How to Select Mounts For Your Rifle Scope and Rifle

After selling rifle scopes on eBay for 6 years I can say with absolute certainty that the 1 area that confuses prospective new scope owners a lot more than any is the choice of scope mounts. The good news is that unless your rifle is an unusual or vintage sort then choosing the right scope mounts is basic. In this article you will learn tips on how to speedily decide what type you need.

So the, you've got a new rifle and need to get a nice telescopic rifle scope to help you shoot much better? And make it look very cool too :)

Choosing a rifle scope could be a tricky method in itself and I will not cover it in this article except briefly now: If you're shooting in typical dawn to dusk type light at ranges no far more than say 300 yards/metres then get a 3-9x40 or comparable variable magnification scope. 3-9 = it ranges between 3 and 9x magnification and the 40 bit means it has a 40mm wide lens at the end. This is a really very good general purpose mixture and you will find options for most budgets from cheap to military.

Now what you require to be able to fix the scope to the rifle are mounts. This need to not be tricky but to save time, hassle and cost in returning incorrect mounts to the seller it's excellent to get it correct very first time.

You'll find 2 things you need to know:

1) What mounts are need for your scope in terms of (a) height and (b) ring diameter.

2) What kind of rifles scope receiver grooves you might have.

In many instances you may locate scope and mount packages sold together, in these cases it is possible to be certain that they will be correct for the scope but you still must be sure that they will be OK for your rifle prior to you go ahead. If not then you'll must ask the seller if they can swap for an additional type.

What mounts are want for your scope

Scope mounts come in three principal heights. By height I mean how high they will lift the scope off the rifle. You will find three principal heights:

Low - For scopes with upto 32mm lenses
Medium - For scopes with upto 42mm lenses
High - For scopes with 40-56mm lenses


You can find also such things as ultra high but you are unlikely to require those unless you might have a specialized requirement.

The size of lens rule is a great general guide but also bring your rifle into consideration. If it has say a bolt action then it is very best to go for a high mount even with a smaller lens scope.

Scope Tube Diameter is the second consideration when matching mounts to scope.

Most scopes have a 25mm (1 inch) body tube and you will discover that most mounts are for these scopes. If not then they will specify that they are for a various diameter body - you'll discover some with 30mm tubes. So be certain you know what your scopes body tube diameter is the pick your mounts to match.

What type of rifles scope receiver grooves you've got

By this I mean the place where the scope mounts will attach on top of the rifle.

Commonly referred to as the scope base or rail, grooves or receiver.

You will find 2 main types: Standard and Weaver (also often called Picatinny or Tactical)

In turn mounts are commonly referred to as Standard or Weaver mounts.

Standard -

2 grooved lines running front to back along the top of the rifle body
Between 9 and 13mm apart.

Weaver/Picatinny/Tactical -

The grooves are 20-22mm apart
The base is usually much more of a solid block design with horizontal "slats" across it (some mounts have arrestor blocks in their bases that give an additional degree of lock by mating with these grooves)


Standard bases are as the name suggests really widespread. They are the standard these days for air rifle and paintball guns and several lower powered pistols.

Weaver bases are to be found on higher power higher recoil rifles, especially military, hunting and shotguns. They're also found on numerous airsoft rifles where the replication is extremely accurate.

Your mount selection factors combine then...Examples

Your have an air rifle with a standard base and are obtaining a 3-9x40 scope with a 25mm tube = Standard Medium or High mounts.

Hunting rifle with 20mm weaver base and you're getting a 6-24x50 scope with 30mm tube = High 30mm Weaver mounts.

1 or 2 piece?

This is really a further division, I add this for completeness. If you are new then I'd say go for 2 piece as your 1st type.

1 piece is where the complete mount body is really a single molded unit. This type is quite strong and solid but may possibly not be an option if you have a bolt action or top magazine rifle.

2 piece - Simply 2 mounts that you position on the rifle base rail. Not quite the rigidity of the 1 piece but a lot more flexible in terms of positioning and capacity to "work around" obstructions. Cheaper too.

I hope this article helps you make the correct choice. Once you break it down into actions making the correct rifle scope mount option isn't challenging and will let you zero your new cool looking rifle scope as speedily as possible!