Murphy took the day off.

[fatrap]

I can't believe I'm saying this but yesterday after returning from the range I had my DPMS LR .308 sitting on my bench awaiting it's turn to be cleaned. 'For some unknown reason the swivel and pivot bipod tilted fully upsetting the balance and the whole rig tumbled off the bench onto the concrete floor. I'm Still at a loss for why it tumbled. $90 Harris bipod, maybe It was set on something maybe not fully locked legs. Anyway the rug that occupies the impact spot on the carpet was upstairs being washed after the wife's geriatric cat used it as a litter box. Smack on the concrete! I picked it up and found not a ding just a small scratch on the scope tube. The charging handle and bolt carrier wasn't in the weapon sitting in a different place awaiting cleaning.
I figured the scope, a Millet tactical mildot /bar 4x16 was toast. So today I reluctantly drove to the range with a box of .308 reloads to access the damages. First shot at 100yds was high and to the right bout an inch. A few clicks and bang dead center on the one inch square bullseye. Followed by eight more overlapping or side by side. @200yds. bang! low and right, a few clicks adjust and bang! lower left of the one inch bull. Adjust and the next five shots formed an "H" all inside the one inch square bull. Followed by ten more rounds erasing the one inch square at 200yds just to see if it'd jump zero.
This is a Millet scope costing less than $400. It's view is very marginally less clear than my $1000 Leupold Mark IV on a custom 700 tactical/target rifle. I don't know if the Leupold would have stood the drop like this one. I went home and ordered another for my Target 300 Win Mag with HB that is being built and set up at IT&D in Ohio. Still can't believe it. That weapon scoped and with a 20 rnd mag weighs in at and even 15 pounds. Of course I'd be disappointed if the rifle didn't hold up. It ran flawlessly. But the cheap scope?
This story ends with the rug back on the floor and a much more carefully trigger operator. I get even the cat when the wife isn't looking. I think she needs a bath.
fatrap

 

[Greg Meyer]

Mike,

Little over 20 years back in Idaho on an Elk trip me and the horse I rode in on took a loooooooooong slow tumble down the hill about 200 yards...... Naturally sliding and banging into everything sharp, hard, jagged and rough. About half way down my Rem 700 came out of the scabbard (Replaced that with one with a buckled boot) and slid down behind me about 100 yards and came to rest quite aways away from me and the horse. Get the idea? Guide and I rode back to the base camp, arriving after dark, 3 to 4 hours later. I got out my backup rifle... a 1891 Mauser w/ a 3X9 Weaver that I sporterized in 1966. (it is a reliable and effective rifle, similar to a .308 with handloads) and function fired it in the dark. I ahd sighted it in and I planned to leave before dawn to get back to ur hunting location and spike camp as soon as possible. Well, we had a hangup on the "alarm clock" and got up late. So, I decided to check the zero on the Mauser. It was dead on. So on a whim I decided to see how fubared the 7mm had become from the slide down the mountain. At 100 yards the 3 shots from the bench were 2.5 " high dead center!!!! That Leupold VXII 2X7 is still on that rifle and it took an Elk two days later at about 275-300 yds. I did send it in and have it checked, no repairs except cosmetic were required. Everything I own except for the Mauser (which still has the Weaver) has a Leupold.

 

[fatrap]

Greg. Like I said ordered another one came last Monday. How,d you and the horse fair? I have a long history with horses.
fatrap

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

Boats and now horses? Do Tell.......

 

[Greg Meyer]

Boats and now horses? Do Tell.......

Scott... Mike... At one time my first wife and I had nine horses.... She had lots and lots of money... I even played at riding polo for two seasons...

 

[fatrap]

A clarification for Tox on the horse thing. We used to have horses until we moved into the city. Glad to get rid of them. I've been kicked, stepped on, bit, and scraped off horse back on a barn door. Pretty much don't have much use for one but growing up with livestock I've never let one win a battle. Should I ever get a chance to ride horseback to a elk location I'd jump on one in a moment. Last time I rode was in Durango Colorado. A three hour trail ride. The sob was so tall I had to get on the fence to mount up! He also hadn't been ridden all summer and didn't fancy being so at the time. We had a short meeting of the minds by the day's end shared my celery sticks n peanut butter from my lunch. Horses are great if you have the time, space, and money for a pet that large. In Iowa you can't dispose of excess horses as surplus livestock.

fatrap

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

All through high school I trained thoroughbreds for the Kemling brothers (out of Grand Island). Did it for 4 years. Trained one of Foolish Pleasure's colts. My mom in her youth raised and trained Tennessee Walkers . Horses are in our blood. Kemling wanted me to take 7 horses to Chicago and that's when my dad put a stop to my horse training career. I've hunted yotes from horseback and like you got put on a horse fresh caught off the plains and had only been under saddle for 3 months. My daughter on the other hand has gone the formal route. Hunter /Jumper, Dressage, Field Hunter and Stadium Jump. She was Grand Champion last year. Thank heavens I don't make more $$ because it would just be gone!!

 

[Greg Meyer]

All through high school I trained thoroughbreds for the Kemling brothers (out of Grand Island). Did it for 4 years. Trained one of Foolish Pleasure's colts. My mom in her youth raised and trained Tennessee Walkers . Horses are in our blood. Kemling wanted me to take 7 horses to Chicago and that's when my dad put a stop to my horse training career. I've hunted yotes from horseback and like you got put on a horse fresh caught off the plains and had only been under saddle for 3 months. My daughter on the other hand has gone the formal route. Hunter /Jumper, Dressage, Field Hunter and Stadium Jump. She was Grand Champion last year. Thank heavens I don't make more $$ because it would just be gone!!

And, here I thought that in order to train a horse, you had to be smarter than the horse... I guess Tox has proved that theory to be wrong....

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

You got that right. Nuthin like breaking down somebody's $100,000 horse I actually liked the industry but just like fishing, there are only a few that are really successful with it and those that are not, do some pretty horrible things.