If you are unsure of the hardware you will need to mount your scope, ask the retailer your purchased the scope from to assist you in choosing the right mounting hardware. If you purchased your rifle with a factory installed scope you will not need to purchase any hardware. Gunsmiths can mount and bore sight your scope for you for a fee if you would rather not do it yourself.
As a general rule of thumb, mount the scope an inch further forward than you feel is safe to be certain you won’t injure yourself or damage the scope when firing. You can adjust this distance more later. Make sure you can easily see the reticle in your normal firing position.
The eyepiece is the part of the scope you look through and the objective lens creates the magnification of the target. The shoulder of the scope is where the diameter increases to hold the objective lens. Windage and elevation knobs can move the reticle side to side and up and down. Parallax knobs are rarely adjusted and affect the movement of the reticle in relation to the target.
If you have a variable power lens in your scope, choose a setting for the purposes of zeroing the rifle and keep it on that until the scope has been properly zeroed. When hunting or in tactical situations, keep variable lens scopes set to the lowest magnification power to allow for the widest field of view while using the scope.
Remember that the higher the magnification, the darker your target will appear to be through the lens due to the amount of light that can pass through it. Larger diameter lenses allow more light to enter the scope, thus making the image brighter. The higher the first number in your scope’s model number, the stronger the level of magnification it provides. Scopes with variable power will have model numbers like “4-12 x 32,” which means you can adjust between four and twelve times magnification.
Many scopes will come with an eye relief rating that will look like 3-9x. This means proper eye relief is between 3 and 9 inches from the eye piece. Be extremely careful. Keeping the scope too close to your eye may result in it hitting you due to recoil when firing. If your scope does not provide an eye relief rating, determine it yourself by looking through the scope while it’s mounted on the rifle and adjusting it until you can achieve good sight picture.
Depending on your shooting position, it may be difficult to maintain good sight picture. Placing the weapon on a table or using a bipod can stabilize the weapon and give you an opportunity to achieve proper sight picture. Capturing good sight picture is more difficult with high magnification scopes than it is with lower ones.
While different manufacturers and models of scopes will have slight variations, the windage knob will always adjust the impact point of your rounds on the horizontal axis (left to right). Elevation knobs adjust your aiming point on the vertical axis (up and down). Refer to the manual for your scope to know how far each click of the windage and elevation knobs will alter your aiming point.
Look at the target through your scope and ensure the reticle is completely visible and clear. Move your head up, down and to either side as you adjust the parallax knob slightly. Continue to adjust the knob until the reticle no longer seems to move in relation to the target.
Practice proper breath control by breathing in, then out, and firing the weapon in the natural pause between your exhale and the next inhalation. Utilize good trigger control by squeezing the trigger in a slow steady motion, then holding it in the fire position for a second after firing a round. Aim at the exact same point with each round, then adjust the scope to bring the reticle and impact points together.
Replacement lens covers can be purchased at many fire arms and sporting goods stores. You can also purchase sleeves to protect the entire scope from damage when not in use.
Wipes that are made to clean eye glasses may be used to wipe away fingerprints or smudges on the lens of your scope. Lens cleaning fluid can also be used to help remove stuck on smudges. You can purchase lens brushes at most firearm or sporting goods stores.
Store your scope in a vehicle’s trunk, gun cabinet or closet to protect it from heat and direct sunlight. Avoid storing your rifle scope in the passenger compartment of your vehicle on hot days.
Aside from regular optics wipes, you may choose to use anti-fogging optical wipes to clean the lenses of your scope. Always use a dry cloth when cleaning the body of the scope. Be careful not to adjust the windage or elevation settings while cleaning the rifle scope.
