AK Side Rail Mount mis-aligned

[Hammerhead]

Hello,
I have a Saiga in 308 with a side rail for a scope mount. When I put the mount on and tried to sight it in, the scope ended up more than a foot low at 25 yards, with the scope maxed out.

The mount looks like it would be adjustable. It is an all-in-one, complete with rings. It is made of three separate pieces, with 2 screws holding the each of the top and bottom pieces to the middle section. One flat head screw and one a pan head, each going into a nut on the back of the mount. It looks like you should be able to loosen up the screws and do a gross adjustment to the POA/POI, but the pieces are pinned together, in addition to the screws.

There is no manufacturers name that I can see on the mount, unless it is Cyrillic, and I am mistaking it for a decoration. I bought it used, so it did not come with any paperwork. I have looked at various side mounts on the 'net, but I haven't seen anything that looks similar.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? I am wondering if the scope mount is manufactured this way, or has it been modified?

Also, any suggestions on a fix? The only thing I can think of is shimming the scope inside the rings.

Thanks for the help.

Regards,
Rick

 

[Sam1911]

I wouldn't screw around too much with the scope. If you can borrow another one, check to see if the problem is repeated with that one. Chances are, the rail on the receiver may be misaligned.

A friend of mine builds a lot of AKs with side rails and he has a procedure to handle just what you're describing. He rivets the rail in only one place and the mounts the scope. With the scope mounted and the elevation adjustments set to zero, he boresights the rifle, adjusting the angle of the mounting rail. When he's got the elevation of the zeroed scope lined up where he wants it, he marks the receiver to drill for the other rivet.

I mention this because I know it is quite possible for that rail to be mounted to the gun out of alignment far enough to make using the scope frustrating or even pointless.

It would be possible to drill one of the rivets out of the side mount and then rotate it to boresight just like my pal does. Unfortunately, you'll already have a hole in the receiver almost, but not exactly, where you want that rivet to go. You may be able to enlarge that hole in the right direction and rivet the mount in the correct alignment if you're very careful and know what you're doing.

If it's the rail, you may want to have the manufacturer / importer repair or replace it.

-Sam

 

[rbernie]

The misalignment may be caused by the rail being improperly mounted, or by the mount itself being a POS. I have found that the BP02 low mounts are well made and consistent, and they are my 'gold standard' for mounting optics on an AK siderail. If the scope can't zero POA/POI with the BP02, then the rail is mismounted.

Sadly, there is no way to remount the rail easily. Once the holes are in the receiver sidewall, you are kinda stuck unless you have access to the machine tools needed to add a new hole to both the rail and the receiver (countersinking the hole in the rail and such) so that you can 'abandon' the original hole(s).

Russian American Arms may warranty the rifle if the rail is mismounted. It's certainly worth giving them a shout.

I'm betting on a bad mount, and not a rail issue.

 

[Hammerhead]

Thanks for the replies!

I will have to see if I can find a mount to borrow. That is the easiest thing to check.

I will re-post when I figure it out.

Regards,
Rick