Hey Mate good luck with your new setup. In regards to you questions.
Jim has said a few times that good quality scope rings are the way to go. Area 419 are the top of the range. You also have to decide wether you want to put a picatini rail on the rifle or if you want to direct mount it.
The recoil pad is a no brainer but first make sure that the stock the rifle comes with is what you want and you’re not going to change it out straight away otherwise you’ll have to buy another.
I use plugs for ear protection and don’t have much experience other than that. I’ll let someone else answer this
Basic safety glasses are good just don’t be afraid to throw them away if they get scratched as that’s the main benefit of a $2 pair of glasses.
A couple extra things you will want are:
Bi pod- make zeroing way easier and gives you massive confidence in your zero.
Rear bag- adds to the effect of the bipod.
Cleaning gear- a cleaning rod with brush and patch jag to suit a 6.5 and some kind of solvent
A bag for the rifle to transported in to protect it
In terms of hearing protection, I would recommend getting both earmuffs and ear plugs. That is, unless you are guaranteed always to be the only person at the range. If there’s the possibility of other people being there at the same time, you never know if you’re going to be next to somebody shooting a short barrel AR, or a 300RUM with an aggressive muzzle brake.
Having both allows you to double up if something like that happens. And trust me, it’s happened to me well more than once in my lifetime.
I really don’t know if the more expensive stuff really works better. I just get the typical disposable plugs from Amazon and keep them in my truck at all times and then I have a pair of Walker muffs. Again, cheaper ones might work just as well
Apologies in advance for the countless questions (which are very basic). I’m getting close. Have rifle and scope. Will be getting scope rings next. At each step, I realize I need something else. Today it’s a good vise. Tipton looks good, with decent reviews, but they seem very plastic/cheaply made. Plus on all the videos, including the ones on this channel, everybody seems to have something different. I don’t want to go crazy on this, but I don’t want to chince out either, as I have close to $2k into rifle/scope. Thanks in advance for advice.
For cleaning and simple things like that I do use one of the standard Tipton plastic vises. Seems to get the job done okay.
But for mounting Scopes or anything more aggressive than that, I have a standard bench vise in my shop. I purchased some rubber Jaws to place in it to keep from marring the rifles finish.
This is the best one that I have ever used. I have a couple of the Tipton (plastic) ones and this one is MUCH sturdier and has lasted me 5 years with no sign of wear…I highly recommend them.
