I have a Tikka T-3 light with the cheap rings that came with it. I had to remove the scope. Everything is soft metal and I am asking if it would help or hurt to oil the screws (only one screw on each side of the ring) when reinstalling the scope.

My Leupold base and ring mounting instructions say to oil them and they will tighten down easier.

I usually don't tighten rings real tight. I think the gunsmith put a little red loctite on the because there appears to be a little residue on them. But they broke loose quite easily. Thanks for any advice. Merg

I have always considered loctite to be mandatory on scope ring screws. Seems to me that oil works in two directions, tightening and untightening!

I use LocTite, but not the red versions. i use the blue, wich is model number 242. I clean the screws and rings with denatured alcohol before installing the screws.

Most rings and bases are made from 12L14, which is a "soft" metal.

I make sure the threads, both on the screw and in the hole, are clean, I apply a little oil, and torque to 15 in lbs. Never had any come loose. Most people over tighten the screws, especially on the bases.

I occasionally have to drill out loctited screws on scope rings. The screw heads tend to deform fairly easy and when you add ANY thread locker to the mix, well... it pays well. I wish more folks would use the stuff. I personally prefer a little oil on my own stuff.

Great minds...

quote:

Originally posted by Westpac:
I occasionally have to drill out loctited screws on scope rings. The screw heads tend to deform fairly easy and when you add ANY thread locker to the mix, well... it pays well. I wish more folks would use the stuff. I personally prefer a little oil on my own stuff.

If you are having to drill out scope ring screws then someone was obviously doing something wrong. A while back I removed the scope rings and bases from a rifle that had the scope mounted in 1985 with loctite. In twenty years the screws never loosened up until I decided to remove them. I would guess if you used the wrong type of loctite you could cause problems, but that has not been an issue for me.

I have always used blue loctite. I'm sure it is probably overkill, but I just don't want to have to worry about things loosening up when traveling.

Oil it is! A fellow who used to post here named something like Rick 0311 or such, proved often with a lot of neat facts. I bought in and experience using a light drop of oil or two matches Westpac's.

Yeah, that damn Rick0311, he had the annoying habit of being right a lot.

My Marlin 336 purchased new in 1979 still wears the original Weaver K4 and it was installed with a drop of oil on each screw then the excess was wiped off. The scope, base, and rings have not loosened up one bit to date.

red loctite gets my vote... with redfield bases/leopold rings on my .375 h&h, i got tired of the scope slipping back... loctite cured that...if i nned to remove the scope, a soldering iron will loosen the loctite to remove the screws....on my .416 rem mag m70 crf, the 3x weaver got a dose of loctite... after 40 rounds of full house 400gr barnes solids factory remingtin loads, it hasn't moved any...

Of course there is the distinct possibility that either method will work just fine.

Good point about the heat and loctite as well.

quote:

Originally posted by jimatcat:
red loctite gets my vote... with redfield bases/leopold rings on my .375 h&h, i got tired of the scope slipping back... loctite cured that...if i nned to remove the scope, a soldering iron will loosen the loctite to remove the screws....on my .416 rem mag m70 crf, the 3x weaver got a dose of loctite... after 40 rounds of full house 400gr barnes solids factory remingtin loads, it hasn't moved any...

You might try reaming the rings. Not only is it better for the scope, but having built some big ass kickers, it is my experience that scopes don't slip through rings which make full contact, are clean, dry and tight.

Or...to take it one step further, try lapping first and then glass bed the scope to the rings; use lots of release agent on the scope.

Oil is the way to go. With the proper torque, the screws will hold. A little dab will do ya.

Don

P.S. Westpac ain't gittin none of my money...

OIL them?? Only if you don't mind them coming loose at the worst possible time!

It seems to me that the instructions that come with scope mounts always tell you to use a swab with alcohol on it to REMOVE all traces of oil & grease from the screw holes and the screws efore installing the scope........

quote:

Originally posted by El Deguello:
It seems to me that the instructions that come with scope mounts always tell you to use a swab with alcohol on it to REMOVE all traces of oil & grease from the screw holes and the screws efore installing the scope........

It's been a gazillion years since I read any scope mount instructions but curiosity got the better of me and so I opened a Leupold base package to see what's up.

The instructions do say: "use a good gun solvent and rag to remove all traces of oil and grease from the contact surfaces of the rings, base, receiver and threaded holes."

Further into the instructions it says: "Due to the superior performance of the Torx driving system, the use of thread locker (such as loctite) is not necessary. Leupold recommends using a high quality gun oil applied to the screw threads before assembling to ensure maximum tightening of the base screws."

I don't have a package of rings on hand to read the instructions for them, but off hand I can't see Leupold recommending anything different. I don't think they would recommend installing the ring screws dry, or with a thread locker, but what do I know?

Back in the middle 70's during my machinist apprenticeship we used 3-1 oil or similar on machined threads mostly. With todays rolled threads where precision is lacking I use a thread sealer on the hard kickers.Actually I been using a thin coat of clear epoxy and it holds well and also releases if I desire to remove the mounts

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Kobe:
Or...to take it one step further, try lapping first and then glass bed the scope to the rings; use lots of release agent on the scope.

Hey Jim, Have you ever tried a set of Burris Signatures?

quote:

Original post by the old Leather Neck Westpac:
...it is my experience that scopes don't slip through rings which make full contact, are clean, dry and tight.

I'll guess you are not talking about "Redfield Style" Rings and Bases when using a 50mm Scope on a nice light weight 350RemMag M7KS. Probably not talking about Redfield Style Rings and Bases at all.

I lap rings to get full contact with the scope tube. It works.
Good arm and shoulder excercise too.

Don