[/quote] We are talking about 6*48 scope mount screws here that maybe have 1/8” of engagement here and little amounts of inch pounds of torque, are you using safety wire?
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The primary reason torque amounts started being suggested for scope mounting was NOT the strength of the screws, but the strength of scope tubes. A LOT of people (including some so-called professionals) were over-tightening ring-screws to the point where scopes started to malfunction. This is especially true of variables, since they have an "inner tube" (the erector tube, which in variables changes magnification) that can be affected by too much ring tightening. But over-tightening can also affect adjustments, and in some scopes it doesn't have to be much to affect them.
