any one ever done this?

[deerjackie]

 i was going to check poi on my gun with new handloads and looked through scope and it was fuzzy.so i call the company and they said to send it in. 10 days later i call them and they tell me the scope is bent  and it would cost 120 bucks to repair the 159 dollar scope[new price].       there is not a scratch on the scope or gun and i raised hell with guy on phone and told him this was impossible. he then tells me he would send it back thru cust service and give me an answer in 48 hrs and i have yet to get an answer.the scope and the gun have nt been dropped and  barely a sign of ring marks.how can this be?and i only used the supplied allen wrench to secure the rings 6 mos ago.going to call them back today and see if they came to their senses in el segundo,ca.

[Graybeard]

Most scope failures are a direct result of improper mounting. Unless you are using Burris Signature Rings you really should lap the rings prior to mounting a scope. Only a tiny percentage of scopes are thus mounted. ALL of mine are thus treated unless using the Burris Signature rings. Improper mounting is why folks see the ring marks on scopes and if ring marks are on a scope it's a sure sign that at some point it was improperly mounted.

Yes you can bend the scope tube in that way and yes I did once get one used that was bent in that way but surprisingly it still worked fine so obviously the damage was all external and not internal but then it was a high quality scope. On a cheap one that might not be the case. Still if the ring marks aren't real obvious it's probably more likely it came to you that way than that you did it in mounting it. Still if you don't use Burris Signature rings or lap them you really are asking for such problems.

[243dave]

The only rings I buy anymore are the burris signature zee rings. Can't stand ring marks!!

[jasonprox700]

http://www.gboreloaded.com/forums/index.php/topic,180970.0.html

[deerjackie]

it is a nikon pro staff by the way. they did lower the replacement cost  to 75 bucks so its either that or have a bad scope sitting around.

[Graybeard]

Stikes me you learned a valuable lesson about buying Nikon scopes. No matter what their warranty might say it's pretty clear they don't honor it.

[deerjackie]

you are 100 % correct graybeard.this will be the last nikon on my gun rack.

[Hairtrigger]

I have not had an issue with any Nikon scope so I cannot comment on the customer service, I will say I love the Nikon Titanium scope I have on my 222
Also, I lap the rings every time I mount a set on a rifle unless I am using Burris Signature rings

[yooper77]

I am not in the least bit surprised.

I would have told them to keep the scope.

By the way bent scope tubes are not a warranty item.  They are either intentional or mistaken negligence by the installer.

I use Leupold bases and rings and have yet to have any scope damaged from their proper use.
 
yooper77

[revbc]

Not exactly............But I did drop a Hunter 3-9x40 mounted to a Handi survivor 308 bull barrel.  The front sling catch came loose and it fell scope first on the floor inside my home.   It visible bent the scope at the first ring, the elevation adjustment would not go up.  Took a couple rags and my trusty 24" pry bar, gave one good pry and have been using it since.   By the way, the Hunter 3-9x40 has one of the thinnest rings around the eyebox of any scope I have ever seen.

Dumb luck?

[mrbigtexan]

Stikes me you learned a valuable lesson about buying Nikon scopes. No matter what their warranty might say it's pretty clear they don't honor it.

i had a buckmaster sent back and they repaired it for free. but it was not bent either.

[Drilling Man]

  One time when i was out in the bush, i needed to get onto a glacier, and the only way onto it, was by walking a large spruce that had fallen from the high bank i was on, to the glacier.  There were no limbs to hold onto, and as the tree was old, all the bark was off it, worse yet, it was raining lightly!  I got about half way across, and i started to slip, so i straddled the log, went down and my rifle hit HARD, scope first!  Had i fell off that log, i doubt i'd be here today.

  When i got across, i looked through the scope and the end of it was bent, and i could no longer move the power ring.  I was amazed when i picked out a stone a ways away, and shot at it, and hit the stone.  Anyway, when i got back to camp, i took a pair of pliars and the scope made this awful grinding noise, as it went to the lowest power, where i left it.

  The scope was a "Williams", sold by the "Williams gun sight company", and their warr. was plain and simple.  If for ANY reason the scope failed, they would hand you a new one.  They weren't a cheapo scope, but in their day, they were a VERY good quality scope, and months later i handed it to a Williams dealer, and he handed me a new scope, no questions asked!  I still have one Williams scope around, and it sits on a 22 rifle i'm very fond of, it's always worked perfectly.

  Now, that was one heck of a warr!!

  DM

[deerjackie]

i used leupold rings and yes it has crossed my mind that i may have bent it mounting it. i will lap the rings and try again as soon as  new one gets here. will be on my toes getting ring gaps   equal and x pattern tightening sequence done. wish me luck. last nikon that will ever be mounted on my guns.

[Graybeard]

When you say Leupold I automatically assume the Redfield patent rear adjustment windage type. Hate those pieces of junk and will only use them if the ONLY possible way to mount a scope on a gun. They've likely ruined more scopes than all others combined.

Make sure you have the rear base centered and leave it that way. Do not try to adjust windage with it. Use a 1" steel lap bar as well as the two pointed end rods to make sure alignment is as close as you can get it. Then and only then begin lapping. As soon as you begin it won't take long to see just how aligned or misaligned they are based on wear pattern from the lap rod.

My advice would be to junk the base/rings and get a proper mounting system for the rifle.

[deerjackie]

the leupold rings i used dont have the windage screws and are not  twist on dovetails so i will have to trust the 1 in lapping dowel.