I've been looking for a scope mounted bubble level

But think the prices being asked by the likes of or italian and american friends is just taking the piss.

So set my mind to finding an alternative, and I think I've found the solution.
You take a conduit cleat the size of your scope tube. at t a cost of 06p.

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and you fit 1 of these on top

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Total cost including postage less than £5.00

or you could even go digital with this

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and still have change from £30.00

Why do I get the impression that accessory manufacturers have a tendency to rip their customers off? :twisted:

Tag the reason that so much of the specialist equipment that we want to buy is so expensive is simple. It costs that much to make! The photographic electronic level that you mentin is made by the million for photographers world wide, how many shoot benchrest or the other disiplines where a scope level is required (or allowed?)? very few. Most of the costs involved in manufacturing a product are not acttualy in the materials and work done to them but in the fixed costs such as buildings, tooling, design costs can be substantial as well. Probably the biggst costs for any product though is product liablity insurance. This is now a very necessary part of manufacturing, which if you do not have it could see you destitute living on the street, especially if your product ends up being sold in the good old USA. Rember this might not be now this might be 30 years down the road and the insurance companies know this. I have looked at indemnity insurance for providing IT services, no manufacturing just specifing off the shelf products. Best deal I could find was around £2500 per year, and this was about 8 years ago. At the time doing waht I was doing I decided the risk was worth it and didn't bother with the professional indemnity. Then there is public liablity insurance, which is different to professional and product liablity. most of these insurance policies cost about the same if you make one hundred items or 100 million. Of course you then also have to make a profit selling them.
The size of the market in europ is tiny compared to the USA as well, is it any wonder that we have a job getting US products in europe. I know about 5 years ago that one european wholesaler selling an American brand of rifle were selling more to JUST Cabelas in ONE MONTH than they would be selling in the whole of EUROPE in ONE YEAR. Bass Pro were also selling simillar amounts.
Be thankfull that we get what we get and that it is not morre expensive. The other thing is where you can have a go at making your own, your time is at least your own, well some of the time anyway.
Tag I have had to write this reply without the benefit of looking at the pictures as my internet connection is rather poor at the moment. I have even seen bubble tubes blu tak'ed to the top of a scope in the past, for the ultimate in cheap!

Alan

Alan

Most shooting accessories simply utilise excising products with minor additions in order to make them useable of their intended market. Bubble levels are no exception.

If a guy can make, and offer for sale, a set of high quality off set rings for less than £45-00. What’s the profit margin on a single large batch production capable tube mounted bubble level that is retailed at 60-70 euro’s? If you look closely at production unit costs the level is considerably cheaper to produce.

Public/ product liability insurance varies. As a manufacturer you could get away with out public liability. Product liability costs depend upon what industry/market and product you wish to insure against and what level of risk the insurers place upon your industry/market sector. Costs of Professional indemnity insurance vary upon your market, product or services offered, and level of cover required. I’d suggest looking at purchasing them via one of the trade association as you may well find the best deals are available there. Believe me when I say I know all about the costs of insurance.

Sorry Al we are a global market, thanks to the internet. If I think we are being ripped off by UK or European manufacturers and suppliers I’ll say so and if at all possible will buy else where. If that level was being made in china using investment casting rather than Italy it would be less than £15 delivered to your door.

Tag,

Very useful site for levels - thanks. I've been buying cheap levels from B&Q and breaking 'em up!

Cheers
Vince

"If that level was being made in china using investment casting rather than Italy it would be less than £15 delivered to your door."

If it has the same high standard as the rest of the Chinese junk,no thank you.You get what you pay for.Or do you want to shoot a Chinese gun with ditto scope and mounts in benchrest?They're way cheaper too.Good luck with that.Support your local economy instead of the Chinese!

All depends on your budget,but in my case on a total cost (including rest) of about €5500 a bubble level won't make the difference.We're talking about the equal of 4 boxes of r50 ammo.

Pieter

Some of the Chinese,Korean, and Indian investment casting products are pretty good quality. There's no need to machine a split tube ring out of solid just to hold a bubble level. Bill Ruger of Ruger Firearms saw the cost reduction potential of investment casting 50 years ago.

As this current recession shows there's no such thing as a "local economy" its a global economy now as well as a global market place.

Unfortunately not all of us are blessed with £5500 budgets for our hobbies. Some of us have prior calls on our incomes or have lesser incomes per sa. I'm of the opion that if you can do it for less, then do it.

Besides paying over the odds always makes me feel as if I've been mugged. :x