Scope base holes out of alignment.

[STI_1911_Guy]

I recently started a build on a savage 110 and just got it finished. I went out to the backyard to start doing the barrel break in and what i found was that the scope i had on it did not have enough adjustment to get me on a 4ft by 4ft sheet of paper. I later removed the scope and you can tell that when looking down the barrel at the scope base the base is not in a straight line. The holes in the receiver are out of alignment. So i put my leupold VXIII on there and went back out and got it zeroed as it has enough windadge to do so (i ended up about in the middle of the total windadge adjustment available) but now my question is:
Is there anything you can do about this or does this have an affect on accuracy or anything like that?

 

[jdgray]

Re: Scope base holes out of alignment.

If you zero the rifle, and dont touch it, you will be fine. If you dial up elevation, you will also have to dial windage, as the windage will only be correct at one distance. You could call Savage and tell them your problem, they might repair it, or have a gunsmith drill and tap your reciever.
The only way to shoot farther distances in your case, is to holdover.

You could also install a windage adjustable base.

 

[STI_1911_Guy]

Re: Scope base holes out of alignment.

So i guess i dont understand why it would affect dialing. Even if the scope is on a slant once the reticle is brought back into alignment and given that your scope is tracking true up/down shouldnt it be fine. With the scope only tracking straight left/right and up/down once its aligned it seems to me it would be ok. If the scope base/barrel alignment was perfect then why on some rifles when i have mounted a scope it will be off left or some off right when first zeroing? Or does it not matter if the base was slightly off center left/right but the fact that its on a slant that matters.

 

[jdgray]

Re: Scope base holes out of alignment.

Yeah, you got me rethinking my reply...
If vertical xhair is centered over the bore, leveled correctly, it should dial up fine. You will be limited on your vertical adjustment however, if its cranked way over in the tube, because the scope is angled.

This link gives you some perspective on being level.
http://www.longrangehunting.com/articles/reticle-perpendicularity.php
If your not leveled correctly, you will need to dial windage as you dial elevation.

 

[STI_1911_Guy]

Re: Scope base holes out of alignment.

Yea good thinking i didnt think about the verticle adjustment. I currently have a 20 MOA base and i just checked and i have 40 MOA available to go up how much of that do you think will be usable?

scope is a leupold VXIII 8.5-25X50

 

[jdgray]

Re: Scope base holes out of alignment.

The only way to know is to shoot at a tall white target at 100yrds, with a true vertical line drawn on it. Shoot at a bull at the bottom of the line, and start dialing up...
Hopefully your impacts will follow the line, be spaced properly to your dial values, and you have enough elevation to suit your needs. All shots are at the same bull of course

 

[seanh]

Re: Scope base holes out of alignment.

above has it right.

You need to see if your xhairs and bullet impact both follow the fall of gravity. If both follow the line on the target, you're good to go.

My guess is that it's more likely your base or rings are out of center than the holes in your receiver.

One thing that could be out of align is your bore to the receiver...hence tuning and a good bbl.