Scout scope vs. conventional scope on large ring Mausers
Scout scope setup:
- Scope mounts are expensive, $100 for B-Square, much more for S&K Industries. These replace the rear sight leaf.
- You don't have to modify the bolt handle.
- You can still load the rifle using stripper clips.
- You are stuck with a limited selection of intermediate eye relief (IER) scout scopes - Tasco, Burris and Leupold, all of which are in the 2.5x-3x magnification range. Avoid extended eye relief (EER) scopes, they are made for pistols and eye relief is too long.
Conventional scope setup:
- Inexpensive scope mounts are available.
- If bolt handle is straight, it must be bent down by a gunsmith or the bolt replaced with a turned-down handle one. The stock must also be notched to accept the turned-down handle.
- You must change the thumb safety lever to one that will clear the rear scope bell.
- You can't load from stripper clips.
- A very wide variety of scopes are available.
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I don't see why you're reluctant to modify a surplus military rifle. With the quantities they're being imported in, don't expect them to have any collector's value anytime soon (except a few select models like original sniper versions). I modified my Columbian Army surplus .30-06 Mauser to take a permananet scout scope mount, and I'm very happy with the result. You can use the scope with both eyes open and it blocks less of your field of view, allowign far quicker target aquisition on 'snap-shots'. I retained the straight bolt handle, which I like on the Mauser. I can still load with stripper clips as well.
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Permanent scout scope mount for Mauser 98:
The band that the rear sight is mounted on is silver soldered in place. I had a gunsmith heat it up just enough to drive it forward off the barrel. Then, I had him drill & tap four holes in the top of the barrel where the rear sight had been and mount a Willaims # 94A Weaver rail scope mount. This mount is designed for the T/C Contender, and perfectly fits the curvature of the Mauser 98 barrel. Then, he enlarged the slot in the wooden upper handguard where the rear sight used to protrude through to accept the slightly longer Weaver rail. The whole thing cost me $6 for the mount plus $90 for the labor. This is about the same price as those mounts that replace the rear sight leaf and mount on the rear sight base (like the B-Square one). The setup I had done is far stronger, much cleaner looking, and mounts the scope down lower to the barrel where it belongs. I used Leupold QRMS quick-release rings. I am looking at adding a Williams peep sight later on.
If you get rid of the military stock and go to an aftermarket replacement one after installing the T/C scope mount, the aftermarket stock won't have an upper handguard, so the silver soldered area on top of the barrel will be visible and unsightly. Assume you'll want to refinish the rifle if you decide to change the stock. The military stocks are short and have excessive drop, but if you add a slip-on recoil pad and a mil surplus Garand lace-on leather cheekpeice, that will solve those problems for about $25 or less.
BTW, thanks to >>> fixer <<< for telling me about this.
