Mauser M03 30mm Ring Scope Mount - Lowest Ring height possible.

[Mark]

Good afternoon Rick,

What is the lowest rings available for the Mauser M03 30mm Rings Steel Scope Mount? I have mounted my scope on the rifle and find that the rings I currently have are too high and don’t give a proper “cheek weld”. The rings are about 10mm and from your photographs on your blog, it looks like your rings are about half that height. I have some photos to send you of my setup, but was unable to post them on the forum. I would appreciate any help.

Best regards, Mark

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Hi Mark. Thanks for making contact.

I'm using the lowest 30mm steel scope rings that Mauser make. I'll just go and open up my gun safe and measure the rise. Hold on. 

If you look at the picture I've just taken, it has two red arrows. Click the photo to see it bigger. The rise height of the rings is 5mm. That is, from the flat base of the ring that mates to the Double Square Mount bridge, to the bottom of the scope tube that rests in the ring. The height of the Double Square Mount bridge is 11.5mm, now that I've actually measured it. I think I've used a different number in my blog, as provided to me by someone at Mauser (who can't measure things, it seems!).

I do recall learning that Mauser also make rings with 12mm rise height. Perhaps you have those? I'm using the 5mm rise height rings with four scopes, two of which have 56mm objective lenses. Even with these big objectives there's still a couple of millimetres clearance to the barrel reinforce -  no problems. As you've noticed, there are pics of these four scopes in my blog, all mounted in Mauser's Double Square Mounts, though one uses Blaser R92 34mm aluminium rings. I'll provide some links in a sec. (See my next reply)

Regards, Rick. Fire back with any questions.

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Here is a link to pictures of 30mm scopes mounted in Mauser Double Square Mounts, in Mauser rings with 5mm rise height.

Zeiss Victory HT Scopes on Mauser M03 Rifles

And this link shows a 34mm scope, also in Mauser Double Square Mounts, but using Blaser R92 style 34mm rings, which are a perfect fit on the Mauser bridge. 

Kahles K624i on Mauser M03

The trick with using these rings, which are quite low, is ensuring the turret housing will clear the bridge. It works with this Kahles K624i, providing 2mm of clearance. I'm not sure that a Schmidt and Bender 5-25x56 scope would fit though; the turret housing protrudes further below the scope tube than with the Kahles.

There's some more pics of the Kahles on an M03 here.

Mauser M03 Deluxe - Photos

Regards, Rick.

[Mark]

Hello Rick,

Thank you for your quick reply. Yes with the M03 mount I have, the ring height is 9mm, which is too high. The scope turret housing is only protruding 1.5mm below the bottom of the scope tube, so the 5mm rings would definetly work. That 4mm difference would help tremendously with the “Cheek Weld” on the butt stock comb. I have pictures of my setup that I would like to send, I just don’t know how to send them to you. I don’t think I can attach them on this forum post. Do you know what is happening with Mauser? Their web site has been under construction for almost a year. (Seems kind of strange) and I also sent an email to them regarding my mount issue and haven’t heard back from them at all. I just have a feeling that something is not right. What are your thoughts. Thanks again.

Mark

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Hi Mark. I agree - I think you will enjoy the rings with only 5mm rise more than the higher ones you have. I find the 5mm height rings I'm using to be ideal.

Re Mauser's website - yes, it's been a while since they put up the 'under construction' sign. But they did make a downloadable catalogue available, which covers a lot of the territory. What they really want of course is for people to head into one of their dealers, where they can see and feel the quality with their own eyes and hands. As well as hear it. :-) Getting hands on made a big difference for me. Put a big smile on my face as I realised (and said), 'This, is a real rifle!'.

I'll make some enquiries about their status with the importer here in Oz.

Regards, Rick.

p.s. As for posting photos, if you click Reply and look above the box where you write the text, there should be a button that looks like a little picture. Hovering on it brings up the message, 'Insert image'. Click it and it will let you drag a photo into a pop-up dialog box. Job's done! :-) Or, put the image on a webspace of yours somewhere and insert a link to it, with the Link button. But the first method is easier.

[Mark]

Hi Rick,

I appreciate your feedback. The 5mm high rings would be ideal and will lower the scope by 4mm, of course it doesn’t sound like much, but will make a huge difference in the “cheek weld”. I have tried to post pictures on this forum but it’s not allowing me to do so, oh well, just wanted to send some photos for you to see my current setup. Anyway, I have been in contact with optics-trade.eu to see if they can get the 5mm rings in from Mauser. Just waiting to hear back from them. Where did you get your Mauser M03 Scope Mounts with the 30mm diameter / 5mm high rings? I have spent a fair amount of time searching for them, but so far no luck......hopefully Optics-trade.eu is able to bring them in for me. Thanks again for your input, always a pleasure and I learn lots from you. Your pages are full of valuable info regarding Mauser M03......excellent blog.

Best regards,

Mark

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Hi Mark. I bought all of my Mauser M03 gear from the Australian importer and principal retailer, Mialls Gun Shop, in Frankston, an outer suburb of Melbourne, Australia. The scope rings I bought were their standard offering. They should have them in stock. The exchange rate could suit you too, at the moment. :-)

Thanks for your comments on the blog. I knew there were people out there hungry for M03 knowledge like me, so decided to gather as much as I could into one place. It's been fun. Questions and discussions like this one make it all the more so.

Regards, Rick.

p.s. I'm not understanding what's going on with the photos you're trying to post. Thanks for trying. I'd be keen to see your pics if you can find a way to get them online and should be able to add them on this thread. Would a reply to a forum message alert email, with the pics attached, work?

[Mark]

Hi Rick,

Thanks for sending the information on where you purchased your Mauser M03 Scope Mounts in Australia. I will have to contact Maill’s Gunshop to see if they have the 5mm rings or if they can source them for me.

Now here’s something that I’m curious about......I just received an email from Optics-trade.eu, (I attached a copy of the email below). In the email they said that Mauser only makes the M03 Mounting System with 9mm high rings. With that being said, has Mauser discontinued making a 5mm high rings for this system? With regards to all your Zeiss Victory scope mounts, do you have the Mauser base and 5mm high aftermarket rings installed on the bases? Also they said they are able to source some very low rings from MAK (I believe is a German Ring, Mounts manufacturer). Have you ever heard of them or know of their quality? I would really like to find The original Mauser M03 Mount with original 5mm high rings.......that would be ideal.

Anyway, Will try to attach the photos by coping and paste......let me know if you are able to open them....if not, let me know of an address that I can email them to you.

Thanks, Mark


image1.png


image1.jpeg

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Here’s that email I mentioned earlier.

Teodor (Optics Trade EU)
Dec 5, 10:28 CET

Dear Mark!

I apologize for the late reply. My name is Teodor and I took over this communication thread since Boris is currently absent.

I checked the situation and I see that unfortunately, only 1 set of rings exist for Mauser M03 mounts and these rings are 9mm high. The same as you already own.

Thus I would offer you the only other possible solution and that is that we change the rings with nonoriginal that would still fit the original base. We can offer you such rings from MAK and would cost 120 EUR + 8 EUR for shipping.

These rings will fit and lower the scope (their BH is 3mm), however, when closely looked it will be obvious that they are not the original.

[Mark]

Here we go. Let’s see if the photos come through

[Mark]

These are the photos and dimensions of my current mount. (The photographs with the coloured arrows)

Turret Housing hangs below the Scope Tube (Yellow) = 1.5mm
Ring Height (Green) = 9mm
Base Height (Red) = 12mm
Total - Ring and Base (Blue) = 21mm


Eureka! Yeah! Pictures posted! 😊

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Yes, the photos are appearing as attachments to your latest post. So that worked. I'm writing a reply on your previous post - please stand by! :-) Rick. 

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Hi Mark. It's interesting that Optics-trade.eu are saying Mauser only make the 9mm rings. When I was investigating scope mounts in 2014 I emailed with Mauser and was advised of their ring heights. Let me look for that email. Hold on. Yep, found it. The advice was:

- the height of their 30mm rings is 5mm. These rings will allow successful mounting of a 56mm objective lens scope in 95% of cases. If mounting a scope with a 72mm objective, a 4mm spacer is available if needed to get the scope up higher. Longer screws are provided with this spacer.

- the height of their 34mm rings is 12mm. (I guess the spacer mentioned above could be used with these too, if needed.)

- the height of the Double Square Mount base is 11mm

- the height of the Double Square Mount with picatinny rail is 21.5mm and the length is 103mm

- there is no aluminium (aluminum in some countries - same thing) in these mounts or rings. They're all steel.

At the time I did some amateur engineering drawings to evaluate whether the rings would provide sufficient clearance and found that Mauser's advice was good. The 56mm Zeiss Victory HT scope that was in transit to me would fit. And it did, as shown in my blog post on the subject - link here. Zeiss Victory HT Scopes on Mauser M03 Rifles

So, where are we at? I can tell you that Mialls Gun Shop sold me their standard 30mm rings, which were 5mm in height. The price was $695AUD for a set comprising the Double Square Mount base and two sets of ring base, top and screws. Again, the Aussie dollar is a bit down at the moment so buying from Mialls could work for you. Another outlet to consider is Triebel in Germany - links follow:

http://triebel-shop.com/index.php?manufacturers_id=244  or this next link to take you straight to the page for Double Square Mount options

http://triebel-shop.com/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=244&products_id=45711

Stay in touch. I'm keen to see how you go with this. BTW, the photos you've posted are excellent! :-)

Regards, Rick.

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Mark, I will ring Mialls Gun Shop here in Aus tomorrow and find out if they have the 30mm rings with 5mm height. I'm fairly sure the answer will be yes. I'll get back to you.

Rick.

[Mark]

Good morning Rick,

First I would like to thank you for all your input and help to get my scope mount height issues resolved. I have sent an email to Triebel Shop to see if they have any 5mm high rings available. I also sent a second request to Mauser directly regarding the 30mm ring height. Also I appreciate you inquiring at Miall’s Gun Shop. I’m sure we will find the 5mm rings kicking around somewhere. Lol.

It is so important for me to have the scope mounted at the correct height, that when I close my eyes and shoulder the rifle, and then open my eyes, the scope must be lined up perfectly to acquire the target. I was moose hunting two years ago in Northern British Columbia, Canada, when I had an unfortunate encounter with a Grizzly. To make a long story short, I did everything possible to de-escalate the situation, but after the initial charge (bluff charge) the Bear came to 20 meters and decided to charge me for a second time. With the speed that grizzlies can run, I only had about 1.5 seconds before he would be on top of me. Anyway I was able to instinctively shoulder and shoot and stopped the Bear at 15 meters. I was so lucky, I was hunting alone and nobody else for a backup shot. I almost didn’t come home from that hunting trip. The rifle and scope I was using on that hunt was not ideal for that type of situation, with a few minor deficiencies. That is why I have been diligent to ensure I have the best rifle/scope setup in case an encounter like this ever happens again. Thus my current setup with The Mauser rifle and S&B scope....when your life is on the line....only the best will do. There are no guarantees in life, but you sure can hedge the odds in your favour.

[Mark]

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

OMG, what an experience that would have been. A real heart stopper. I'd be happy to read the 5000 word version of that hunting story. Thanks for the photos. I'm going to see if I can publish them in a post so they show up automatically. 

I'll ring Mialls when they open up this morning. We have to find those 5mm height rings for you. :-)

Regards, Rick. 

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

It was a good shot you made there Mark, in testing circumstances. No time to adjust the scope's zoom setting or anything like that. It might have been that you had the scope set on 10 power, such that the fast moving brown mass coming at you completely filled the image circle, all blurry and swirling. Been there, but only with boars. 

I have to ask, what calibre? I'll take three guesses. Hmmm, moose hunt in BC, with the possibility of a pop-up bear ... . Best to have a rifle that's not over-the-top heavy, nor too fancy. First guess is a 338 Winchester Magnum, because it's a good choice and a popular one too. Second guess is a 30-06, because everyone has one and it's also a good choice. Third guess is a 375 H&H - another good choice, but a little out of the ordinary.

:-)  Rick.

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Hi Mark.

I'm waiting on a reply from Mialls. I think the sales guy is asking the gunsmith to check the height of the rings, so the answer could come back accurate to the third decimal place.

In the meantime, let me ask you a question. Would you mind if I build up a new post for the Mauser M03 Blog, featuring some of the photos you've attached and drawing on what you've learned with the 9mm rings? A wider audience would find it useful and interesting, I think. Probably more searcheable too. It's a good thing for the blog to have a broader base of input than just my own experiences.

If you're happy for me to proceed, please let me know if I can say 'Mark has written in ....', or 'Mark from Canada ...', or whatever, as you prefer. 

It was seeing the close up of your S&B on your M03 that made me think of this. Good photos are the key to good blog posts. :-) Did you tell me what model of scope it is?

Regards, Rick. 

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Hi Mark.

I've just heard back from a sales guy at Mialls Gun Shop (by the name of Kayne or Cain - not sure of the spelling). They do have the 5mm high rings in 30mm tube size in stock, at a price of $80 each. So, AUD$160 for a pair, to fit to your scope. This equates to about USD$121. Kayne said he'd be happy to discuss shipping with you. They tend to be pretty good in that respect, at least with local shipping.

Communicating with them should be straightforward, by phone or email. If you ask for Kayne, he'll recall the conversations he and I had today and will know what you're after. If there's any hiccups, let me know. I might be able to help.

Could work. :-) Should work.

Regards, Rick.

[Mark]

Hello Rick,

Yes, my encounter with the grizzly was very intense to say the least, but I was able to keep cool and focused on the situation. I knew that after the initial “bluff charge” and when he came at me a second time, things weren’t going to end well for one of us. There was only time for one shot and for my sake it better be a good one.

We have a bingo! You are correct, the cartridge was a .338 Win Mag. loaded with 210 grain Nosler Partitions. I was very lucky and the shot impacted just inside the bear’s right eye (a couple millimeters in from the right eye where the nose bridge meets.) Upon impact the bear collapsed and I’m sure dead before hitting the ground. I don’t know if it was a direct brain shot or if the immense shock wave shut down the brain. I couldn’t disturb anything because of the legal ramifications of shooting a grizzly bear, so I just took some photos and hiked out for three kilometres back to my truck. Then I had to drive for an hour and a half to get cell phone reception and call the conservation officer to report the incident. He arrived to camp the next day, took my statement, filled out a report and we went to retrieve the bear.

The rifle was a Sako L61R Hunter that I bought new over 25 years ago and had recently put a Schmidt & Bender 1.5-6X42 Zenith Scope on top of it. I have hunted bear before [only black bear, not grizzly) so I always keep my magnification on the lowest setting just for that reason......the biggest field of view. To see the whole bear and not just hair. Unfortunately there are some shortcomings of this setup. First the scope has the reticle in the first focal plane, thus on the lowest magnification the fine crosshairs are much to thin and were actually lost on the charging bear. Fortunately the course or thicker part of the reticle was visible and able to instinctively place the shot in the middle almost like pointing and shooting a shotgun. Once again, luck was on my side. The rifle does not have a manual cocking lever so if you have a round in the chamber, it is either cocked with the safety on or uncock with the pin sitting on the primer and you have to cycle the bolt handle up and down to cock the rifle. I much prefer having a round in the chamber and use the cocking lever as with the Mauser M03 a completely safe way of carrying the rifle.

Thank you for asking about using some of the photos in your Blog. That would be fine to use them and I trust your judgement, just let me know if there is anything else you might need or how I can be of help. Anyway, heading off to bed, have to be up early to go deer hunting. Will try to make the most of the day since there is only a few more days left in the season.

Take care,

Mark

[Mark]

Hi Rick,

Thanks for making the call to Miall’s Gun Shop and finding out that they have the low 5mm rings. I called and talked to Kaine, he was very helpful and as long as there is no export restrictions for shipping to Canada, they would be more than happy to send those rings out to me. He should know by next Wednesday. If they are able to ship them it will so nice to have that scope mounted correctly.

You were asking on a previous post about my Mauser setup. The rifle is chambered in 30-06 and I usually like to use “heavy for caliber” bullets. Penetration with high sectional density is the ticket when hunting in bear country. I like to use 180 grain Nosler Partitions as a minimum, but prefer Federal Premium 200 grain Trophy Bonded Bear Claw or 200 grain Norma Oryx. I believe the 30-06 is to North America as the .375 H&H is to Africa, a cartridge that will take all game as long as the hunter does their part and the correct bullet is used for the job at hand.

Sitting on top of the rifle is the Schmidt & Bender Exos 1-8X24 scope. I like the 8 times magnification range. It has the FD9 reticle which has the illuminated dot and the fine crosshairs are encircled. Also a nice feature is the CC mode which is a true 1x magnification , parallax free, red dot sight. Which allows for true target acquisition with both eyes open, perfect for The driven hunt or for dangerous game. And finally it has the BDC turrets both for windage and elevation. This will be the ideal setup to tackle the majority of my big game hunting. Can’t wait for those new rings to arrive.

Well, it’s Friday evening for you. Since you are almost 19 hours ahead of use here on the West Coast of Canada. Have a great weekend and thanks again for all your help.

Mark

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Hi Mark. It's good to hear you spoke with Kaine. I'm thinking they won't have a problem with shipping to Canada, but if so, we'll get them to ship to me, then on to you. No probs.

Gotta love a 30-06. :-) Even though I've had my Remington Mountain Rifle in this calibre for ages, I still had to get an M03 in it. I sure doesn't kick like that little Remmy! Fantastic stock design with the M03.

Your scope sounds like magic. I'm going to do some research on those S&B Exos. My Zeiss Victory scopes are pretty good, but the versatility you've described is awesome. I like that you've stuck with 1-8 power. So many folks are putting 5-25s on their walk-about hunting rifles these days. Que??? :-D

I'll stand by for news on how things progress with the rings.

Regards, Rick.

[Mark]

Hello Rick,

Just wanted to keep you updated with the latest news on those 5mm rings at Miall’s Gun Shop. Kaine and I finally got all the details worked out and the rings were mailed earlier in the week and are en route to Canada. Since they were not so easy to find, I ordered a second set of rings and mounting base, just in case I want to add a second scope to my M03 system. Once again thank you so much for your help and for recommending Miall’s. This blog is full of valuable information and anyone new to the Mauser M03 will benefit extensively from your knowledge and experiences. Your continuous work on this blog and forum is much appreciated.......Thanks!

I will let you know when the rings arrive and the end result after they have been installed.

Enjoy the holidays.

Mark

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

That's a great result Mark. I've always found John Miall and the crew at Miall's Gun Shop to be excellent to deal with. Those 5mm rings will work a treat for you I'm sure. If you can post or email some 'after' pics, that would be great. Then some pics with a prize winning moose - even better. :-)

I'm glad to have been of some help. Writing about my experiences with the Mauser M03 system is a pleasure and it's good to know that there's a couple of people out there who enjoy these fine and safe rifles like I do. 

Regards, Rick. :-)

[Alex]

Hi, Mark.

I would like to mount Swarovski X5i to my M03 mount but default rings are a bit short. Do you still have 30 mm scope rings with 9 mm hight as you mentioned in one of your first posts? If so, would you like to sell it?

Regards,

Alex

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

G'day Alex. Rick here - forum admin. I'll see if I can send a DM to Mark to draw his attention to your question. Stand by for a moment. :-) Regards, Rick.

[Mark]

Hi Alex,

Yes, I would be more than happy to help a fellow Mauser M03 owner. I still have the original Mauser 30mm rings with 9mm height. They are made from Aluminum and are the OEM part that came with the standard Mauser M03 Mount. If you are still interested in these rings or require any additional information just let me know. I will ask Rick to give you my contact information so we can discuss things further. Talk to you soon.

Cheers,

Mark

[Mark]

Thanks Rick! This blog and forum is a great way for fellow Mauser owners help and learn from each other. I appreciate all the valuable information that otherwise would not available if it wasn’t for your blog. I hope I can help Alex out too.

Take care.

Mark

[Alex]

Hi, Rick!

Very appreciate for your help and very thankful for the possibility on that forum to share any requirements or experience with Mauser M03 owners.

Regards,

Alex

[Rick - Mauser M03 Blog author]

Hi Alex. You are welcome. It's always fun to talk with fellow Mauser M03 users. :-) Regards, Rick.