Home AR-15 Service Rifle Transition to a Scope – Lessons Learned

Service Rifle Transition to a Scope – Lessons Learned

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This video takes a look at my first year of using a scope for High Power Service Rifle Matches. If you are thinking about making the swich to an optic, this info might prove to be helpful.

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48 COMMENTS

  1. Well my Hi-Lux decided to stop being repeatable in elevation 2 weeks ago. Got last March and had no issues at all till a few weeks ago. I really like the scope to, sometimes if you go past the mark 4 clicks then back it will settle but sometimes not. I burned up my sighters at 600 just getting on paper. Looks like I'm using irons for a while, I kinda miss irons

  6. I want to concur with your assessment on the improvement a scope can make to your service rifle scores. After attending a couple of matches I've obtained my highest scores. My weakness has always been 600 yard slow prone. Where my 20 shot scores usually ranged between 160 to 170, my last two matches yielded high scores of 197, 196. I now feel the scope is necessary. How is your season going this year?

  7. Thank you for your very informative and well prepared video. Coincidentally, I had the same issue with bolt closure and found the BAD device to be very satisfactory. It took only one match for muscle memory to take over. Now, I don't even think about it. Once again thank you and congratulations on your weight loss.

  8. I've seen how parallax can effect some shooters if they don't control it. One thing I've learned, and what I do, is use the A-2 front sight as an indicator. The A-2 sight looks like a shadow lining up on my vertical cross hair, and also the shadow around the perifery around your objective lens, both need to be kept as a constant. As you've noted, your head possition changes when you change position, this is hard but possible to correct. My scope is a Leopold, 1-4x 20mm with a plain duplex cross hair and 0.1 mil adjustable target turrets. I like this type of crosshair, probably because I've been using it on all my scopes for the last 50+ years. I believe it shows a very good contrast to the black on all targets we use. My scores by the way have improved from 430'- 450 to 460-470's. Going to a neoprene sling and shimming to acurize my rifle helped a lot too! Now if I can only correct the nut behind the trigger, I might get somewhere.

  12. Super informative. I love your videos. One thing I have noticed; losing weight helps getting into shooting positions. I have lost 70# this year. Just the other day, I was “fooling around” with my AR and I thought: “See if you can get into your sitting position from the Corps.”
    I was amazed. My knees are higher than yours and my elbows found their way out to just past my knees on my shins. I might add..and I could still breathe! Haha
    This may have contributed to the increase in your scores as well by affecting stability.
    Semper Fi!

  13. Hi HR, just found and watched your video and I have a couple suggestions for you about releasing the bolt. Instead of reaching over the scope and possibly brushing against a turret, you could reach under the rifle and activate the bolt release. Additionally, you looked really awkward in sitting releasing the bolt after your magazine change. You could replace the charging handle with an ambidextrous one and pull the charging handle to release the bolt.

  14. As a m1 Garand and M1a shooter that also transitioned into a AR platform, position/foundation is always important. I had 3 cleans with my M1A and to do it it all had to be spot on and I glued myself to the rifle with stickem (legal on the buttplate). The AR allowed sloppy positions and poor techniques to shoot some pretty darn good scores. I suspect you had been shooting with soft support for a long time, the scope showed it to you. With a solid foundation you can focus on trigger control which is just as important. This game is like Nascar and Golf combined. The human and mechanical factors create so many variations, then comes the range and conditions. It can be maddening at times. But as a friend said, if it was easy it wouldn't be fun.

  15. I can understand the allowing of optics on the service rifle, since just about all service members use some kind of optic on their rifle. However, to me, it takes away from the Marksmanship/Use of iron sights, which should be fundamental to the matches. I have never really used any kind of optics on my rifles. I cannot shoot any better with a scope than I can with irons ( I am near sighted) and I am not going to go out an buy a new rifle or a new upper and scope just to compete in matches, which I haven;t fired a match in 8 years because of my work. I would hate these matches to become an equipment race. I will continue to use my RRA NMA2 with iron sights, ever I ever get to fire a match, again, which, at this point, may not be until 2020….Note: I do have an M1941 Springfield, a Mosin/Nagant sniper and an M1D, but I have not had much opportunity to work with them over the past 7 years. (Working overseas nearly ALL the time).

  16. Great Vid. Thank you for sharing. I legged out in Pistol in 2011, and wanted to try the rifle, and did the 2018 SAFS for rifle, that was brutally difficult, the only way I think is going to an optic to begin with, and so many details it's tough to get a handle all the equipment, thanks again.

  19. Morning HR. Just shot my first fun competition and really enjoyed it. I'm using the A2 sights but as most competitors am always interested in improvement. I came back to this excellent video as a review. I hope you have a terrific 2018 shooting season and your scope issues work themselves out.

  21. HR, another terrific and extremely informative video. My compliments first and foremost on your terrific health achievement. My wife says you look many years younger. Congrats. BTW, two concerns I have with the scope for Service Rifle is whether or not the turrets and reticle will hold up over time to the constant and continual adjusting and secondly will the reticle constantly return to the same setting per click each time it is adjusted back and forth. Only time will tell of course but are you noticing anything yet? Again my compliments and especially my thanks for putting this terrific information out there for us.

  23. Hello. Thank you for your observations and options, very informative. You uploaded and video shooting at Butner. You were paired up with a gentleman who was shooting with an ACOG. Can you tell us more about your views of using a fixed power optic like and ACOG vs using a variable power optic? Thank again for all that you’re doing.

  26. Hello HR,

    I gotta say that as a brat who lived in Beaufort / Port Royal SC for a while and received his first pistol lessons (at age 10) from a Marine DI using a 1911; I enjoy your channel. I am glad I discovered it. Also I wanted you to know that I appreciate your weight loss video.

    Since I just found your channel I haven’t had time to look for any videos that might help me with my shooting struggle. I really like your teaching style and I would be grateful if you can find your way to teach on defensive handgun shooting with compromised or aged eyesight. Tools, tricks, training regimens, and the like.

    In my twenties I regularly managed 2 inch groups at 50 yards with a Ruger, Redhawk in .44 Rem Mag using a weaver stance. When macular degeneration took the acuity in my right eye I was able to adjust my hold for my left eye. When I developed the same problem in my left eye at age 30, I sold my hand guns.

    Recently I’ve begun shooting again and trying to retrain myself. I’m doing better after switching from .40 S&W to .45 ACP, but my accuracy range limitation is about 5 yards. Painting my front sight fluorescent red has helped. Most aftermarket sights I’ve looked at just aren’t large enough. I use a fiber optic sight on my shotgun, but when it comes to pistol sights, they don’t make them big enough. I would truly appreciate any help you can offer.

    Thank you,
    Ralph

  35. I really wish I could find a fixed 4x scope with good mechanicals (something like a fixed power SWFA supersniper.) Unfortunately I don't think such a beast exists. Great video! Thanks for sharing your insights.

  43. Wow, your observations almost exactly mirror my own! I had not previously competed in High Power, but had shot vintage military matches and club 100 yd matches with iron sights, before building a Service Rifle with an SWFA 4x scope, to compete with, so I had a somewhat similar transition to manage. I found standing position to be extremely difficult at full 4x magnification, the increased perceived wobble was not just "distracting", it was confidence-destroying! I did resort to dropping the magnification to 2x for standing, which helped my confidence level, but may or may not have actually helped my scores. At least it stopped me from over-correcting my position and exacerbating my wobble. I added the B.A.D. lever after the first match with the new rifle, as breaking position to reach around the scope was distracting, as you noted, but I was already used to using the B.A.D. lever on a couple of other rifles, so it was simply the obvious thing to do, and not something new to deal with. With regard to the SWFA scope itself, I am quite happy with the clarity of the glass and the turret tracking, and have had no issues with the illumination; overall very good for the $300 or so it cost. The SWFA S.S.A.L.T. scope mount is definitely not the greatest, there are much nicer ones out there, but it functions well enough, and the price was right.

  46. I started my HP shooting with my RRA A4 set up with iron sights in late summer. I've achieved Master level however the guys with the optics are still beating me on the 300-600 yard stages. I have the exact same scope and mount that you have but it's mounted on 30-30. I am considering trying it out on my HP rifle. I see others using a riser and standard rings instead of the one piece mount. Does that one piece leupold mount work ok?

  47. At Appleseed shoots, we advise shooters with variable scopes to set them as low as possible in magnification. Of course, that is still usually 3-4x. On standing states it's still very much "embrace the wobble". We often have guys show up with 10/22 race guns with very high power scopes set on the highest power who get upset when the kid next to them outshoots them with a Tasco 4x at 25m.

  48. I have a question that's off subject but I don't know how to message you direct so here goes. I'm on a berry limited budget and need a concealed carry weapon. I have other firearms I could trade in but they have meaning and I'd hate to part with them. I have found .380 pistols that are both small and decent looking quality so can you recommend one or do you recommend a .380 period? Should I wait and go 9 mm ?

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