Holland&Holland wrote:Leveling the rifle has always been the toughest for me. What I have found is that the way I hold a particular rifle in the field and the way it sits straight in a vise can be two completely different things.
I level the rifle by using a short(aka 'torpedo') level across the bottom half of the scope rings, perpendicular to the bore of the rifle.
With the rifle level, I mount the scope loosely, and align the vertical line of the reticle with a known vertical reference. That could be anything from a plumb line across the room, to a pole, which I know to be plumb because I checked it, at 100 yards or so. Once that's done, I secure the scope, recheck, and permanently install a Vortex scope level, and center it's bubble.
The procedure can be modified if there are flat surfaces on the receiver, or scope that known to be square with the scope/ receiver.