Is ring marks on a rifle scope normal?

Question

I am swapping rifle scopes on a couple rifles and found both scopes have a couple marks/indentations.

I was just wondering if that is normal or if it's caused by overtightening / misaligning.

Answer 1

Indentations are not a good indicator. The scrathes are normal if installed improperly. If you can't get them to zero than they are scrap. They should be fine though.  

Answer 2

It is quite normal and does not effect the performance of the scope. The reason this occurs is that the scope mounts are not perfectly circular. The best way to avoid this is to find a 1" metal pole or bar and tighten the new scope rings around the pole or bar first to shape them and then mount your scope. The rings may still leave marks on your scope but will not cause any indentations or mis-shaping of the scope.

Answer 3

this happens alot with hinged rings that only have screws on 1 side . . . start at page 103 in the link below. it offers up some good scope mounting tips

Answer 4

Only cheap scope rings and inexperienced people mounting scopes will leave these rings.

It is unacceptable for a professional to leave marks on a customer's scope.  Consider what this would mean on a $1800 Swavorski scope - you won't be in business long.

To properly mount a scope - you need a 4 foot machined piece of round stock the same diameter as the scope to make sure the base mounts are in perfect alignment.  That is one bar for 30mm and a different bar for 1".    Most people will not do this for .750 inch 22 scopes.

Most shade tree gunsmith use the scope as the alignment tool.  For a cheap Bushnell $89 scope it certainly isn't worth spending $70 to have a gunsmith install it - especially since so many rifle, like the Ruger - come with free rings ready to go.  Most people only get a few years from one of these inexpensive scopes they mount at home........ however when I install one professionally - they go forever.   I have one on a 308  rifle from 1986 - it is still going just as nice from day 1.  And I am using it as both a fall and winter caribou hunting rifle in Alaska.

What these marks really mean - besides being ugly - is the scope has been torqued out of true round.  Between this constant pressure and the jar of firing the gun - it will damage the internal alignment of the optic moving parts.  This usually starts out on a variable scope as the zoom becoming harder and harder to move each year.  On a fixed scope - you begin to see chromatic abberations as the lenses go out of alignment and develope a color shift - much like a prisim works.

It's bad enough to mount a socpe once and be off - but - moving it to another rifle will be the kiss of death.  No doubt if the same methoud is used it will bend the scope into a totally different X-Y axis and this will flex the parts to break shortly.

Hope this helps.  

Answer 5

All of my scopes have minor marks on them from the rings, anytime you have a metal to metal contact there will be minute marks or discoloration.

If you're talking about dents or deformations in the tube, then yes you have either misalignment issues, or over tightening issues.