First Time Hand-fitting a Set of Claw Mounts

[Old No7]

Well, this is something I'd never done before, and likely won't do again (unless I continue to hang out on this Forum, that is...)

I got lucky in several ways by first acquiring a very decent German "Oberhammer/AKAH" (exact maker unknown) Drilling in 16 x 16 x 8x57JR in a gun trade with little cash outlay, and then I found a nice Hensoldt-Wetzlar 1.5-6X "Diavari" scope that had a set of claw mounts that were oversized in all the right places.

I will post more information and pictures of the Drilling later (as a preview, see my posting about it in the Proof Marks forum) after I get her out to the range, and for now, this post will be about fitting the scopes's claw mounts.

I'd never done this job before............

So I followed my late Father's advice to "Measure twice, cut once" and I also recalled he would say "Remember kid, the metal take-off tools work a lot faster and better than the put-on tools, so work slowly and carefully..."; all great advice that has served me well over the years. Since I did this job with several files, there was quite a lot of filing and trial fitting, and then measuring again. Any black you may see on the claws is where I used a Sharpie (a cheap but effective home gunsmithing trick) to color the claws to see where they were rubbing in the mounts.

As I got the scope with claw mounts off of ebay, I was lucky that the seller did take some measurements for me before I won the item, and that his measurements were accurate too. There was enough "meat" on the claws that I could open up the spacing between them by 0.035" and also reduce their widths by about "0.025" each. The steel sure wasn't made in a 3rd-world refinery, it was very hard! But by working slowly, chalking the file and cleaning it often to keep the teeth clean, it worked out well and a head-mounted magnifying headset helped me see well too.

Here's an image of the rear set of claws, and you may see I also had to open up the notch that the Drilling's rear mount latched in to:




Here's the scope fit into the front claws and being lowered down to the rear base. I may trim some of the rail in front of the front claw if that allows me to move the scope forward along the rail a little more, but we'll see:




Here's the Drilling with the scope mounted... In this image, it does look "too far back" to this American eye -- but it isn't too bad once it's shouldered. There is ~3" of eye relief at 1.5X and maybe 2.5" at 6X. For sure, I'll be careful not to crawl up on the scope, especially when it's set at 6X, and if I can slide it forward by 1" or so -- and still have it tip into the mounts OK -- then I will do that.




I still haven't shot this Drilling yet! But I've confirmed all the Proof Marks (thanks to Mike and Axel for their input), had 2 slight dents in the right shotgun barrel removed and now the scope is mounted. The bores are in great shape, and once I'm happy with the scope's final position, then I'll get her out to the range -- and a range report will follow soon after.

Now I find I'm already dreaming about going out after deer next fall in pursuit of venison -- and a St. Hubertus Award.

We'll see about that... Waidmannsheil to all!

Old No7

[mike ford]

Old No7,
First of all, you were very lucky to find mounts that could be fit to the bases on your rifle. Just a couple comments. The front base usually comes with the plate fitted to it under hydraulic pressure, and it is very hard to get as close a fit by hand with unknown angles on the feet and plate(manufacturer knows the angles). You mentioned opening up "the notch". The bottom should be cut parallel to the bottom of the "slider" and about the width of a scribe line higher than the slot the "slider" slides in. Then the fitting is done on the bottom of the "slider", not on the notch. If you take the "slider" out, you can see where it was fit before. There is a screw in one of the thumb pieces, removal of which allows the "slider" to come out. Remove and save the two small springs behind the "slider" until fitting is done. The reason for this procedure is that it pulls the scope down and the "slider" up, removing what the German gunsmiths refer to as luft( air), but what they mean is "space" or "slack". It has to be fit tightly and the reason the slot needs to be parallel is to insure a good fit on the whole surface and one that will not get "jammed in by recoil. Fitting on the bottom of the "slider" allows fitting by "spotting" and filing a surface you can see and file level. The slot is usually milled, but filing it is fine if parallel and the same on both feet. This is not criticism, just hints, in case it doesn't shoot to suite you. I can tell you have done a careful and workman like job. You are to be congratulated for taking the job on.
Mike

[Old No7]

Thanks very much for your comments Mike.

Yes, I got very lucky the mounts I bought were as close as they were. There is no set screw on my thumb pieces (either one), but there's a tiny slot that I'm thinking might release some type of catch. I will have to look it over much more closely to see if that is indeed some type of release mechanism, but even under magnification I find no screws to loosen. I appreciate your comments on this. Right now, I'd say mine's about 95% fitted, but with your guidance -- if I can get the thumb piece released -- I can get it to 100%.

Old No7

[mike ford]

Old No7,
The "tiny slot" is typically a screw slot. The bases were engraved after fitting the original mounts. The engraving usually makes the small screw head very hard to see. If you take the screw out and take that side of the thumbpiece off, you can then pull the otherside, attached to the "slider", out. There will be two small springs that work on the "slider", these should be removed and safeguarded. In fabricating the rear base, room for these springs was provided by drilling two holes into the rear and them blocking the holes off with screws. Almost always, the heads of these screws are milled flat, so you have to remove the springs through the slots the feet fit into.
Mike

[Old No7]

Hi Mike:

You were right! That slot was the head of a screw, neatly hidden by the engraving and filing work that was done. I was able to easily remove all the parts and take key measurements that allowed me to better fit the claws -- now they lock in nice and snug with no play at all. I am really pleased with the way it came out, but I sure don't intend to try another set.

Old No7