Hey there, channel fans and family, and welcome back to Slav Guns. If you’ve ever mounted a scope, cranked down a ring screw, and then realized your reticle is tilted, this one’s for you. At SHOT Show 2020 I stopped by the Fix It Sticks booth, and they showed me a new tool that I honestly think could become the way to mount and level a scope.
Quick note: this is a booth first look from SHOT Show 2020, with Christian from Fix It Sticks walking us through the new lineup. I didn’t take these tools home for range testing for this piece.
TL;DR
- New torque tool: an all-in-one torque driver that works more like a traditional beam torque wrench than Fix It Sticks’ click-free torque limiters.
- Two new kits: a PRS competition kit and a 3-gun match kit, both built around their torque tools plus rifle tools, bits, a ratcheting T-way handle, and a squib kit.
- Price at the time: Christian said both kits would retail right around the $380 mark when they launched that spring.
- The star of the show: the Scope Jack, a little lift that sits under your optic and holds it level while you tighten your rings.
Who is Fix It Sticks?
If you shoot precision rifle, there’s a good chance you already know the name. Fix It Sticks is best known for its torque limiters, the little drivers that stop at a set inch-pound value so you don’t strip a screw or crush a scope tube. For 2020 they built on that with a new torque tool, a couple of complete kits, and one very clever scope-mounting gadget.
The all-in-one torque driver
The new all-in-one torque driver works a little differently from their torque limiters. Instead of a fixed limiter that releases at one value, Christian described it as working more like a traditional beam torque wrench. So you get one tool that covers a range of values instead of a handful of separate limiters.
PRS competition kit
This is the kit aimed squarely at precision rifle shooters. Per Christian, it includes:
- Fix It Sticks torque tools
- Rifle tools and a nice collection of bits
- The new ratcheting T-way handle
- Bubble levels for mounting your optic
- A squib kit
- A couple of other odds and ends
For a match bag, that covers most of what goes wrong at a PRS stage: a loose screw, a scope that needs re-leveling, or a stuck bullet in the bore.
3-gun match kit
The 3-gun kit takes the same idea and spreads it across rifle, pistol, and shotgun. It includes the torque tools (you can get it with either the torque limiters or the new all-in-one tool), the ratcheting T-way, punches, rifle, pistol, and shotgun tools, and a squib kit. Christian said both kits would be available that spring at right around $380 each.
The Scope Jack: my favorite thing in the booth
This is the tool that got me excited. The Scope Jack fits under your optic and has a small polymer roller on top. You lift it up, it mates with the bottom of your scope, and it lands perfectly level. The big win is that you can actually tighten your rings while the Scope Jack holds the scope level. When you’re done, pop it out and that’s it.
Anyone who has fought with a reticle that rolls a few degrees every time you snug a ring screw knows why that matters. A canted reticle means your holds and dialed elevation don’t go straight up and down, and at distance that turns into misses left or right. Holding the scope level while you torque is the step most of us fumble, and this tool takes it off your hands.
Who it’s for
If you mount and swap optics often, shoot PRS or NRL style matches, or run 3-gun and want one bag that covers everything, these kits make a lot of sense. If you already own a set of torque limiters, the Scope Jack on its own is the piece I’d look at first.
For more from that trip, check out my SHOT Show 2020 Media Day at the range recap, and if you’re shopping for a scope to mount, see my Sightmark Latitude 8-32×60 review. The bench tools and range gear I use are in my Amazon picks.
Bottom line
Fix It Sticks didn’t reinvent the torque wrench for 2020, but they packaged their tools into two useful match kits and came up with the Scope Jack, which solves one of the most annoying parts of mounting a scope. That one little lift is the reason this booth stuck with me.
Want more gear and SHOT Show content? Join the channel.
Keep squatting.
How do you level your scope when you mount it: bubble levels, a plumb line, or just eyeballing it? Tell me in the comments.
Some links are affiliates.
Comments