Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Muzzleloaders Range report ... scope woes ... and pics

I've been going through the last stages of getting ready for my upcoming ML mule deer hunt in Utah and I thought this range session would be my last. Ran into problem though. My TC 1X32 scope went tits up.

This pic shows the first eight consecutive shots with NO adjustments to the scope. The first shot was from solvent cleaned and scrubbed bore. Shots 2, 3, and 4 seemed to settle in. Shot 5 went way left. WTF? Shots 7, 8, and 9 produced a 1.030" group but to a different POI. Shots 1, 2, 3, and 5 are in a straight diagonal line.

I adjusted the scope up 4 clicks up and 1 click right before shot # 9 and that moved the POI left with no change in elevation. It became apparent that my scope wasn't holding a consistent POI or tracking correctly.



This was a new to me used scope I bought from fleabay and it looks brand new with no ring marks or any sign of abuse. The glass in it is very good and even in low light. I like the scope but ...

My first clue that something wasn't right was the clicks weren't smooth. It seemed to hang up bit at first but that went away. I also had problem during a prior range session because it seemed to not track right. I thought it was me twisting the adjustments the wrong way but now I what the problem was.

The bad thing is I'm leaving on Saturday and I cannot find a 1X scope anywhere in Colorado and I've searched high and low. No big deal though. My buddy from CA is bringing a new in the box Vortex 1X24 that I can sight at hunting camp.

One thing that's worth mentioning is the sight-in target I used. It is THE BEST 1x target that I've used. When the crosshairs line up the white border absolutely pops into view. The spacing between black sections are 5" and it leaves little to no room for sighting errors. I cut the black squares from 8 1/2" sheets and taped them to a large white sheet. DIY

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The components


My shooting bench and accessories


The wide open Colorado prairie and the target at 100 yards


Obligatory shameless selfie of my old mug


My hunting buddies.

Nice paint job.

Who needs a scope with huntin' buddies like those!?!?! I'd rather stay in camp playin' pokeher.

what was this post about OO OO your hunting buddies. you will love the vortex so will your buddies I have two and love them.

Still looks like with your group you would have killed anything at 100 yards that you shot at. No comment on the hunting buddies or selfie.

Well I would be taking a little extra time back at camp with the "hunting buddies" in making sure that scope was on and mounted correctly.

Anyway, check your mounts and ensure your scope is pressed forward before torqueing it down. Maybe something came loose is all I'm getting at.