Level level level

[bruce_ventura]

Bruce, As per your comments above and using a precision digital level, I've been able to level my rail with my scope elevation cap to within less than 1\10 of a degree. It appears my reticle and bore are plumb, but do I need other testing to confirm this for accurate 500-600yd hunting? Ted

That's hard for me to say. The accuracy of the level-level method is not determined by the quality of the level. It's determined by the lateral offset of the rings and the alignment of the barrel to the receiver.

Personally, I have a hard time eyeballing the reticle alignment to the rear of the receiver. I think I can tell when the reticle is aligned to within about 6 degrees or less. That's just one minute of the clock which is a small angle. That level of accuracy could still leave me with a 0.2" misalignment, which equates to about +/- 0.8 click at long range. I want better aiming accuracy so I use a reticle alignment tool instead of the level-method.

If you want to minimize the alignment error that could result from using the level-level method, just zero the scope at 500 yds on a very calm day. Then the misalignment won't cause a significant aiming error at any range. Where I live in Southern California very calm days are very rare. Due to local prevailing winds I have to zero at 100 yds.

Bottom line: I use a reticle alignment tool so that I have certainty that the reticle is properly aligned.

 

[theo98]

The accuracy of the level-level method is not determined by the quality of the level. It's determined by the lateral offset of the rings and the alignment of the barrel to the receiver.

Thanks for the quick response, Bruce. My custom LR rifles' Krieger barrel has been trued to the 700LA receiver and I use Seekins Precision rail and rings to mount my scope.

To capture my elevation dopes for a precise elevation CDS dial creation, last year I shot 200 to 600 yd groups in a steady 15 mph side wind. I called windage according to Ballastic AE and basically maintained accurate vertical alignments throughout the ranges.

As you suggested, I'll use the upcoming calm Spring days we have to recheck my previous LR vertical alignment findings!

Ted

 

[Blkz06]

I'm lucky enough that I use 20 MOA rails on my guns, so I use a high precision level on top of the rail and lock the gun down in the plumb position.

For guns that have scopes that may not have the reticles leveled to the bottom of the scope I use a laser level to align the reticle plumb and level. For scopes that are leveled to the bottom, I use a wedge.

I like the design of the RingTrue as far as leveling the rifle/bore, but using it (or any level for that matter) to level the reticle off the turret isn't the best way IMO.

Most scopes have turrets that are not truly flat, nor level to the reticle which means the reticle will not be truly level when using the turrets as your ref. point. Nightforce tech told me not to use the turrets, period.

Nightforce and Steiner level the reticle to the BOTTOM of the housing, which makes tools like the Spuhr or Arisaka leveling wedges excellent choices if you want to get your reticle leveled quickly and precisely. That method also makes sure you can "climb the ladder" with your shots and turret clicks.

 

[crazyhorse]

That's hard for me to say. The accuracy of the level-level method is not determined by the quality of the level. It's determined by the lateral offset of the rings and the alignment of the barrel to the receiver.

Personally, I have a hard time eyeballing the reticle alignment to the rear of the receiver. I think I can tell when the reticle is aligned to within about 6 degrees or less. That's just one minute of the clock which is a small angle. That level of accuracy could still leave me with a 0.2" misalignment, which equates to about +/- 0.8 click at long range. I want better aiming accuracy so I use a reticle alignment tool instead of the level-method.

If you want to minimize the alignment error that could result from using the level-level method, just zero the scope at 500 yds on a very calm day. Then the misalignment won't cause a significant aiming error at any range. Where I live in Southern California very calm days are very rare. Due to local prevailing winds I have to zero at 100 yds.

Bottom line: I use a reticle alignment tool so that I have certainty that the reticle is properly aligned.

Good Grief! After reading this entire thread I have a whole new respect for the knowledge of some of our posters!!

I purchased Bruce's leveling device last year and used it on all of my rifles. I can say that it is one of the simplest, most effective tools I have bought to keep all the money I have spent on rifles going straight down range! All of my rifles are on custom or trued actions with after market (Bartlein) barrels and after using the leveling device not one of them failed the plum line test. There are alot of people on here who know a whole lot more than I do, but this particular system has worked great in my experience.

Going back to the earlier discussion for those in favor of canting the rifle to be more comfortable, is your "cant" exactly the same prone as upright (bench type support)?