icebear
Sako-addicted
Today was the local gun show. I spend a couple of hours walking around, my eyes glaze over at table after table of AR-15's and plastic .380's, and I'm getting bored and it's almost time to bag it. I'd seen a couple of interesting handguns, a Colt Gold Cup and a Ruger .41 Magnum Redhawk with a 2x Leupold, but neither made me want to let go of $1200. Then, in the last faraway corner of the show, I spotted a fitted case with what looked like it might be a Valmet 412. And indeed it was. And what a Valmet! The deluxe, engraved, high-end two-barrel set with 9.3x74R double rifle barrels and 12 gauge shotgun barrels with screw-in chokes. And an extra stock and forend to go with the shotgun barrels. And the famous Valmet combination choke wrench/bottle opener. And the original Valmet manual and proof certificates for both barrel sets. And a fitted aluminum case with a zippered canvas cover. And, to put the chocolate sauce on the sundae, seven boxes of 9.3x74R ammo (6 Norma, 1 Hornady) and a set of Hornady dies still in the sealed plastic wrapper. Money changed hands and the whole shootin' match came home in my pickup.
I knew these sets existed but I'd never seen one in person. I don't know if this was a regular production item or some kind of commemorative. I doubt many were ever made. It's engraved everywhere including the scope mount . There are three engraved animals on the receiver: a bear, a lion, and a duck. This fits the two sets of barrels provided - the 9.3x74R is a dangerous-game cartridge. The engraving extends even to the forend latch.
The three-leaf folding express sights (75/150/250 m) and the filler piece between the barrels are luxury touches not found on standard grade Valmet double rifles. The hooded front sight has a white bead. The QD scope mount mates to an alignment notch on the receiver, ensuring a return to zero if it is removed.
I'm not sure whether the fitted case is original or was added by the dealer who sold it (there was a note from a dealer in Vegas tucked inside one of the spare chokes). The foam in the case looks like it was cut by hand, not on a factory pattern, and there are cutouts whose purpose I cannot guess. The leather label on the canvas cover reads Dunn's. In any case, it's a heavy, rugged aluminum case that holds and protects the whole set nicely.
I don't think this set has ever been fired since it left Tourula. There's no sign of use on either set of barrels, and the seller told me that neither he nor the guy he got it from had ever fired it. No cartridges are missing from the seven boxes of ammo. The surface gunk feels like it is left over from 1989, when the shotgun barrels were proofed. Lockup is so tight that I may have to use a rubber mallet to get it open to clean it up.
I did have one Sako-related encounter at the show. I dropped by to talk to a dealer who had had an interesting L61R .338 Deluxe at the previous show. (I posted something about it at the time.) The rifle had some fancy carving on the stock, including an elaborate carving of a bear on the right side of the buttstock. I've seen photos of one or two carvings like it in photos posted on this forum. As it happened, a guy was there buying that very rifle. It was his first Sako and he was quite excited about it. I told him about the Sako Collectors Club and encouraged him to visit the website, register as a member, and post photos of his new Sako. We'll see if he follows up.
Here are some photos of my new Valmet set. I'm hyped to shoot it, but that will depend on the weather and how long it takes me to clean the dried gunk off it.
I knew these sets existed but I'd never seen one in person. I don't know if this was a regular production item or some kind of commemorative. I doubt many were ever made. It's engraved everywhere including the scope mount . There are three engraved animals on the receiver: a bear, a lion, and a duck. This fits the two sets of barrels provided - the 9.3x74R is a dangerous-game cartridge. The engraving extends even to the forend latch.
The three-leaf folding express sights (75/150/250 m) and the filler piece between the barrels are luxury touches not found on standard grade Valmet double rifles. The hooded front sight has a white bead. The QD scope mount mates to an alignment notch on the receiver, ensuring a return to zero if it is removed.
I'm not sure whether the fitted case is original or was added by the dealer who sold it (there was a note from a dealer in Vegas tucked inside one of the spare chokes). The foam in the case looks like it was cut by hand, not on a factory pattern, and there are cutouts whose purpose I cannot guess. The leather label on the canvas cover reads Dunn's. In any case, it's a heavy, rugged aluminum case that holds and protects the whole set nicely.
I don't think this set has ever been fired since it left Tourula. There's no sign of use on either set of barrels, and the seller told me that neither he nor the guy he got it from had ever fired it. No cartridges are missing from the seven boxes of ammo. The surface gunk feels like it is left over from 1989, when the shotgun barrels were proofed. Lockup is so tight that I may have to use a rubber mallet to get it open to clean it up.
I did have one Sako-related encounter at the show. I dropped by to talk to a dealer who had had an interesting L61R .338 Deluxe at the previous show. (I posted something about it at the time.) The rifle had some fancy carving on the stock, including an elaborate carving of a bear on the right side of the buttstock. I've seen photos of one or two carvings like it in photos posted on this forum. As it happened, a guy was there buying that very rifle. It was his first Sako and he was quite excited about it. I told him about the Sako Collectors Club and encouraged him to visit the website, register as a member, and post photos of his new Sako. We'll see if he follows up.
Here are some photos of my new Valmet set. I'm hyped to shoot it, but that will depend on the weather and how long it takes me to clean the dried gunk off it.