All Systems Go

Am I silly to get such thrills out of little things? Today a package arrived from Midwayusa, and I’m beside myself.

A while back, I bought a .17 HMR rifle. But I couldn’t use it. The 42mm objective on the scope, combined with the thickness of the varmint barrel, made it necessary to get extra-high scope rings, which were not available locally. I had to order the damn things. So my rifle, ammunition, bag, and sling have been sitting on the bedroom floor.

Today the box arrived. I put the rings on, and everything lines up fine. I have 500 rounds, waiting to be shot. I can’t wait. But I will. Because it’s windy today. Tomorrow should be better. The wind won’t mess up my rifle shooting all that much, because the targets are supported by two legs. On the pistol side, the wind will make the targets rock and twist; the targets are mounted on a single pole.

I didn’t lap the scope rings. I’m not sure I need to, and I didn’t feel like dropping 30 bucks on a tool of questionable value.

I chose Weaver Grand Slam rings, because they have levers that don’t fall off when you fool with the scope. The regular rings have parts you can lose. I had a hell of a time getting these rings to work, because I wrongly assumed they worked on some kind of cam action, with a limited swing on the levers. In fact, each lever turns a screw, so you have to turn it many times to back it out and open the rings for mounting.

I also got Eezox. Not sure what to do with it.

Since this is a rimfire, I assumed I needed minimal eye relief. Tell me if I’m wrong, before I poke a hole in my forehead. I mounted the scope as far back as I could get it.

This was a glorious purchase. Scope and all, it’s cheaper than a nice pistol.

Let me know if that sling looks right. There were no instructions.