I recently bought a new rifle and need to get a scope mounted on it. I have the rings and ordered the scope from Cabelas online. My question is do any of you know if cabelas will mount the scope on the gun for me since I bought it from them? If not I’m looking for a place to do it reasonably. I am not opposed to doing it myself, I just don’t have all the tools to do it properly.
All you need is allen wrenches and a level.
Put your lower rings on your rifle (allen wrench required)
Put rifle on table or workbench with a vice. Put a level on the lower rings and level the gun in the vice.
Next, add the scope and put the top rings on. Don’t tighten the top rings, leave them loose. Now put that level on the scope (remove the top L/R cover and put on that flat surface) Level the scope by twisting it until the scope is level. Tighten rings.
Google mounting a scope.
It is so easy it is laughable someone would pay to have it done.
5 minute job maximum.
I always have a level mounted to my scope (google scope level). It can be a little more difficult to align the scope to the level attached to the scope, but i tend to hang a string with a weight on it to get a true vertical plane. I then align my scope crosshairs to that vertical plane (with gun already leveled in vice). With the crosshairs in alignment with the vertical string, i then twist the scope mounted level so bubble is centered. Easy peasy man.
Or,
Pay me and i’ll do it for you 
Cabalas used to mount them for free.
Boresight it also
Don’t ever trust bore sighted scopes.Make sure you shoot it before you hunt with it. Our club has rifle sight in one week before the deer hunting season opens. You’d be surprised how far off some of the so called bore sighted guns are.
My question is do any of you know if cabelas will mount the scope on the gun for me since I bought it from them?
Yes, they will. Its been a number of years since I had them do it but I bought the rifle, scope rings, and scope and they “assembled” it for me without charge. They also bore sighted it but as Maddogg mentioned, you will obviously still want to bring it to the range and sight it in yourself. Bore sighting only gets it in the “neighborhood” while more precise sighting gets you on target.
I am planning on going to the range to break the gun in and make sure it is on before I use it for hunting, I just need to get it all put together!
Depending on the caliber and how much recoil the scope will be subject to, you may want to use some soft setting loc-tite on all of the screws: base mounting screws, lower ring clamp screws and those used to attach the top ring sections. I use the blue 242 formula on all of my muzzle loaders which are heavy recoilers.
Screws loosening up under recoil are a common issue causing poor accuracy.
NY, a couple of things about having someone mount a new scope for you.
Be sure the scope is mounted so that it’s in a position so it’s comfortable for you and your shooting position. There is no one size fits all here. The scope has to be mounted so that when you mount the gun, the scope’s eye relief is in the correct range so you can instantly see the whole field of view without having to hunch forward or pull your head back. It can take some time to get this right and it has to be done before the scope is leveled to the rifle and torqued tight.
Agree with Tom, I use Loctite Blue on all scope and base screws.
Be sure to perform the reticle focus process before firing so that the reticle is set to your eye. I’m constantly surprised at how many shooters have no idea what this is or how to do it.
What did you get, BTW?
Grouse
If you ever make it to Grand Rapids our shop will mount it for free.
Thanks for all the input guys. Grouse, I bought a Weatherby Vanguard weatherguard .25-06. I picked up one piece Talley rings, and a vortex diamondback scope to go with it.
All you need is allen wrenches and a level.
…and loktite and definitely use a torque wrench! You don’t want to break the glass or have a scope that’s too lose. Have a gun vise will definitely make things easier but not required.
Famous grouse nailed some other things that are a must and these things typically wouldn’t happen if Cabelas mounted it.
Mounting a scope is very easy and you’ll feel way better knowing you did it right.
bought a Weatherby Vanguard weatherguard .25-06.
That will be an excellent rifle and in one of my favorite chamberings. I’ve got a lot of love for the King of the Pronghorn Cartridges.
If you find yourself in a pinch and are anywhere close to Oakdale, I would be happy to mount and boresight it for you if you need it.
Grouse
Nice rifle!
One thing I didn’t see listed above is cleaning the oil out of the mount holes. New rifle will have oil in/on it. Make sure to clean that out before mounting scope and before shooting it.
In the past, the guys at Cabela’s took the rifle in a back room without the customer and mounted it. You want to be there to verify eye relief. I recommend closing your eyes, shoulder the rifle as if your going to shoot, them open your eyes. You should have a perfect field of view without moving your head
My gun junkie cousin works at the Woodbury Cabala’s and mounted my dog scope for me. The prairie dogs are still pissed at him.
Kirby stands head and shoulders above the rest of the employees.
Nice rifle!
One thing I didn’t see listed above is cleaning the oil out of the mount holes. New rifle will have oil in/on it. Make sure to clean that out before mounting scope and before shooting it.
In the past, the guys at Cabela’s took the rifle in a back room without the customer and mounted it. You want to be there to verify eye relief. I recommend closing your eyes, shoulder the rifle as if your going to shoot, them open your eyes. You should have a perfect field of view without moving your head
That oil business caused me some grief once on a 7 mag. Good call Randy.
Verifying eye relief is also essential right along with Grouse’s comments on the focus ring. Just normal handling can get a scope to move off focus unless the ring locks well. Its a simple adjustment and I can’t believe how many people shoot with a fuzzy picture. I set up a buddy’s shotgun with a scope and adjusted the focus to my eyes while doing the initial shooting-in. He was all over the place until I had him focus the scope to his eyes and then it dialed right in.
I take it another step , bed the scope rail .
I lap my rings and use a torquing screw driver for my scope installs. Also use blue loctite as mentioned above. A little extra labor but piece of mind…
I recommend closing your eyes, shoulder the rifle as if your going to shoot, them open your eyes. You should have a perfect field of view without moving your head
That’s a cool idea, hadn’t heard that one before.
Kind of a long video, but shows most of what I do. Tedious at times, but all the steps I follow for setting up my long Guns. Since this video, I bought a few much more extensive level systems and I put scope levels on all my scopes now
When I had Cabelas do it for me they did all of the things you guys are talking about, it took them a while but they did a great job. I also only bought the scope and mounting from them.
When I had Cabelas do it for me they did all of the things you guys are talking about, it took them a while but they did a great job. I also only bought the scope and mounting from them.
That’s great. A quality install assures less problems in the field. Plus the more comfortable you are with vision will reflect in consistency.
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