Weatherby VS Sako

Thanks for the info Zebra. I checked out the Prairie Gun Works site, and those rifles look good. All said, will it shoot $2000 better than a Sako Varmint? I asked for a quote to see how much it will cost in real life.
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Is the Weatherby .243 twist on the SVM a good ratio? I don't know anything about that kind of stuff. I like the SVM...

But..I'm leaning toward the SAKO Varmint Laminated in .243. Anyone heard of aftermarket Synthetic stocks for these guns? Darn that 23 5/8" barrel!!
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What's wrong with these guys? Why can't I get what I want? WAH WAH!!
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[ 12-26-2002: Message edited by: Davo ]
 
Davo, I was only telling you about PGW to show you that there are gun people in Canada. I see no reason why you could not purchase a remington 700 and send it to a gunsmith in the US.

FWI, I did not buy a gun from PGW I purchased an action.

Check my gunsmith dgsrifle.com. He charged me a very fair price to rebarrel my rifle, glassbed, true it up and anything else it needed.

If you buy a Sako or a Weatherby you will end up having work done to them as well.
 
I know this isn't what your wallet wanted to hear, but...you might wanna consider John M.'s advice--custom jobs, once you own one...you're hooked. The MAIN satisfying feature comes in that you can do whatever you wish; i.e. barrel length, cartridge type, neck tolerances, throat angle, trigger, action size, loading port size, right or left bolt, twist rate, groove number, stock dimensions...see?--it's like playing Scrabble... Currently, those great folks out in Idaho <makers of BAT actions> are making me one really weird looking action, and it has a bunch of strange features that I'd never get with a factory option. The BIG advantage is barrels--if you don't have the money to get a custom action...so what? Not a big deal. The barrel is the wonder-wand. Don't get me wrong, everything has to be true, and having a good gunsmith put it all together cannot be over-emphasized, but with a barrel comes the freedom to choose a chambering that'll do exactly what YOU want. If I were you, and I were thinking about shots between 300 and 1200, I'd be damned tempted to look at medium chamberings, like the quarter-bore, the 6.5, or even a 7mm. Most people think of magnums in that caliber, but Sierra's 130gr matching set in a case with about the 7-08's capacity would do nicely with a 29" barrel in a 1-11 or 1-12" twist.
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Barrel life might be the main advantage there, although a good 6mm is tough to beat, also. The 243 is an all right cartridge, no doubt, but...I don't know how long your barrel would last if you shoot it A LOT [not long, if I recall chatting with Mr. Tubb on one occasion!--but High Power is a far cry, I suspect.] If you don't abuse it, it can be great <I've heard the improved version is the best route to take--less case stretching, and--for some reason--more consistant ballistics.>

The Twist rate for Weatherby's SVM in .243 is...1-10". Has a 26" barrel, #4 contour, and weighs...I think about 8.5lbs. They will shoot 1/2 MOA groups, minimum, from my experience. Brand new US dollars, probably looking at $1200. Now, if you can find a nice used action $200-300, barrel for $300-400, depending on what you do, stock for $400-700 <if you like fancy>, and some gunsmithing...you will have a tad more invested, but you will have the option of any chambering you wish, and possibly more accuracy. Touch call, huh?
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That Sako is nice, but with such a short barrel, shooting heavy bullets with slow powders...well, I personally wouldn't like the outcome {I once shot a .264 WinMag that some lunatic had barrel-shortened to 22" <talk about senseless>; I was the biggest idiot of all for shooting it. It'd literally blow your hair back upon ignition!!} Don't think you'll have that problem with a .243, though..
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Dave
 
I agree with CYBRA 100%. The one problem with used rifles is the lefty issue - they are a bit harder to find. I purchased a Rem 700 LSS because I wanted a stainless action to match my stainless barrel. The smith beadblasted them and it looks great.

Synthetic Stocks - Mcmillian
http://www.mcmfamily.com/

Click on the link for Mcmillian Fiberglass stocks.
 
Davo "I'm not a lefty,,, not sure where that one came from... ".

Sorry, I threw that into the thread on the third or fourth posting, my problem, not yours.
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Sorry, Davo someones else in the thread said they were lefty, I got confused. Happens a lot at my age (35)
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Anyway....if your not lefty then you HAVE TO build a custom.

Pick up a remington ADL for under $300.
In fact, pick up a new adl with a Synthetic Stock for $400 (go to gunbroker.com or go to a gun dealer)
All you have to do after that is rebarrel $500 if you go crazy. Gunsmith under $300.
Now you talking $1200 for a gun way better than any Weatherby or Sako. Plus, when you get an itch you can put a mcmillian stock on it.

I smell a Krieger heavy contour for your new bad boy!
 
Wow...this thread's getting large an` in charge.. By the time we're done, we'll all be getting custom rigs.
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What the heck, right? Money grows on trees--problem is, there's damned few trees left.

About the left-handed action, as this is something that should be addressed [shooting without your dominant eye CAN be compromising; I know, I'm right handed and left eye dominant.] You can train your right eye to compare with the left, but it takes effort and PATIENCE. For those who are more comfortable shooting southpaw-style, there are actions out there in lefthand fashion. Think WELL on this BEFORE you build your ultimate gun. Weatherby has some in their Ultralights, and in their Accumark lineup. I have seen them for sale at sporting goods stores. Odds of finding one cheap...are not that good, obviously, but if you did, there is no reason a Mark V action, rebarrelled and `smithed by someone who knows what they are doing, can't be made to shoot accurately. Hell, my favorite design of all is a three or four lug design, with my sniffer telling me three lugs being optimum, but that is a fairly uneducated opinion, and MOST benchguns today are built off actions that use two lugs. So, Mr. Browning, no need to fret, left-handed actions on a commercial basis are available. Do some wed-browsing, see what other dealers offer. I could swear Sako makes some lefthanders as well, but not 100% sure on that.

With regards to after-market stocks, let me say this; like everything, you get what you pay for. As far as structural soundness, a lot of folks like McMillan {I own one; I'm currently getting another from Alex Sitman, so I'll let you know when that comes about.} Sheshane's stocks seem to have a good rep. Hell, there's a smathering of good ones out there today. The factor that will get you is bedding it; a lousy job there will turn the best action/barrel/stock into an embarrssment that will cost more money and time to fix, so don't bang yourself there. If a person is looking for an order of importance...I would have to say going custom on the barrel is probably the area to yield the most freedom. Then the gunsmithing and stock-work, tied with optics <if your optics won't repeat, you'll go insane before long>, then the action. This assumes a reasonable action/trigger assembly to begin with. I put scopes second because you can get a different scope much faster than you can a barrel! Rest assured, once you get started down the dark path, forever will it dominate your <fanancial> destiny. I think one thing people overlook a lot anymore is practice; components cost a lot these days. How much QUALITY practice could a person dish themselves if they bought a $300 action versus a $1250 action? Then again, rather than skimp on the action, why not go on a diet for a year. I did <and boy...did it suck!!!> Rangefinders, actions, barrles, triggers, stocks, Bigeyes, Chronos, brass, bullets, high-end measuring tools, ballistics software, cleaning supplies; hell...I'll never get to college.

Dave

PS that would make for another good thread; ask the boys what THEIR ultimate idea for a stock would be. A great way to get a list of leads, for certain; it's very important to pick a stock that is just right for you, if you're going to pick a stock. For what they cost, you might as well get something that's going to fit you like your favorite T. A good stock becomes critical, I'd say, when shooting something either heavy, or..FFFIERCE.
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Stock chioces will obviously depend on your tasks, the action/barrel you chose, and what colors you like.
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As an alternative to something that doesn't cost as much, you could also buy a used SVM in .243, have a GOOD gunsmith take the barrel off, cut a different chamber and perhaps sacrifice about a half-inch or so of barrel length, true everything up as best as possible, and maybe have him glass bed it, or do it yourself. If done right, the gun should be able to shoot .3" groups, really. Maybe .5", but should hold them between the two figures. And their [Weatherby/Sako] factory triggers are tough to beat. I fiddled with one of mine, and got it down to a crisp break at 1.75lbs. This option is there for those who would prefer a Sako or Weatherby action. IF you could find one of those cheap enough, the aforementioned routes noted in previous posts are quite acceptable!
 
If you are considering custom actions one you really want to look at is the Viper series by Jerry Stiller. They are $850 with trigger guard and scope bases. Absolutly top of the line and make great big bore shooters. Heard Precision Shooting was doing a story in this months issue about them.

BH
 
I love my accumark, it has a great stock and I got to go through quite a few before diciding on the one with the best trigger. Out of the box it shot rem long range 190 btsp and federal nosler partitions into 3/4". With handloads it will consistently shoot into 5/8-3/4 m.o.a at 100 yrds and it gets better, at 300 1.35" Weatherby gets a lot of flack but in my opionion it and Browning will usually out shoot any other rifle out of the box.

If you are going to customize most any of the common actions can be made into a great shooter.

to use out of the box buy Weatherby or Browning.
 
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