Marlin 39A Scope Mount Problem

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westtx28

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I have a fairly new Marlin 39A that I decided to put a scope on. I used the mount base that came with the gun and couldn't get the scope adjusted to even hit the paper. It was shooting way off to one side. I was placing an order from Midway anyway so I added a Weaver 48090 top mount base made for the 39A. I had the exact same problem again. Upon closer inspection I noticed that the scope base (either one) seems to line up exactly parallel to the barrel of the gun. Could the screw holes have been tapped out of alignment? I'm not sure what to do now.

See the pictures below.

39A-1.gif

39A-2.gif
 
I should have mentioned that I tried more than one scope. The one I want to mount is an old steel Weaver classic off another gun that was sighted in fine and I also tried a cheap Simmons with the same results.
 
If the holes in the receiver are drilled off-center there is not a whole lot you can do yourself to fix it.

From your pictures, it looks like the rear sight is off to the right about as far as the base is off to the left.
Could be a bent barrel.

On the other hand, there is always a little slack in the base screw holes, and it behooves you to center it on the receiver while tightening the screws. If you did that?

I'd call Marlin and see what they can do about it under warranty.

rc
 
Might be tough to go the Mfg. They are in transition after being sold. There could be a fix if drilled off center by getting an undrilled base mount from Brownells and the mount can be drilled off center to compensate your receiver holes. Those old Weavers should have enough windage adjustment, unless the old B series or KV that the cross hairs do not stay fixed, and move the direction you make the adjustments. I can't recall if any make the old Redfield solid base where the rear ring retaining screw also served as a windage adjustment. You first need to use a bore sighting aid of either the laser type or the type that sports a scope type device on top with cross grids. That should tell you how much movement is needed to be dead on. It parallels the bore with the scope. Are your open sights level with the ground or are they canted? Off set scopes have been used a long time. For example, the M1 D and C Sniper Garands had to be off set to the left to allow a clip of eight to be loaded from the top. No other way could this be done. A local smith should be able to give you the answers you need, and should not be too costly. Marlin may have a repair center or a designated repair station even during their transition, that I think involves moving their location.
 
Buy a pair of Burris Signature Rings that accept Pos-Align Offset Inserts.

The synthetic inserts are thicker on one side than the other and you can precisely center your scope on the target by rotating them in the rings. It might take a little adjusting and readjusting to get it perfect, but it beats shipping the gun off to be fixed.

John
 
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