scope mounts for GM barrel

[sjf]

I purchased a 40 cal. 38 inch GreenMoutain barrel and was wanting to get scope mounts for it.Every thing I find online looks like it well only fit a round barrel :cursing: .Only going to use the scope to see how accurate it really is then Im putting lyman 57 SML reciever sights on it.

 

[jtmattison]

Is the barrel already drilled and tapped for mounts? If so, I believe the Thompson Center mounts made for the Hawken will work for you.

Personally, I think if you just went ahead and mounted the receiver sight you could save yourself the trouble. I guarantee the GM barrel will be a tack driver.

HD

 

[renovato]

There is, or was, a temporary mount for octagon barrels. Seems like it held on with strong magnets or something. I don't remember who made it, but the reviews at the time said that the system held on tight and didn't shift under recoil. Maybe a google search might turn up more info on it. The only other thing I know of is to drill and tap for bases and that's a bit of a pain if you only need to mount a scope temporarily.

 

[wtilenw]

.......Personally, I think if you just went ahead and mounted the receiver sight you could save yourself the trouble. I guarantee the GM barrel will be a tack driver.

HD

I have to agree. Before I went to all traditional fixed sights, I shot the Lyman peep sights, one gun with the hooded front sight with the inserts. If you mess with the front sight insert with round aperature and round bullseye target ratio to each other, so the bullseye just barely fits into your front sight picture, you can literally stack balls on top of one another. I just got to the point that I realized that this was a 100 yard gun and I am a hunter not a competition target shooter.With fixed iron sights, I am about 3" high at 50 yards and dead on at 100 yards. On a deer, elk or antelope I just have to keep it in a 6-8" circle and the fixed sights do that very well for me, a lot less mechanical stuff to get knocked loose too.

 

[musketman]

Burris makes a dovetail scope mount, is the rear sight of the barrel dovetailed?

Link

 

[sjf]

The paper work that came with the barrel says its drilled and tapped for scope bases but the only tapped area is where the front sight is installed.It looks to me that the rear sight is a T/C so it should have the T/C spacing,no dovetail just the front sight is dovetailed.

HuntinDawg I was hoping to find those bases but couldnt,I remember them years ago.

If I have to I'll go with Lyman 17 AML front sight.Id feel more sure of the accuracy of the barrel (get rid of alot of human error) if I had a scope mounted on it because thats what Im use to.

 

[playfarmers]

Those clamp on scope mounts are out there, just keep watching. I picked one up at a gun show, but sold it last winter. Just couldn't bring myself to put it on my Lyman Trade rifle.

 

[MSW]

i've wondered if putting a scope and mounts on a barrel would signifigantly change the harmonics of the barrel ... interesting physics question ... i remember the Bevel Brothers did an article in Muzzle Blasts a while back ... they used some sort of metallic bonding agent (sounded like glue) and they were able to get the scope and mounts back off the gun when their experiment was over.

let us know how your project turns out.

 

[CoyoteJoe]

I once did a temporary scope on an octagon ML barrel. I used the Weaver base made for a Marlin lever action centerfire. That is a flat bottomed base and I attached it with J B Weld, which is a very strong epoxy. Just thoroughly degrease both surfaces, coat the base with J B Weld (not the quick variety) clamp the base to the barrel and let it set for 24 hours in a warm room. The epoxy can be easily and completely removed by heating the barrel until the epoxy begins to smoke and rubbing it off the barrel with fine steel wool or even burlap. It does no harm at all to the bluing but you will need to use a tap to clean out any drilled holes filled with epoxy. That epoxied base held just fine until I was ready to remove it.

 

[Idaho Ron]

The paper work that came with the barrel says its drilled and tapped for scope bases but the only tapped area is where the front sight is installed.It looks to me that the rear sight is a T/C so it should have the T/C spacing,no dovetail just the front sight is dovetailed.

HuntinDawg I was hoping to find those bases but couldnt,I remember them years ago.

If I have to I'll go with Lyman 17 AML front sight.Id feel more sure of the accuracy of the barrel (get rid of alot of human error) if I had a scope mounted on it because thats what Im use to.

For the most accurate shooting possible with that Lyman 57 SML get a Lee Shavers globe front sight with a level. The inserts you get with that sight are much finer. On a gallon milk jug I can easily hold for only the stick on label at 150 yards.

The Lyman 17 AML is a good sight too, but the inserts are way too big for my taste and it does not have the level. You CAN use the Lee Shavers inserts in the Lyman 17AML to get better accuracy. I have two rifles set up like that and they shoot very well. Ron

 

[sjf]

Playfarmers I'd seen the clamps your talking about but I couldnt see how they stayed on very well,it looked like they only held onto half the barrel(if their the same ones?)

WSW I was hoping to stay away from barrel harmonics ,played around for years with barrel tuners and deresonators with my .22,s.Im sure the harmonics well chang ,but to what extent who knows.

Coyote joe If Im going to have to JB any bases to the barrel Im just going to scrach this idea, thats more then what I want to get into :grin: Thanks for all the ideas everyone :thumbsup:

 

[paulvallandigham]

I would not worry very much about the harmonics on an octagon hunting rifle barrel. Not unless the barrel is very small for the caliber or bore diameter. The 8 "triangles" that are formed by those 8 flats make such barrels very rigid, compared to round barrels. Round barrels have to be very large in diameter, or have flutes cut in the barrel, or both, in order to be as stable as an octagon barrel. All barrel vibrate, but its the round ones that "whip" so badly that they need to be free-floated to get best accuracy.

If you are going to put a scope on any muzzle loader, you should consider a long eye relief " Scout " scope. Mount it over the forestock, so it can be mounted lower to the barrel, and does not interfere with your hammer or cock on a sidelock. The lower mounting allows you to use the same stock as you use for iron sights, without having to add height to the comb of the stock. The power of the scope can also be held down compared to the heavy power scopes put on modern rifles. With the scope forward, both your eyes can remain open and focus on " infinity" and the target, looking through the scope with one eye. You pick up the target quicker with a scout scope, see it clearer, and also see your cross-hairs faster. And, you don't get eye strain, of " fatigue" using a scout scope, like you often will using a rear mounted scope sight.

I also agree with using those Lee Shaver front sight inserts if you are going to mount peep sights. You cannot get better advice on that than what Idaho Ron has told you, and he has years of experience using these sights, and others, by comparison.

The first time I looked down a barrel at a Lee Shaver insert, I stopped to ask, " What is that, and where did you get it?" of the gun's owner! That is just how impressive, and well thought out, these sight inserts are.

Lee has a regular ad in the Single Shot Exchange, where more readers are shooting single shot breechloader cartridge guns than MLers, but most have MLers for target work, too. Like Idaho Ron, I got off the seat at the bench, and did some quick mounts of my Friend's rifle to see how easy it is to line up the sights using the Lee Shaver Inserts. No problem at all, and somewhat more easy than using the more traditional Lyman front sight. I would not hesitate to use them on a hunting rifle, particular when cloud cover can change several times during the day.

:hatsoff:

 

[jtmattison]

sjf,
Does the barrel also have the T/C front sight with the gold bead?
My GM barrel does and I use the T/C bead with the Lyman 57SML.
It is deadly accurate and very easy to acquire the sight picture.

HD

 

[sjf]

Huntin Dawg yes it has the T/C front brass bead sight on it (very nice).Ive noticed playing around with it how easy it was to get a sight picture from it, your right great for hunting.When shooting a 38 inch barreled muzzleloader from the bench do you place the barrel or the forend in the rest for better accuracy?

Idaho Ron (didnt see your post last time)great shot from 150 hope I can get to that type of level of preformance with this rifle.That shot was MOA of groundhog and that what im striving for :grin: .Have to look into the Lee Shavers ,it sounds like it'll help with any canting of the rifle via the level.

Paulvallandigham I was constaplating weather or not the trianglation of the barrel design would reduce the barrel whipping affects,nice to know thanks.

Well it looks like I'm scratching the idea of placing one of my Weaver T-36's on this rifle for now.Going to order one of those Lee Shavers ,like the idea that it has a level and thinner incerts sounds better for longer range.But if someone knows where I can get one of those T/C Hawken bases I'd be interested in it still.Whats everyones thoughts on viener sights, pondering on that ides too.Thanks,

 

[flintlock50]

You can mount the base on with Gorilla super glue and remove with paint thinner or fingernail polish remover. I do it with iron sights when testing a barrel and they DO NOT move until released.

 

sjf,
Depending on what size barrel you have, I have a couple of the "clamp" on scope bases. They attach with a couple of set screws and will really grab a barrel. If I remember correctly they accept Weaver bases and rings. Let me know what size you need and if I have one I would ship it for $45.
Mark

 

[jtmattison]

Huntin Dawg yes it has the T/C front brass bead sight on it (very nice).Ive noticed playing around with it how easy it was to get a sight picture from it, your right great for hunting.When shooting a 38 inch barreled muzzleloader from the bench do you place the barrel or the forend in the rest for better accuracy?

Always place the for end on the rest. Placing the barrel on the rest will mess with the barrel harmonics and blow your accuracy.

HD

 

[sjf]

Dixie ,Thanks for the neat tip may work for some other project Im doing with a rebarreling job on a Cherokee rifle .

Papa its a 15/16 barrel,do they scuff the barrel up real bad?

Huntin Dawg was thinking on resting the rifle at the major stress point ( at the wedge pin).

 

[CoyoteJoe]

Coyote joe If Im going to have to JB any bases to the barrel Im just going to scrach this idea, thats more then what I want to get into :grin: Thanks for all the ideas everyone :thumbsup:

I guess I don't understand that. I really can't imagine an easier way to mount a scope nor a way to mount a scope without permanent effect to the rifle. If you doubt the JB will hold, I can assure you it will. That Weaver base offers a very large surface area for the epoxy to bond, you couldn't knock it off with a three pound hammer. If you're thinking it would be difficult to remove later, I assure you it isn't. I've JB welded sights and bases on several rifles and handguns and when I wish to remove them I just heat with a propane torch and rub off the softened JB, it leaves no trace, no discoloration nor scratches on the metal. Perhaps Harry Potter could come up with something better but lacking magic I don't know what it could be.

 

[paulvallandigham]

:thumbsup: I agree with you, Joe. I don't see the problem. Paul