I just got a free pair of stainless steel Sako Opti-Lock rings with my new rifle. They are medium height, but are at least 1/4" too high for my 42mm scope. My uncle has owens a machine shop and I was thinking of having him either mill them down to the height I want or use his wire EDM.

Is there anything wrong with doing this? Also, what tolerance should be expected? I was thinking either 0.001" or 0.0005". I'm a Civil engineer not a Mechanical so that's why I'm asking. For what I do +/- 1/4" we call that close enough.

OOPS! Forgot to ask...what other type of mounts do you fellas like on Sako's. Mine is a new model 75 stainless synthetic with the flat top type receiver. I had been toying with the idea of getting a pair of gunsmith bases and just drilling and tapping the reciver for standard mounts. I would really like QR mounts in stainless, but don't think they exist.

[ 12-16-2002, 16:35: Message edited by: jcsabolt-2 ]

JCS,
Unless you just have an abundance of time and talent on your hands I's simply recommend getting a set of Leupold Sako ringmounts for your rifle. They run about $45 from Midway. I'm sure you could mill those bases down and recut the dovetails and other refinements on the end of the base but I'd bet that would take even an experienced machinist 3 or 4 hours minimum.

Actually, on the sako mounts...wish I had a digital camera handy...the rings are flat on the bottom and fit on top of the flat base that comes with them and are screwed together with about a 1/4" hex head screw. All I would be milling off would be the bottom of the rings.

Call me anal retentative, but I've got a SS gun and want SS mounts to match. I saved up for 2 years to buy the rifle, a little more time ain't going to hurt.

jscabolt-2: The quickest, easiest, and most economical solution: Order a new set of Sakos like you currently have in LOW height, and sell your current set on eBay or the internet auction of your choice (or on the classifieds right here on AR). They will sell quickly and for a large percentage of what you pay for the new set.

Leupold makes the medium height Sako rings in "silver". If you are using a black scope though, the "silver" rings look goofy. With a "silver scope" its OK.

I pulled out a few measuring devices last night to see how much I need to lower my scope. I really need to drop it about 1/4"...NO JOKE! If I milled off that amount from the bottom of the rings there wouldn't be anything left to attach it to the bases.

You guys mentioned Leupold and I know Conetrol makes some nice rings for Sakos, does anyone else? I don't think Sako's low rings would get it low enough for me. I have heard that Sako's lows are like everyone elses mediums and their mediums are like the others highs.

I also have another slight problem. I have to be able to move the front base back about 1/2" from where it is now. I can't do this with the Sako bases because they are basically fixed into their current position due to the wedge shaped top on the receiver. It's an eye relief thing. I can move my head slightly forward, but it just doesn't feel right. I think the scope has about 3.5" of relief...wish it had 4". Should I just break down and get a set of gunsmith bases and have them mounted where I want them and use Leupold QR rings? I suppose I could always have them nickel plated and then beed blasted to dull the finish.

I wish I knew I was going to have this much trouble before hand. I could have planned ahead.

jcsabolt-2,

Those Optiloks are very, very good rings! Firstly, are the 1" or 30mm? If they are 1" you should have no problem getting lower rings; I think they offer all in one ring mounts for 1" scopes too.

I would simply contact the place you bought the rifle from and ask them about a straight swap, failing that I would contact the main sako importer and ask them...I am sure somebody will swap them as long as the rifle is not "grey market".

Regards,

Pete

Try the rifle with the mounts the way they are. You may like it. If not get a biger scope.

Due to a gunshop cockup I have 2 spare sets of sako 1" blued rings (low). I am willing to send you a set free in return for a favour (gun related) that I have yet to think of.

I went through the exact same problem. My 75 came with medium Optilocks and the scope was simply just too high. Only the ultra low Sako ring mounts would have dropped the scope as low as possible and they are just over $100 for the set because the rings and bases are integral. In other words, buying the low Optilock rings to use with the bases that came with my rifle would have still left the scope too high for me, and the extra low rings don't come separate from the mounts. Weird.

I just got a set of Leupold ringmounts for $45 from Midway. The metal finish matches the Sako close enough, the scope sits as low as it can without fouling the barrel, and IMO, the silver rings look great with the matte black scope.

PS. Burris makes a set of double dovetail bases for the Sako dovetail, but they suck. They are a very flimsy attachment to the receiver dovetail, and didn't allow my socpe to mount with the proper eye relief. Too bad, because Burris Signature rings are sweet. As good as Optilocks, but MUCH more affordable.

Now I understand. The lowest mount you can probably get in a stainless is the Leupold Ringmount. It also allows some latitude in forward-aft placement, and is lighter than most. Although they look a bit delicate, I have a set on a .375 H & H and they are holding up nicely.

Another alternative is the Millet Angle Lock ring. I think they are available in stainless. I have these rings on three Sakos. The low ring will just allow a 40mm objective to clear the barrel. The front ring on these is not adjustable fore-and-aft, but does sit further rearward than the Sako or Redfield-type ring.

The old Redfield-type base, combined with the super-low ring is a nice combination, but is not abvailable in stainless to my knowledge.

Thanks again fellas! I'll see if a dealer has a set of Leupold rings for the Sako around here and see how they fit before I buy them. I'm going to take a look at the Conetrol rings as well. While they do not offer SS yet for Sako, according to their website they can nickel plate them which should go nicely with my SS rifle. Too bad my scope is black. I guess my little girl (10 months old) is like me...she likes shinny things too. I don't necessarily like the shine, but I sure do love the rust resistance. Besides, I can always paint SS.

If anyone is interested there'll be a few sets of rings on EBAY for sale here in a few days.

- Sako Opti-Lock, 1" SS, medium ht., mounted only finger tight, never fired rifle with mounts attached. These are NEW with original packaging and paperwork. Retail $180+/- It appears that they could handle scopes up to 56mm objective.

- Millett 30mm Angle Lock, matte black, fits Weaver style base. Mounted a red dot scope on an Encore, fired < 20 rounds, didn't like it. Mounts in perfect condition. Scope is now mounted on slug gun.

Reasonable offers accepted. You pay actual shipping. Contact jcsabolt2@hotmail.com for any questions you may have.

Guess I may not have to put it on EBAY...then again....

jcs, the medium height Leupold ringmounts set up my Burris Fullfield II 3-9X40 just high enough that there is a gap of about 1/8" between the widest part of the objective bell and the barrel. The Leupold low will definitely only work with scopes of smaller objective lens diameters. My guess is that 20mm or 32mm scopes would work with the low Leupolds. If you have a 40mm scope, get the medium height. If your scope's objective lens is > 40mm, you'll need the high Leupolds.

ksduckhunter,

My scope is a 3-12x42mm Sightron. I was cruising the internet last night looking for anyone that made mounts for Sako's. The three I cam up with were Leupold, Conetrol, and S&K. I think you had said that Burris makes a pair, but the sucked. I need to find my veneer calipers so I can measure the OD of the scope's bell. If I remember correctly, Sightron said that most mounts that are made for 40mm objectives will fit their scopes equiped with 42mm objectives. We'll see!

Since Christmas is next week I'll probably wait until after the first of the year to do anything.

Another consideration: The diameter of the objective bell is usually the limiting factor on how low a scope can be mounted. BUT, that limitation can vary depending on how far forward or rearward you wish to mount the scope (and how quickly the barrel tapers past the chamber area). With a scope of typical length, and an objective bell housing a 40mm lens, some rifles will allow the scope to be mounted with a low or even super low ring if mounted far enough forward that the contours of the objective bell and the barrel complement one another. If, however, the length of the scope and your desired eye relief dictate that the fattest part of the scope's bell rests directly over the fattest part of the barrel over the chamber, then a somewhat higher ring is needed.

I would still recommend the Leupold ringmount. If not available locally, most mail order houses will gladly exchange one height for another if the first you ordered doesn't fit your rig (and you return the rings in unused condition) for the cost of shipping.

Good luck!

jcs, Stonecreeck has good advice. I would call Midway, and ask if you can order both the medium and the high Leupold ringmounts and return whichever doesn't fit. It would save time compared to ordering the medium, and sending it back because you can't mount your scope correctly, and waiting for the high mounts.

I can assure you that you won't need the high. I mounted a 40mm AO on a Sako with the highs and immediatly pulled them off in favor of mediums. The medium will easily clear, so try the medium and low.

I have a set of Leupold 1" low Sako rings, but they don`t hold up on my .375. Ordered a set of Optilocks (low) and now it works fine. However, as said earlier even the low ones are a bit too high. Wish they could make them in an extra low model. With the Leupold mounts the space between scope and barrel was only 2 mm, now it`s 10
I have no experience with Millets but have only heard negative reports about them on Sakos.
About milling down the Optilock rings, they are not flat on the bottom.

Regards

jcsabolt-2,

Before I bought the Optiloks I also tried some Warne on my Sako .308. They just did not hold up at all! It would seem that the wedge shaped rail on the Sako kept "splitting" the vertically spit warnes causing the threads on the screws to strip. It was a great pity as otherwise the rings were very good and were just the right hieght I needed. I would buy Warne rings to go on other rifles in a heartbeart, just not on a Sako's

Peter

Pete E,

That is one of the reasons I have been thinking about buying a pair of gunsmith bases and having the receiver drilled and tapped for traditional mounts.

To be quite honest, I wish Sako had just placed a standard Picanny Rail on top of the model 75 and forget about the wedge shaped rail. That way it would work with most standard types of rings out there. If I were to have the money to have custom work done on this rig I think I would have them mill off the rail on the receiver and weld a picanny rail on it. But I don't and I won't!

I may be stopping at the gunshop this weekend...CRAP! Scratch that...I have to rearrange and replumb our water tank and filtration system. There's another day down the tubes. Guess it will have to wait until after Christmas!

Take a look at the (http://www.eaw.de/English/english.html)
I have used those rings on many of my rifles and have got one of them on my Sako 75. in 300WM. Sako is a very popular brand here and I think those rings are on most of them.

S�lvi

Why the hassel

First , to lower Sako opti rings, if you have a wire EDM handy you might also have a lathe...simply make a mandrel to fit the rings and turn them down in the lathe , (I do this al the time with my customers, does not take more then 5 minutes pr. pair.)Although this will not fix the eyerelief problem.

Leupold rings on Sako 75.
Don't know if I like them , the sako reciver has tapered bases on its top, and the leupold rings are shorter then the bases, so if you are not carefull you will end up mounting youre Leupold ring somewhat of senter to the reciver.

Just a thougth.

S

[ 12-19-2002, 18:11: Message edited by: Shadrek ]

Just curious...you fellas outside the United States that use Sako rings, do you use large objective scopes? I consider large anything over say 44mm.

The biggest complaint I hear from US shooters are that the rings are just toooooooo high. They are very nice and very well built, but just too high unless you mount a telescope on your rifle.

I have 14 Sakos (currently) with the tapered dovetail mounting system. One is equipped with the original (old model) Sako ringmounts, 3 with Leupold ringmounts, 3 with Millett Angle Locs, and 7 with Redfield tapered bases. I have had 100% success with all of them.

I did, once, strip the rear windage screws on a set of the Redfields (this is a weak point with Redfields was easy to do on the older bases which had smaller diameter screws), but other than that, the Redfields have served me well. Their bases do sit fairly high, so they are ALWAYS used with either low or super low rings. The super lows will clear a 3-9 Leupold Vari-XIIc objective bell, but possibly not the older and slightly larger Vari-X II bell. Some Redfield (or Redfield-type) bases came with a set screw. This screw is entirely unnecessary, because the dovetail just seats tighter as the rifle is fired. These dovetail bases can be a challenge to remove after they've been on for a while. The taper which serves to firmly seat the Redfields is the same factor with tears the Warnes into two neat and useless pieces.

I agree with Shadrek that the Leupold ring mounts would APPEAR to move off-center if placed forward or rearward on the tapered dovetail. But I haven't had any alignment or recoil trouble with them on rifles from a .223 short action through a .375 long action. A low Leupold JUST barely clears a 2-7X 33mm objective on my .375.

I have heard Millett Angle Locs dissed on a number of occasions (generally, not specific to the Sako application). I can only conclude that the problems people have with them arise from improperly tightening the two opposing claw screws. The majority of scopes are mounted by a sales clerk in a department store, who knows about as much about what he's doing as he would if you hired him to do brain surgery. The three Millets I have on Sakos are on a 7mm STW, .300 Win, and .338 Win -- not exactly scope-friendly calibers. They've performed nicely. The low mount clears a 40mm objective in most instances, but may be close with an AO. The rings are identical to the standard Angle Loc ring, but the "claws" are slightly longer to grip the Sako Dovetail with the little adapter base sitting between the receiver and the rings. Millet has been kind enough to send me the Sako claws to convert the regular rings for free when I was unable to find their pre-packaged Sako rings locally. The disadvantage to the Millett is that they have no forward-aft adjustment -- but then neither do the Redfields (except for using offset rings).

In my 37 years of experience with Sakos, any of these mounting systems will serve you well.

I do have some reservations about the plastic-bushed Opti-locks and Burris Signatures. I like old fashioned metal-to-metal contact which never fails you if done properly. Any substance which "squishes" to make a friction hold is subject to changing tension over time. At least this has been my observation with a bunch of things like O-rings, pipe couplers, gaskets, ad nauseum. If the metal-to-metal fit is proper, it is superior to a metal-to-plastic fit.

Good luck with your Sako, and you're dead-right to want that scope as low to the reciever as possible.

jcsabolt-2

Eventhough "X 56" scopes are populare in Norway I always end up lowering Sako mounts, this is so quick and easy that I actually do it to provide my customers with an ideal hight on theyre scopes.

I have absolutly no ide why Sako keep making them High mounts...medium and low seams high enough!?!

Good mounts though! Even good guns!

S

[ 12-19-2002, 21:46: Message edited by: Shadrek ]

KS -- I'll stipulate that I haven't used any, and they may be fine; it's just as I say that I have some "reservations" about them. Some people regard them as a simple cure for badly misaligned mounting holes or bases and I think that is a poor practice. Thanks for your comments.

Have you thought of the one piece, David Gentry "Featherlight" Rings? I have them in stainless for a Model 70, and I think they look great. I can send you a picture of them if you'd like when I get home tonight. I believe he makes them for Sako's as well. Jeff

KS:

I can't say that if faced with the problem of misaligned bases that I wouldn't choose the plastic-bushed rings as a fix myself, under the circumstances.

The potential problem I see is that if used in this manner the plastic inserts are sure to be more heavily compressed on one side than on the other. This situation would seem to lend itself, over time, to a gradual change in the alignment of the scope within the rings, since the plastic is exactly that: plastic; meaning that it is somewhat fluid and will eventually respond to pressure by flowing in a manner which tends to equalize that pressure.

I'm sure that I'm overstating this potential problem and that in practice it probably doesn't amount to much. Maybe you might find that your zero creeps an inch or so between seasons when you check your sights in the fall after the gun has sat in the safe all spring and summer, I dunno. I'm sure I'd rather rezero every year (which I'm going to do anyway) than spend a wad of money in trying to retap misdrilled holes.

At any rate, this is the source of my "reservations" in regard to bushed rings, whether those reservations are serious ones or not. Conventional steel rings have worked well for me and until I run into a situation in which they don't, I think I'll just stick with them.

Considering that the original subject of this thread is dovetailed Sakos, and Sako dovetails just aren't going to be misaligned under any circumstances, I don't guess that the aligment problem is really much of an issue anyway.

[ 12-20-2002, 20:00: Message edited by: Stonecreek ]

--- The term "plastic" used to describe thermopolymers is a colloquial term, and not an engineering one. ---

Point well taken. I would still contend that the thermopolymers have some bit of plasticity, and therefore my (perhaps imagined) concerns.

I don't think we're at all in disagreement.

Hey'
Dave Talley,now makes bases for Sako's,and rings.I am very please with them.Good quality.No ne to lap them.His base and low rings,work great on my 44mm scope.
1geejay
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