Do you have "scope eye"?

[Leathermarshmallow]

I was at the range today. Nice friendly fellow next to me shooting a Ruger Model 77 in .308. Sighting it in for deer season. Another man and woman were standing behind him watching him. He offered to let the man shoot his rifle. The fellow accepted the invitation. He evidently got his eye too close to the scope and when it went off, it busted him pretty good. Blood was dripping everywhere. His wife was going to take him to the urgent care for stitches when they left. The fellow who owned the rifle told me that he felt bad and maybe should have warned him a little better about the recoil and eye position.

I don't have a scar, but I have been busted in the face by recoil a time or two. Do you have a recoil scar?

 

[SleazyRider]

No. I practice what they call "eye relief" when I mount my scopes.

 

[tlatoani]

Yep!

 

[Coal Dragger]

No scope eye scars, but I've been tapped a few times! Especially when shooting from prone I creep the stock pretty bad. I have to be mindful to position the butt stock closer to my chest/center line instead of the shoulder from prone. This helps to keep the optics a bit further away and eliminate the need to lean my head over as much to get on the stock, and thus creep the damn stock.

Last week I managed to bounce the ocular housing of my Swarovski Z3 mounted on a Cooper M52 in .280AI off my forehead about 3 times shooting prone off of a bipod while confirming zero. That was fun. Glad that scope has a rubber bumper on the ocular. I like the optics, but the scope is a little short on eye relief and the ocular assembly is a bit long so it hangs out further over the end of the receiver than I like. Might have to replace it with a Leupold VX-6 when they come out, and transfer it to another lighter recoiling rifle.

 

[Purgatory]

Nope!

Hope it wasn't that guy's first experience with a high powered rifle.

Might've been his last.

 

[JEB]

hasnt happened to me, but then again i dont shoot with scopes to often. i have smacked my nose with my thumb a couple of times though.

 

[jnoble87]

Gettin scoped is a trip ain't it? I love watching full grown men get scoped while my niece (who is 8 and probably 60 lbs) pops rounds of 06 off down range....Funny how that works.

I'm not gonna say its never gonna happen to me, because I've taken up heavy recoiling rifles recently, but its never happened to me with anything in the medium bore realm.

 

[Coal Dragger]

Yeah, I've done the nose meets thumb routine a few more times than I care to admit too.

 

[sugarmaker]

1987 - .257 mark 5, harris bipod, high angle shot on a crow (safe direction...) and I pushed the butt below my shoulder in prone to elevate the gun. Vari-X 2 3-9 took me on the corner of my right evybrow, felt like I had relocated my nose, much blood, left a crescent moon scar. A good lesson.

 

[Maverick223]

Nope, never joined the crescent-moon club...and I've shot some mighty heavy cartridges in fairly light rifles. In which case it is particularly helpful to exercise good form (for several reasons). With a light sporter in a chambering above .338WM or so, I believe it is best to shoot off-hand (at least until you gain a bit of experience with such rifles), lean into the gun (not pulling your leg), and "roll with the punch".

 

[Panzercat]

/chuckle

Almost gave myself contacts by mounting a scope too far back once. Popped me and my glasses something good. Won't make that mistake again

 

[LoonWulf]

i got scope throat once. Took a really out of position shot with a friends .30-06, i was shooting up from under a bush at a deer. Scope was under my chin and dug a short cut about an inch down the side of my neck lol

 

[sKunkT]

My wife has a permanent scar from a scoped 20ga she shot prone before I met her.

 

[esheato]

Nah, never.

243 AI, prone, got a bit close.



Like father, like son...although not a scope. He was shooting a Ruger 22/45 and I was single loading it. He would fire it while I held the barrel for him. Of course when shooting it with one round, the bolt would lock back after firing. He pulled the gun up and before I could stop him he fired it with the back of the gun about an inch from his face. Mom was not pleased with me.

 

[langenc]

Put the stock in the natural 'pocket' when the arm is raised and that wont happen.

 

[StrutStopper]

I had scope eye once or twice... or 3 times. Once was while turkey hunting and I had to hold the gun at a wierd angle. Got my bird and didn't feel anything at first but after celebrating the shot I just turned to my hunting buddy and said, I'm bleeding, aren't I? He just said yup. I don't feel bad about that one given the circumstances. The other two times not so much. I do own a .35 Rem Marlin 336 so I know how much they kick. When shooting my friends .35 Rem T/C Contender I should have known better. The 3rd time was the worst. After getting distracted by someone asking about joining the club while I was loading my ML, I took the shot. BAM! I knew I should have expected a little more of a kick because I had just switched to a different weight slug, but that was ridiculous. It wasn't until I couldn't find my ram rod that I realized what had just happened. That was a pretty good cut.

 

[R.W.Dale]

I have a scar from the combination of a Walmart Winchester/tasco package 30/06 and a coyote from inside a 1994 Chevy truck.


I learned two valuable lessons that day. Cheap optics are cheap for a reason and nothing good ever comes from discharging a firearm from inside a motor vehicle.

Probably been ten years ago now and I still wear a scar. The coyote failed to make a recovery however

 

[Marlin60Man]

Never happened to me, but doesn't anyone think it's kind of messed up these guys take their girlfriends or sisters out shooting and then don't say anything when they put the scope right to their eye and get bit? Then on top of that they put it up on YouTube.

 

[mljdeckard]

I have a nice scar in my left eyebrow, but it's from a faceplant into gravel off my bike when I was in second grade.

I have done it, but not bad enough to need stitches. I had an M-1A with a conventional stock and regular elevated mount. Due to the action layout, you can only put the scope one place, there's not a lot of room for eye relief adjustment. DING!. When I realized that I was going to get a new stock (to start with) to make a serious project of it so I wouldn't have to lean way into it to get a sight picture, I scrapped it and went back to a bolt rifle.

I also took a .50 AE Desert Eagle just inside the hairline once when I didn't listen to the guys telling me to lock both elbows. (I hit the target.) That one involved some blood.

 

[castingdonkey]

I've been tapped a couple times. Worst so far has been forgetting to remove my ball cap and the brim catches on the top ajustment cap. That's twice now and both were jarring.

 

[northark147]

The first time I ever shot a 30-06, I was in second grade, and the scope nailed me good. Last year sometime I wasn't paying much attention and My 308 kissed me a little bit, no blood but still enough to remind me not to do that again..

 

[Brian Williams]

I have an M16A1 handle scar, no scope crescent tho.

 

[Sav .250]

Oh ya. Got a "cookie cutter" from hugging a 7m/m mag many years ago. Kind of a right of passage thing.

 

[roklok]

I have never been "bit" by any of my own rifles, as I have the scopes set for me, far forward, as I am long armed and necked.

I smugly thought I was experienced enough with rifles to never experience the joys of having an ocular piece slam into my eyebrow.

Then, a couple years ago it happened. My uncle handed me his TC Contender Carbine in .45-70 with hot handloads. The 2-7 Leupold was mounted back too far for my shooting style.

Lightweight rifle, powerful load, scope positioned wrong for me, gave me my first and hopefully only taste of scope eye. Yes, still have the scar.

 

[Loosedhorse]

Borrowing rifles is dangerous. I borrowed a (much shorter) friend's .458 WM to see if I wanted to get my own .458 Lott. By the 13th round I had gotten comfortable enough to sneak up on the scope (in a seated-on-the-ground field position).

Cheap lesson; in the field, that would have been the end of my hunting day.

When I got my rifle, I made sure to pay A LOT of attention to LOP and eye relief in setting up the rifle, so I wouldn't have to think about it, no matter my field position or how hurried the shot. I have over 250 shots through it, most with scope attached: no problems.

I always check a friend's position if they're trying out any of my scoped rifles. Some scopes (like the older Swarovskis) actually have spring loaded ocular guards, to buffer the impact if you do creep up.