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Old January 2, 1999, 11:05 PM   #1
ThomasH
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Join Date: October 16, 1998
Location: Cincinnati, OH USA
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I have been advised to "buy quality rings" for my Tasco ProPoint PDP3, after complaining about how sh, er, crummy, the ones were that came with it.

But I don't see anyone selling 30mm rings to fit the "weaver style" base I have fitted to my S&W 686. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Who sells good rings for this set-up? I'll even buy a different base if I have to. Help!

Thomas
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Old January 3, 1999, 12:08 AM   #2
4V50 Gary
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Thomas H.:

Weaver sells Weaver style 30mm scope rings for Weaver style bases. They come as follows:

low, cat#WE49122 @ $17.01
low matte, cat#WE49121 @ 17.01
low stainless, cat#WE94131 @ 25.83
high, cat# WE49110 @ 17.01
high matte, cat#WE49120 @ 17.01
high stainless, cat#WE49130 @ 25.96

Millet makes them too:

Smooth rings, high, MIAL00018 @ $26.07
Matte rings, low, MIAL00716 @ 26.07
Matte rings, med, MIAL0717 @ 26.07
Matte rings, high, MIAL0717 @ 26.07

Include Burris:

30mm Zee Ring Pairs
High 30mm, BU420078 @ 26.76
High 30mm matte, BU42077 @ 26.76

All are listed by Spartan Shooter Supply @ 1-800-251-3904.

Shades of Die Niebelungenlied! This being America, you have not only a choice of ring finish, ring height, ring maker, you also can shop around for your own vendor! Happy Shooting.

Gary

Note: This posting is not a paid advertisement and does not constitute a commercial endorsement by either myself or TheFiringLine. Further, neither I nor TheFiringLine has any financial interest or ties with Spartan SS. If you don't believe me, "Go tell the Lacedaemonians."
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Old January 3, 1999, 12:15 AM   #3
Tony N
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Looking through the Natchez Shooter's Supply catalog I see a couple solutions:
Both Burris and Redfield have 30mm Weaver type rings.
Or you could change your base to a Leupold, Redfield, or Burris mount and use universal 30mm rings.
Give them a call at 1-800-251-7839.
They also have a web site, but you are going to have to do a web search for it.
BTW. I mounted a ProPoint on an Anaconda useing a Burris mount and Leupold rings.
Good luck.
Tony N
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Old January 3, 1999, 12:29 AM   #4
4V50 Gary
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Hey Tony N!

I suspect Natchez & Spartan are runned by the same folks. The cover of their catalogs are the same, as are the prices & cat# and the specials they run bimonthly. I even think my customer# is the same for both of them.

Gary
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Old January 3, 1999, 11:36 AM   #5
Tony N
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Yup. They are.
I don't know the reason for the two companies though.
It might be some type of set up for saveing taxes as I've seen several companies do it.
Tony
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Old January 5, 1999, 01:29 AM   #6
ThomasH
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Wow! Thank You! You guys are great! Now those are responses!

I'll be on the phone soon, I'm not even going to wait for the replacement ring, the fact that they don't fit the Weaver brand base I got for the pre-drilled S&W L frame seems bad enough.

Shot my Ruger .22 with it's new Weaver 2x scope (thanks again Santa!) with the wonderful stock Ruger rings (!), and it was a pleasure. No shiming needed, it started 3/4" low and 1" to the left, at 25yds. A few clicks later and I could keep 10 shots in a 1" bullseye, off a plastic rest. Me very happy!

Thank you again and again for the terrific responses, I searched and searched the Web with the usual engines and couldn't find somebody selling 30mm rings. I did find some vague mention on the Burris site itself, but they had absolutely no contact info except email, and I was in a "talkie" mood.
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Old January 5, 1999, 01:51 PM   #7
ThomasH
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Ordered a set of Millet steel rings for the Weaver base this morning. Spoke to a nice gentleman named Andy. Should be here day after tomorrow, and hopefully they'll line up and screw down. Not too much to ask, is it, Tasco?

Thanks again!
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Old January 10, 1999, 05:42 PM   #8
ThomasH
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Well, although Andy was nice to talk to, and seemed pretty knowledgeable, he screwed up and sent the rings UPS ground instead of the 2nd day air we agreed on.

No big deal, but it will be a few more days before I can report on how well they close, and whether they mount centered on the Weaver brand base. Sigh.

Thomas
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Old January 15, 1999, 06:10 PM   #9
ThomasH
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I am happy to report that the Millet 30mm steel rings arrived, and they are working wonderfully.

They fit the Tasco PDP3 nicely, and are made very well. They have several nice design features, and are machined and finished in a high quality manner.

Interestingly, they have a "clamp" and allen head screw on each side of the base mount, which can be a blessing and a problem. The blessing is that by adjusting both sides, you can surely "center" the rings on any weaver style base, but the problem is how to be sure that the two rings are "centered" equally. You wouldn't want to be putting stress on your sight by having the rings "out of line".

The instructions tell you to only loosen the right hand screws, which would reduce the chance of getting them out of line, but I could not mount them without also loosening the left screws. But I counted the "turns" as I loosened them, and turned them back the same amount when it was mounted. This has seemed to keep the rings in line when I tightened the right side screws.

The ring portions have a raised square section around the screw hole on the bottom half, and a matching relieved square in the top half. As the rings come together, these keep the two halves "locked" in alignment even if they don't close completely. They came with two black self adhesive strips in each ring that I assume is for "shimming", but they are not mentioned in the installation instructions. I imagine they could also be "anti-slip" strips, but I'll wait and see if I need them.

And they worked well at the range. They are mounted on my 6" S&W 686, and I sighted it in at 25 yds. Although I am still having trouble keep my all my shots in the bullseye, I am getting better groups already, and I hoping the bullseye problem can be helped by practice!

Maybe these steel rings are a little heavy, but they sure work well. Thanks everyone for their advice and suggestions, I know a lot more about this topic than I did before.

And I guess I still have one question, if anyone reads this far, once I've sighted the gun in with the red dort sight, how should I "secure" the rings? Should I loosen the various screws, one at a time, and re-tighten afgter applying some blue Loctite? Or should I try to secure everything the way it is now, like by putting epoxy or paint on the screw heads? And a third choice, I believe there is a "new" Loctite for assembled pieces, that I imagine seeps into the threads. Any suggestions?

Happy Shooting!

Thomas










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Old January 16, 1999, 12:00 PM   #10
fal308
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The way to mount rings is to use a dowel rod. Most mfgrs sell a steel rod (30mm, 1 in. etc) that substitutes for the scope upon initial installation. For extreme accuracy requirements that is a given. You can make your own dowel (preferably metal) but for the application that you're using I wouldn't worry about the rings being are enough out of line to worry.
The ahesive strips are indeed for slippage. Under recoil your scope may slide in the mount. These control the slippage by gripping better than the smooth surface of the metal rings.
As per securing the rings,haven't used the seeping thread lock compound. I just loosen, apply thread lock and tighten the threads same as I would an automobile tire; work the opposite corners (front-left back-right etc). Also use the same amount of torque on each bolt to prevent warpage.
Good luck shooting and don't forget to check those rings for tightness every once in a while.
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Old January 19, 1999, 12:12 AM   #11
ThomasH
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Thanks for the reply fal308! I may stop at the auto parts store and look at that "seeping" Loctite again, but I don't think I'll hurt much by the "loosen-apply-tighten" method. I'll wait and see on the friction strips.

And just in case anything changes, I'll take my screwdrivers and go shooting again! And again....

Thomas
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