Weaver Side Mounts?

[lgm270]

Anybody have any experience with Weaver Side Mounts? 

Top mounts are far more popular, but I'm interested in using Weaver Side Mounts on particular rifles, Milsurp mausers to be specific.   

Just wonder if anyone has any thoughts or experiences with them?

[Brithunter]

Hmmm only thoughts no experience sorry to say  but I have been looking at the available side mounts but for me I am looking for the old style "Jaeger" or "Griffin & Howe" . These as you probably know use a dovetail rail that is screwed and pinned to the wall of the action onto to which the mount body slides and is locked by one or two levers. I am trying to set up a couple of my older rifles with a Quick Detachable scope mounts and a reciever sight.

I am not familar with the Weaver side mounts  the ones I have been looking for are the Apel ones which sadly are expensive but so far I have not been able to find any others of this style.

My aim is to get hunting with a receiver sight and certainly do more practice with one. I already have one rifle with a Redfield 70 RWH on it but no scope mounts right now, and have just fitted a Lyman 57 SME reciever sight onto a .270 Win BSA Majestic which does have a scope set up on it. I have not zeroed the lyman as yet. It's on the "to do" list  although I have never had a scope give trouble whilst on a hunt I wish to have at least a couple of rifles with good usable back up sights just in case it should ever happen.

[Rangr44]

I've had a couple of rimfire rifle, over the years, that had scopes mounted in Weaver side mounts - one that I mounted, and one I bought already set up.

The Weaver sidemounts are comprised of two different parts - the base (which screws to the rifle), and the ring bracket (which is attached to the scope via the rings/screws).

Both used the same type base, which is/was available in either a flat underside for flat-receivered rifles, or rounded/concave for rounded receivers or barrel mounting - each secured to the rifle via four 8-40 screws.

The base, in addition to the holes for the four mounting screws, has two threaded holes that take the two Weaver QD thumbscrews that are integral to the one-piece sidemount ring/bracket assembly.

When I've had the occassion to remove mine, the scope returned very close to the previous zero, when I checked via a testfire.

FWIW, I'm including a complete Weaver ring/bracket/base round sidemount set with the sale of a vintage scope I have.

   

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[trotterlg]

This one fits a Savage 340, but the design is the same.  Well made and it works right.  Larry

[Black Eagle]

I have only one set of Weaver side mounts on a very old .222 Rem that I've had for 46 years. I like them because as another guy said, if I remove the scope, it is very close to zero when I put it back on. They don't ever seem to loosen up either.  I haven't removed the scope for 20 years and it's still tighter than a tick and and shoots right on the money. But then, the .222 Rem is a light recoiling rifle.

[Brithunter]

Hmmmm the ones I am looking at return to zero, not almost but then they do cost a lot more. Some people don't like the look of the side mounts, some do!. The Apel ones look rather like the side mounts used on some of the German 98 snipers.

I have even been considering buying a dovetail cutter and making my own as that way I can exactly what I want. I have a couple of European Rail mounted scopes that once I get them serviced and cleaned I want to fit to rifles. One I want for my Mannlicher Schoenauer project the other for a P-14 sporter project.

The Schoenauer should have a bolt tail peep but it's missing and at the moment has a horrible cheap set of see through mounts on it so I want to improve them. The P-14 is drilled and tapped for scope mounts but as I want to be able to fit and use a reciever sight a side mount seems a good way to go add to that the classic styling that it will have the side mount will look "Period" however it must be acpable of returning to zero  by that I mean not moving POI more than 1/2" at 100 yards  .

[coyotejoe]

I have the Weaver side mount on a Stevens 325C in 30/30 and it seems quite satisfactory. Years ago I had the Weaver "offset" side mounts on a 30/40 Krag and a pre angle eject '94 Winchester and I liked those as well. But if your only issue is to switch between scope and peep a top mount will work as well and often better since the receiver sight base is mounted on the side and thus does not interfere with a scope base on top. Both Lyman and Williams make a receiver sight with a quick removable staff having a set screw for return to zero. That makes it easy to switch between scope and peep but of course you can't use both at the same time unless you use the very high "see through" top mounts.