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Greetings all of you Enfield enthusiasts,
I've just had my No32 Mk3 scope serviced, nitrogen filled etc and the previously seized windage and elevation drums now work like clockwork.
My question is - Should the top scope mounting rings sit flush against the lower scope ring?
I can't remember what it was like before I sent it away and, although I've tightened the screws, there is still a gap ( circled in RED below) between the two...
Attachment 111177
Yes, there should be a gap. Mine are all like that. Take care not to overtighten and crush the tube.
There will be a gap between the cradle caps and the cradle. It should be equal. Be very careful not to over tighten and cause damage to the scope tube. Ron (Canada)
Scope mount caps really don't need cranking down tight.
The scope mount offers enough support.
A picture is worth a 1000 words - these are my 4T & L42
The advice you have received is spot on. The brackets, whether made by Rose Brothers, Dalgleish, or in Canada, were originally a single large malleable iron casting. Part of the machining process was to bore a one inch diameter hole through the two raised parts of the casting (what would become the cradle clamp assembly). Once the hole was bored a narrow slitting blade was passed horizontally across the middle of the 1" hole to detach the two upper components, thus forming the the two clamps. Hence the gap is correct, & approximates to the width of the slitting blade used!
It is certainly wise not to over tighten the screws. The risk of crushing the scope tube is mitigated to some degree by the use of the cone shaped taper on the cradle screws, but I wouldn't want to push my luck.
Best.
Thanks for the responses everyone.
What I'm going to do now is carefully coat the inside of both rings ( upper & lower ) with 3M ScotchKote - which will provide a great non-slip surface and will mean that you can safely under-tighten the screws - without the scope moving and not being marked by the rings..
This may be one reason the slots were cut so shallow on the late production cradle cap screws: to inhibit over-tightening. That said, you'd have try awfully hard to crush a tube in my experience. People with that little mechanical sense should not go below 1/2" bolt threads IMHO.