Q: I recently purchased a new Remington Model 700 in .375 H&H and a 4-16×44 scope. The rifle is only to be used for hunting sambar deer, mostly by stalking.
I also bought a Leupold steel one-piece base with Warne low rings. I stipulated that the base was to be zero MOA, but they still fitted a 20 MOA base. I asked them to change it but was persuaded (or conned into believing) that the 20 MOA base was fine and I wouldn’t notice any difference.
I have already sighted in the outfit to the point-blank range suggested in your book, but will have no hesitation in having them change the base if warranted. I have very little knowledge of how a 20 MOA base affects scope sighting. What would you suggest?
Rod Sommerville
A: Firstly, I think you bought the wrong scope if your rifle is to be used for hunting sambar by stalking. I’d have chosen something like a 1.5-6x, which has a wide field of view on the lowest power, since many shots at sambar are taken at fairly close range and often on the run.
Even 4x can handicap the hunter at close distances, and 16x is definitely for varmint hunting or long-range shots.
I used a Winchester Model 70 in .375 H&H when I was guiding buffalo hunters years ago. It was fitted with a 3x Leupold scope and it worked just fine. Later, I had the rifle re-chambered to .375 Weatherby and fitted a 2-7x scope.
Today, it seems everybody is over-scoped. A gun shop in Sydney once sold a reader a 4-16x to go on a Winchester 94 .30-30. What the hell are these counter-jumpers thinking?
All of my big game rifles have Swarovski 3-9×36 scopes and that’s a good range of magnification for any hunting situation.
I’d definitely get the gunshop to change the base and I think medium height rings would be better for all-round shooting, particularly from offhand.
They shouldn’t have given you a 20 MOA base in the first place. You are right: they conned you. You only need a 20 MOA base if you are going to shoot targets at 1000m.
0 Comments