Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters how much bump will cause a rifle to lose zero

A really stupid question.

Even a Nightforce will lose zero with a dual windage screw rear base

I dropped a rifle out of a tree stand. Rifle still shot perfect. That was a rather old Burris FFII 4.5-14.

I don't think so. Kind of an important question actually.

😃 How about no drop or hit but sonic vibration from rifle standing in corner of the bedroom, 80 year old farm house. Turn on 100 watts RMS to a pair of K-Horns. Awesome bass vibrations. Scope was a foot off next day. So it is a stupid question.

"Doggone it, I missed that buck. Musta bumped my scope." Translation - "I didn't bother to check my zero cuz Scooter down at the big box store said he bore sighted it to be dead on from 25 yards to as fur as I could see a deer."

While perhaps not a stupid question, it's one that can't be answered.

Back when I published my first hunting optics book in 1999, the publisher insisted I use some information from DEVA, the quasi-governmental German organization that tests a lot of hunting (and other) equipment. Among the supposedly scientific DEVA tests (which included measuring light transmission) was one involving a rubber hammer. After sighting-in a rifle, they'd whack the scope a few times in"strategic" places, to see if it changed zero--but they whack American scopes more, because (they noted) they were more likely to lose zero.

Perhaps the most logical statement in this entire thread.

Troll

I have that book.

I had a hunting buddy of mine slip on ice and go down hard on top of his rifle. He rechecked his zero after the hunt and it was still right on. Scope was a Leupold. He had scratched up the rifle some as well.

What really impressed me is that he would not take a shot at any game after he fell that day for fear that his zero was messed up and he might wound instead of kill. He waited until he went to a range and checked it out on paper first.

He deserves high marks for hunter ethics.

When I was 17 my 30-06 was knocked over on the concrete porch at the Cabin. It fell right on the 4X Bushnell. That Sportview was dented but it was still right on the money!

Dang, you don't do things halfway Ben!

Let me try to re-phrase my question with a bit more detail: We're not always in the type of situation where it's convenient to check zero by shooting: sometimes you're back in the bush and simply don't want to shoot in the area you're hunting. If you have a severe fall, I'd do it anyway. But how about a more minor fall of the rifle: say you've leaned it up against a tree or large rock and it slips off onto the ground. This is with a good quality scope and mount properly mounted. Just trying to get a feel of how such a relatively minor fall would likely effect zero. thanks for the responses.

I think experience with your own equipment, if you'll excuse the expression, is the best guide. I have personally seen both ends of the spectrum, but can say I have full confidence in my current setups. If the scopes aren't broken I trust they are still on. This would be with VX3i and Burris signature zees. I have broken my fall on rock with the turrets and not seen a zero shift. I try not to baby my rifles throughout the year while practicing, this should show any issues before crunch time.

All the more reason to use quick release rings and carry another scope sighted in with you.

I would think that a rifle leaning against a tree and falling over on to the forest floor should not be a problem at all. I've had that happen and there was no change of zero that I detected.

Modern brand name scopes and mounts are made better than they've ever been and are pretty rugged and it's expected that there will be the occasional bump.

If scopes lost their zero from mild shocks then a lot of hunters would be going back to irons.

Or, never had a Bushnell loose zero until it died. Leupold lost zero for no explainable reason. Tasco on rifle managed to fall out when someone opened truck door and landed on running board on bell end with large ding then on gravel road. Never lost zero.

You simply never know.

First shot in my first ever Zeiss in the 80s., something broke inside, it was toast.

I've seen Tasco go TU in a few shots, and had one particular one on an AR, and thats HARD recoil on a scope because it comes from the recoil and then the bolt slamming home is like an airgun, that lived I can't tell the number of rounds before it died as a test scope.

I had an H&R Handi Rifle in .223 that I put a Bushnell 3-9X on. The scope would lose zero just by snapping the action shut. It wasn't a Sportview either it was their midline scope.

Many, many moons ago, I was climbing a tree on the opening morning of deer season, with my rifle slung over my shoulder. It slid off, and I heard it banging against the limbs on the way down. I probably dropped it about 15 feet. Checked the zero later on that day, and it hadn't changed a bit.

By the way, the scope was a Tasco World Class, so, so much for Tasco always being junk.