M-14 Scope Mount

[Tower06]

I am looking at a mount for my Armscorp M-14 clone (Thanks Walt, you built me one pretty rifle) and I wanted to hear from anyone who has had experience with any of the various mounts out there. I have narrowed it down to the SMITH, the SADLAK, and the A.R.M.S. mounts. What kind of expereince has everyone had with these. I have heard god things about all, and I want to get opinions before committing to any one. Many thanks.

Mariusz

 

[10X]

The Smith mount is very solid. Smith now has a Weaver mount for $105. That is the best bargin for a very high quality item.

The ARMS 18 has had some reports of being too low and not having enough clearance on some rifles causing brass to bounce off the mount while ejecting and sometimes jamming.

You are wise going with the higher quality. The other mounts out there are junk, aluminum copies don't hold up, Springfield and copies are not good.

 

[Omnivore]

I've tried the SA and the ARMS on two different SA receivers, and neither one of them fit. I've also had several other people tell me of similar experiences. After spending 3 hours fitting the ARMS mount to a new SA Standard, it was very solid and I would definitely prefer it to the Springfield mount.

Bottom line: These mounts apparently don't fit worth a damn on any sort of regular basis, and that's probably the reason why so many people say they don't hold zero. If you get a good fit (and that can take a GREAT deal of fussing around, even for this 30-year vetran of musical instrument repair, custom work and restoration) then you'll have good results.

 

[Omnivore]

I designed a mount for the standard M-14 barrel that gets around all these issues, but it depends on the type of optic you want to use. If you're set on a higher power scope, you'll want the receiver mount and you'll have to deal with the "issues". If you want lower sight axis, and can deal with 8x or less (pistol scope) or a 2.5x Scout scope, this mount wouild be something to consider:
http://www.ultimak.com/m8.htm

I depends on how you envision using your rifle and what sort of issues you're willing to deal with (custom fitting, sight height/cheek riser, receiver access, case ejection).