Malcolm Scope

[Rick459]

so i received a Leatherwood malcolm long scope for my birthday and installed it myself. i am posting this for some who are thinking about getting one and how much is involved mounting one. i mounted this on my 1975 era Pedersoli rolling block. all drilling and tapping was done on a mini mill. you have to tap two 8/40 holes to mount the heavy duty recoil base.the written instructions are a little vauge and there are only a couple of pictures that don't help much. i hope this helps some.
here is the base correctly placed on the barrel before drilling holes.

here are the two holes drilled and tapped and where they need to be.

here is the base mounted to the barrel.

here's how the spring mounts on the base.

scope mount mounted on base.

anothe angle.

the rig.

right side.

left side.


also you need to smooth up the inside of the rabbit ear mount for smoother operation. i also got the finr adjustment accessory but can see i will be getting the better adjustable rear mount for $199.00 from leatherwood.HTH
Rick

[bigted]

nice writeup. thanks for doing this. i have one mounted on a hiwall in 38-55 and boy is it ever accurate. i really like the glass but not so much on the mounts. would be interested in seeing the "better" adjustable mount when you receive it.

[Rick459]

BigTed,


Go over to the leaterwood hi-lux web site then click on the malcolm scope tab then the accessories tab and you will see the mount. it's in the right hand colum. i am trying to find out from leatherwood if i can use the USMC style unertl mounts on my rifle with not too much modification.
Rick

[bigted]

any unertl type 3/4 inch mount would work but ... you would need to install a rib to keep it from rotating as the unertl mounts work on slipping the scope thru them to reduce recoil bite on the scope.

thanks for the tip ... ill go there and look at it ... thanks.

[bgmkithaca]

The USMC mount work well in place of the mounts that come with the scope, the mounts that come with the scope are junk as far as tolerances go-very sloopy. I recently put the USMC mounts on one of my rifles and was pleased with them.The rib to prevent rotation mentioned above is included in the set.

[Rick459]

bgmkithaca,
could you post a picture of your set up on your rifle so we can see how you mounted it on the malcolm scope. thanks.
Rick

[bgmkithaca]

My camera is not that good-I tried to get a decent picture but can't get good definition to see the set up well.The USMC mount replaces the factory mounts that came with the scope(mine is an 18" 6x) to mount it on the barrel you have to use unertl or posa type bases. If I remember correctly they were included but may be wrong-if not included it takes 1/2" bases and four 6-48 holes need to be drilled and tapped,these come in different thicknesses and I would suggest measuring your barrel to determine which heights are needed to get the scope level with the bore. A spacing of 7.2" between the blocks is suggested on the 17" & 18" scopes-I don't know how it will work out on the long scopes as pictured above, you need to call Leatherwood for that information.

[Doc Highwall]

For replacement mounts for your Malcolm scope I would suggest these from DZ Arms.

http://www.dzhepburn.com/sights/dz-arms-scope-mounts/

[Rick459]

Doc High wall,
over at the buffalo arms web site they say that the DZ mounts will not work with the malcolm long scope. leatherwood told me the same thing today. some thing about the spacing between the front and rear mount being too far apart to where you will not be able to get enough elevation adjustment with the long scope to shoot out to 1,000 yards..leatherwood makes a better rabbit ear rear mount that they sell for$199.00 but they are out of stock at the moment.that will be my next purchase.
Rick

[Idaho Sharpshooter]

MVA offers a truly quality set of mounts for these scopes. It is the difference between having to design a system to meet a price point and designing a system and then figuring how much it has to sell for.

Rich

[Rick459]

ok everyone i finally worked out all of the bugs on the stock rabbit ear scope mount for the hi-lux long scope. my first sessions at the range the scope would turn in the rings. what i did is the replace the the slotted screws with allen head screws in which i was able to close the gap on the scope ring. after shooting 65 rounds at the range the scope is solid. i will be using this set for hunting so having the scope look the period does not matter to me. the replacement allen head screws are M-4x16mm. you will have to turn the heads down on these. the backlash screw that goes on the elavation block is a M-3x10mm. HTH

[John Allen]

I did one myself on a sharps. It was a pain in the butt. You are right about the instructions I ended up looking at pics online as I was uncertain I did it the right way.

[JSnover]

I mounted one on a 45-70 Handi Rifle and was it ever a PITA. Get good quality mounts. Tighten everything. Then tighten it again. Then LocTite the whole mess.

[rbertalotto]

Great write up! I've been around the bend a number of times with these scopes. Great optics. Terrible mounts. That ladder mount you are using is good if you simply mount the scope and leave it at one elevation. But forget about repeatability. Ain't gonna happen.

The higher end rear mount is no better. It just costs more!

The DZ Arms mounts are fantastic, but a bit pricy....

Malcolm now has a "Sniper" Scope that uses DZ/Unertl knock off mounts that are very good for the money.

I did a whole write-up on these mounts and show pictures of the mounts I built using micrometer heads.....an interesting project!

You can read all about it on my web page

www.rvbprecision.com

[Rick459]

The problem with trying to use the unertl style with the long scope is you can not get enough elevation adjustment. you need at least two inches of height on the mount. I am going to try and add a spring and a detent ball on the top of the mount and then slot the elevation adjustment knob to try and get click adjustments. that might help with reapetablity on the adjustment.
Rick

[rbertalotto]

Hi Rick,

Very interested in how this turns out. Bu sure to take lots of pictures and let us know.

Thanks

[pjames32]

Good thread!
PJ

[Rick459]

bigted,
just got off the phone with Hi-Lux and they are still in the development stage on the rear mount. i told the rep that at 71 would they be up for sale before i passed this time line. i know this is a old thread but it took this long for this up date. if you are new to this thread just click on the photo's for a clearer view. Happy Thanks Giving To All.....
Rick

[marlinman93]

Looks like you reversed the elevation screw adjuster? My instructions show the adjusting knob at the top. That's where I usually see them, and where I put mine.

[Rick459]

don't know if you can see it but the adjustment knob is on the top. the instructions from 5 years shows the knob on the bottom but it is easy to reverse it to the top which is the way it is now.

Rick