Mounting a Red Dot on your Lever Action Rifle - The No-Machining Mount

Howdy all! We're back from the range with an old-fashioned rifle and a new (Red Dot) optic. It may seem a little strange to mount a red dot on a lever action - but I just can't deny the fast sight acquisition and easily seen aiming point.

For the bracket I'm installing today, there's only 1 piece. No moving parts, aside from the screws that go into the receiver. The bracket has slots cut for the screws, allowing you plenty of vertical adjustment. Depending on the height of your receiver and any of the driving components of the action, you may have to move it fairly high up. I like to mount the bracket so that it sits just above the action, with about 1/8" to 1/4" spacing.

The bracket has an RMR footprint atop it, perfect for fitting our TD-3 and TD-3C red dot sights. You can use the 6-32 screws found in the red dot kit to mount the optic right onto this place. For other optics, you'll need to pick up some 6-32 screws of the appropriate length.

The bracket utilizes two holes drilled on the left side of the receiver. These holes are commonly used by Lyman receiver-mounted sights, and are a mainstay on many modern lever action rifles. In today's video, I've got a few Winchester rifles that all have the same hole spacing.

The bracket sits in the sweet spot between the ejection path and the hammer, staying out of the way of both. There's a slight groove cut into the underside of the RMR mounting surface, to account for a curved upper bolt surface.