Compact rifle scopes

StrelokM38

StrelokM38

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Hey there.

Been on the lookout for a compact and low profile rifle scope for my Little Badger .22lr. Something that doesnt have high exposed turrets to reduce snagging when stowing it, that sort of thing.

I've been looking back at a lot of the old weaver scopes that fit that profile but I'm curious if there are more modern, readily available options out there. Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks.
 
I have a few older scopes. Most have a very short eye relief and must be mounted a long way back on the receiver.
So you should look for something with a longer ER. Not sure if you're looking for a 3/4" body or 1".
Also adjustable or not. 4x fixed is a good starting point. ymmv.

Edit: Ya a little red dot might be the ticket too!!!
 
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I'd like to stay away from red dots, my eyes don't really handle them well (Just looks like a red smudge for me.) So magnified optics is a must.

As far as power goes. 1.5x at a minimum and 6x at most, fixed or variable, doesn't really matter too much to me. Just looking for an overall compact magnified optic.

Thanks!
 
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The latest generation of prismatic optics are getting pretty small not sure if the eye relief would work though.

Leupold makes some fairly small and lightweight scopes and some of the older Weaver's were nice in the 1-4 power range.

The UTG Bugbuster's are a fairly compact inexpensive option.
 
StrelokM38 said:
Hey there.

Been on the lookout for a compact and low profile rifle scope for my Little Badger .22lr. Something that doesnt have high exposed turrets to reduce snagging when stowing it, that sort of thing.

I've been looking back at a lot of the old weaver scopes that fit that profile but I'm curious if there are more modern, readily available options out there. Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Keep in mind that the little badger uses plastic picatinny rails, held on by tiny screws.
In my case, I think this is why the thing didn't shoot to the same Point of Aim between outings. Either because the mounts were compressing the plastic, or the rails were moving a little at the shot. So, you may want to consider upgrading those rails with the typical aluminum ones.

Just a note, the barrel steel is soft as butter, so if you're tapping new holes with bigger screws, you'll need a bottoming tap and have to watch the depth carefully to make this work.
 
Look for an old leupold 4x fixed power. The kind with coin slot adjustments, not finger adjustments. The turret caps on those are INCREDIBLY low profile. A scope like that will be exactly what you're looking for.
 
I made a number of modifications on my Little Badger. One of the most important but also least obvious was replacing the star washer in the main hinge pin with a flat steel washer, with blue Loc-tite to secure the threads against coming loose. I had found that the hinge was becoming loose with relatively little shooting, and when I took this hinge apart discovered a lot of fine metal shavings which had been cut from the magnesium-aluminum alloy by the action of the hinge driving the star washer through the metal, carving it quite aggressively.

As for optics, I went with the Fire Wolf 4.5x compact scope. Though there is some distortion in the outer perimeter, the main image is decent enough to be useful, and the scope reticle has held zero perfectly well. I took out the barrel (some heat to soften the adhesive) and drilled/tapped for 10-32 bolts, mounting a decent aluminum rail. The scope cost me $56.24 shipped last year. It's up to almost $100 now. Not sure I'd buy it at that price... but then again it's more useful than a Burris FastFire III (which I have mounted on a heavily modified QB57 airgun with wire stock) for this application and about 1/3 the cost still.

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/124329412268

Little_Badger_folded.JPG


I should mention that the flip-up caps are useless. Tossed those right away, just too cheesy, too easy to fall off.
 
Thanks for the replies!

I was able to source a Lyman All American 2.5x scope last week, should hopefully be seeing it sometime this week.

eiNRKV3.jpg


So far, this is the gun as it currently stands. Got that huge Weaver scope ontop for the time being, but once the 'new' lyman comes in i'll be swapping it over with some low profile rings to keep it relatively snug to the gun. Drafted up and printed some accessories to make it a bit more comfortable to hold and shoot too. Already have the metal scope rail as suggested above, so no worries about that :).

Liking the one you've got going so far Gerard, thats pretty close to what I have in mind for mine!

Thanks!
 
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