To Scope or Not to Scope.......That is the Question.......

c-fbmi

c-fbmi

BANNED
BANNED
BANNED
Rating - 98.6%
72   1   0
Location
Whitehorse and Boswell
To be more specific I'm talking about my Merkel 470 NE double.

Now I know that most would say no, however I am in my 60th year and my eyes aren't those of a 30 year old. Plus I haven't hunted with irons since..............well ever !!! I am very accustomed to using scoped rifles and I find when properly fitted I actually pick up cross hairs faster than trying to align fore and aft sights and get them on target. Even with properly fitted stocks such as my Sako Safari, I still find scopes faster.

I have been approached with an offer to shoot 10-15 elephants for a very nominal fee..........I made a comment in Calgary about how much I LOVE elephants, and how I'd love to bash a dozen or so and one of the operators said he could arrange that. Of course we were all drinking, but he has come back with an e-mail saying that he was serious and it can be arranged, if I so choose. There, of course, is no question as to which rifle or cartridge I would use, my only quandary is whether I would be better served with the irons that are on it or a low powered scope.

I have 2 or 3 1-4X20 Leupolds and a couple 1.5-5X20 Leupolds that would serve admirably. I would build a custom base for the Merkel that would tightly straddle the rib and be held in place with 4X #8 screws, It would be set up for 3 rings as was my old 450 Ackley. I have 3 or 4 sets of the expensive steel Leupold lever lock I believe they are called, which fit a Weaver style base. I would set up 2 identical scopes for it and take the second as a back up, as well it is also sighted in perfectly at 50 mtrs with the sights, and I would also likely take my 416 Rigby in my 602 as a back up rifle with a couple 1.5-5 Leupolds set up for it.

For this adventure I will be using all solid bullets, and my rifle is regulated using Woodleighs, so no issue there, I have a couple hundred or so kicking around. I also have about 400 softs for it that shoot to the same POI for practice. I have put about 4-500 through it already and would put another 400 through it before I went so I will be intimate with 'er by the time elephants are in the crosshairs..........

What say all ye double rifle aficionados........to scope or not to scope..........???
 
I'm not a double rifle guy but could mounting a scope affect the regulation? I'm also past 60 and iron sights are theoretical with my vision so i ned some type of optical sight on all my rifles. Good luck on your elephant cull.
 
You know the answer to this question.............Douglas.
If scopes arrr yer forte`, then so be it.

A duzzin elephants huh?

Bring lots of peanuts in case ya dun git one awll mad.
 
hunter5425 said:
I'm not a double rifle guy but could mounting a scope affect the regulation? I'm also past 60 and iron sights are theoretical with my vision so i ned some type of optical sight on all my rifles. Good luck on your elephant cull.
Click to expand...

H5425..........to the best of my knowledge it will not affect the regulation as it will be attached only to the rib and should not change the way the barrels vibrate..........
 
I say do it. If it makes the difference of you being more comfortable using it - why not? Oh and I (and I'm sure a lot of other members) expect a lot of pictures of the hunt.
 
kamlooky said:
Yew'd lewse the marathon.............me pense............. Laugh2

Oh wait, I'm packing too, ain't I?..............:runaway:
Click to expand...

Absolutely 'Looky, your choice of .22..........handgun or rifle............Oh and I don't have to win the marathon, but I will try to knock him/her down before they git YOU.............bring running shoes.......
 
c-fbmi said:
Absolutely 'Looky, your choice of .22..........handgun or rifle............Oh and I don't have to win the marathon, but I will try to knock him/her down before they git YOU.............bring running shoes.......
Click to expand...

Laugh2


I don't look so good any more either...I say scope it. Being comfortable with yer iron only makes sense.
 
I am absolutely loathe to recommend scoping a double, especially if you plan on hunting in thicker bush with it, due to the tunnel vision effect and the blocking of some of your peripheral vision.

That said, if your eyes are getting uncooperative for irons then it's the only reasonable choice. Realistically you still need to hit the football-sized brain at 30 yards and if the sights are fuzzy then that shot is irresponsible. I also do not believe in shooting an elephant in the heart/lung area under any circumstances. The elephant has such a large heart and lung area that simply poking a hole through it with a thumb-sized bullet does not kill them fast enough for my liking. In my opinion the elephant deserves a brain shot and to die without hearing the rifle go off.

I hate to go against my Fudd roots, but have you given any consideration to something like a RMR or other reflex-sight? No parallax, no magnification, limited obstruction of the field of view, highly visible even under failing light. They should be ideally suited to the task. Sure, they look like a satellite dish mounted on a steam locomotive, but you're ugly anyhow...why does the rifle need to be beautiful?
 
BigUglyMan said:
I am absolutely loathe to recommend scoping a double, especially if you plan on hunting in thicker bush with it, due to the tunnel vision effect and the blocking of some of your peripheral vision.

That said, if your eyes are getting uncooperative for irons then it's the only reasonable choice. Realistically you still need to hit the football-sized brain at 30 yards and if the sights are fuzzy then that shot is irresponsible. I also do not believe in shooting an elephant in the heart/lung area under any circumstances. The elephant has such a large heart and lung area that simply poking a hole through it with a thumb-sized bullet does not kill them fast enough for my liking. In my opinion the elephant deserves a brain shot and to die without hearing the rifle go off.

I hate to go against my Fudd roots, but have you given any consideration to something like a RMR or other reflex-sight? No parallax, no magnification, limited obstruction of the field of view, highly visible even under failing light. They should be ideally suited to the task. Sure, they look like a satellite dish mounted on a steam locomotive, but you're ugly anyhow...why does the rifle need to be beautiful?
Click to expand...

"Projecting" is a relatively serious character flaw BUM, you may want to work on that...........

I find that I shoot low power scopes with both eyes open anyway so field of vision is not really reduced and as far as low light conditions, I think these scenarios are to be avoided when elephant is the quarry. By the time low light hits I expect to be sitting in camp by the fire with my glass of wine in hand happily reviewing the hunt of the day and the 3 killing shots on the 3 elephants taken today by 2:00 ish............The locals will be happy and there will be singing and dancing and wine flowing until bedtime................

I hate anything that relies on a battery to operate and will most certainly let you down at the most critical moment. I can just imagine missing the brain by an inch and as he is getting up again the battery dies............"Excuse me old chap, could you possibly wait while I change the battery in my optical system, before charging me and turning me into furry guava jelly, thanks much old fellow, that's a good sod" Think I prefer to stick to good old crosshairs.

I hunted in Texas with a Contender in 357 Herret with an aimpoint, of course just as I got up on a mouflon, the battery died and they were new 2 days prior when I left home...........yes I had a spare set, but they were back at the house and they died the next day........I seemed to have purchased faulty batteries but that didn't help me out in the hill country 55 miles from the closest town big enough to have batteries for it..........
 
Every gun in my collection, save 1, have iron sights. Scopes are all 'QD' or easily removed in the field. A double, in my opinion, is meant for close-in hunting... and do you really want to pollute a beautiful double with an ugly paper weight?
 
I would definitely shoot it a bit with the scope on and off, to check if it is affecting regulation. There have been more than a few stories of adding scopes and having to re-regulate the gun to suit. It can affect them. A peep or a Doktor type sight may wind up being be a better option.
 
TK...........aesthetically I feel exactly the same as you, however practical application differs at this point in my eyes' life. I find the single focal plane of a properly "focused for my eyes" scope to be so much faster to acquire a quick non blurry target picture.
As I said it will still wear the sights and they are already sighted in, so if the scope isn't appropriate I can always remove it and go bare...........
 
Function over form.... I have my share of rifles set up that way ( not African kinda stuff <sadly> ) Nothing wrong with what works for you to get the job done in a safe, efficient manner.... Mix of utility and beauty is what occupies my safes and some can go back and forth in 10min. Leupold VX-III 1.5x5 by 20? Whatching for postings on this hunt, so much "best of Luck"!!!

D.K.
 
Scope it up, Douglas. My eyes are just a wee bit older than yours, and Irons are not for me anymore, whether I like it or not.

I'm jealous, BTW! lol.

Have a great hunt. Dave.
 
The other aspect we must keep in mind, is that I'm not talking about drilling and tapping the rib on a 500-465 Holland & Holland Royal with hand detachable sidelocks and full coverage engraving..........it is after all just a Merkel, a working man's double........I wouldn't be committing heresy or anything like that............Hell, it's even got a dedicated spot in the case for a scope with rings.

But wait........maybe this means I need another double, with factory scope base setup and rings...........Sorry Angus but for me, for elephant, the 375 H&H is just a tad light in my opinion..........I'm thinking maybe another 470 NE or better maybe another in 500 NE or maybe even a Heym in 577 NE.........have lusted after a 577 for years...........NNNAAAAAA, think I'll save that money and put it towards more elephants..........

Now all I have to do is convince a doctor that this foray is essential to curing my debilitating phobia of being terminated by an elephant and I can get my new B.C. medical to pay for the therapy...........Not asking for opinions on that last statement, just musing out loud, so to speak......;);):eek::eek:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom