Hunting limitations with the Scout Scope (forward mounted) Traditional Optic

Sharps40

Sharps40

Price, it's all about the price
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We spent some time checking zero on the Garand yesterday. Been about 5 years since we fired this 1994 Springfield Armory rebuild of a March 1944 Springfield Garand. Still zeroed quite nicely for PRVI 165g JSP with a maximum point blank range of 230 yards and out to 300 yards with a top third broad side hold. (we use the fixed volume unvented after market gas plug to protect the system.) This gun was $450 delivered, new in box!

Love the Vortex 2x7 on the Amega Forward Mount. A big upgrade over irons for the first and last 20 minutes of hunting. And a nice addition for snap shooting in good light, even understanding that snap shooting with a near 12 lb weapon is an exercise in "Making Haste Slowly."

All was well, during the good light that is.

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However, as we found out, forward mounting, Scout Style, scope leaves you short at prime time.....you know, that last (or perhaps first) 5 minutes when you can see everything really well in the stand, but can only make out the deer at 50 yards with your binoculars.

There is so much ambient light hitting your eye at that time, absolutely nothing, including the cross hairs, is visible in the scope! Seems to be the nature of the beast, every option comes with limitations.

We resolved the situation in the last 3 minutes of hunting light (including by making enough noise to scare off a herd of deer, these 3 musta been deaf!) by swapping guns. I was out of Doe tags and Dad just couldn't pick out the deer.

Now the scout scoped garand in my lap and dad leaning into my Trapper modified Winchester 94 30-30, he quietly announces he has a full and clear broadside just before the Whinnie barks! Perfect shot, in at last rib, forward to opposite shoulder....deer only made it 25 yards and piled up. Dad is elated and shakeing like a Aspen in the breeze with Buck Fever. First deer in 5 years and hes 84 years old now! Im falling out of the stand to go check the deer!

Life is good. Nothing better in the world than being Right Seat with your Dad on every hunt!

As for the Scout Scope Garand? Dad has decided its an AM gun....it'll only see the woods on morning hunts where increasing light can render the optics useful.

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Yeah I hunted one time with 308 Ruger Gunsite Scout rifle and it was awful. Just as you describe at low light you can’t see. I shot a doe right at end of shooting light with both eyes open and could make out the reticle just enough to squeeze one off.
 
Yep, seems that old Gunsite Blabbermouth never gave us the full and complete story! But he did successfully sell millions of us a real bill of goods!!!!! :)
 
Yeah I sold that gun. I kind of wish I had kept it just for the novelty of it but I was so mad I couldn’t see with at least 10 min left that I got rid of it. If I really wanted another one I’m sure I could find one to buy but probably won’t.
 
Sharps40 said:
Yep, seems that old Gunsite Blabbermouth never gave us the full and complete story! But he did successfully sell millions of us a real bill of goods!!!!! :)
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Wow! Might be hope for ya'll yet. It's almost 5 hrs post disparagement and an Askins fanboi hasn't yet jumped in-thread man-throbbing with Gunsite Luv.


I'm proud of ya'll. Merry Christmas!!!!🦌
 
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I have yet to see much benefit to having the scope that far forward if it could just as easily be mounted farther back. What are the advantages, if any, of having the scope in that position? I tried one that a friend had and did not warm up to it. I remember Winchester M94s with pistol scopes mounted in front of the receiver, but that was because of the top ejection. They eventually made the angle eject version to solve this problem.
 
Well.....I could put it further back but on a Garand that's high and way left so...... scouts the better option for a more natural hold.
 
BatteryOaksBilly said:
OK you lured me in with this^^^^^ What has Askins got to do with Gunsite????
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Wondering if someone was slick enough to yell "cooper you idiot, cooper did the scout....askins was the hip/point shooter..."

Askins and Cooper may be too far back in history for the younger shooters. Don't they worship the fast pistol guy that sells Mossberg shotguns with the 48 inch long mag tube?

Although.... credit where due, Ayoob seems to be hanging on generationally speaking. :)
 
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Lee Satterfield said:
I went the scout scope route with my Marlin guide gun. Sucked in low light and not any faster than a conventional scope. Live and learn…
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Yeah, we get sucked in sometimes. I did twice. Garand and a muzzleloader for me. Same low light fails for both, though the muzzleloader could be modded for a rear mount with a bent hammer ear....the Garand , not so much.
 
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Could be but doubt they'd help since you can't see thru in the twilight anyhow. I'm sure you'd see the dot but not the deer.
 
I’ve wanted a Scout scoped bolt gun for decades. Cooper knocking multiple skeet out of the air with a bolt gun 308, and his daughter taking apes at 300+ yards added a lot of credibility.
This is the 1st I’ve heard of the low light problem. That’s a no go for low light hunting.
 
Get Off My Lawn said:
I’ve wanted a Scout scoped bolt gun for decades. Cooper knocking multiple skeet out of the air with a bolt gun 308, and his daughter taking apes at 300+ yards added a lot of credibility.
This is the 1st I’ve heard of the low light problem. That’s a no go for low light hunting.
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Having used one, I’d have to see those antics for myself... You basically have a handgun scope, with all its limitations, mounted forward on your rifle. Head position is very unforgiving and your field of view is very small.
 
You can mount a scope in the traditional rear position on Ruger Gunsite rifles by simply removing the rear peep site. There are mounting points that allow this and Ruger includes a set of 1 inch rings in the box specifically for this purpose ; if you need 30mm rings you will have to pick them up.

I can only speak to the Ruger Gunsite Scout series as I do not own any other scout type rifles from other manufacturers. The rifle in the pic below is not mine, but depicts the rear mount option with a SIG 1x6 optic w/30mm rings.


SCOUT w:Scope.jpeg
 
Wow......So Ruger makes a scout rifle they know you might not like the limitations of. Only the price of another scope to "fix" it. Sneaky them fellas!
 
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The reticle isn’t the issue. Mine had a heavy duplex, It’s the distance from your eye and small objective size.
The Europeans don’t use scout scopes for low light hunting they use 56 mm objective scopes with heavy or illuminated duplexes. The Schmidt and Bender 8x56 Klassik is a fine example.
 
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