Hi All,

I have started to get fed up with the Leupold RQ I use on a Sako75. It has become sloppy over the last few years and I have never really trusted it. It's on a 9,3x62 and sometimes has a big heavy Zeiss mounted, so I may need a mount that can take some punishment. It's not a treestand gun

I have concluded that it's time for a picatinny/weaver rail. Now, this gun is special - heavy modifications - so I don't want to swap it for another gun. So here's my problem. Where can I get weaver/picatinny mounts for the Sako integrated dovetail bases?

My best shot so far is this Valdada adapter but they refuse to sell to Europe (Sweden).

Oh, btw. I need the Weaver/Picatinny rail in order to mount an NECG peep sight. And I need that sight raised since I have a ridicoucly high front sight in order to see over the 2" diameter silencer...

Or does anyone have another idea for combining a very high peep sight with a quick-detach mount on a Sako?

Best Regards,
/HerrBerg

Weaver 67 and 65 should fit the dovetails.
Sako made a receiver sight for the rear dovetail.

Thank a bunch!

Hm.. Those weaver 65 and 67 are aluminium... Will theey hold? I punish the gun severely... I would prefer steel.

The Sako receiver sight is too low, I have tried that... Hence it will probably be the NECG peep sight.

Weaver markets their grand slam bases and they are I believe made out of steel. Bought a set for my huskquvarna 98 in 9.3x57. And you might try mcmillian who makes synthetic stocks. They at one time made sako style stocks for either remington or winchester rifles. Maybe they either have one for your sako or can make one for you. Have you tried the sako high rings?. Don't know if your zeiss so mounted would allow you to see over the 2" silencer you have mounted. Hope some of what I've related can be of some use to you. Frank

Herr, finding Weaver/Picatinny type bases for Sako dovetails is a bitch. The best option I have seen an add for is the Burris XTB, but I can't get them to tell me how to order any so....

An option you might look into is Talley. They make a peep that goes on their rear base, which has to be modified slightly to accept the peep. I don't know if they can make it high enough for you, I would just call Dave at Talley.

If the Weaver bases you found will fit, I have found it difficult to split the 'wedged' bases, even with a 375 and 330 Dakota and full house loads......

Thanks to you too! I checked them out, and The Burris XTB mounts are, for Sako dovetail, made out of ALUMINIUM

Nobody tried the Valdada adapters? click here

Soon I tell my gunsmith just to grind the integrated bases down and replace with a full-length picatinny rail

After some discussions with IOR Valdada in Romania, I have decided to try their solution for my 9,3x62. I'll be back with details!

Best Regards,
/HerrBerg

Herr, that (Valdada) option looks like a good solution, but price is ridiculous, $170 bucks for two if I'm reading right?? Geez, I like good stuff, but sometimes seems like their just hosing us

Let us know what you think--finish in the pic looks poor, but maybe isn't indicative of the real thing.

Good Luck

I definetly hope the pricing is for a PAIR, it's daylight robbery nevertheless....

"Will they hold? I punish the gun severely..."
If those new mounts don't come with set screws that fasten from the top I would get some installed. Sako rings have been known to fall off when used "severely".

quote:

Originally posted by .429:
"Will they hold? I punish the gun severely..."
If those new mounts don't come with set screws that fasten from the top I would get some installed. Sako rings have been known to fall off when used "severely".

.429: You have either never used the Sako dovetail mounting system or you don't understand it. Set screws are unnecessary and counterproductive. Redfield even deleted the set screws from their later bases as they came to recognize that people were depending on the screw and not the tapered dovetail for mounting security.

It works like this: The Sako dovetail is tapered from front to rear. This means that each time the gun is fired, the bases wedge ever more firmly to the dovetail. The proper mounting procedure is to tap the bases FIRMLY forward so that they are tightly wedged in place. When the gun is fired ("severely"), they just get tighter. People who have had trouble with them simply had them mounted inappropriately (or with set screws) to begin with.

HerrBerg: XS makes a "ghost ring" aperture sight for the Sako dovetail that is a little higher than the factory sight. The aperture is mounted on a screw that simply threads upward to increase its height. I don't know if this sight would go high enough for your application (the one I used was too high at its lowest for an L46 in 7x33), but it would not be complicated to weld or silver solder the aperture to a longer screw of the same thread and diameter, thus allowing you to make it as tall as you wish. Simply "google" 'XS ghost ring' and you'll find their website. Good luck!

".429: You have either never used the Sako dovetail mounting system or you don't understand it. Set screws are unnecessary and counterproductive. Redfield even deleted the set screws from their later bases as they came to recognize that people were depending on the screw and not the tapered dovetail for mounting security."

Actually, I have some experience with the tapered dovetails of the Sako system having first sold them beginning in 1966. You are absolutely correct that when you shoot that they get tighter. Had one 416 in the shop that was spreading the Sako mounts so badly that there was only about 1/8" of the front ring still on the dovetail. Rear mount had the little stop filed off by the top of the dovetail. Mounts destroyed. Replaced them with the Redfields. If treating a gun severely means rough treatment in the field and the scope is hit from the front, they can and have fallen off. Obviously not an everyday occurence but damned inconvient when it happens. The set screws are to keep it from falling off the back, not the front.

quote:

The set screws are to keep it from falling off the back, not the front.

If a set of Sako rings has loosened enough that they will slip off backward, then the last thing you want is a set screw keeping you from finding that out.

Sounds like the "spread" ringmounts were a set of the original Sakos with the keeper lug on the rear mount. Even with the recoil of a .416 and the keeper lug missing, they would either have had to have been installed with too little torque or have had soft crossbolt screws that allowed too much stretch. If Sako originals, I would believe it the former problem rather than the latter. Warne aluminum rings were said to be very bad about spreading on heavier recoiling Sakos. I have a rather lightweight .375 H&H mounted with Leupold ringmounts which have held up quite nicely for the last dozen or so years on bear hunts in Canada and elk hunts in the Rockies. Yes, I've heard plenty of complaints of the Leupolds slipping. There are apparently a lot of people who don't understand the proper function of a screwdriver.

However, your illustration points out exactly how Sako tapered dovetails work: Shooting the rifle makes the mounts tighter, not looser. It is true that a reverse acceleration (like something hitting the front of the scope) would tend to loosen the mounts, but an acceration that would do this to properly installed mounts/bases would be enough to destroy (or heavily damage) the scope, thus it is a somewhat academic issue.

The orginal mounts for the Sako are still quite commonly used here so I have seen many over the years. The 416 I made reference to had bent the attaching hooks on the dove tail as the mount went forward. It might have stretched the screw as well but I didn't check it. I have seen this a few more times on 375's as well. Typically with the customary large/heavy scope. I'm glad that you have never personally had this issue. You probably are one of the few that actually check to see if the screws are tight before going hunting. A good practice to be sure. You have to know that it's the unusual not the common that causes issues like the guide coming into my shop with his Leupold 21/2x8 in his hand and 375 Sako in the other explaining that he had to back track several hundred yards to find his scope when he found it missing.

Since you deal with the public while I see only the guns that I and a handful of friends own, your experience is certainly much more representative than mine.

I think what it illustrates is that a lot of Sakos (and certainly other makes as well) have scopes that are improperly mounted.

I have never had a Sako mount (from any manufacturer) fail on the four or five dozen Sakos that I have had personal experience with. I've heard mounts from Leupold and Millett dissed in particular, but as I mentioned earlier, I have Leupolds on a .375 -- and my .338 which I took to Africa as my primary rifle is mounted with Milletts. Clearly, had I had any misgivings about the Milletts they would not have been trusted on such an important hunt.

As to Redfields, they are good, time proven mounts (whether on a Sako dovetail or conventional bases). However, I'm constantly seeing mismounted Redfields where the rear ring is seated halfway out of the proper place between the two screw heads. People are always messing up on Redfields, and most of the mess ups are done by department store Einsteins using a screwdriver from the 59 cent bargain bin.

With the Redfield Sako bases, the most frequent mistake is to simply slide them on hand-tight, then turn down the little set screw. As you know, this is guaranteed to fail, and sooner rather than later. That's why Redfield and Burris quit putting the sets there at all -- if the set screw is absent then the person mounting the base has to figure out what it is that keeps it from sliding off backwards!

Mismounting is certainly not unique to Sakos. It just seems that when a Sako is mismounted that the dovetail system is blamed, whereas when other guns are mismounted the installer is blamed.

And by the way, thanks for the civil discussion. Except perhaps for the use of set screws I think we are pretty much in agreement.

NOW YOU DID IT!

I thought I was fully in line with what I needed and there, BANG, came the XS Ghost Ring. Hm... If I instead use Warne Quick-release mounts on the Sako then I can use the Warne-compatible XS ghost sight...

Just when I had it all figured out, somebody comes and suggests a cheaper and most certainly better solution!

Just kidding. Thanks a bunch!

This is going to be just great!