What scope for a Ruger No. 1?

[Elkeater]

Having procured my first Ruger No. 1. A lovely gun in 7x57 courtesy of our esteemed member AZdave I find myself in need of a scope. First of all I’m ashamed to admit I am terrible at shooting with open sights. As a kid I could kill a squirrel with open sights but years of scope use has apparently made my iron sight skill rusty. I have an early 2000s 3-9x40 Nikon prostaff that I attempted to mount but I found that it just couldn’t be brought far enough to the rear to allow good eye relief and I have to stretch to see through it. I have determined that I need a 1” tube with a 20mm objective diameter to keep this lively stalking rifle lively. So what scope would you all recommend? I have looked at the 1.5-4x20 leupold VX freedom but what are some other good options?

 

[Tgood1]

I have a 2.5x8 leupold, hd 3 possibly, it works great with my no.1 7x57

 

[TheDoubleD]

Look for something with an longer eye relief.

I have an old Leupold M8-4x on the 7x57 No.1. It works marginally for eye relief The 450/400 has VX-3Hd 1.5 x 5. works okay at lower powers, marginal for eye relief in the upper range .

But both scopes require double extension rings to work.

I can work with this problem with these scopes, but I would like better.

I am going pick up a a Leupold VX Freedom with there longer eye relief and see how they do.

 

[Hedge774]

I have a 2.5x8 leupold, hd 3 possibly, it works great with my no.1 7x57

I just got my exact scope in the mail for my No. 1 7x57!

 

[baxterb]

back when I owned an identical rifle (yes, I considered buying this one!) I had a Nikon Monarch 2-7 and thought it was perfect. Today, I’d put the 2.5 - 8 leupold.

 

[MontanaGrant]

The 1.5-4.5 VX Freedom Has exceptional eye relief.

I’m not a big fan of the freedoms but they seem To work fine for people. Can always have it cerakoted glossy for that look

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

@Elkeater congratulations on the new to you No 1. You may already know this, but the No 1 uses the same height rings on front and rear. Different from the M77, which uses a different height ring for front and rear. For some scopes, using an offset ring is needed on the No 1.

 

[Elkeater]

@Elkeater congratulations on the new to you No 1. You may already know this, but the No 1 uses the same height rings on front and rear. Different from the M77, which uses a different height ring for front and rear. For some scopes, using an offset ring is needed on the No 1.

View attachment 734393

Thanks! The rifle is a joy to shoot. I did purchase a set of rings however only the rear ring is offset. I was hoping it would allow me to use the Nikon I have sitting in the safe but alas I still couldn’t move it far enough rearward. Im really thinking after looking at the leupolds that the freedom lines 1.5-4x 20 may be just the ticket. I never had any intention of hunting this rifle in a way that would lead to shots more than 200 yards. For that type of hunt I have other more specialized rifles. I wanted this to be a stalking rifle where shots would generally be under 100 yards. I’ve even considered just putting a red dot on top of it.

 

[BlackRhino]

I think that the first and crucial question that elkeater has to answer is: Do I need a scope for stalking or driven hunts (for instance 1-4 magnification, looks very aesthetic on the small Ruger), long distance shooting (very high magnification, ugly on the small gun) or for both (for instance 1.5-8 x 40, a compromise as far as the outlook and utility are concerned. In any case I would mount a high quality scope.

 

[ThreeJacks]

I have Leupold VX-III 2.5x8 on several of my No. 1s and a Zeiss Conquest 2.5x8 on my Boddington No. 1 Kudu (300 H&H). These work very well for me.

 

[Jon Glajchen]

A Leopold VX3 2.5-8 with an offset front mount worked perfectly on my 7x57 No1 RSI

 

[Hedge774]

back when I owned an identical rifle (yes, I considered buying this one!) I had a Nikon Monarch 2-7 and thought it was perfect. Today, I’d put the 2.5 - 8 leupold.

36 mm objective?

 

[baxterb]

36 mm objective?

Yes, the Leupold is 36mm, the old Nikon was 32mm

 

[375Ruger416]

Leupold 2.5-8 or 2-7 FTW. have Leupold compact 3-9 x36 (or 33 can’t remember off the top of my head) that would be perfect for you too. Unfortunately, I live in Canada. Otherwise I’d be happy to sell it to you and ship it your way.

 

[Hedge774]

Yes, the Leupold is 36mm, the old Nikon was 32mm

Thank you, my man!

 

[Jhsmith]

Somewhere a while ago, I saw a posting on the subject, and people were of the opinion that a Leupold VX3 3.5-10x was the ideal scope for a Ruger No.1
Length of the tube and eye relief.
I have two of these scopes on a couple of rifles and various other scopes on other rifles. I gotta admit I like the VX3 3.5-10x the most.

I’m sure it’s all personal preference ,body type, length of arms…

I want the scope mounted as low as possible with lower rings.

Some of my buddies have faces like Herman Munster, they can use higher rings and the baseball bat scopes.

 

[Old3Toe]

Your new rifle is exactly the next new rifle that I would add, if I were to add a new rifle to my life today. That said, and having several 7x57's I deeply appreciate your desire to keep the rifle "lively" as you say. The low power 1", sub 11oz scopes do just that, and, give the 7x57 far more distance capability than most are willing to venture a shot. Nevertheless, inside of 200yds with eyes that don't appreciate irons like they used to, I think I think I'd go for a reflex sight with a 3MOA dot.

 

[Ravensview]

Great question, Ive been thinking about a new scope for my 7x57 rsi for quite a few years, have been using an old bushnell 1.5x4.5 for a lot of years, works okay but not the best in lower light especially with aging eyes.

 

[atrious]

I have 4X12 Leupolds on my No.1s with no eye relief issues using the extended rings, these are primarily squirrel guns. I like the Leupold scopes 'cause they're made in the U.S.A. and of excellent quality with a great warranty, I have several from 2X7 to 6.5X20 on rifles from .218 Bee to .325 Winchester Magnum.

Great question, Ive been thinking about a new scope for my 7x57 rsi for quite a few years, have been using an old bushnell 1.5x4.5 for a lot of years, works okay but not the best in lower light especially with aging eyes.

 

[Rolly]

Having procured my first Ruger No. 1. A lovely gun in 7x57 courtesy of our esteemed member AZdave I find myself in need of a scope. First of all I’m ashamed to admit I am terrible at shooting with open sights. As a kid I could kill a squirrel with open sights but years of scope use has apparently made my iron sight skill rusty. I have an early 2000s 3-9x40 Nikon prostaff that I attempted to mount but I found that it just couldn’t be brought far enough to the rear to allow good eye relief and I have to stretch to see through it. I have determined that I need a 1” tube with a 20mm objective diameter to keep this lively stalking rifle lively. So what scope would you all recommend? I have looked at the 1.5-4x20 leupold VX freedom but what are some other good options?

Perhaps you need to have the butt stock shortened a bit.