I have the weaver one piece base on mine that Dad put on it when he had it. Simple but has worked just fine so I won't change it. As far as scopes go, there are alot of variables involved in making that decision. The environment you hunt, how much weight you're willing to deal with, size of ojective, eye relief, and of course the allmighty dollar come into play. I have a Leupold VariX-III 2.5-8X36mm on mine but in reality could be happy with a good quality 2-7X or even a straight 4X. Figure out how much you're willing to spend and then go with features that appeal to you. I have a Nikon Monarch 3-9X40MM on my 243 that I absolutely love. Plenty ample eye relief at 3.5", gathers light really well, clear, bright, and the duplex style reticle is perfect size for me. On the above mentioned Leupold, it's standard duples is on the thin side for my tastes. John at
www.theopticzone.com posts here and you may pm him for advice and possibly purchase of a scope. Best of luck to you.