Saiga 5.45 Range Trip #3

[amd6547 2]

Yesterday, my work was over with early in the morning...with the wife at her work, I was free as a bird to duck out to my clubs rifle range for a few hours. This would be my third trip with the Saiga 5.45.

I recently was on the hunt for a scope mount for my Saiga. I am usually not a fan of UTG products, but the reviews of their quick detach rail mount were just about uniformly positive...astoundingly so. Plus, I found it on Amazon for about $30 delivered.

The UTG mount slipped right on my Saiga and tightened right down. It seems like a solid piece of gear. I don't really have a need for the rail on the side, but maybe adds some stiffness and strength to the mount, so I can live with it.

For the time being, I have mounted one of the cheap Aimpoint comp 3 clones...a clone that goes so far as to wear the aimpoint logo and patent number. This clone was sold to me very cheaply a couple years ago, and has been on a couple different rifles, the last being a century cetme. The cetme has a history of destroying cheap optics, but this counterfeit aimpoint handled it just fine.

I set up at the range all by myself...we have a 25yd sight in bench, so I put up a target, put in a magazine, and settled in. My Saiga had a M16 clip-on bipod to shoot off.

When I fired the first shot using the cheap red dot clone, the round hit about two feet high....I cranked down the elevation shot by shot till the rounds were hitting about the height of the center of the bullseye. Then, I had to crank the windage to move impact into the center as well. The Saiga was then printing tiny inch and a half groups in the X. The red dot is really a CQB scope, so I wanted it zeroed for close range...but of course, I had to see what it would do at longer range.

I set up a target at 100yds. The red dot covered the bullseye at that distance, but I did my best to center over it, and center on the target sheet...The five rounds grouped about 5 inches above the bull...

I reloaded and fired the next five with the red dot held under the bullseye, with some space between them...the five rounds were all in the black.

 

I used a Bulgarian circle 10 30rd magazine for all my shooting...My Saiga does not yet have a bullet guide installed, but it worked perfectly with this magazine. I repeatedly loaded only five rounds as I was sighting in, and never had anything but smooth feeding and perfect function. I also fired with 10 rounds in the mag, and with 30 rounds...same story, perfect function.

I finished the day with a fully loaded magazine. With the red dot zeroed, and standing offhand, I ripped through the 30rds pretty quickly, just picking out features on the 100 yard dirt berm, putting the red dot under them and firing away, knocking visable twigs and dirt clods off with every shot.

The Saiga 5.45 ROCKS....but you already knew that.

Next, I want to find a reasonably priced 1-4 power variable scope...I feel that power range would be perfect. The UTG mount is so cheap, I may pick up a second and leave the aimpoint clone on the first mount all zeroed in.

Edited July 27, 2011 by amd6547

[jbrubaker 13]

Good report!

 

I have two of those UTG mounts as well. One holds my Aimpoint clone and the other my 3-12x scope. The mounts return to zero every time when swapping between the two.

[rifleshooter474 2]

I have two of the UTG mounts the quick lever type and the older three Allen screw type, both are solid and stay on tightly. I have a AIMPOINT M4 and a EOTech. 553 I swap on my SGL-21. I like the UTG mounts and their fair prices.

Edited July 28, 2011 by rifleshooter474