Tag Archives: optics

Scope arrival

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Well, I guess I’m out of excuses for not getting this .338 Lapua project done.

The 16×56 optic (w. rings) arrived today. While I was tinkering, I swapped out the questionable Ruger factory stock for a Magpul PRS which seems like a good idea.

I picked a heck of a time to start shooting magnum rifle…my plans were never predicated around it, so while I have plenty of large rifle primers, my supply of large rifle magnum primers is only a brick or two. Then again, that would be 2000 rounds of .338 and I’m not sure anyone wants to subject themselves to that much fun.

I was tempted to drop this scope on the Barrett instead, but realistically the Barret is a potentially less accurate platform…long recoil and all. The Barret has a very particular purpose…it’s an anti-materiel gun that can, under certain circumstances, do double duty in another role. But it’s primarily for busting up stuff. The .338 Lapua is a bit easier to feed, slightly more portable, and is probably more accurate at range.

Anyway…that happened.

Scoping it out

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Twenty years ago, I picked up a CZ .308 for my ‘long range’ gun. It’s been a wonderful rifle and my best day was a .512″ group at 200 yards. I put an IOR fixed 10x scope on it and have not regretted that choice. Why a fixed power? Honestly, because its just one less thing to go wrong. I figured 10x was about right for the distances I imagined I might need to shoot at.

A few years back, I wanted to bridge the gap between .308 ranges and .50 BMG ranges and decided to get a .338 Lapua. After some thought, I went with the Ruger Precision Rifle in .338 Lapua. And….its been sitting on my gun cabinet for the last several years. Why? Because putting a piece of appropriate glass on the thing was gonna cost as much as the bloody gun…and the gun wasn’t cheap to start with.

Eventually, I had to just bite the bullet and spend the moolah. Theyre a bit of an ‘off the beaten path’ brand, but I’ve been very pleased with my IOR fixed 10x and my IOR M2 4x. So, I decided that for my needs I wanted a fixed power scope again, but with a bit more magnification to go with the .338 Lapua’s extended range over the .308.

Do you know how hard it is to source decent fixed power scopes these days? Everything was either too much magnification (25x and up) or too little (4x, 6x, 10x). And, really, anything below 20x in a fixed power was a toughie. So…back to IOR. They had a 16×56 with the reticle (MP8) that I used on my .308. The 56mm objective is enormous but lets in plenty of light. I figure 16x is about the right magnification to cover the range of distances I’d be shooting the .338 at, so let’s get that puppy ordered. It’s a 35mm tube (light transmission, baby!) so rings aren’t just going to grow on trees…better order up a set of those too.

When it’s all said and done, it cost slightly more than the bloody rifle itself. But, at least I’ll be able to shoot the thing now. Pics when its all put together.