Bulk sized blunders?

[WestKentucky]

We likely all have something that we do repeatedly to mess ourselves up, knowing good and well that we do it and then just keep on doing it. I think I realized what mine is over the weekend. I dragged out every gun and thought about why I had it, where it came from, and what I would do with it. Then I put them all back in the safe like they had been and locked them back up. In the process I noticed the same thing over and over... cheap scope mounts. I don’t just mean cheap, but dirt cheap. Walmart closeout trashbin cheap. Sure they get a scope mounted to a rifle, but really not in any way that I would honestly refer to as acceptable. And what exactly are these $7 scope rings sitting on top of? $7 2 piece mounting platforms that are not bedded or fitted to the rifle. Sheesh... I have way too many of these setups too. At least I don’t have a whole lot of scoped rifles, and the 22s typically are fine, but the centerfire guns need some adjustment. No matter how nice the gun, and how nice the scope is, it seems as though I always just buy the cheapest thing to slap the scope on top of the gun and hope for the best. A system is only as good as its weakest link... and apparently the weakest link in this is the one between my brain and my wallet when it comes time to buy proper mounts.

How do you shoot yourself in the foot proverbially?

 

[Hrbie22]

Going to stick with the theme. I'm guilty of buying that "next gun" instead of putting good glass on a good rifle. Something I have been working on though.

 

[Project355]

I try to limit myself to a predefined roadmap. There have been a few deviations, but not many.

 

[Obturation]

I always tumble 357 & 454 cases together, a perfect storm when you use walnut shells. The 357s nest in the 454 cases and get compacted together with the media working to keep them stuck tight. The outside of the 357s don't get clean and the insides of the 454s don't get clean and when I yank the cases apart media flys everywhere and it's often packed in the primer pockets. But I just keep on doing it, I get so aggravated as soon as I realize I've done it again.

 

[Walkalong]

The 357s nest in the 454 cases and get compacted together with the media working to keep them stuck tight. The outside of the 357s don't get clean and the insides of the 454s don't get clean and when I yank the cases apart media flys everywhere and it's often packed in the primer pockets

Put the larger cases in first, let them fill up with media, then put in the smaller cases, it will stop 99% of that.

 

[Scooter22]

I think the more we read online the more crappy what we have seems to be. According to the online Xperts. I have a bunch of old vintage .22 rifles with old 3/4, 7/8, and inexpensive 1" scopes. They work great for my use. Plinking out to 100yds and occasional headache medicine for squirrels. But as I read you need a CZ or Anshutz rifle these days. Plus a scope that costs more than the rifle. No way am I sinking 2,3,400 bucks in a scope for a 79.00 dollar rifle. The cheap old ones work for me.

 

[tws3b2]

I put a set or rings on my 30-06 when I first bought it. I forget what they are called. The kind that set up high so you can use the iron sights if you want. I forget what I paid for them. Not much. But I didn't get them at Walmart. That was before Walmart. My 30-06 is a Remington 700. I bought it at Woolco for $179 I think it was. If you remember that name you're kind of old like me. I probably got my rings at KMart. That was back in 1975. My Remington 700 with those rings still on top sit in my safe today..I wouldn't give up that gun, Or rings for anything. Never had a problem with either. Brings back a lot of good memories.

 

[trekker73]

I buy components and dies before I get the rifle, then change my mind and am left with components I dont need, then I sell them in disgust, then about 1-2 years later I decide I really did need that calibre and wish I didnt sell off the components. Some people are compulsive buyers, I am a compulsive seller I think.

 

[Pat Riot]

I am truly disorganized when it comes to my shooting accessories and reloading tools and equipment. I used to keep everything neat and organized but after a few moves from state to state I have grown lax and disorganized. I literally spent over an hour the other day looking for a couple of 9mm ammo boxes. I finally found them in a box that I also crammed a bunch of other things in that I have been looking for. To make matters worse I found things that I thought I had lost so I bought replacements.

I really need to get my gun stuff better organized. My safe looks great. My ammo cabinet needs a little work, but all the rest of my stuff needs to be better organized.

 

[jmr40]

Several times over the years I've upgraded to a better scope on one of my rifles. After taking the old scope off I decide that it would be an upgrade for another rifle, and so on. I've had to go to the range to zero two or three rifles because I bought ONE new scope.

 

[Creed Bennett]

Several times over the years I've upgraded to a better scope on one of my rifles. After taking the old scope off I decide that it would be an upgrade for another rifle, and so on. I've had to go to the range to zero two or three rifles because I bought ONE new scope.

I guess that would be the closest think I have to a fault per this discussion. Sometimes when I move the scopes up or around I don’t get a chance to shoot the rifles that where in the switcho/chango and then forget which rifle/scope combinations I sighted in. I go to grab one and have to check to see if it’s ready to go and more times than not it’s not ready. Way to many firearms I guess. Rich people problems, right? No I ain’t rich!

 

[jmr40]

I don’t get a chance to shoot the rifles that where in the switcho/chango and then forget which rifle/scope combinations I sighted in.

I've got a plan for that. I keep blue painters tape around for a lot of uses. It comes off easily. The rifles that haven't been zeroed get a strip of blue tape on the stock with a note reminding me.

 

[berettaprofessor]

I've had to go to the range to zero two or three rifles because I bought ONE new scope.

I thought the scope dance was a Normal thing? It’s not?

 

[Bfh_auto]

We likely all have something that we do repeatedly to mess ourselves up, knowing good and well that we do it and then just keep on doing it. I think I realized what mine is over the weekend. I dragged out every gun and thought about why I had it, where it came from, and what I would do with it. Then I put them all back in the safe like they had been and locked them back up. In the process I noticed the same thing over and over... cheap scope mounts. I don’t just mean cheap, but dirt cheap. Walmart closeout trashbin cheap. Sure they get a scope mounted to a rifle, but really not in any way that I would honestly refer to as acceptable. And what exactly are these $7 scope rings sitting on top of? $7 2 piece mounting platforms that are not bedded or fitted to the rifle. Sheesh... I have way too many of these setups too. At least I don’t have a whole lot of scoped rifles, and the 22s typically are fine, but the centerfire guns need some adjustment. No matter how nice the gun, and how nice the scope is, it seems as though I always just buy the cheapest thing to slap the scope on top of the gun and hope for the best. A system is only as good as its weakest link... and apparently the weakest link in this is the one between my brain and my wallet when it comes time to buy proper mounts.

How do you shoot yourself in the foot proverbially?

I have one question. Do your scopes not hold zero because of the bases and mounts?
I can't say I've ever had issues from properly installed bases and mounts.
I don't treat my rifle like 3 gun people though.

My fault is do an extensive load work up. Only to find a " better" component as soon as I'm done. After doing it all over again I realize the first one was better. Rinse and repeat.

 

[wanderinwalker]

I'm glad to read I'm not the only one who does the scope-swap-step game. For me it didn't even involve buying new scopes. Last summer I had 6 different .22 rifles, 5 of which were scoped, and I kept thinking "What if I put the Leupold EFR on the Browning T-Bolt and see how well it will really shoot? Then put the fixed 4x on the Mannlicher-stocked CZ?" I "solved" most of the problem by selling off all but 2 of the rifles. Of course, now I have some spare scopes lying around in need of new rifles!

My other repeating blunders are deciding to scrap stockpiles of empty cases for calibers I can reload, right before a major panic buying spree happens, and somehow constantly wanting to acquire new deer hunting rifles. At the same time I had 6 .22LR rifles, I had 3 .30-caliber hunting rifles (.30-30, .308 and .30-06), even though it's been at least a decade since I went deer hunting. That particular problem is recurring, as there is a neat little Remington Model 7 in 7mm-08 at my local gunshop that has been calling me to bring it home for a while now. And let's not discuss the Winchester Model 70 Extreme in .300 Winchester Magnum. After all, I did sell off the .30-30 and .30-06, why not get another rifle...

 

[Zaydok Allen]

I sometimes find it more tolerable to buy small quantities of reloading components because I have the smaller amount of money in hand, rather than buying in bulk where I could save some money.

 

[armedwalleye]

double tap

 

[armedwalleye]

I put a set or rings on my 30-06 when I first bought it. I forget what they are called. The kind that set up high so you can use the iron sights if you want.

I think they called them "See Thru" mounts or some such. I was guilty of buying a set of them as well, and never used the iron sights after that. The sight picture with the open sights sucked, the cheek weld was more like a chin weld it was so high, but the rifle patterned so well, I never had the heart to change them out. I didn't know how crummy they were, and thankfully, the northern MN deer never came to appreciate the faults of the system either, and paid the ultimate price. All that said, I would never buy another set....

 

[badkarmamib]

My dad was told to put see-throughs on a Marlin 336 in 1986 So, as my first gun, that is what I went with when I scoped my Remington 700. Finally got some decent glass, and put it in the see-throughs. "Learned" more through the internet, NEVER use see-throughs, etc. So, I bought a set of Weaver bases and some no-name mounts (which hold zero fine, not the point). The point is, with the zoom ring on the Burris, and where I had to mount it for eye relief, I needed medium rings. All that work, and having to re-sight in, because I managed to drop my scope a whopping 1/4".

To the OP, my rinse-and-repeat experience was getting bored with what I had, buying something new that I couldn't afford, shooting it until I could identify what I didn't like about it, selling it for half of what I paid, and buying something else with more money that I didn't have. This year, my finances caught up to me. I have learned to enjoy what I have, have "officially" given half of what I owned to my sons (11 & 9), and am in the process of making what is left, exactly how I want them, so that I can appreciate them without getting bored.

 

[WestKentucky]

I have one question. Do your scopes not hold zero because of the bases and mounts?
I can't say I've ever had issues from properly installed bases and mounts.
I don't treat my rifle like 3 gun people though.

My fault is do an extensive load work up. Only to find a " better" component as soon as I'm done. After doing it all over again I realize the first one was better. Rinse and repeat.

I am under the impression that some of the bases are not proper geometry and are not holding zero because of that. One scope I did the trick of putting tape in the rings before remounting the scope and that seems to have helped. A lot of my rings and bases are no-name junk from eBay and amazon just to stick something on the rifle with the intent to circle back later and buy proper rings, which to date has not happened. I will make that a priority while inventory is down on reloading supplies so that hopefully my guns will be in good shape by the time that supplies are available again.

 

[jmorris]

I dragged out every gun and thought about why I had it,

Yeah, I’ll do that right after I ask my wife to do the same with her shoes....talks about a blunder...

 

[JR24]

Several times over the years I've upgraded to a better scope on one of my rifles. After taking the old scope off I decide that it would be an upgrade for another rifle, and so on. I've had to go to the range to zero two or three rifles because I bought ONE new scope.

Played switcheroo like that this winter, slapped one of the scopes on a new upper and hit the range.

Realized 5 shots in that, yeah, forgot to tighten down the rings and the scope was sliding free. Sigh, of course I didn't bring the right tools in my range bag either, left em sitting on my bench.

New rifle range day wasted.

 

[Bfh_auto]

I am under the impression that some of the bases are not proper geometry and are not holding zero because of that. One scope I did the trick of putting tape in the rings before remounting the scope and that seems to have helped. A lot of my rings and bases are no-name junk from eBay and amazon just to stick something on the rifle with the intent to circle back later and buy proper rings, which to date has not happened. I will make that a priority while inventory is down on reloading supplies so that hopefully my guns will be in good shape by the time that supplies are available again.

You are supposed to lapp the rings before installing the scope.
If you plan on buying better ones. It doesn't make sense to start out cheap unless it's going to be a long time before you can afford it.

 

[Jack B.]

IMO. You get what you pay for.

 

[Legionnaire]

I don't know if they would qualify as "blunders," but they have certainly been "Ah Ha" moments.

The first was my long delay in getting into handloading/reloading. There have been lots of benefits to this new aspect of the hobby, but as I look back, I realize that there are a number of firearms I once owned that I sold because they were uncomfortable to shoot. Had I known then what I know now, I would still have those guns and simply build reduced loads for range and plinking use, reserving full power loads for specific purpose. For instance, I had a very nice Taurus M44 revolver that I really liked, but it was a handful with full magnum loads. I wish I still had it. It would be a pussycat loaded to .44 Special velocities. There are several others that I parted with for the same reason, and the lost "opportunity cost" has mounted up.

The second is my discovery of the economics of rebarreling a rifle. I had a very nice Remington 700 VSSF in .308 that I had had completely accurized. It was a sweet shooter. I sold it to buy an equally nice .260 Remington, which I still have and enjoy. However, had I known then what I know now, I'd have sent the original to a quality shop and had them rebarrel it in the new cartridge. And now that I've built a couple of "Remages," I can rebarrel a 700 myself if desired. I'll think long and hard in the future about selling one high quality rifle to purchase another. Doesn't mean it won't happen, but I have a better sense of the related transaction costs.