Months ago, I was at the shooting range having a casual conversation with my friend Bill G. about rifle scopes. Seeing the Vortex scopes I was using, he mentioned he had never really had a great scope nor had he really thought about it. At SHOT Show 2018, I had him check out the Vortex Strike Eagle scopes and he loved them. In fact, he had quite a smile on his face after. I told him that we would have to get him set up when he purchased his next rifle.
Fast forward a few months when his new rifle arrived. He decided to transfer an old scope to it and wanted a Strike Eagle for his .300 BLK. I had him look at the specs and offered my recommendations. He enthusiastically decided on a Strike Eagle 4-24×50 and was itching to mount it properly. *Hint, hint, Al!* Unfortunately, I got really busy and had to postpone. Bill is a patient man and last week I finally made the time to go to his house.
Bill mentioned that he had never properly mounted a scope, so I brought over my Wheeler Manufacturing scope mounting kit and got to work. Bill had already compared the glass in his other scopes and the Vortex. He said he was surprised at how crisp and clear it was.
We first got a rough idea where the rings should go and tightened them finger tight. I laid the scope in the rings and we tightened the bolts down to get an idea if we needed to lap them. We determined they need to be lapped slightly, so I walked Bill through the process and had him do the work. Once I was satisfied, we cleaned up the rings and set the scope in, locking it lightly in place.
Next, I wanted to be sure we got proper eye relief set up. Bill is a lefty and shoots a little different than I, so I adjusted the scope while he held a shooting position. Within a few seconds were at a good place. You seriously couldn’t wipe the smile off his face!
Once the proper eye relief was set we got to the leveling portion. I am a pretty thorough guy when it comes to things like this. Bill also falls into this category, so we spent the better part of our time verifying level, torquing the rings down, loosening them back up, adjusting the scope once again, and by now I am sure you get the picture. We spent a considerable amount of time getting it just right. We nailed it and were thrilled!
We torqued the rings to 25 in. lbs. and rechecked the eye relief. We both gave the rifle a once over and had to check the optic range of the Strike Eagle. To say it was incredible doesn’t give it any justice. Clear, sharp, and when we dialed it up to 24 power it felt like you could hit a sparrow at 400 yards. Who knows, maybe we will have to get this set up shooting that far.
Bill may not smile much for pictures, but that is the face of a happy rifleman! With his new Vortex Strike Eagle 4-24×50 scope mounted properly, he is eager to get to the range in a couple weeks and sight it in. Heck, I am eager to get out there! I am stoked for him and can’t wait to see what he is able to do with that set up. I’ll bet he is going to be the happiest guy at the range!
It’s interesting to know that it will be a good idea to hold the rifle to a shooting position before mounting the scope when you are left-handed to set it right. I will keep that in mind because I am left-handed and I plan to get Vortex Turrets this year. It’s to have the best scope when my husband and I go hunting as a new activity we will do every summer.