red dot on a scout.

[markallen]

when i built my scout rifle i decided to go with a red dot. i've never been much for scopes, always used pin hole, or iron sights. but since i'm older that front sight is just a blur, and since i cut the barrel on this rifle, there is no front sight.
i modified the rear sight base. i removed the spring, and flipped the sight over, and leveled off the wings, then double pinned , and mounted the weaver base.
the red dot is a tru-glo.
i guess it's time for my question. to me the red dot looks too high. i don't see how i can get it lower without taking the original sight completely off the barrel, and having the barrel drilled and tapped. but the funds have been tight. i know that the scope / red dot should be mounted as low as possible. will this sight being too high be problem?
any feedback will be appreciated.

 

[Omnivore]

Too high? To high for what, exactly?

Its all about how it feels to you when you shoulder the rifle. Cheekweld is important, but that can also be addressed at the comb.

There is no physical reason to worry about sight height otherwise. Scoped ARs have super high sights compared to most bolt rifle setups, and they do just great. It seems Cooper was into "the lower the better" scope mounting, but I never heard his argument for it. Running different configurations on an external ballistics program, and looking at POA/POI differences, I find no compelling reason to argue for a low sight. There can be cases made for a higher one, actually.

I'd be more concerned with the stability of the mount and the quality of the sight.

 

[RyanM]

I hope you had a competent gunsmith square and re-crown the muzzle, or accuracy is going to be poop.

Anyway, a "jaw weld" will work fine. I shoot my K-31 with a scout mount that way, with no problems with consistency. I can grab the rifle in pitch darkness, turn on the red dot, shoulder it, and there's the dot. But that's also my only rifle, so I don't have to worry about different face part welds for different guns.

Also, about 1.5" above the bore is a typical scope mounting height. Looks like that's about the height you've got there. You could also buy or make a pad to go on the comb of the stock, so that you can get a proper cheek weld, rather than using your jaw.

 

[Clipper]

You're puting an optical sight onto a rifle that was not designed to have one. You're gonna have to raise the comb the same way the British did when they scoped those, by adding a lace-on comb to raise your line of sight.

 

[markallen]

my only experience with anything optical on a firearm, was a 4X leupold gold ring that i had on my 16" .223 contender. i bore sighted that with a busnell bore sighter. When i tried this on my scout with the red dot, it was way too high, to even see the bore sight through the red dot. that is why i was concerned about the hight.
as for the sight mount. i pinned it twice with hardened split pins, that i had to press in. so i'm hoping that will hold. i know the red dot's not in the same leauge as an eotech, or aim point, but it's within my budget.
i used the tru-glo under the recommendation from my gun dealer whom i have know for twenty plus years.
and yes i had a gunsmith put a target crown on the barrel. i know it will never be close to a target rifle, but the target crown looks cool,
and being recessed will protect the crown a little better.
thanks everybody for the feedback.

 

[RyanM]

If you can't even get the dot low enough to match the bore sighting dot, then I'm pretty sure the problem is that the mount is angled up too high, not physically too high on the rifle. I was able to bore sight my K-31 the old fashioned way (by pulling out the bolt and looking down the barrel), no problem, and the height of the scope is about the same.

 

[CaesarI]

Purpose Built

The answer to what you're looking for is a "Ching Ring". Cheaply available here:
http://www.xssights.com/store/scope.html

-Morgan