It did not happen often but you do see them that way from time to time. They were very long and because of the length of the scope many gunsmiths of that era would drill and tap holes for the scope mount into the barrel by the rear sight. One of the drawbacks with the Unertl optics is how it had an effect on the collectability of certain firearms. It would be a very pleasurable experience for them and yourself as well.
Those combinations are great for taking your kids out and teaching them how to shoot. Unertl scopes are still very usable today and can be a good investment especially if you can find them mounted on the Remington 40x or Winchester 52 target rifles. Shooting those guns was an experience I will never forget and it was quite enjoyable. You could litterly shoot the toes off those squirrels. I could shoot and watch everything that happened. Because the guns were so heavy there was absolutely no recoil and with the 24 power scopes the squirrels looked like the size of bears in the scope. I remember taking one of those two Remington rifles to my in-laws farm and shooting squirrels and chipmunks with those rifles. They were both from the 1950s era and were in really top notch condition. I had two Remington model 40x target guns with 24 power scopes that a gentleman brought into our shop in Northeast Pennsylvania for us to sell. I had the pleasure of shooting a few Remington 40x target rifles and also a few Winchester 52 target rifles that were mounted with the Unertl target scopes. They would produce target scopes from the 8 power to 24 powers, and I considered them a great line of target scopes. Unertl scopes from the 1950s and 60s era were probably the prominent target scope made in that era.