• Hey All! Lately there has been more and more scammers on the forum board. They register and replies to members requests for guns and/or parts or other things. The reply contains a gmail or hotmail address or similar ”anonymous” email addresses which they want you to reply to. DO NOT ANSWER ANY STRANGE MESSAGES! They often state something like this: ”Hello! Saw your post about purchasing a stock for a Safari. KnuckleheadBob has one. Email him at: [email protected]” If you receive any strange messages: Check the status of whoever message you. If they have no posts and signed up the same day or very recently, stay away. Same goes for other members they might refer to. Check them too and if they are long standing members, PM them and ask if the message is legit. Most likely it’s not. Then use the report function in each message or post so I can kick them out! Beware of anything that might seem fishy! And again, for all of you who registered your personal name as username, please contact me so I can change it to a more anonymous username. You’d be surprised of how much one can find out about a person from just a username on a forum such ad our! All the best! And be safe! Jim

Sako 243

Sako Collectors Club Discussion Forum

lots of Finnwolf questions the last few months. What a great rifle they are.

some of us have parts, and parts on any old Sako are hard to find. The best way is to just list here what you're looking for.

DeerGoose
 
I purchased a Sako today. It is a .243 serial # 15xxx and has bofors on the barrel. I am wondering if this is what is considered a Pre garcia model. It is in excellent condition with Sako rings and a beautiful stock. Paid $600 for it.
ant info would be appreciated.
 
Oldsub- Yes it is and it's a good find . You paid a reasonable price for a great rifle. I would like to ask a question as I have found some of these with wider bottom metal (measured across the stock screw ears) than others. Would you be so kind as to give me a "not so rough" measurement and let me know. Thanks, Misako
 
I would agree with Misako, you got a good price on a great "pre-Garcia" rifle. With that serial number, it probably has the serrated half-moon floorplate latch that protrudes inside the trigger guard, correct? It's bolt probably has a bit more outward curve to it than the slightly later L579s. This keeps you from mounting some scope quite as low, but it usually is not a problem. Some of these early L579s had only longitudinal grooves on the top of the cocking piece rather than full checkering.

Misako, I've never noticed any differences in the bottom metal. Are you talking about the width of the bottom metal front and back where it narrows adjacent to the action screws? I have noted that the oldest of the L579s used a slightly narrower trigger and will not accept the slightly wider trigger of later models due to the slot in the trigger guard being too tight.
 
Stonecreek-On certain models of old L579s, if you measure the bottom metal across the stock screw areas, you can find certain rifles that take approximately 1/8" wider bottom metals that resemble the L57s without the fishbelly. The box magazine is different, the triggers are different (as you know) and of course the inletting of the stock is different. I came by this knowledge just because a "lardA#@" sat on my forester. The rest of the story is a bit lengthy. I put the barreled action in a standard forester stock, put the bottom metal away,without trying to use it too, and left things go for a few years. Then I bought a Deluxe stock from a club member and found that the bottom metal didn't fit. I tried all I had but no go. Then I found a deluxe rifle in New Hampshire and bought it sight unseen. The fellow told me that the stock wasn't much and the bottom metal didn't fit. The price was right. When I got it home from my FFL, I remembered my old engraved bottom metal and tried it and it fit perfectly. Then I tried it in the new stock bought a year previously and it fit that. I have been wanting to bring this up on the boards, but have not had time until now to "write a book" on it. Sakos can be a real challenge. (preaching to the choir, he says)-Best, Mike
 
I will have to wait to get that info for you, I had previously seen the rifle but couldn't make a deal. Out of the blue he called and asked if I was still interested. So I own the piece but don't have it in my hands yet.
 
Misako,

You've piqued my interest. I'll have to get out all of my L579's and do some measuring. I'll post the results.
 
Stonecreek- The bottom metals I've seen and documented are all on Deluxes and they are all .243. The themes (plate engravings) are a bit whimsical in nature, and follow with the natural geography of Finland. I was told that they ( themes) are a product of a school art contest sponsored by Sako. The serial numbers have ranged from 1962 vintage to late 67. I thought I saw a standard forester a few weeks ago, but he didn't give me the proper measurement and the rifle sold and went away. I couldn't ask the new owner (Auction) so I couldn't confirm.-Mike
 
Damn you, Misako! Now you done gone and put some more information in my head that I'll have to process over and over again. I was perfectly happy in my ignorance before you went and told me there were different bottom metal dimensions on L579s.

To make a long story short, by looking at my collection of L579s I find that there certainly is a difference in the widths of tangs of the bottom metal. The halfmoon and "s" lever floorplate releases measure about .725", versus the plunger releases which run about .63". But damned if I knew that the front edge of the floor plate hinge extension was square on the wide models and rounded on the narrow models!

There are some other quite interesting comparisons. Have you ever seen a bolt handle knob with a flattened underside? Drop me your email address if you'd like more.
 
Stonecreek- The flattened bolt handle (underside) is on the" Misakos First Sako" picture in the Gallery. My Grandson has that now and were scheming a deer trip this fall if school doesn't get in the way. My hotmail gets read daily and I have another at: [email protected]. Regards, Mike
 
Stonecreek- The picture is in the Misakos L57 album on page three. The two pics of the deluxe are of my first sako purchased 47 yrs ago next mo. You can clearly see the bolt handle in the second picture. Best, Misako
 
My 308 also has the flat bolt....pics in the gallery under Rick's old 308. It was a carry over from the L57 as they used many L57 parts on early 579's until they were gone They also had a variety of checkering patterns around the pistol grip and used the old floorplates. Regards, Rick.
 
I forgot....there are also 2 initials on the buttplate inside the gear at 9 and 3 o'clock on the old ones. You almost need a magnifying glass to read them. Regards, Rick.
 
Rick:

Probably "OY" and "AB". Part of the factory name.

I can't stand all of this. I'm a detail oriented type and did this drill several years ago. Check/line up your Vixens if you want a real challenge. Also look at the checkering patterns for tapering and rounding. Best I can tell, and without looking at all of my Foresters, there are three categories of differences for pure L57s, transitional L57/L579s, and pure L579s. Mike: My bet is that it Oldsubmariner's Forester measurements will be close, but not be the answer that you're looking for. I hope I'm wrong.

Sorry, it was not clear to me what you need exactly, Mike? I've got early bottom metal for sporters, not deluxes, and may be able to help out. And I did hear the story about the school engraving pattern contest. To my knowledge it is true. I've got at least 8 different patterns in my collection, maybe more.

In my opinion, this whole discussion is further evidence that our older rifles truely are custom built.

DeerGoose
 
DeerGoose- At this point, what I am trying to determine is if there are standard forresters out there with differences in bottom metal widths. I'm looking for pre-69 back to 1961. I have found deluxe L579s with wider than usual bottom metal. The overall length differs also. I measure approx. .63 for the more common (well known and recognized) to .73 for the " whimsical or lesser knowns. I am taking the measurement from across the stock screw hole area of the bottom metal. The measurements on the magazine well amount to about an 1/8" difference on average. The patterns I've encountered are "the Fish God" creature that is attacking the "kayaks", Musical Notes (scored), Oak leaves and acorns and a deer bounding thru a forest. The last two are not documented, only suspicioned. I hate asking everybody that has one for sale, on the net, to measure for me. They have problem enough with questions from potential buyers. I am very fond of the bottom metal designs I have seen in this "category" of deluxe L579s and would like to see some pictures of them on the boards if possible. Regards, Misako
 
Misako,

I have a standard grade, as well as an HB, with the wider bottom metal tangs. I haven't measured the magazine boxes, but by eye it looks pretty close to the same on both the wide and narrow tang models.

Both my .308 Deluxe (which is a serrated half moon release with wide tangs and a square floorplate hinge) and my .243 Deluxe (which is a later "S" lever release, narrow tangs, and rounded floorplate hinge piece) have the same engraving pattern. This is the one with the deer, which look for all the world like whitetails, among the stylized trees.

In its earlier days, the Sako factory was a pretty small, relatively low-volume facility. They outsourced parts like screws and springs, etc. from whatever supplier was available. There is a myth about the screws that hold on the pistol grip caps and whether they are slotted or Phillips. Both are found, of course, and the great secret as to what the difference signifies is that whichever your gun has is WHAT WAS AVAILABLE IN THE WAY OF A SCREW WHEN IT CAME TIME TO PUT THE DAMN GRIP CAP ON. I don't think there is any question that many of the variations found in Sakos are a result of changes necessitated by changes in suppliers or materials due to availability, or even changes in certain skilled personnel. Maybe one guy did it one way for a while, then another guy did it another way. Perhaps the greater wonder with Sakos is that they vary as little as they do, rather than that they vary so much.
 
Back
Top