No synthetic stocks on a DGR? I wonder if D'Arcy Echols knows about this rule?

So it was, that I ran into the new salesman who didn't have his p's and q's straight. I should have sensed something awry when he suggested a no.3 contour for a .416, and he didn't know the common twist for a .416. He got me excited when he mentioned the stainless actions of '76 and '97 models. So I sold him a bill of goods, or he sold me.

Dakota will not build a .416 Dakota on anything less than the African configuration for bells and whistles.

Being the jaded rifle nut that I am, I do not want another nostalgic piece. I want a stainless and synthetic 7.5# .416 Dakota.

They do not chamber the '97's for any .375 H&H length cartridges.

They would not even build a .416 Dakota on a '76 Classic configuration with only three down. It has to be the drop box 4 down magazine.

There may be a point that the '76 is better, stiffer, and doesn't have the Remington style recoil lug that would surely fall off when the barrel unscrewed with the first shot of .416 Dakota.

Dakota does not want to risk there name with an inferior product such as the African Sheep Rifle II, even if done on a '76.

They would not build a rifle like Saeed's .375/404 either.

I should wait and get a stainless '76 action to build the African Sheep Rifle. And a Fluted no.5 barrel might be a good idea too. Apparently Dakota will not be building the rifle.

I just find tedious all the barrel gadgets on the walnut and blue nostalgia pieces that are compromised between open sights and scope sights.

Saeed got it right, and had to build that .375/404 himself.

Funny how Dakota is letting the .416 Dakota die and replacing it with the .404 Dakota. Another freak show. The firm making brass for Dakota said that Don Allen thought that the .416 Dakota was passe, as most preferred the Rigby or Remington in .416 caliber, and few orders for .416 Dakota ever came in, and no new orders for .416 Dakota brass were on the horizon.

Dakota does still have the reamers for the .416 Dakota, but the same inept salesman told me that. He must be from the Nesika Bay crowd that just moved in. He will soon be up to speed.

All this goes to show that Dakota is a semi-custom outfit, not a true custom gun builder, but we all new that.

RIP,

your on the right track mate. I think you need a couple of Nostalagia pieces just to satsify that niche of your collection but your hard core hunting rifles of plastic and stainless do make sense.

I think a great rifle would be (and you already have it I think). A Ruger MK11 stainless in .338 rebarreled to .416 taylor dirty old boat padel stock and all

My .404 Jeffrey with all it's African bit and pices will almost be to pretty to use....so I will turn to my cz 550 in .416 Rigby with kevlar reinforced synthetic stock in the ........weatherby configuration

My,my and all those non funcitional blue and wood stocked Holland and Holland, Jefferys, Cogswell and Harrisona and what not that have been being used in Africa since the 1900s are all worthless, even though they have held up fine for the last 100 or so years???

Then there is all my wood and blue rifles that have served me for the last 50 years that won't work simply because a bunch of baby boomers deem Stainless Steel and plastic as the only substance that will serve under severe conditions??? and Hey!, you have a bonus with them that you failed to mention, they look like my wifes Mr. Coffee, my daughters can opener, my sons truck bumper and last but not least my new cell phone!!

Bottom line is if your too lazy to take care of a rifle, then your kin to my town dog that lays on the poarch and whines when it rains, but won't move!

OK, your turn again, whine on whiner!

PC,
Ja, you got all of that right! Ditto! The decadently beautiful walnut and blue with the express paraphernalia, is great to have, to impress the uppity. I went and got the Sig Arms Magnum Mauser 98 in 450 Dakota for such as that, but will grab first for a CZ 550 in 45 Lapua if I want that kind of power. The stainless Ruger .416 Taylor in the milk jug stock is still the better "using gun", as is a CZ 550 Magnum or WinM70 of .375 caliber or larger, in a synthetic stock. No worries for wear in hard use or if lost in the swamp. Easily repaired or rebuilt, and termites are no problem for them either!

O.K. Ray, ... whimper, sniff, blubber ... Dakota said:



It's the Dakota Way or it's the highway ...



Boo hoo!



Do you know that they will not put a secondary recoil lug on any of their rifles, not even a 450 Dakota?!



They don't want to take any chances with their reputation for accuracy, and they said that any of their properly bedded walnut stocks don't need it. Just glass and pillars and crossbolts, and no barrel lugs. I was shocked!

I have got to agree with Ray on this one. Come on, we aren't talking varmint rifles here...

On my last trip I zeroed my .338 Win (synthetic stock, Rem 700 action, shoots like a dream) and my wood stocked "nostalgic" Mod 70 in .416. Guess which one was still perfectly zeroed?

I will be the first to admit that I like synthetic stocks/Rem700 (or even a custom action) in any rifle for long range work, but I can't stomach the thought of a plastic stock on a DGR. The only exception would be in AK for bears, but the only big bear I shot was with wood stocked Ruger 77. One has to wonder how I hit the thing at all, given the horrible reputation of Rugers plus the quant wooden stock that really belongs in the Smithsonian.

Ans: it was a big target

WOW! I must be a paranoid schizophrenic. I own both and love them both. GET ME SOME PILLS, QUICK!!!!

AAZW,
With a bit of psychotherapy, you and Ray both could overcome your phobia of synthetic rifle stocks on DGR's. A few others here might join you in regular group therapy sessions if you could find a meeting place.

Hang in there, there is always hope.

RIP,

Have you tried Varget in your 450 Dakota varmit rifle yet???

Andy

Those 400 grain Ballistic Tips in .458" don't open worth a damn on prarie dogs!
JCN

Andy,

Nope, sorry, but I have your recipes, and will be loading

RL-15, Varget, and H4350 ... fastest to slowest ... those are the ones I like with 450 and 500 grain softs and solids ... and maybe even the last two boxes of 600 grain Barnes Originals ... whenever I get a dull moment and need some kicks.



I shall report back, and hope I find a load for the express sights not requiring any alterations ... just looked at your loads with VVN550 ... gotta try that one too.



JCN,

Hmmm ... 400 grain Ballistic Tips ... hmmm ... I will have to have the square bridges milled for scope mounts ,,, probably not.

RIP,

Get yourself a Dakota stainless action, get one of Dan Lilja's stainless steel barrels - highly recommended. Get the stock you wish to have. A McMillan would be my first choice. And build it yourself!

Don't listen to Ray. He still has not recovered from the shock of having a plastic and stainless steel contraption, built by a camel jockey, kill his buffalos while him and his wood and blue steel custom built rifle are still traying to dodge Africa's thorn bush so they don't scratch either of them

ErikD,
I didn't set out to bash Dakota, but it is getting awfully easy to do, as you have noted. They seem to be a bit stuck on their image, and aiming at a niche market only. Hopefully they will broaden there appeal, live long and prosper. They certainly are diversifying as we speak, but it is still pretty much only as follows:

The Dakota Way or the highway, take your pick.

surestrike,
Neato! Excellent tool.

I have never cracked a Brown Precision stock, but I quess there is the occasional lemon just like with the Dakota walnut stocks, eh? I prefer the heavier McMillan for hard kickers, but if I want light weight, I put my own pillars and crossbolts in the Brown Precision.

The M70 Winchester would serve my purposes just fine, and McMillan has stocks on hand for those, no problem.

Saeed my friend,
Dakota told me they use some "local guy's" fiberglass stocks on their rifles and wouldn't even listen to my suggestion of a McMillan or Brown Precision stock. The salesman did not offer the name of the stockmaker when asked, just said "a local guy, our own stocks" then showed me a sample of the ones they put on Nesika Bay rifles , but said it was NOT HS Precision, which is just 30 miles down the road from them.

Anyway, the sum-total of all I have learned in my life, has come down to agreeing with your style of hunting rifle.

Those that squawk about the transgression of using synthetic and stainless in an African rifle have no rational leg to stand on. Their gripes are not rational, just emotional buffoonery about their delicate sensibilities.

Long Lost Brother Eric,
Thanks for confirming my suspicions about the 450 Dakota in walnut with no barrel lug.

Of course a synthetic stock would not require any barrel lug, since it wood be umpteen times stronger than walnut.

Do you have a synthetic stock on that 450 Dakota now?

Best wishes to Mom, good to hear she is doing so well.

All in all, from this thread and others, it sounds like Dakota is an unusually unfriendly and customer hostile company!

I know that several rifle buyers here in Norway have been disappointed with the quality of rifles from them (poor quality control it would seem). I have only shot one Dakota, in .375H&H, and was not impressed with its accuracy at all... The rifle itself looked nice enough, but not worth the money for what it was IMO.

Erik D.

RIP,



This rifle started life as a stainless M-70 in .375H&H. I rebarreled it with a .458 barrel and cut the chamber to a lott. I then stocked it with a Brown Precision which imediatley split. So for it's first hunt the rifle was stocked with a Houge Overmold. Double dog ugly with extra cheese but strong as an ox.



It now wears a very nicely done custom composite stock. Not pretty but all business and done for under $2000.USD. This rifle will consistantly shoot 1.5 to 2 inches at 100 yards with the ghost rings you see here.



I know, totally non-traditional but damn near bullet proof, totally water proof and unscratchable. It just screams function.

And you can buy a model-70 SS.375 for cheaper than you can buy a Dakota action. Just a thought.



Sorry if I made you puke Ray..

"If you are going to get the marble-cake wood stock, better have them make up a synthetic stock to actually hunt with."

Thats exactly 110% right. They look great but are not reliable, kinda like a few blonds I have met over the years. LOL