Scope Placement For High Recoil

[Jackal1]

Getting lightly tapped by my scope and seeking how to adjust. No pain, no thwacking, no marks, but definitely concentration-breaking.

Rifle is scoped with Leupold VX-Freedom 1.5-4x20mm with eye relief of 4.2inch (@1.5x magnification) and 3.7inch (@4x magnification)

I currently have the rifle set up so scope view is clear across all magnifications from a single stock weld position, but that isn't working because the scope lightly taps my face under recoil.

So, investigated a bit and if I move my head around to the max eye relief I discovered:
@1.5x magnification and eye positioned so scope view is perfect (~4.2inch): no contact
@4x magnification and eye positioned so scope view is perfect (~3.7inch): contact every shot.

We are only talking a difference of 0.5inch, How do you suggest adjusting?

I thought about using a configuration so the 1.5x view is clear and then maintaining that head position at 4x. With this method I see a huge thick black shadow ring inside the scope but the scope center is clear. Maybe that is a workaround. Other ideas welcome.

 

[edwardware]

If the rifle is moving ~3.7inch more than your head is, it's likely your form is a problem. I shoot a scoped .375H&H with similar eye relief and the scope never comes close. Figure out why the gun is moving so much relative to your head.

Also, what's 'high recoil'?

 

[Varminterror]

^^^ all of this.

Scope kiss is a position problem. Scope might be too low, meaning you have to dig your face down to get in the glass, which tilts your forehead closer to the optic, OR you just have bad posture so your head is tilted forward. Or you’re not receiving the recoil properly and the rifle is moving too much relative to your body, maybe your LOP is too long or your scope is too far forward so you’re blading too much and putting the buttstock too far outside, meaning the rifle is sliding past you instead of into your body mass, OR equally, you’re just holding the rifle in this way, even if the scope is in the right position.

But scope kiss is a position problem.

 

[Walkalong]

How about a pic of the setup?

No issues with this .458 Win Mag.

 

[Hugger-4641]

As mentioned by Varminterror, my first guess is your length of pull is too short. Try adding a slip on recoil pad just to see if that helps.
You mention the scope is 20mm objective, so I'm guessing you have low mount rings also. If so, going to medium height rings might help.

 

[Jackal1]

Awesome, thanks all! I'll retry at a normal rifle range where I can get better posture.

I was shooting from a poor body position to be sure, it was a poorly configured range where I had to try and rig it with a variety of boxes and a pad to be some sort of usable for a shooting rest. I was all hunched up and it was awkward as can be. Lesson-learned and I guess I should have expected the result.

 

[jmr40]

You normally don't get hit, or even touched by a scope with 4" or more of eye relief unless it is mounted too close or you're crawling up the stock. It us usually only a problem with scopes closer to 3". And as a rule, Leupold has very generous eye relief and they rarely have a problem with this.

The stock could be too short for you. You may have the scope mounted too far back, or your form is incorrect.

Do you wear glasses and if so do you shoot with them on. When you focus the scope for your eyes the eyepiece moves and can change eye relief to be less than the specs. If you need glasses it is possible to focus the scope enough to see clearly through it without them. But when you do the eye relief may change enough to be a problem.

If you shoot while wearing glasses the focus is very different and you may get a bit more true eye relief.

Also, the actual magnification will change a bit as you focus. Focused for my eyes it may be a true 4X. For your eyes it might be 4.5X

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

Maybe you could try shooting from a sitting position. I like having my knee for a steady support when a good bench or tablle is not available.

 

[Varminterror]

Contrary to popular expectation, it is NOT typically stocks with excessively short LOP which cause scope kiss, rather, it is overly LONG LOP stocks which cause the shooter to strain their neck and head forward, tilting the forehead forwards towards the scope. Shooters should be placing their scope in the rings properly for the eye relief of their scope model, so the major variable is the head position, the forward tilt, or (properly) lack thereof of the forehead towards the scope… but folks craning forward on an over length stock, or a scope too low, will have their forehead tilted forward, inches closer to the eyepiece than it would be if they were using a proper scope height or LOP.

 

[troy fairweather]

By chance are you a heavier guy, I've had the problem before being a big guy the extra padding makes you choke up to the scope and under heavy recoil your padding compress more then a skinny shooter. I've never got scoped but had a few tickle me before.

 

[doubleh]

In my early shooting years I was guilty of being a serious stock crawler. A light weight 30-06 quickly taught me to stop doing that and I no longer had scope eye problems.

 

[.45Coltguy]

Curious, what rifle and caliber?

 

[Hokkmike]

I knew an older hunter who regularly would knock his glasses off with his scope after firing. He even had some bruising. We did not have enough time to diagnose the problem

 

[Dr T]

Back in the 60's, the 264 Win Mag was all the rage among young bucks in West Central Texas. It was easy to pick out the magnum shooters: They sported a crescent-shaped scar--"the magnum shooter's scar" above their eyebrow. I knew a couple who traded their 264's for Winchester Model 88's and 100's in 284 or 308 that were much happier.

I firmly agree with this observation:

Contrary to popular expectation, it is NOT typically stocks with excessively short LOP which cause scope kiss, rather, it is overly LONG LOP stocks which cause the shooter to strain their neck and head forward, tilting the forehead forwards towards the scope.

I prefer a shorter LOP. I hunted with a Ruger M77 Frontier for several years with a conventionally mounted scope and had no issues. Conversely, a couple of my rifles with longer LOPs would occasionally hit my cap brim upon recoil if I was shooting a long string and let my guard down.

Of course, if you really want to avoid the issue entirely, use a Scout Scope mount.

 

[Rodfac]

I've been wacked by several scopes over the years: .338 Magnum from a Win 70, an Ithaca Deerslayer 12 ga, and my .35 Whelen....all of which have considerable recoil but certainly not "heroic".

All three were deep cuts and should probably have been stitched. The .338 was off the bench when sighting in and the other two were while hunting. The Ithaca 12 ga. got me while hunting NY state's southern tier back when it was shotgun only. And the .35 nailed my forehead out in Colorado at 9000' elevation while shooting uphill to fill my tag on elk. I got him, but I don't know who bled more!

The key is to get that scope as far forward as possible an still see the full field of view. Fall/winter hunting adds bulk from jackets etc., so this should be considered as well. And lastly...if you're shooting uphill, that scope is considerably closer to the eyebrow than you might expect.

Best regards, Rod

 

[3Crows]

I have been hit by a .458 Win Mag and my Marlin .45-70. Those times it was cool out and I had on a jacket and to compensate and I may have crawled up the stock to account for that extra compressible material. I had on shooting glasses so I was not hurt or cut, just a bruise and broken shooting glasses. The .458 was not my rifle and it had a hair trigger and IMO was unsafe, the solution was to hand it back and admonish the owner for his trigger work. The solution on my Marlin was a scout scope. A fairly light rifle and heavy loads equals heavy recoil. The other solution was a return to trapdoor loads and mild cowboy loads, but, heck, that is no fun .