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Published Dec 2, 2022 9:38 AM
I do know what you’re pondering: scope rings are just about the identical. Their one job is to maintain your scope securely mounted to the highest of your rifle. Oh, how unsuitable you might be. The unsuitable rings can impede your accuracy, irrespective of how persistently your rifle shoots, and may work unfastened over time or fail to carry your zero. Here are the most effective scope rings available on the market, however extra importantly, how to decide on rings on your rifle and optic mixture.
Why It Made the Cut
These Seekins rings are an incredible combo of easy, sturdy, and exact design and affordable price. The 30mm measurement runs $149, which is a cool $100 lower than Vortex’s prime scope rings for the same construct.
Key Features
- Weight: 4.1 ounces (30mm medium top)
- Material: 7075-T6 aluminum
- T-25 Torx screws
- Tube Diameters: 1 inch, 30mm, 34mm, 35mm
- Available in low, medium, medium-high, excessive, extra-high, and MSR heights
- Built to 1913 Picatinny rail specs
Pros
- Snag-free mounting design
- Liberal clamping floor
- Extremely sturdy T-25 {hardware}
- Center recoil lug machined straight into ring backside
- Simple, efficient design
Cons
- At .8-inch vast, they’re pretty vast rings
Product Description
Numerous scope rings characteristic a flat cap half, a characteristic that’s important for guaranteeing that the scope’s reticle is stage with the rifle. The Seekins cap is among the many largest mesa within the enterprise. Other pluses: an anti-glare end, a variety of heights: low, medium, medium-high, excessive, extra-high, and AR top.
The construct of the Precision Rings is among the many greatest within the enterprise. Seekins begins with 7075-T6 aluminum and serializes the pairs to exacting requirements. The .8-inch clamping floor is wider than different fashions, and the graceful edges and radiuses make these rings snag-free, decreasing hang-ups on drag baggage and scabbards. Lastly, the middle lug machined straight into the underside of the bottom is milled to 1913 Picatinny specs that match exactly into Pic slots with minimal clearance or motion.
Read Next: Best Rifle Scopes
Why It Made the Cut
The gold commonplace in precision scope rings, the Zeiss Ultralight 1913 Mil-Std Rings are compact, constructed with premium elements, and have a built-in leveling bubble.
Key Features
- Weight: 4.4 ounces for 30mm medium rings
- Material: 7075-T6 aluminum with anodized end
- Double T-15 Torx cap screws on cap
- Double T-25 Torx mounting screws
- Ships in useful case, consists of Torx driver bits
- Tube Diameter: 30mm, 34mm, 36mm
- Available in low, medium, and excessive, X-high, and XX-high heights
- Integrated recoil lug
- Fits: 1913 Picatinny rail
Pros
- Leveling bubble may be configured for left- or right-handed shooters
- Non-snagging construct
- Ships with exhausting case
- All main edges have micro-radiused machining to scale back glare
- Tube-facing grooves cut back slippage
- Extremely sturdy
Cons
- At over $200, pretty pricy
- Single T-25 screw clamps to rail
Product Description
This is just essentially the most dependable, exact, and stylish scope ring available on the market, and is particularly designed for precision shooters. Starting with the flat cap floor for leveling all the way down to the extraordinarily exact screw and thread engagement to the built-in leveling bubble, these are straightforward to make use of and can maintain even enormous 34mm, 5-25×56 and bigger scopes tightly and exactly.
The construct has a low-profile stature with non-snagging {hardware}. Zeiss sends each T-15 and T-25 Torx bits for each the cap screws (T-15) and the cross-slot screws. Both are completed in black oxide for corrosion resistance and non-glare. The rings’ main edges are additional micro-radiused to create a non-marring floor.
The Ultralight Precision Rings convey an extra, squishier, high quality: they’re lovely to take a look at. Elegant in proportion and constructed to fulfill shooters with extraordinarily excessive expectations of their gear.
Why It Made the Cut
Made with premium aluminum (the rings and bases) and titanium cross bolts and jaws, that is the light-weight rig you need on your ultralight mountain rifle and featherweight scope.
Key Features
- Weight: 3.3 ounces for 30mm medium mount
- Material: 7075-T6 exhausting anodized aluminum and titanium crossbolts and jaws
- Double or triple T-15 Torx cap screws on cap
- Single ½ inch nut clamps to rail
- Tube Diameter: 30mm and 34mm
- Integrated recoil lugs
- Fits: M1913 Picatinny rail
Pros
- Exceptional power for its mild weight
- Choice of 4- or 6-cap screw design
- Choice of six heights for 30mm or 4 heights for 34mm fashions
- Flat prime on cap ring permits leveling
Cons
- Torque on jaw nut must be precise
- Sizing is complicated
Product Description
Given the in depth machining and high quality elements, you’d assume these top-end Nightforce rings would price far more than the $170 that they usually retail for. The construct provides shooters all of the power of metal at half the burden, and for that motive the X-Treme Duty rings have develop into darlings of the mountain-rifle crowd that should decrease weight however maximize efficiency. While the usual 4-screw caps ought to present all of the clamping floor most shooters want, Nightforce affords the X-Treme Duty rings with a 6-screw cap that provides much more clamping floor for bigger scopes.
Why It Made the Cut
According to a survey of prime Precision Rifle Series and National Rifle League opponents the overwhelming majority use Sphur mounts. You’ll additionally see them on a few of the greatest sniper rifles.
Key Features
- Weight: 8.4 ounces for 30mm medium rings
- Tube Diameters: 30mm, 34 mm, 35mm, 36mm, and 40mm
- Integrated stage
- Available in low, medium, excessive, and MSR heights
- Available with inbuilt tilt for added elevation
- Fits: Picatinny rails
Pros
Cons
Product Description
If you need essentially the most rock stable scope mount accessible, you desire a Sphur Unimount. They are machined from a single piece of aluminum, so they’re completely aligned. The built-in stage is a pleasant added characteristic and is out of the way in which in comparison with different choices. You may also add a bunch of equipment to the rings like crimson dots. They have a large floor space to securely grip the scope and unfold out the stress of the torqued down rings. What you find yourself with is an unquestionable rugged scope mount that’s trusted by opponents and silent professionals alike.
Sphur additionally makes lighter mounts for hunters which are value trying out in order for you a premium scope mount on your lengthy vary searching rifle.
Why It Made the Cut
The manufacturing course of of those extraordinarily exact rings will make your head spin. Tolerances are held to .0005 inches, and rings are then serialized and bead-blasted to scale back glare.
Key Features
- Weight: 3.9 ounces for 30mm medium rings
- Material: 7075 aluminum
- 1/2 inch nut clamps to rail
- 4-screw design appropriate with T-15 Torx
- Tube Diameter: 1-inch, 30mm, 34mm, 35mm, 40mm
- Objective Lens Diameter: 42mm, 50mm, 56mm
- Available in low, medium, excessive, and MSR heights
- Fits: Weaver-style bases and Picatinny rails
Pros
- Extremely exact machining
- Low-glare
- Anti-snag design
- Robust Grade 8 fasteners
- Excellent guarantee
- Good scope stress geometry
Cons
- Price
- Overbuilt for some functions
Product Description
Vortex has completed a pleasant job of delivering a variety of scope rings at numerous value factors and builds to match its vast line of rifle scopes. Note that that is the highest of Vortex’s in depth scope ring line, with heights ranging of .87, .97, 1.26, and 1.45 inches.
It’s exhausting to disregard the worth of the Precision Matched line, although. They retail for round $240, or double the worth of the superb Pro Series metal rings. Yet they’re about $200 lower than a Sphur Mount. Other Vortex mounting choices to think about are their superb line of cantilever mounts and the entry-level Hunter line of rings.
The Precision Matched sequence makes use of T-25 Torx heads for good torquing and stable holds. And they’re amazingly mild for his or her strong construct. Mated with a Vortex Razor HD GenIII scope on a precision rifle, there may be little excuse for lacking even distant targets.
Why It Made the Cut
Very affordably priced, Hawke has a scope ring product line for almost each funds and rifle construct
Key Features
- Weight: 3.1 ounces for 30mm medium rings
- Material: Anodized aluminum
- Double hex screws on cap and rail mount
- Internal cushion tape prevents marring on scope tube
- Tube Diameter: 1-inch and 30mm
- Available in low, medium, and excessive heights
- Fits: Weaver rails
Pros
- Simple design
- Edges are rounded to stop snagging and scope harm
- Extremely reasonably priced, round $30 for set of 30mm medium rings
- Cushioned tape prevents scope scratching and marring
Cons
- Tacky tape can go away residue on scope tube
- Hex screws not as exact as Torx
Product Description
While this isn’t a hyper-precise construct, Hawke doesn’t intend it to be. Instead, it’s an accessible priced product (retailing for below $30) that’s a part of the model’s in depth lineup of optics mounts. The 1-piece cantilevered match line retails for round $40, the 2- and 1-piece Precision Steel ring line sells for round $45-50 with lever variations costing round $74. You can spend as much as $150 for Hawke’s Professional Steel Ring mounts, and the Tactical Ring Mounts use 3 cap screws and a beefier construct.
Why It Made the Cut
A easy, no-nonsense one-piece mount with 20 MOA of elevation constructed into the bottom. Perfect for AR platforms.
Key Features
- Weight: 6.7 ounces for 30mm medium mount
- Material: 6061-T6 anodized aluminum
- Double T-15 Torx cap screws on cap
- Double ½ inch nuts clamp to rail
- Tube Diameter: 30mm and 34mm
- Two built-in recoil lugs
- Fits: M1913 Picatinny rail
Pros
- Extremely quick to mount and take away
- 20 MOA elevation ideally suited for long-range functions
- Pushes optics over 2 inches ahead for optimum eye aid
- Open cap model supplies ample contact with scope tube
Cons
- 20MOA base can frustrate bore-sighting
- Cantilever design not ideally suited with giant goal scopes
Product Description
Primary Arms sells quite a lot of mounting {hardware} from different manufacturers, however this mount, together with the PLx line, are made in-house and have a ton of worth. The cantilever mount is machined from 6061-T6 aluminum and is optimized to be used on AR platforms. With built-in 20MOA of elevation, the mannequin can lengthen the adjustment vary of scopes to allow them to achieve out over better distance. The design additionally pushes optics ahead to make sure shooters get better eye aid, particularly at increased scope magnifications.
The skeletonized 4-screw cap rings cut back weight with out sacrificing power, and the ½-inch “tactical thumbscrews” are straightforward to shortly mount and take away.
Why It Made the Cut
These are among the finest scope rings as a result of they ship with three completely different rail-mounting keys to suit completely different tolerances of receiver rails.
Key Features
- Weight: 3.0 ounces for 30mm medium mount
- Material: 6061-T6 aircraft-grade aluminum
- Double hex cap screws
- Double hex jaw screws clamp to rail
- Tube Diameter: 30mm and 34mm
- Three recoil lugs
- Fits: Weaver-style and Picatinny rails
Pros
- Three-key rail-adjustment system suits vast number of receivers
- Under-angled screw design eliminates corrosion
- Under-cut wedge design enhances accuracy
- Extremely light-weight
Cons
- Under-angled screw design may be exhausting to mount
- Mounting keys could cause confusion
Product Description
The very first thing you discover about these modern rings is that the cap screws don’t deploy from the highest, as most do. Instead, they’re screwed upward from the underside of the ring. The concept is that by maintaining the screw head hidden, it gained’t collect as a lot corrosive water and different supplies, thereby extending the lifetime of the ring.
You’ll additionally discover that the Triad ships with six steel slugs. These are keys that match completely different tolerances of receiver rail, thereby giving clients extra functionality for mounting to completely different rifles. The inserts have tolerances that vary from nominal to +.0035 and -.0035, guaranteeing a exact match with Weaver-style rails but additionally European rails and commonplace Picatinny rails.
Why It Made the Cut
These rings have inserts that may re-center your scope and provides scopes extra elevation vary.
Key Features
- Weight: 5.5 ounces for 30mm medium mount
- Material: Aluminum rings with metal screw clamps
- Triple hex cap screws
- Double hex jaw screws clamp to rail
- Tube Diameter: 1-inch, 30mm and 34mm
- Objective Lens Diameter: 44mm, 50mm, 56mm
- Fits: Weaver-style and Picatinny rails
Pros
- Each ring set consists of MOA-based inserts
- Three cap-screw design is safe
- Ships in premium exhausting case
- Double jaw-screw design is exact
Cons
- Inserts are exhausting to align
- Easy to over-tighten
Product Description
Burris has supplied shooters with an answer to numerous elevations and shims with its Signature Rings. Priced within the $120-180 vary, relying on top and diameter, essentially the most outstanding element of those kits is the shims. Burris calls this the Pos-Align Insert system that permits customers to heart scopes and guarantee most concentricity contained in the rings. The shims additionally permit for pure elevation, +/- 5 MOA, +/- 10 MOA and +/- 20 MOA. Used in tandem, these shims make it potential for a shooter to make 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, and even 40 MOA of cant contained in the scope mount. The shims additionally allow good centering and most scope-to-ring contact.
Why It Made the Cut
While Weaver-style mounts are all the craze as of late, there are nonetheless quite a lot of Leupold-style dovetail mounts on the market.
Key Features
- Weight: 6.5 ounces for 30mm medium mount
- Material: Steel rings
- Single Torx cap screw
- Dovetail base mount
- Tube Diameter: 1-inch, 30mm
- Fits: Leupold-style dovetail bases
Pros
- Fits commonplace dovetail bases
- Simple single-cap-screw design
- Mounting system may be adjusted for windage
Cons
- Old-style mounting system
- Single cap-screw design not particularly exact
Product Description
While you gained’t see a ton of Leupold-style dovetail rings and bases available on the market as of late, a few of our favourite rifles have this technique, and Weaver has a sturdy, sturdy, and classy resolution for mounting optics. At about $35, it’s an reasonably priced system, and affords some capabilities which are exhausting to not possible to realize with Weaver-style slot programs: the rear base may be feathered for exact windage management, and the dovetail system additionally permits customers to true scopes which will have unfaithful tube geometry.
Why It Made the Cut
The Warne Mountain Tech Rings are stable, easy, and dependable with out being both too over-engineered or spendy.
Key Features
- Weight: 3.9 ounces for 30mm medium rings
- Material: 7075 aluminum
- 1/2 inch nut clamps to rail
- 4-screw design appropriate with T-15 Torx
- Tube Diameters: 1-inch, 30mm, 34mm, 35mm, 40mm
- Available in low, medium, excessive, and MSR heights
- Fits: Weaver-style bases and Picatinny rails
Pros
- High strength-to-weight ratio
- Simple design
- Mounting nut permits fast swaps
- Wide versatility
Cons
- Nut can work unfastened
- Incompatible with Leupold-style bases
Product Description
Warne’s Mountain Tech rings are like searching buddy: they’re dependable, hard-working, and don’t name consideration to themselves. That’s why I name them middle-of-the-roaders. They have all the weather you need in a do-everything scope ring. They’re manufactured from light-weight, mil-spec aluminum billets, they’ve corrosion-resistant chrome steel crossbolts, and their ½-inch nut makes them straightforward to deploy and take away.
Warne deserves a giant shout-out for frequently evolving its scope ring line. The Oregon-based firm was one of many first to supply after-market rings that match all kinds of firearm actions, however their early fashions have been ponderously heavy. The firm has moved into precision CNC work, and affords a line of rings for almost each funds and rifle.
Why It Made the Cut
An elegant one-piece design that reduces each weight and transferring components that may work unfastened over the lifetime of the mating of scope and rifle.
Key Features
- Weight: 6.4 ounces for 30mm medium rings
- Material: 7000-series aluminum
- T-25 Torx screws tighten to rail
- 4-cap screw design appropriate with T-15 Torx
- Tube Diameter: 1-inch, 30mm, 34mm,
- Available in low, medium, and excessive heights
- Fits: Attaches on to receiver of X-Bolt rifles
Pros
- Elegant one-piece design
- Design minimizes misalignment between base and rings
- Four-corner attachment aids alignment with receiver
- Available in gloss, matte blued, and Burnt Bronze Cerakote
Cons
- Integrated rings match solely X-Bolt rifles
- Two mounting-screw races situated inside decrease ring
Product Description
There are only some true one-piece base-and-ring designs available on the market—Talley was the pioneer on this regard—however the Browning X-Bolt design is powerful, elegant, and comparatively cheap. Priced at simply over $70, this product will screw on to the receiver of X-Bolt rifles, and the extensively spaced 4-screw design—known as the X-Lock system—is each sturdy and creates a sturdy basis for the optic as a result of the bottom is secured at every nook.
Things to Consider Before Buying Rifle Scope Rings
The very first thing to think about earlier than shopping for a set of rifle scope rings is easy: does it suit your gun and your optic? That sounds overly fundamental, however you’d be stunned on the variety of shooters who purchase 1-inch rings for his or her 30mm scope and marvel why they don’t match. Or who purchase low rings for a scope that has a 50mm goal lens that bumps up towards the barrel of the gun. Make certain the diameter of the scope rings matches your scope’s tube measurement, and be sure that the ring’s top is appropriate with the scope’s goal bell. You need an optic to clear your barrel, however not by a lot that you must elevate your head so as to look by means of it.
Second, think about your capturing goal. If you’re mounting a precision scope on a precision rifle, you need to use precision scope rings, {hardware} that’s been exactly milled after which matched to make sure concentricity and tight tolerances. If you’re mounting a $30 scope on a $150 rimfire, you possibly can most likely get away with rings that have been manufactured with rather less precision.
Lastly, think about how the rings will mate up with bases. Many trendy rifles have receiver slots which are designed to mate up with rings which have recoil lugs of the identical measurement. But make certain they match. Many 1913 Picatinny rail lugs gained’t match Weaver slots, and Weaver lugs are sometimes too sloppy to suit Pic rails.
FAQs
Q: What’s the distinction between Weaver-style and Leupold-style scope rings and bases?
Sometimes known as “dovetail-style” mounts, the Leupold model options an rectangular key on the underside finish of the rings that matches a similar-shaped receptacle on the receiver. To mate the 2, you swivel the ring into the bottom, after which make certain it’s according to the bore and with the opposite ring. Weaver-style bases are easy slots. The ring has a recoil lug machined (or generally it’s a separate steel slug) into the underside that mates with the slot within the base. The Weaver model is extra common, and since it’s machined at a proper angle to the receiver, it ought to be extra correct and fewer susceptible to consumer error. While you possibly can nonetheless discover Leupold-style rings and bases on choose rifles, it’s a system that’s quickly being eclipsed by Weaver-style slot bases or Picatinny rails.
Q: Should I exploit a 2-, 4-, or 6-screw cap on my scope mounts?
The query of the precise variety of screws that join the highest and backside halves of scope rings is a matter of each private desire and precision. I can pretty simply dismiss the 1-screw fashions. The single screw (one on either side) places all of the stress on the very center of the cap, and creates pretty flimsy pressure on the scope. It’s a method that’s greatest used on smaller scopes that aren’t supposed for accuracy. Six-screw caps (three on either side) have extra stress factors, which ought to imply they create a tighter maintain on the scope and decrease slippage, nevertheless it’s exhausting to get all three screws torqued to the identical pressure. It looks as if the center screw tends to work unfastened faster than the opposite two. I’m a fan of the 4-screw caps, particularly for mil-spec rings, and it pays to purchase rings which have good screw threads and heads. The T-15 Torx head is attending to be an trade commonplace, however the T-25 head is even higher for torquing to the precise poundage really useful by each the scope and ring producers.
Q: What is the precise torque worth for rifle scope rings?
The proper torque worth–or tightness–of rifle scope rings will rely a bit on the construct of each the rings and the scope you’re mounting. Check with producers for his or her suggestions, however typically most rings will maintain securely at 15-20 inch-pounds. That’s sufficient torque to make sure that the cap screws gained’t work unfastened, however which additionally gained’t crush the aluminum scope tube. Note that the torque worth for attaching rings to bases—these are the underside screws that thread perpendicular to your gun’s barrel—are heavier than the cap screws. Many producers advocate torqueing these base screws to 35-60 inch kilos. Adding a little bit of Lok-Tite or different thread-holding compound is a good suggestion to make sure screws don’t work unfastened.
Methodology
I’ve used all of the rings talked about on this story over the course of 15 years of optics testing. Every 12 months I mount as much as three dozen scopes of various tube dimensions, kinds, and objective-lens sizes on all kinds of rifles. That expertise has proven me which ring fashions are straightforward to mount and take away, which maintain scopes with out slippage or marring, and which rings are a waste of cash. For this roundup, I chosen all kinds of fashions, manufacturers, and kinds that characterize many of the kinds of rings available on the market.
Final Thoughts
Scope rings and mounts are sometimes the very last thing that shooters think about when deciding on a rifle and optic. That’s too unhealthy, as a result of the most effective scope rings on your gun and optic could make all of the distinction in milking out the most effective efficiency of these two elements. Similarly, poor rings can flip an in any other case straight-shooting rifle right into a scattergun. It pays to buy all kinds of rings to see which particular fashions are proper on your setup.