Has anyone used a laser bore sighter?

[Mainer]

My HB .243 Handi and my Bushnell Elite 3200 4-12AOAx40 scope should be in my hands by this weekend.

I have never before mounted a scope on my own.

I plan to buy Leupold high rings at Wal-Mart and use blue Locktite on the base screws.  (Why do people say not to use Locktite on the rings themselves?)

Wal-Mart also sells a laser bore sighter, which supposedly works on every caliber from .22 through .50.  It has a tapered shaft that fits into the muzzle.  The end that goes into the muzzle is thinnest and the shaft increases in thickness toward the small laser unit on the other end.

The kit comes with plastic tips that fit on the thin end of the shaft to adjust for different calibers.  It seems like a good concept.  Cost is $39.  Cabelas has similar units in its catalog.

It looks like this would make sighting in a breeze.  Has anyone tried one of these?

[quickdtoo]

Sort of! I use a lazer pointer, just shine it thru the bore, look thru the scope and adjust the reticle. Works great on a bolt gun or a handi rifle. Won't work on a levergun or a semi-auto. Think I paid $10 for the pointer..... :wink:

[Sourdough]

My partner bought one and tried to sight in his Weatherby using it.  He put it in the barrel five times and made adjustments, never could hit the paper at 100 yards.  That was his goal.  He had to bring it in to 25 yards just to get on the paper.  Me, I just set the gun in my varmit rest (a cardboard box with two notches cut in the ends works well too), sight through the barrel and make adjustments to the scope at 25 yards.  Then one shot, make more adjustments to the scope.  Move target to 50 yards, one shot, more adjustments.  Then to 100 yards, three shots, more adjustments.  Three more shots and if everything is good, move target to 200 yards, for final adjustments.  To me that is the easiest way.

[Badnews Bob]

I haven't used a bore sighting tool for years, I use a simular method of sourdoughs and others here, it'll get you on the paper and if you are too far off you need to check your bases and rings then start again. 39 dollars is a couple of lbs of powder, thats a lot of bullets.

[Mainer]

Maybe manual bore sighting is the way to go.  Is it hard to do with a Handi because you have to hing the stock down to open the action?  Or is that what the "cardboard box rest" is intended to help with?

[bubba]

I have a bore sighter also but not laser. I have never soon oen that will get you on paper consistently at 100 yards. Even after I bore sight, I start at 25 yards. It is designed to get you on paper, not on the bull. I have bore sighted guns and not hit the paper at 25 due to being off to the left or right. If you are on papers edge even at 25 will never touch at 100.

[quickdtoo]

I use a Lohman Sight Vise to mount my rifle in with the action open. Works great with break barrels or bolt guns.

[Badnews Bob]

Handis a kinda easy just take the barrell off the action and then set it up in your holder of choice. Scope mounts to the barrell not the reciver.

[Mac11700]

Quick:

I have the same one...I filled the space on the bottom with #6 shot...weighs a-lot more...but is really stable now...

Mainer...deprime a case for your rifle and put it in the chamber...set your your rifle into a heavy cardboard box that has 2 sides cut to allow your rifle to fit snugly into it with the action open and be level...using the fired  deprimed case will make it easier to see the target...sort of like using a peepsite...

Mac

[quickdtoo]

Mac, how do you deprime a rimfire?  :eek:   I know..... with an 1/8" drill bit!! :-D  :-D  :-D

[Mac11700]

Mac, how do you deprime a rimfire?  :eek:   I know..... with an 1/8" drill bit!! :-D  :-D  :-D

Rimfire???...ok I'm a littlel dense this morning...I thought we were talking about a 243...

My HB .243 Handi and my Bushnell Elite 3200 4-12AOAx40 scope should be in my hands by this weekend.

I have never before mounted a scope on my own.

Mac

[quickdtoo]

My turn to mess with ya!!  :wink:

[redneckd1]

quickdtoo - Do you use that lohman to sight rifles in? I was thinking of getting a rest/vise, but thought they were too long for the little handis, looked like all of them would be touching the barrel.
Thx,
 R

[Mac11700]

Thank Goodness ...here I thought I had my head..(....well you know)...when I made a post...

Mac.

[quickdtoo]

quickdtoo - Do you use that lohman to sight rifles in? I was thinking of getting a rest/vise, but thought they were too long for the little handis, looked like all of them would be touching the barrel.
Thx,
 R

No, I use a Caldwell Rock Jr and a rabbit ear rear bag or sometimes I use a Benchmaster system. Have also used a harris bipod and a mini cross stick rear support from prone position.

[bajabill]

I used (for shooting) then returned a Lohman sight vise.  It is not well suited for bench shooting.  The gun moves in the clamping pads with each shot and you have to loosen, reposition, tighten each shot.  Pain in the butt.  Get a rest that allows free recoil of your gun, or get a rest that COMPLETELY limits the recoil of the gun.  The latter is much more difficult to accomplish.  Anything inbetween these extremes will detrimentally effect your groups.  You want the gun to recoil the same every shot.

I borrowed a 100 dollar bore sighter, it was nice, but not necessary.  Just look thru the barrel and get your scope close, then shoot at a 25 yd target, make rough adjustments, shoot at a 50 yd target, make finer adjustments, then go on to 100 yds.  You can get it within a few inches at 100yds in less than 5 shots assuming you dont have a problem with scope mounting and running out of adjustment.

[quickdtoo]

The procedure I use for bore sighting a handi is as follows:

I always start out with the scope reticle mechanically centered by placing a mirror against the objective lense and looking through the scope, you will see 2 pairs of reticles, one is the actual reticle and the other is the reflection of the reticle in the mirror. Move the turret adjustments so the two pair are lined up and you see only one reticle set. On some scopes this doesn't work, but on most will work fine. Experimenting with light source angles or a different mirror will usually work.

1. open action and place in a stable rest, the lohman works great for that.

2. I shine a laser pointer thru the bore so the beam shows up on the wall at the end of the hallway ~20 yds away. A spot/target on the wall would work as well to be seen thru the bore.

3. I use a trisquare level placed against the side of the action to make sure the rifle/scope is aligned perfectly in the up and down position.

4. I have a plumb bob hung at the end of the hallway, the string is used to align the vertical x-hair. If it's not perfect, I loosen the scope rings and adjust accordingly.

5. readjust the rifle so the "target" or laser beam is centered in the bore, then adjust the scope reticle to intersect with the laser beam.

6. If the turret has to been adjusted many clicks to align the reticle with the target, I know there is a scope mounting/barrel alignment issue and needs to be dealt with either a mount/ring position change or shimming or with the Burris Signature offset insert kit which I have had to use a few times.

Using this method, I very rarely need to shoot at 25 yds and start at 50, I've even been so close at 50yds that I move immediately to 100yds after only one shot and make my final sight in there. When I sighted my 357maxi in, I never even adjusted the scope, it was shooting 1½" to the right at 9 O'clock, dead center at 100yds. at 50yrds is was cutting the edge of a black 1" bull.

[Mainer]

Quickdtoo:  Great info!  Thanks!