icebear
Sako-addicted
Just picked up an AV in 7x64 from Gunbroker. The caliber is virtually unknown here in the US, but is popular in Europe. Introduced in 1917 by Wilhelm Brenneke, it is based on the .30-06 case. There is also a rimmed version called 7x65R. Performance of the 7x64 is, for all practical purposes, the same as .270 Winchester or .280 Remington (previously called 7mm Remington Express). The 7x64 is not interchangeable with .280, however, as the Brenneke round uses a tapered case.
The rifle I bought is in like-new condition with a high-gloss "Lakka" finish. I was a bit concerned about the wood finish looking at the auction photos, as it almost looked like a bad refinish, but I made the correct guess that the problem was bad photography, not the gun itself. It can be pretty difficult to get a good photo of a very glossy object. I think the rifle is probably a bringback; there is no visible import mark and few rifles in this caliber were officially imported.
Interestingly, I was the only bidder and got it for the opening price of $1200. A few weeks ago I lost out on an auction for a Sako carbine in the same caliber that went for over $3K. Apparently the deep-pockets bidder is only interested in carbines, all the better for me. The rifle has no sights and the trigger breaks cleanly at around 2 pounds. That's OK for the range but if I ever take it hunting I'll want to turn the screw a bit to get it up to 3 or so. The wood is quite nice, but not as pretty as the .25-06 that is the subject of another current thread. It also came with a set of Sako rings in decent condition. These are the late-original rings with the wrap-around top. I mounted a Zeiss Conquest 2.5-8x scope and I'm looking forward to the local range reopening so I can see how it shoots. I've got two kinds of ammo for it and I'll be very interested to see which bullet weight works best in the Sako. My other 7x64, a German custom with a Sauer barrel, is quite accurate with 173 grain S&B ammo, but not so much with 144 grain Norma. Germans typically like heavy bullets, so I'm guessing the custom has a fast twist to the barrel. The Sako may well have a slower twist and shoot better with the 144's.
Here are photos. The first photo shows the rifle with my other metric AV, a 9.3x62 with sights and a 1.5-5x Leupold. Between the two, they pretty well cover any medium to large North American game, and most of Africa as well. The final photo shows the two Sakos and my 7x64 German custom.
The rifle I bought is in like-new condition with a high-gloss "Lakka" finish. I was a bit concerned about the wood finish looking at the auction photos, as it almost looked like a bad refinish, but I made the correct guess that the problem was bad photography, not the gun itself. It can be pretty difficult to get a good photo of a very glossy object. I think the rifle is probably a bringback; there is no visible import mark and few rifles in this caliber were officially imported.
Interestingly, I was the only bidder and got it for the opening price of $1200. A few weeks ago I lost out on an auction for a Sako carbine in the same caliber that went for over $3K. Apparently the deep-pockets bidder is only interested in carbines, all the better for me. The rifle has no sights and the trigger breaks cleanly at around 2 pounds. That's OK for the range but if I ever take it hunting I'll want to turn the screw a bit to get it up to 3 or so. The wood is quite nice, but not as pretty as the .25-06 that is the subject of another current thread. It also came with a set of Sako rings in decent condition. These are the late-original rings with the wrap-around top. I mounted a Zeiss Conquest 2.5-8x scope and I'm looking forward to the local range reopening so I can see how it shoots. I've got two kinds of ammo for it and I'll be very interested to see which bullet weight works best in the Sako. My other 7x64, a German custom with a Sauer barrel, is quite accurate with 173 grain S&B ammo, but not so much with 144 grain Norma. Germans typically like heavy bullets, so I'm guessing the custom has a fast twist to the barrel. The Sako may well have a slower twist and shoot better with the 144's.
Here are photos. The first photo shows the rifle with my other metric AV, a 9.3x62 with sights and a 1.5-5x Leupold. Between the two, they pretty well cover any medium to large North American game, and most of Africa as well. The final photo shows the two Sakos and my 7x64 German custom.
Anyway, if it shoots as well tomorrow (Feb 27) as the crystal ball says it will on Feb 28 then I suspect that it will continue to do just fine.
