bolt Hell's Canyon Speed Bolt-Action Rifles : Cabela's

Do like Kruejl said and get a Tikka T3x and you'll have the best of both worlds. As far as the cartridge you are inquiring about, the 308win is a damn fine hunting round, as well as a great target shooter. If you get a Tikka, you'll have a fine shooting rifle, every bit as accurate as that hells canyon from BACO, but a lot lighter and nicer to pack in the woods when you are hunting... You don't need a 12 pound rifle for hunting. Keep it simple with 1 rifle that will do anything you ask of it and get the Tikka...

 

[bsa1917hunter]

Starting to second guess that line of thinking. I really like guns so buying two isn't the end of the world but I was considering the one and only option for a pretty penny if it could be done. Sounds like the Tikka is the crowd favorite.

And for good reason...

 

[bsa1917hunter]

Well I just went to Cabelas and they had a Tikka Lite (wanted to see superlite but they didn't have one), Ruger American, Bergara Hunter and 14 HMR but didn't see a Ruger 77. They were all pretty nice. The HMR was heavy and I would say the Ruger American and Tikka T3 had a similar enough feel but the Bergara Hunter felt the best. It was a little heavier by about a pound for $699. Tikka was $750 and Ruger was cheaper than both by almost half. Still undecided but it was good to actually see them. Going to see more before I make a decision, bday isn't until April so no rush.

Go to sportsman's warehouse and check out the superlites. They go on sale every once in a while too. They can be quite reasonable, especially around christmas time..

 

[No_Regerts]

Go to sportsman's warehouse and check out the superlites. They go on sale every once in a while too. They can be quite reasonable, especially around christmas time..

On the contrary, Cabelas is a great place to buy the same guns for $100 to as much as $200 more!

 

[DirectDrive]

Do like Kruejl said and get a Tikka T3x and you'll have the best of both worlds. As far as the cartridge you are inquiring about, the 308win is a damn fine hunting round, as well as a great target shooter. If you get a Tikka, you'll have a fine shooting rifle, every bit as accurate as that hells canyon from BACO, but a lot lighter and nicer to pack in the woods when you are hunting... You don't need a 12 pound rifle for hunting. Keep it simple with 1 rifle that will do anything you ask of it and get the Tikka...

And if you want to go full-blown Tikka, nitrous injection, milled rings and the grocery bag trick, you'll go Tikka 7mm-08.
/thread
Well, until Pharmy chimes in.....and this thread could go 5 stars if that happens.

 

[bsa1917hunter]

On the contrary, Cabelas is a great place to buy the same guns for $100 to as much as $200 more!

Generally the Cabela's exclusive superlites are more money than the sportsman's warehouse superlites. I guess some like paying more of their hard earned money for the camo stock version..