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Is there a referance somewhere that would tell how old Weaver scopes are or when they were made? I put an old Weaver K6-W on my Savage 99 made in '62, and I'm wondering if it's "correct".

Thank you.

Brian

A K6W is a late Weaver scope. Have not seen one in a while. Does it say El Paso on the tube ? Is the tube steel ?
Photo would help. thanks.

You might to see if these folks are still around. (My last contact with them was in 2003)

Weaver Scope Repair Service
1121 Larry Mahan Drive,Suite B
El Paso,Texas,79925
Phone# 915 593 1005

WSRS (Weaver Scope Repair Service) is out of business as off '08-'09.

As for the '61 being "correct", I'm assuming that you mean made in '62. That'd be a "no"; very likely (almost certainly) post-'62 scope.

However, you're also assuming that the rifle wouldn't have been scoped after '62, or the scope not upgraded.

The K6s are fine for that application, and "correct enough". Run it, and be happy.

Bob Bell's scope book says the -W Weavers came out in 1973.

Bruce

Thank you Bruce.
The scope is a steel tube made in El Paso.
I know for sure that my Savage 99 was made in 1962 and that it is factory d/t. I didn't know what scopes were around back then.....heck, I didn't arrive until 1971!
So, when Savage (and perhaps other manufacturers) started drilling and tapping for scope mounts around 1960, what scopes were around then?
I remember back in the early 80's when a cousin showed up in camp with a scoped rifle. It was kind of a big deal, and I had never seen a scoped rifle before. I believe it was a Redfield on a Remington 760 .30-06.

Brian

That is correct.

The "Wideveiw" Weavers came out in 1973. Every single Wideview was made in El Paso until 1983 when the plant shut down. After that time, none of the succeeding Weaver co. owners built any wide veiw scopes.

1973 was also the very first year tthe ENTIRE outside of the scope was all steel. Not only the main tube, but the adjustment Turret, caps and lense frames at the end of the tube.

Before that time, parts on the 1" scopes other than the main tube had been made from brass ,aluminum and even plastic(the lense frames from 1965 to 1972) to save weight.

The Later ones -post 1978- wnet back to the Alminum parts for evertyhing expet the main tube /ocualr bell and were called "Steel lite II" scopes.

Where do the "Colorado Weavers" come in?

I bellive they were called REDFIELD and BURRIS .

I have seen a comment made here in the past about Colorado Weavers (only on this forum).

Imaginative rumors aside, there is no such thing- anymore than there were "New Haven Remingtons."

Until the Weaver scope plant was closed in 1983, it was the largest rifle scope making facility in North America. They could build as many scopes in a year as Redfield and Leupold at the time combined.

As a matter of fact, Weaver had more employees and production capacity by 1962 than Leupold did up until about 2000. They made everything in house -lenses,tubes the whole deal- even their lense grinding equipment. They did not need to go outside the plant(or El Paso) to have scope made by anyone else.

Until 1983, Weaver scopes were only built in two locations- Frankfort ,KY(1930-1935) and ElPaso ,Texas 1935 to 1983. After 1984 when the El Paso plant closed , Blount bought the marketing rights and trademarks. No scopes were made under the Weaver name for about three years..

In 1987, Blount launched the new Weavers which were made in Japan. And all of them since then until early this year when the 44/40 scopes were introduced, which are made in the Phillipines. The rest of the line is still made in Japan by Light Optical works.

Looking in the 1962 Gun Digest, these are the common scopes available then.

Bausch & Lomb with adjustments in the mount

Bushnell Scopechief and Banner

Leupold M7 and Vari-X

Lyman All American Perma-Center

Redfield Bear Cub

Unertl Falcon, Hawk, and Condor

Weaver K -60B scopes and V8

Thank you, bcp.

Brian

D,
If you do go with a Weaver, get a -B model.

They were built from about 1957 to 1965. They had all the improvemtns of a modern scope, nitrogen fill, a cenetered reticle and covered adjustments. They also had milled alumium lense frames(tube caps) and turrets. The latter post 1965 1" Weavers actually had plastic lense frames until 1973.

Optically, the old -B Weavers will not hinder you as much as you would think. Many of the old scopes out there suffer from lense seperation or cement degredation to the point they loose their clarity. Also, time and use factor into the out lense surfaces getting roughed up as well. If you can get ahold of an as new ,mint specimen, the old -B scopes are better optically than one would think.

When testing a I recently did some optical comparisons with a Weaver K-3-B vs a circa 2000 Weaver K 2.5. The older Weaver was nearly as bright also sharper/clearer. I was impressed and surprised..

I bought a few of these old Weavers, but none are -B models. I looked at one last spring at a show that had a tag on it that said "Make Offer", but I left it there not knowing where it came from.
I have a K6-W, a K4-W, a K3-W, and a K2.5. All are in nice shape, steel tubes and made in El Paso. I need to find a Stith for the K2.5 to put on a 99.
Thanks for all the info.

Brian

Actually here is the only place I've seen it also, was just wondering.

I used to have a K6-C3 that was only marked "Made in USA", nothing about El Paso.

Last I checked El Paso was in the USA in the 1960s when that K6-C3 scope of yours was scope was made.. The markings were accurate and that scope was still made in El Paso.

Either that or Bill Weaver had set up a huge multi- million dollar plant with hundreds of employees as an elaborate ruse to hide the true location of were his scopes were actually made..

Where can one get an old weaver serviced? cleaned and waterproofed

Right here:
http://www.ironsightinc.com/

txs

Only problem with the B series was no duplex reticle yet. The post is nice if you can find one, but the standard crosshair reticle of that vintage disappears in the woods pretty fast near dusk in this part of the country. I am with you on not liking the plastic on the later models though.

TN..

You are correct about the Reticles.

Weaver did not come out with the "Dual-X" reticle (their version of the Duplex) until 1968 I believe. That was right in the middle of their "plastic era" of 1" scopes..

Two solutions for a 60-B with a plain crosshair. One would be a Lee Dot of appropriate size or a Custom installed Duplex by the guys at Ironsight.

All things considered, the Lee Dot would be more period correct and faster /cheaper to have done.

Have an old Weaver K 2.5 with an 8 minute Lee Dot. Was originally on a shotgun in shotgun only deer country. Stands out like Pamela Anderson's bosum.