Not the usual suspects

Bolt action rifles, lever action, pump action, self loading rifles and other miscellaneous longarms.

Not the usual suspects

Post by sally-bee » 17 Mar 2015, 3:23 pm

Hi all,

Admittedly an inexperienced shooter here so could just be me but here it is.

I notice in conversations most people are shooting one of a handful of brands. Tikka, Remington, Ruger, Howa and maybe Savage. Marlin a bit less, some CZ, Browning, Winchester and Sako.

Sounds like a lot but I see others which people hardly ever mention. Steyr, Surgeon rifles, Zastava, Thompson, Taurus...... A few like Armalite and Christensen rifles but I know they're very expensive so that's understandable.

Just curious I guess.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by North East » 17 Mar 2015, 3:28 pm

Everyone has a favourite I guess. Most modern firearms are accurate and all will do the job. A lot depends on how much you to spend.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Jack V » 17 Mar 2015, 3:55 pm

You forgot the best gun off all a Sako !
It's a fact that more expensive usually means better but not always . Shooting skill , reloading skill , gun tuning skill all play a big part , so some people with fairly cheap guns can shoot just as good as some with very expensive ones because they may have extra skills . However take the very skilful shooter and give him the best gun possible and he will beat us all.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by fenderstrat » 17 Mar 2015, 7:24 pm

Not a fan of modern rifles myself.... I own a Lithgow SMLE in .303, and now a Mauser 98k in .308. Neither of those has a scope... I'll admit its harder to use iron sights over long ranges but thats the way i like it...
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Combat_Wombat » 17 Mar 2015, 7:28 pm

I probably would have a steyr and sako but when I bought my rifles I was on apprentice wages it was a matter of get a cheaper (but perfectly decent) rifle now or save an extra few months. But at the end of the day I'm perfectly happy with what I've got.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Oldbloke » 17 Mar 2015, 7:34 pm

North East wrote:Everyone has a favourite I guess. Most modern firearms are accurate and all will do the job. A lot depends on how much you to spend.


Spot on.

And you often pay a lot for the furniture, but the action will be identical.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by brett1868 » 17 Mar 2015, 8:05 pm

Here's the brands I have, in no particular order...
Sako, Desert Tech, Marlin, Henry, PWS, Steyr, McMillan, Weatherby, Akkar, Barrett and Mossburg I think covers them all. No Tikka or Howa, not because they are not a good rifle but because they won't on the shelf when I went shopping. Although there's a very nice little Tikka on the agenda shortly... Rifles are a bit like cars, every one has different likes, requirements and budgets and just because a certain brand is cheaper doesn't make it any less accurate. The most accurate rifle I've ever owned was a Russian Vostok single shot 22LR that consistently grouped 1/4" @ 50m and only cost me $99 brand new. My >$10,000 Steyr can't match that accuracy.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Oldboy 7mm Dakota » 17 Mar 2015, 9:16 pm

I Have all customs in wildcat cartridges but have owned most other brands christensen arms was the worst by far and was returned.
With factory rifles you get a great shooter or a bad 1, so thats why i have gone custom for the last ten years and they all shoot better than I can . My next build is a 375 cheytac . Berger are releasing their new projectiles this year.
7mm Dakota. 6mm dasher, 338 edge and 375 cheytac on the build now.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Jack V » 17 Mar 2015, 9:21 pm

fenderstrat wrote:Not a fan of modern rifles myself.... I own a Lithgow SMLE in .303, and now a Mauser 98k in .308. Neither of those has a scope... I'll admit its harder to use iron sights over long ranges but thats the way i like it...

I bet money if I put my Sako 308 / 338 neck match chamber gun in your hands and you experienced how good it shoots you would dump the 303 in the river speaking metaphorically that is .
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Oneshot270 » 17 Mar 2015, 10:38 pm

Like the others have said get something that suits you and the kind of shooting you will be doing. If you only intend to buy 1 or 2 rifles get something decent but if you just want a utility rifle go something cheaper. I've used a $15,000 .425 Wesley Richards to hunt Buffalo but I preferred to use our backup rifles which were a .375 H&H & .458 WIN MAG in Brno 602's simple less than $1,000 and deadly accurate. It's horses for courses but it all comes down to budget.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by sally-bee » 18 Mar 2015, 10:42 am

Jack V wrote:You forgot the best gun off all a Sako !


Added Sako just for you Jack :P

Price doesn't mean quality, you're right. Seems more to the sides than just that though.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Rippah » 18 Mar 2015, 10:44 am

sally-bee wrote:Sounds like a lot but I see others which people hardly ever mention. Steyr, Surgeon rifles, Zastava, Thompson, Taurus...... A few like Armalite and Christensen rifles but I know they're very expensive so that's understandable.


Steyr ain't cheap either.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Jack V » 18 Mar 2015, 10:45 am

sally-bee wrote:Added Sako just for you Jack :P


You're too kind :)
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Chickenhawk » 18 Mar 2015, 10:45 am

Oldboy 7mm Dakota wrote:Berger are releasing their new projectiles this year.


New projectiles? Do tell...
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by fenderstrat » 18 Mar 2015, 1:37 pm

Jack V wrote:I bet money if I put my Sako 308 / 338 neck match chamber gun in your hands and you experienced how good it shoots you would dump the 303 in the river speaking metaphorically that is .


Unlikely, to me nothing beats the feel of a piece of history in your hands... that being said, i wouldnt mind trying one of those! :lol:
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Warrigul » 18 Mar 2015, 1:40 pm

fenderstrat wrote:Unlikely, to me nothing beats the feel of a piece of history in your hands... that being said, i wouldnt mind trying one of those! :lol:


Yup,

Nothing beats using an old military rifle,

Often super accurate = super boring.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Jack V » 18 Mar 2015, 1:43 pm

fenderstrat wrote:Unlikely, to me nothing beats the feel of a piece of history in your hands... that being said, i wouldnt mind trying one of those! :lol:


I do appreciate a bit of history myself and no one can minimise the contribution of the SMLE rifles or the Mauser 98 . I would not mind a 308W take down on a No 4 action but it costs too much to do.
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Re: Not the usual suspects

Post by Sender » 18 Mar 2015, 3:03 pm

Warrigul wrote:Often super accurate = super boring.


Mmm, yes and no.

I'll take a 'super accurate' rifle any day. But I'm buggered if I can figure out these guys that drop $4k on an expensive target rig and shoot at 100m or 200m all day.
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