VIZ-MAX BORE SIGHTER

By Dr. Jim and Mary Clary


After mounting a scope on your favorite rifle, one has to bore sight the gun. Contrary to the opinion of some, bore sighting does not mean that your rifle is sighted in….. it is not. Bore sighting aligns your scope with the bore. It does not account for vibrations of the barrel or the recoil of the cartridge.

A correctly bore sighted rifle will place your first shot on the paper at 25 yards.. After that, you must make the appropriate adjustments on the scope to obtain the correct impact point by shooting at 25 yards and then at 100 yards. Remember, bore sighting, the first step in sighting-in a rifle and actually sighting-in a rifle are different. The latter always requires actually shooting the rifle and adjusting the sights accordingly

The Viz-Max uses a daylight visible green laser to make bore sighting a riflescope fast and easy. At the back of the unit is a magnet which holds the bore sighter to the barrel. At the front is the laser and on the bottom is the battery case which takes two AAA batteries and the push button on/off switch. The body of the laser is constructed from aluminum and is encased in a rubberized exoskeleton to protect the unit from damage.

A significant advantage of this unit is that it fits virtually ALL firearms, regardless of caliber and that it takes AAA batteries, rather than specialty batteries. The magnetic connection to the barrel is fast and precise. It does not require an arbor, adaptors, or clamps.

To illustrate how you bore sight your rifle with the Viz-Max, we will quote the late Chuck Hawks:

What you do first is carefully place the Viz-Max on the muzzle of your rifle in line with the bore. Hold it securely to prevent it from forcefully impacting the muzzle face. (The magnet is powerful!) It is easiest to place the magnet end carefully against the edge of the muzzle and slowly rock it over onto the muzzle face. Perfectly centering the Viz- Max is not critical, just get it reasonably close.

Set up a target 25 yards from the muzzle of the rifle. Use a light colored or reflective target for best visibility of the laser dot. Place the rifle in a rest so that it stays put. I used a Caldwell Lead Sled, but any sort of rest will do, even an empty cardboard box with a couple of "V" shaped cuts in the ends to hold the rifle.

Note the vertical distance between your line of sight and the center of the barrel's bore. (This is usually 1.5-2.0 inches for scopes and optical sights and about ¾" for iron sights.) Turn on the laser and adjust the position of the rifle to get the laser dot on the target. Adjust your scope or sights so that the point of aim is ½ of the distance between your sight line and the bore, directly above the laser dot on the target. For example, if your scope is 1.5" above the bore of your rifle, adjust your scope's crosshair so that it is aimed 0.75" directly above the green laser dot at 25 yards. Your firearm is now bore sighted. Turn off the laser and remove the laser from the muzzle.

After bore sighting, verify the point of impact at 25 yards by actually shooting. Then move back to at least 100 yards for the final sighting-in of your rifle. Your initial group at 100 yards should be reasonably close to your point of aim, making your final scope or sight adjustment easy.

Given the ease of operation and cost savings of ammunition, the MSRP of $129.99 is well worth the price. 




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