What if... 100% tool-less scope rings?

[2aBaC̶a̶]

In my work I often come across tools or equipment that I think could be translated into the shooting world in one form or another.

Thinking outside the box here. Do you think there is a practical or even just interesting application to having scope rings or mount that is competely toolless? If just as secure and reliable as normal rings.

Just click it in and its secure. No torqing screws. No screws at all.

 

[HousePlant]

If you build it, they will come. It'd certainly eliminate all the ridiculous YouTube videos of people treating scope installation like a gourmet meal review.

 

[2aBaC̶a̶]

I wonder what the tolerance is on scope tube dimentions from brand to brand.

 

[918v]

Didn’t US Optics use yo make those?

 

[2aBaC̶a̶]

Didn’t US Optics use yo make those?

Never seen it. All searches for tool less scope rings came up empty. Ive seen a toolless base that clamps to pic rails. Thats fairly common.

 

[Evolution 9]

OP, I completely agree that it would be cool, and someday it may happen, but…

When I see companies that have done parts of that (tool-less zero setting, etc.), I’m invariably a bit taken back…

Some idiot on YouTube or a forum will convince thousands of other idiots that X scope (very inferior otherwise) is better than Y scope because it doesn’t need tools… which has absolutely zero to do with the scope’s performance.

Then good companies will screw us by sacrificing meaningful innovation to chase tool-less design, or they will be screwed by diminishing market share. We all lose.

By now, we all have a handful of Allen wrenches, torx bits, box wrenches, etc. we will still need them if scopes don’t need them, because our actions, chassis, light mounts, etc still need them.

So minus about 10 minutes when you first get the scope, I don’t see any benefit.

Again, it would be cool, but I’d hate to see that as a focus until there’s darn near perfection elsewhere.

 

[FUNCTIONAL]

Aside from tool less qd mounts I can't see a benefit from having tool less caps to mount the scope. There is a level of effort to level the scope and I'm not sure you could successfully do that without other tools and have the system be reliable to any distance. If you find a way to incorporate that into tool less I'd say you may have a market but still not a large one.

 

[Swamppy]

Great idea and really thinking outside the box. I feel like it would add quite a bit of bulk to the system????and how would you manage the torque without a tool?

 

[whatsupdoc]

Why do you need rings at all? Just a stupid old design.

Just put a Pic clamp on the bottom of the scope.

 

[acudaowner]

large rubber bands twist it tight enough and enough of them it will hold a scope on well at least it worked for our bb gun , it would be neat to at least see if you can come up with something better necesity is the mother of invention .

 

[GrumpyOleFart]

 

[2aBaC̶a̶]

I sorta came to the same conclusion that it doesnt really solve an immediate problem per se. Still thinking of that and if there was such a thing what are other features to incorporate that would be selling points.

-Ease of installation.
-Foolproof way to apply factory specified clamping force without overtightening.
-No screws to come loose.
-not leave ring marks
-Not be bulky and would be aestecially pleasing to look at.

What if it also had a tool less attachment system so you could easily just clip snap lock things on and off?

 

[DetroitRearView]

No rings, perfect RTZ, reticle perfectly aligned to bore, plenty of eye relief adjustment and zero slippage.

Great hunting scope setup.

 

[shoobe01]

Why do you need rings at all? Just a stupid old design.

Just put a Pic clamp on the bottom of the scope.

This is the answer. For a while way back almost all mil scopes in Europe at least were STANAG. Scopes had mounting bosses and threaded holes fore and aft

Screws came in the bottom of the mount (here, a QD mount on a Sig 550) or even through the top of the receiver for direct mounting in some cases.

Starting to see integral mounts a lot more of late again and I like it. Mostly custom things like the Aimpoint T1 footprint cloned by Holosun et al, but then no clamping, no alignment, etc you just screw on whichever base, and mount it right up. VCOG is a full sized scope with an integral pic base. They use it cleverly to also mount the battery out of the way, but the principle even without that I quite like.