Why the scope so high on AR's flat tops?

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WEATHERBY460

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I have a varmint type ar and need a scope on it. I have extra high millets, but it just seems so high up to get good eye angle. Does anyone have a better way. This is for a 4-16x50mm scope.

Thanks
 
Standard high rings or the leupold see through style will put the scope at your eye level. Low rings wont work...to low due to the AR stock design unless you use risers.
 
If you look at the standard AR with the carry handle and front iron sight, you will find that the sight plane is pretty high to allow proper cheek weld...

The straight stock on ARs is almost the same plane as the barrel and to get the scope down that low will give you all kinds of grief, especially if you do a lot of shooting with it

Maybe my head/neck is longer/taller than average, but I'm much more comfortable with the EOP (elevated Optical Platform) upper and using high rings on it..

All three of my ARs have the EOPs and I don't have to worry about risers, or extra-high rings...

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And when I'm looking through the scopes, the hold is really comfortable and natural..
 
Quote:Maybe my head/neck is longer/taller than average

I can see why in your avatar, your necks plenty short, but your eyes are clear up on your forehead.

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The mount on the ACE stocked rifle does look pretty high.
Here's a Model One mount for reference:

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I believe that's the tallest one-piece sold, and it looks pretty much equal to oldTurtle's in height, I'd say.

Armalite makes one that's a little lower, but otherwise identical.

 
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The simple answer is yes. They do need to be that high. It is just the nature of the beast(design of the stock). The rifle was designed for in-line recoil. One person mentioned High rings. I have found High rings not tall enough. I had to go to the Burris super high's to get the height I needed. If you have the Millett super highs then you probably have the right rings. Tom.

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+10 on everything everybody else has said to your inquiry... as an old bolt rifle guy and newbie AR owner, I can testify that I tried to go low at first too, but it just doesn't work with the AR for the reasons given above.

I went with the same super-high Burris rings that HOGGHEAD has on his rig and the comfort level was a vast improvement over putting the scope low to the barrel as you would be inclined to do on a bolt rifle. In addition, a laser bore light was only off a couple clicks after re-mounting the scope from low to high Burris XTR rings. Shouldering the rifle results in an immediately excellent and comfortable sight picture without tweaking my cheek position. Buying an AR has been a learning experience.
 
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I had Warne extra high rings. That was the best alignment I could get in a gun shop on my Bushmaster at the time. It was a very cooperative shop and I took my time and tried many mounts. We tried quite a few mounts by closing my eyes, mounting the rifle, and opening my eyes. Although I bought them I ended up never getting used to them. I had others try to shoot my AR and they had trouble too.

I now have a LaRue one piece mount on both my ARs. I enjoy the one piece alignment, the height, and the QD rezero. Yes they are expensive, but that is a purchase I smile about every time I see the mount. No mo problemo. When I point my rifle I see crosshairs on a target. I took my kids out last weekend and had 3 of them smacking targets with no discussions regarding reticle alignment etc. After the safety discussions they went to work. Bang, bang, bang....no more targets.

If it sounds like I'm a convert it's only because I am.

God bless our troops, especially our snipers!
 
Quote:The mount on the ACE stocked rifle does look pretty high.
Evil, Part of the reason the scopes on the top two rifles are a little higher than the bottom one is because they are usually shot from bench positions and it's less strain for me to keep my head straight, where the bottom one is usually shot from the shoulder..

The one with the ACE stock is now sporting a Burris Black Diamond 8-32x and with the 30mm tube and the 50mm objective bell, it doesn't look quite so out of proportion..
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Originally Posted By: sendit223
I now have a LaRue one piece mount on both my ARs. I enjoy the one piece alignment, the height, and the QD rezero. Yes they are expensive, but that is a purchase I smile about every time I see the mount. No mo problemo. When I point my rifle I see crosshairs on a target.

God bless our troops, especially our snipers!

+1
It wouldn't have been as expensive for me if I hadn't tried about 4 other combinations first.
 
I like a solid cheek weld. I use regular high rings or medium rings, depending on the scope. Tried the ones made for AR's but floating your head around in space just seems wrong.
 
All valid points Im sure, but the fact is if you dont mount it high enuff you cant work the charging handle worth a dam. I like the Rock RIver Arms Scout Riser , fits AR lines well, gives the option to mount rings further forward than normal, and gives the extra hieght needed.
 
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I'm with MGYSGT on this one.
Originally Posted By: MGYSGTI like a solid cheek weld. I use regular high rings or medium rings, depending on the scope. Tried the ones made for AR's but floating your head around in space just seems wrong.

I use an Armalite One-Piece Mount which is on the low side where One-Piece Mounts are concerned. With the one-piece mount centerline height of 1.4" and higher being very popular and the norm I thought I might be missing out on something so I decided to try a higher mount. I installed a Model-1 and checked it out, I couldn't take it off fast enough. Nothing against Model-1, just the height. Per Armalite's site http://www.armalite.com/ItemForm.aspx?it...59-bafe17a66e1e
Quote:ArmaLite's Scope Mounts provide outstanding, repeatable engagement with all MIL-STD 1913(Picatinny) rail systems, placing the scope centerline at the same position as the iron sights of a model A2 Rifle.
Thought I read where the iron sights of a model A2 Rifle are 2.6", but according to the One-Piece Mounts - Table of Features here http://www.maxicon.com/guns/optics/one_piece/ar15_onepiece_mounts.htm#table the Armalite mount is lower than iron sight height. It also states Quote:If Armalite would make this mount available in a 1.5" centerline version, they'd have the sub-$100 mount market locked up.
Well, if they ever do I hope they don't discontinue the current height or I'll be sol on my next ar.
But................maybe all this is mute because I'm just a pin head
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Get it!!
 
Originally Posted By: LoganAll valid points Im sure, but the fact is if you dont mount it high enuff you cant work the charging handle worth a dam.

The badger Tactical Latch and others like it work great no matter what scope height, Brian
 
Everybody's face is shaped differently. Some can get their eye much lower than others. The ideal height is the lowest you can get your eye with your head vertical. Head vertical is important for accurate shooting, especially for offhand and other unsupported positions.

Jack
 
I guess I may have to look into those again, when i first seen them i didnt see a real big advantage except maybe when wearing gloves.
 
Originally Posted By: Jack RobertsEverybody's face is shaped differently. Some can get their eye much lower than others. The ideal height is the lowest you can get your eye with your head vertical.

Jack

Good point Jack. That probably has a lot to do with it.
 
I have one piece Armilite mounts on both of my AR's with the scope all the way forward and it works very well for me, so I must have low set eyes and a skinny face. No problem getting to the latch.
 
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