Crossovers coming now

[MeccaOz]

But you did say you were ignoring me so I didn't really expect a response, so be it IE.

How can he tell you he is ignoring you... IF he is in fact ignoring you ? Just kidding guys, come on where all mates, with different opinions and different sets of stuff we eye closely ... I guess if you get a bunch of passionate shooters in a group it will come to fisticuffs BECAUSE MY 308 IS BETTER THAN YOUR 270

[Warrigul]

Ducks .... removes himself from in between 1290 and Chronos , laffin. To me a beautiful rifle has Damascus steel which the bluing brings out and deep dark Walnut, sand back perfectly with a nice varnished gloss. A useful rifle on the other hand and given todays technologies, is a synthetic stock stainless baRREL AND CERAKOTED BOTH AND OTHER METALLIC EXTREMITIES <<< a ghost turned my caps on, sorry. But anyway my point is different strokes for different folks. I'd say thales did there marketing research and will use there steyr aug to help market it ( which they are doing already ) and I'd say the stock and cerakoting will be part of that "Battle" toughness they will play on.

I love Stainless/synthetic from a practical point of view but I am the first to admit that my tikkas and ruger are extremely ugly, practical but ugly.

I have kept hold of a mid 19th century damascus twist shotgun with its case hardened sideplates simply to look at because it is a thing of beauty.

Quality wood and blue are nice and often more durable than some may think.

[MeccaOz]

Ducks .... removes himself from in between 1290 and Chronos , laffin. To me a beautiful rifle has Damascus steel which the bluing brings out and deep dark Walnut, sand back perfectly with a nice varnished gloss. A useful rifle on the other hand and given todays technologies, is a synthetic stock stainless baRREL AND CERAKOTED BOTH AND OTHER METALLIC EXTREMITIES <<< a ghost turned my caps on, sorry. But anyway my point is different strokes for different folks. I'd say thales did there marketing research and will use there steyr aug to help market it ( which they are doing already ) and I'd say the stock and cerakoting will be part of that "Battle" toughness they will play on.

I love Stainless/synthetic from a practical point of view but I am the first to admit that my tikkas and ruger are extremely ugly, practical but ugly.

I have kept hold of a mid 19th century damascus twist shotgun with its case hardened sideplates simply to look at because it is a thing of beauty.

Quality wood and blue are nice and often more durable than some may think.

I agree wood and bluing is tough it's been used for how many years now ? LOL and I do agree about the ugly remark, but I do hate crying like a 14 year old school girl in front my mates when a rifle gets scratched, so if it's a working gun for me, I'll coat it and go with stainless and synthetic... BTW can I come look at your shotgun ... I'll try not to drool

[1290]

But you did say you were ignoring me so I didn't really expect a response, so be it IE.

How can he tell you he is ignoring you... IF he is in fact ignoring you ? Just kidding guys, come on where all mates, with different opinions and different sets of stuff we eye closely ... I guess if you get a bunch of passionate shooters in a group it will come to fisticuffs BECAUSE MY 308 IS BETTER THAN YOUR 270

SHAAADUP, my 300 is better than your 308 pfffft!

anyway I'm apparently dumb/ignorant/arrogant, but you two up there^ are arguing about lugs and what, where they may or may not be and the colour blue??? and whether you're ignoring each other..... well I did ignore that comment too...

[WesleySnipes]

Am I the only one who thinks this rifle just looks... tacky? Compared to rifles of a similar price it seems like a bit of a gimmick.

But as I haven't held one or shot one yet that's just speculation from what I've seen so far.

And the fact that it's rear locking shouldn't really be an issue if it's made with quality materials and firing rimfire calibres. My .22 only has one and does great

[MeccaOz]

Am I the only one who thinks this rifle just looks... tacky? Compared to rifles of a similar price it seems like a bit of a gimmick.

But as I haven't held one or shot one yet that's just speculation from what I've seen so far.

And the fact that it's rear locking shouldn't really be an issue if it's made with quality materials and firing rimfire calibres. My .22 only has one and does great

Since every man and his dog has a trusty .22 I'd say gimmicks and the "Made In Australia" things are what it's banking on ... I hope with both of those comes a hardy straight shooter too

[headwerkn]

Reads like a "paid advertisement".... .

If that's the case then Lithgow Arms must be sending those cheques to the wrong address....

For the record, I'm not employed by nor receive any financial compensation by LA or Thales. I paid RRP for my own LA101 back in February and despite my dealer's best efforts, still managed to end up 200-and-something in line with Winchester Australia, so no favours there. I was a guest of theirs in March for the pre-launch press day but forked out a few hundred bucks of my own cash for flights up to Sydney to attend.

As you said, I'm a Lithgow-Slazenger (and Aussie sporting rifles in general) fan and collector, so the notion of a brand new Australian built rifle in 2014 - made in the LSAF no less - is pretty damn exciting. I can appreciate people's apprehension and concerns given the production version is still something of an unknown quantity, and not everyone can afford to throw a cool grand on sheer patriotism, but honestly some of the nonsense that has been said in regards to the CrossOver over the past 6+ months - not just here, mind you - has been downright idiotic... which is why I felt compelled to write what I wrote.

Ultimately the product itself will sink or swim on its own merits - if it's rubbish, then at best it'll be Australian made rubbish - but I think it would be a mighty shame for it to start at a disadvantage in terms of public perception because of uninformed souls trash-talking it down for whatever on-paper reasons they can muster. If it's not your idea of a perfect rifle, fine, don't buy it and wait for something to come along that is, but I think we'd all at least like to see an Aussie made rifle or three be available well into the future.... so at least until you've actually picked one up and fired it, maybe give it half a chance.

Cheers, Ben.

[MeccaOz]

Mate I hope it swims, but in saying that I wont buy it if it's crap, and I think most people who want a hunting/sporting .22 will do the same at the end of the day. I also think most guns get the same treatment, in forum terms, up's and downs, but with the crossover introduction vs wait time, I dont think it's done itself any favors, but the proof will be in the pudding, and I for 1 thankyou for your input

[headwerkn]

You're very welcome mate.

I agree wholeheartedly the delay has been unfortunate and there undoubtedly ways the company could have kept people more informed of progress. It's something they're very much aware of and with any luck they'll do better with the centrefire CrossOver variant and subsequent releases.

That said I think the fair majority of people would've much preferred LA to take the extra ~6 months to implement some of the extra suggestions they received from the initial prototypes last year, and generally get it 'right', rather than bring a product to market on time but incomplete. I honestly don't believe the market here would have tolerated a substandard product, regardless of how many kangaroo swing tags it came with.... not at that price point anyway, and definitely not one carrying the Lithgow name.

Hopefully we'll start to see some solid reports over the next couple of weeks, and see if the wait was worth it.

[MeccaOz]

You're very welcome mate.

I agree wholeheartedly the delay has been unfortunate and there undoubtedly ways the company could have kept people more informed of progress. It's something they're very much aware of and with any luck they'll do better with the centrefire CrossOver variant and subsequent releases.

That said I think the fair majority of people would've much preferred LA to take the extra ~6 months to implement some of the extra suggestions they received from the initial prototypes last year, and generally get it 'right', rather than bring a product to market on time but incomplete. I honestly don't believe the market here would have tolerated a substandard product, regardless of how many kangaroo swing tags it came with.... not at that price point anyway, and definitely not one carrying the Lithgow name.

Hopefully we'll start to see some solid reports over the next couple of weeks, and see if the wait was worth it.

I think ya nailed it on all counts, I think that green and gold Roo hanging off it, wants to make us all proud and I hope it does

[Warrigul]

until you've actually picked one up and fired it, maybe give it half a chance.

Cheers, Ben.

That is well said,

There have been quite a few knockers, some whom are at best internet experts.

I wouldn't have rushed and bought one on the basis of a prototype, I know a couple of people who have them in the pipeline and it will be very interesting to see how they go.

That will be the real test.