Best way to level a scope

[thane]

Prior to mirror method, I do zero the scope at intended zero range and velocity to verify reasonable centering of scope.
Point into mirror with white tape on left and right of objective bell and white felt pellet in bore with fine dot in center. This makes seeing the bell edges and bore center more clear to rotate the vertical reticle until it splits the bore center.
Lock it down.
Using a plumb line, rotate rifle until vertical is inline, lock down scope mounted spirit level with bubble centered.

The reciever may or may not be level, the vertical reticle is plumb and directly over bore exit when scope spirit level is centered ready for holdovers/dialing (hopfully vert turret is parallel to reticle...).

 

[Bigragu]

Yeah one day I’ll revisit the mirror method. I just don’t have the distance I need to a flat wall to hang a mirror. If I use the hallway inside the house the mirror is propped at an angle against the bathroom sink, which I feel isn’t right.

The best I could confirm my method of leveling the scope and then setting my can’t via a plumb Bob afterwards, is I drew up a grid on a piece of cardboard, with exact measurements that would match the MOA distance marks on my SFP delta Stryker at 40 power.

I shot up and down the vertical lines at 50 yards, and if I didn’t start to stray outwards at an angle Everytime I clicked up, or downwards and at an angle when I clicked down, then I knew I was good.

I also make it a habit at whatever distance I’m shooting at, to hang a 1/4” thick black string with a heavy fishing torpedo weight so at anytime I can check yo make sure my cant is good-

 

[Michael]

I will try to answer these based on my experience.

Is the goal to get the vertical crosshairs to split the Objective bell & the muzzle evenly? - This. The vertical cross hair will cover the scope and muzzle, so you are trying to get it to split them both down the center, proving that they are both aligned.

Thank you!

 

[jarmstrong]

lighted reticle helps for me. I center the cross on the scope bell, using hash marks to center it and let the lower vert. hair line ,, center on the bore.
I used to do the levels and plumb bob, and got a wedge set for under the scope,,, but once I found the mirror method, is is second nature to me.

I begin with the scope mechanically centered, as I can not do the mirror optical centering trick,, tried but just don't have the right mirror or something, so mechanical works, close enough for me.

I realize that it is not the best method for everyone, do what works best for you,
the mirror alignment does not fix barrels that are not parallel to the dovetail/picatinny to begin with,,, that problem will show it's ugly face by shooting short distance compared to longer distance, and you will see a side to side shift of poi

 

[Smok3y]

lighted reticle helps for me. I center the cross on the scope bell, using hash marks to center it and let the lower vert. hair line ,, center on the bore.
I used to do the levels and plumb bob, and got a wedge set for under the scope,,, but once I found the mirror method, is is second nature to me.

I begin with the scope mechanically centered, as I can not do the mirror optical centering trick,, tried but just don't have the right mirror or something, so mechanical works, close enough for me.

I realize that it is not the best method for everyone, do what works best for you,
the mirror alignment does not fix barrels that are not parallel to the dovetail/picatinny to begin with,,, that problem will show it's ugly face by shooting short distance compared to longer distance, and you will see a side to side shift of poi

Yep. Lighted reticle does help sometimes too. Just barely on to see the hash marks for centering.

 

[nervoustrig]

First lets identify the goal. Is the goal to get the vertical crosshairs to split the objective bell & the muzzle evenly?

Sort of, yeah. The goal is to align the reticle with the barrel. The method to achieve this goal is by clocking the reticle to simultaneously bisect the objective bell and muzzle.

1. Should we start with the rifle on a rest and the action as level as possible?

A rest of some kind is very useful to hold the gun steady while viewing your reflection in the mirror. There is no need to level the action, the scope, or anything.

2. Should we optically zero the scope prior to mounting?

It’s a good idea, yes. Doesn’t need to be precise, just don’t want to inadvertently have the windage turret somewhere near the extremes of its travel.

3. Confirm that we should not adjust the turrets, only the position of the rifle facing the mirror (or the mirror itself) with shims.

The only thing to be done in front of the mirror is to rotate the scope in the rings until the vertical bar of the reticle bisects the objective bell and muzzle simultaneously. Once that is done, you lock down the scope in the rings.

All the above ensures there is no scope cant. We still need to eliminate gun cant. To do that we need to attach a spirit level so we know how to hold the gun level to the force of gravity. Put the gun in a vise and tilt the gun as needed to make the reticle match a plumb line you have hanging. With your reticle overlapping the plumb line neatly, affix a spirit level to the scope tube so it shows level.

From now on, simply hold the gun so the spirit level shows level and you can be confident your pellet’s trajectory will fall along the vertical bar of the reticle.

 

[Squack]

I've read this thread a few times now, and it seems to complicate a simple task
I mounted a scope today, as I've have many, leveling off the receiver and then the turret after having adjusted and lapped the rings. The optical center was perfect in the bore scope.
The scope will track true as they all have.

 

[Scouty]

@Michael I want to make a quick comment on something I haven't seen mentioned, at least based on my quick skim over this thread.

I have not found a way to do this with fixed parallax scopes, which I recall you have a few of.

I'm sure with a long enough space it could be done but I suspect my 54 year old eyes wouldn't see enough detail to align the reticle with the bore at those distances. I have tried turning the power down but it didn't work for my eyes.

What I haven't tried is temporarily adjusting the scope to a closer focus distance only for the alignment setting.

Look forward to reading what @nervoustrig & others have to say about this. My apologies if this has already been discussed.

 

[baloo]

View attachment 155232

This!!!!!

 

[Joedirt199]

My fixed parallax scopes, I leave the objective ring loose so I can adjust on the fly. There is enough friction/tension on them they don't change while moving. Never heard of the mirror method and have tried many times to level thw scope to the gun rail. After using the mirror, I see that that the rail, scope, turret are not always level to each other.

 

[nervoustrig]

@Scouty, regarding fixed-parallax scopes, I agree on temporarily adjusting the objective lens is the sure way to do it. But if you want to try it as is, let’s look at the two things that make the job more difficult.

The first is parallax error. This one is pretty easy to circumvent by using the same approach we use when aiming & shooting at a distance different than the scope’s fixed parallax value, which is to simply move your eye until there is a uniform halo around the sight picture. At that point we are looking through the center of the scope and any potential parallax error is nullified.

The second issue is poor focus...difficulty seeing the reflection in the mirror. The objective bell is large and prominent enough to see, at least enough to distinguish when the reticle splits it down the middle. However the muzzle may be difficult to see, black reticle against the usual black muzzle. The lighted reticle trick mentioned previously may work, or add a dab of White Out or use clear tape to stick a paper punch dot to the muzzle to make it contrast better.

If neither of those approaches works satisfactorily, I’d say switch to a laser boresighter. It’s amazing how much their price has come down over the last decade or so.

 

[Florida_Man]

I’ve tried a number of ways, but this has been far and away the best. Plump bob

 

[Jaxjax]

I've read this thread a few times now, and it seems to complicate a simple task
I mounted a scope today, as I've have many, leveling off the receiver and then the turret after having adjusted and lapped the rings. The optical center was perfect in the bore scope.
The scope will track true as they all have.

This is how I do it now . Actualy I just use my phone on the split ring then turret. My shooting is 90% at 100 yards with nice results.
Joe

 

[Smitty911]

I read all that to say all this.

If you start with your rifle plumb/level/clamped and shot at a vertical line at say 50 yards from the bottom to the top. It seems that you could tell which way to rotate your scope to bring the shot string into the vertical. This would bypass all the mirror, levels, etc. etc. etc. This would also align the movement of the elevation tracking with the actual pellet travel.

I'm with the BigRagu. I have to setup my Ghost so I'll be trying the above.

Smitty

 

[rc4fun]

An easier? way to setup the mirror is to use a 6"x8" mirror hooked to a flexible goose neck on a table level with the gun 10-30 ft away. Now take your laser pointer and mount it to the barrel, a bit of foam and rubber bands makes it easy. It needs to be parallel to the barrel.
Turn it on and point the gun at the mirror being very careful not get the reflection in your or helpers eyes! Without looking at the laser walk to the back of the mirror and adjust to get the reflected beem aligned with the scope. Lens cap on so you don't get another reflection back at you. If you want to get fancy hang a string in front of the mirror and move it left or right into the laser beam.
Back at the gun Turn off the pointer remove the scope cap and you should find that you can see the scope and barrel through the scope. You may need to make SMALL adjustments to the gun position to get the setup correct. Usually you will need to move the entire gun and not just pivot. The string should cross the center of the barrel and scope. Put a flashlight on the gun table and point it at the muzzle to make it easier to see. Now twist the scope so the vertical matches the string bisecting the muzzle and scope.
https://www.amazon.com/YEAKE-Goosen...ck+Bamboo+Vanity+Makeup+Mirror,aps,124&sr=8-3
@Smok3y said . - The hardest part is getting the mirror set up and level, so that I can see my rifle across the room. My angles are usually all off and I have to keep adjusting it to find me at the desk. Once I do, it is just matter of getting it set up to a good view and then twisting the scope to get it right. I spend more time on the setup than I do leveling I think.

 

[Smok3y]

An easier? way to setup the mirror is to use a 6"x8" mirror hooked to a flexible goose neck on a table level with the gun 10-30 ft away. Now take your laser pointer and mount it to the barrel, a bit of foam and rubber bands makes it easy. It needs to be parallel to the barrel.
Turn it on and point the gun at the mirror being very careful not get the reflection in your or helpers eyes! Without looking at the laser walk to the back of the mirror and adjust to get the reflected beem aligned with the scope. Lens cap on so you don't get another reflection back at you. If you want to get fancy hang a string in front of the mirror and move it left or right into the laser beam.
Back at the gun Turn off the pointer remove the scope cap and you should find that you can see the scope and barrel through the scope. You may need to make SMALL adjustments to the gun position to get the setup correct. Usually you will need to move the entire gun and not just pivot. The string should cross the center of the barrel and scope. Put a flashlight on the gun table and point it at the muzzle to make it easier to see. Now twist the scope so the vertical matches the string bisecting the muzzle and scope.
https://www.amazon.com/YEAKE-Gooseneck-360°Rotation-Frameless-Rectangle/dp/B08317RD39/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?crid=3QDR7066DHV97&keywords=yeake+flexible+gooseneck+bamboo+vanity+makeup+mirror&qid=1691876602&sprefix=Flexible+Gooseneck+Bamboo+Vanity+Makeup+Mirror,aps,124&sr=8-3
@Smok3y said . - The hardest part is getting the mirror set up and level, so that I can see my rifle across the room. My angles are usually all off and I have to keep adjusting it to find me at the desk. Once I do, it is just matter of getting it set up to a good view and then twisting the scope to get it right. I spend more time on the setup than I do leveling I think.

I like that laser method So I don’t have to get up and back down. I take my sons mirror out of his bathroom and stand it up against a chair so it is easier to fin the reflection in the huge mirror, but still take a few tries.