10/22 w/ optics. Any issues to be aware of?

[Justin]

Ok, so Dad has wrangled me into attending the Sportsman's Team Challenge event that's coming up in a couple of weeks.

One of the events in this sport requires the use of a .22 autoloading rifle with a telescopic site.

Now, I'll admit up front that what I know about telescopic rifle sights can fit in a thimble. Luckily a friend of Dad's gave him a bunch of pointers about what to look for, and Dad said he'd order a scope for me if I bought a rifle. (Thanks Dad!) Anyway, I picked up a used 10/22 earlier this week. It was already fitted with rings and an el cheapo brand scope. Tonight I pulled the cheesy scope off, and dropped the new Nikon scope on. The rings seemed to be a good fit, and the scope installed without any fuss.

However, I'm somewhat concerned about the clearance between the scope and the barrel of the rifle. It's very small. So much so that putting the protective cap on the front of the scope is difficult to do.

Will this cause me any problems? Should I scrap the rings and buy a new set with more clearance?

Unfortunately, I don't have an unlimited budget for this project, especially since I'm doing this more as a lark than anything else. (If I get hooked, I figure I can always continue to upgrade in the future.)

 

[ziadel]

I dont see a problem there... *shrug*

 

[Fumbler]

Thats plenty of clearance, just dont use the cap.

You should be more concerned with how well your eye lines up with the scope than with the scope clearing the barrel.

What mounting hardware are you using (base and rings)?
The factory tip-off base is flimsy.
If that's whats on it then scrap it and get a Power Custom reciever mounted base.
Be aware that many 10/22s have a bump in the front of the reciever under the front of the scope base. If you max out your elevation adjustment and still cant hit your POA then you likely have the bump.

Check out www.rimfirecentral.com and look at the stickies under each sections. There's lots of info.

Good luck

 

[Dead]

If you shoot it a lot, and quickly (g I wonder?) you might get some "waves" from the heat rising off the barrel in your sight picture. I do not think even that would really be much of an issue though. Just have fun, and be safe.

 

[montyh]

it's a good thing

optical sights accually perform best when mounted as low over the axis of the bore as possible (without accually touching the barrel). this gets the line of sight closer to the bore and reduces sighting error when shooting at distances other than the exact distance the rifle is sighted in for.

monty

 

[Soap]

The lower you can mount the scope, the better, so you're good! I'm jealous, I hear that is a really fun event.

 

[George S.]

You can always cut away a portion of the rim of the scope cap so there is clearance on either side of the barrel at the bottom of the scope bell.

As mentioned, the Rimfire Central Forum has some great information on accurizing the 10/22 and there are 4 separate sections devoted to different parts of the 10/22. The nice thing about 10/22's is there is a tremendous selection of parts, vendors, and technical information to make this rifle a real tack-driver. Single ragged holes are easily done at 50yds. And the best thing is that you can do them yourself and do things in stages so you don't break the bank.

 

[aerod1]

The clearance looks great to me. You can certainly have too much clearance. As mentioned before the closer (without actually touching) the better.
It sounds like y'all are going to have a lot of fun!

Jim

 

[Justin]

Hey guys, thanks for the advice!

George- A few minutes with a file and the cap fits just fine now.

Fumbler- I haven't the slightest idea what sort of rings are on the rifle. I bought it used, mostly for the bull barrel that was already installed on it. I lucked out in that the rings fit the scope fine, but I don't think that they're the highest quality. They show some dings and scratches from the previous owner. The thing that the rings mount to appears to be the standard Ruger one.

 

[Dave Markowitz]

Double-check that the screws holding the scope rail to the receiver are tight. They may loosen up due to the vibration when the bolt hits the recoil pin at the back of the receiver. Loc-Titing them is a good idea, IMO.