[Brittus]

Greetings all!

I've lurked for years and read silently, and finally joined the FL Forum as I'm ready to ask a few thought-out questions.

I own one the first Accutrigger 10FCMs when they resumed scout rifle production (2006?) in .308 (only caliber offered at first).

I bought a Leupold 2.5x28 Long Eye Relief scope and HD Warne mounts for it and hunted in the swamps of South Carolina using it as a close-up (< 125yds) hog gun and have loved its small size and accuracy. One shot kills on up to 230lb boar -the biggest I've shot with it. Most shots are from 45-75 yards as I like to get close and pick the right one.

I took it to Fort Jackson last month to an outdoor 200m military range to do some target work and saw the limitations of this L.E.R. scope. I know there are several other scout scopes both fixed and variable with more power, but even at 100yds it just wasn't a targetable gun with that scope. I took the scope off and put the Williams OEM peep sight back on it to have any luck/fun that day. I always carry my spares/take-offs & needed tools in bags in the rifle case since you never know what's going to happen.

I went home and took off the B-Square OEM mount off the front and the Williams sight off the rear of the reciever, bought a set of Weaver bases and put my Nikon 3x9-40 BuckMaster on it- Wow! Night and day! No problem with eye relief or target aquisition. I went out to the range last week and was shooting great! It was a windy winter day so no bragging but I was grouping inside 10" black circle target @ 200m, pretty good with my 46yr-old wind-tearing eyes.

So here are the questions-
1) Why Jeff Coopers obsession with forward eye relief? My guess it was due to lever-action guns cartridge ejection path rather than target-aquisition so perhaps the L.E.R. scopes aren't needed for bolt scout rifles? Obviously he was on the right path as ACOG/Holo/Reflex are the choice for LE/Military/civilians.

2) What would you think about a thumbhole-stock for a deer/elk gun? I have connections in CO, NM and UT and would like to count on this gun for longer shots. Would it give more control when shooting in all conditions? How about the Choate-style "target" or "tactical" stocks for field use?

3) Why does the factory bottom-release-button drop magazine keep dropping out? I have examined it and bent the metal retaining tab in the front out some more to get the best engagement I can, but even fully seated it is wobbly when you put your palm under the magazine's plastic bottom. It's embarrasing at the range to have your mag drop out, especially when I am trying to represent this gun. Savage sent me another metal casing, but seriously the metal/forming/stamping reminds me of a wind-up toy from the 1960s. Is there a fix? What other magazines work? I don't need high-capacity, just retention!

4) I am thinking of a Harris 25C-S bipod so I can use it to hunt out west for good shot placement/steadiness. A friend let me use one last week temporarily (the shorter 6"-9") and was astounded- finally the gun quits moving so much! I own some BogPod bipod shooting sticks, but you have to both carry and manipulate them when the time comes. I am curious if anyone thinks that 25C-S model would be too tall or weighty. It runs from 13.5"-27".

5) Are there any other L.E.R. scopes that anyone would recommend? Leupold is considered a benchmark to some and I am not knocking it, it just seems like I am looking through a toilet-paper tube with such low magnification. Anyone tried a Leatherwood 2-7x32 Long Eye Relief scout scope?

Thanks for your replies and considerations, I look forward to hearing from all of you!

Brittus