I have been reading the Blaser R93 discussion with interest. I am planning to buy a takedown rifle or 2 for travel. I want to transport my gun(s) inconspicuously in a rolling duffle just like my shotguns.

The comments about the Blaser have me convinced to remove it from consideration. I am looking for advice from anyone out there with hands on experience with other take down bolt action rifles.

.

I take a blaser or a double rifle in a small hard case wich then fits into my Canvas and Leather duffle bag. the Sauer 202 has a good reputation from what I hear.

Sauer 202 Definitely. I would not bother with the takedown version. Stock comes of the standard version in a few seconds. Overall length without stock is under 30 inches.

Get a magnum version with a 300 and a 375 or 416 barrel.

Regards

AK,
My friend David Guitar just returned from a 21 day hunt in Tanzania. He took his Blaser with two barrel 375 H&H, and a .257 Wby., and his Merkel 500 3 inch double. The Merkel stayed in the case.

He and his wife use the Blaser. He was very pleased with the rifle.

I have shot that rifle and it is very accurate!

AK Hunter
I have 3 Blaser R 93 recievers and 8 different barrels. I have not had a single problem. I have shot the Blaser quite a bit.
Ask any questions that you might have.

Merkel also has a new switch-barrel bolt action rifle that's probably worth checking out.

one of the things doubles have going for them is the takedown travel thing. BUT all it takes for your regular old bolt action is to remove the 2 or 3 screws and take the barreled action out of the stock for travel, then screw it back together again. YES you may have to fire a couple of rounds to settle it in and maybe resight it, but thats a whole lot cheaper than buying a new rifle. Course if you need an excuse!!

The new Mauser takedown received good reviews in a gun mag I just read. Pricey but seems to be worth it.

AK HUNTER, I have a Sauer 202 takedown just like the one in Alf's post. I have a 375 H&H and a 416 REM barrel and I am thinking of buying the 300 Win Mag barrel. It is not cheap, but it is well worth the money. IMO it is of the highest quality. You can remove the barrel in about 5 seconds. Sauer has been a quality gun for many years. CHEERS

quote:

Originally posted by ALF:
Sauer 202 Take down !
Stunningly accurate and it comes in excellent claiber combinations. eg. a 416 Rem and a 300 caliber.
My hunting partner bought one recently in a 375 H&H and the rifle laike all the older coneventional Sauer 202's really perform well.

From the Sauer website:

I know the Takedown model is n't much on top of the standard Sauer which is almost a takedown. But what a nice piece of work. And it fits into a compact case for travel.

Nowadays when flying you have to put it separately when flying but when checking into hotels, travelling around etc it is so much nicer to have one where no one needs to know you have firearms.

Marry one of these with a nice double in a plains game calibre plus maybe a .375 or a .416 and the possibilities are endless.

Alert!!!

I see a problem here.................THE SAUER IS A POS PUSHFEED and nobody has mentioned it YET. The CRF police here on AR are not doing their job.

Actually I had a SAUER 90??? maybe. It was the nicest gun I ever owned off the shelf. I didn't like the clip magazine but everything else was top notch and it had the smoothest action I've ever used.

Back to the original suject I think what Butch said makes the most sense particularly with a synthetic stock. My experience is a properly bedded rifle will come almost exactly back to point of aim after removing and reinstalling the stock.

Mark

I have H&S takedowns in 300 Win and 375 RUM. They are push feeds but they work. Both are very accurate and are reliable. You can occasionally find them for about $2500 used. I understand lead times are now about 10 months.

quote:

The comments about the Blaser have me convinced to remove it from consideration.

What comments. The ones from people who have never owned one? I heard the "sky is falling" so why bother buying anything.

They're both nice rifles but I personally feel the sauer is a bit shiny for African hunting and if I was being picky I'd add that I don't think the safety (release) catch being inside the trigger guard is a particularly good idea. sure it's fine if the guy handling it knows what he's doing but I like to work on the lowest common denominator which is that not everyone actually knows what they're doing.

That said the Blaser also has it's faults. - but that's a subject for another thread that I'll start shortly..........

I borrowed an HS Precision take down rifle for my first safari. It had the option of both the 300 Win Mag and 416 Rigby.

The rifle was very accurate, even when changing barrels/scopes. But, it could have gotten me killed. The drop box magazine release was on the inside of the trigger guard. When I shot my first buffalo, the recoil forced my trigger finger into the release and the drop box became disengaged. Lukily, I killed the buffalo with the first shot. As the hunt progressed, I duct taped the box in.

.

Alf,

I was referring to the metalwork - I personally think a dull finish to this makes a world of difference for African hunting.... - Like you, I also think their build quality is excellent.

- I agree that the RSA CFR people seem to be a lot happier for hunters to have multiple barrels rather than multiple rifles.

.

Alf,

I've never looked at their website and have based my opinion on the ones I've seen clients bring out on safari.

They're certainly well built and very accurate and I wouldn't say they're a bad rifle by any means. -but I wouldn't own one myself for the previously stated reasons. I also personally prefer a floor plate on my rifles rather than a removeable magazine.

all a matter of personal choice really.

I am owning 2 Sauer and 3 barrels : 7*64, 300WM and 375HH. In Africa the all-purpose 375HH is enough.
The Sauer 202 offers a detachable butt and a detachable barrel. It results no rifle is less cumbersome.

I am not owning the takedown Sauer. Mines have detachable barrels and detachable butt.

The takedown model is a real takedown, extremely fast in swaping of barrels, which is not the case with the usual Sauer or Blaser (and now Merkel and Mauser 03). Of course the butt is detachable too.


The blueing is admissible. Personnally I opted for a very dull blueing. However, a visit at the Vics fall before coming back in France makes it rust in the gun case, the ultra-wet atmosphere.

The safety catch is switched On on the tang and is removed in the trigger catch. I am accustomed and nothing is easier for the forefinger bumps in the catch if the safety is ON.

IMHO, only Sauer is offering a mass producted takedown rifle at an almost sensible price.

.

Mark H, Young, I too have noticed that the CRF Walter Mittys have not jumped on this Sauer thread. I personal think that a lot of CRF posters have never hunted DG and never will. I will take a Quality Sauer any day over a lesser quality CRF. CHEERS

My latest idea for a neat African Battery is a takedown CZ548 O/U double in .458 Lott and a old Sauer Drilling in 12X12ga X8X57JRS ( with detachable scope. Both guns fit in a nice small Cabellas aluminum case and will fit into the bottom of their Cabellas matching duffle bag. THIS set-up does not SCREAM -Valuable Hunting Guns-PLEASE STEAL ME.
I've taken this rig to hotels and there is simply nothing to give it away. The CZ458 Lott weighs 8.5lbs and is a joy to carry and shoots 2" offhand groups at 50 yrds. Perfect for Buff or ELE walks! The Drilling will shoot into 2 inches at 200 yrds and will also provide the opportunity for some francolin or guinea fowl if you like a little diversion on Safari. Damn near perfect battery and way more stealthy than a Tuff PAC.-Rob

Alf,

It's a bit different here as you know!!!

Thr reason I don't like the removeable mag is that so many clients end up dropping them in the dust and then they have to clean them before they can insert them into the rifle.....always seems to happen when we get onto game........ sod's law I suppose.

Alf,

You missed the dripping sarcasm.

MZEE,

HMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!

Rob,

You will get away with the CZ O/U with the double gun guys here on AR. I on the other hand was bashed, skinned and filetted when I mentioned the same rifle after my safari in '03. The PH on that hunt had one of those CZ's with a lengthened stock and it pointed like a bird gun and could not have been more handy. The concensus by the experts here was that it really was a POS and it being chambered for the 458 WM made it worse plus it wasn't a rimmed cartridge. Anyway I too think it would make a heck of a close cover gun. Also they are inexpensive if you can get one.

The drilling sounds interesting and definitely would cover plains game and birds completely. The 8x57 in its various forms is underated in my book.

Like you said that combo could be very inconspicuos while traveling.

Regards,

Mark

Well folks I'm one of those who will not hunt Dangerous game with a pushfeed rifle, or a double with a rimless cartridge. I'll also say right up front I have hunted dangerous game for most of my life, to the point not much else interests me! So, I don't know who it is, here who hasn't hunted them, and is a staunch CRF, and S/S double rifle addict!

NOW! With that out of the way, The Sauer rifles, take down or not are very well made rifles, and the mill work alone justifys their price tag, which is certainly not cheap. The quality far out shadows anything made in the states. Quality will not be argued by me, and like the Steyr Mannlicher are very well made rifles. NOW! I didn't say that I consider these rifles to be the best choice for a DGR, and the reason I don't like either of them for that purpose is, #1 They are PUSH FEED! #2 they have removable magazines (as some call "CLIPS")! #3 the action openings are too confined and are very hard, and slow to reload, or to clear a jam. Admittedly, these quality arms do not often go out of service, because they are about as well engineered as as a PF rifle can be, but still are push feed, none the less. The take down feature is very well engineered as well, on the Sauer, and if I had no other choice other than a PF rifle, the Sauer, or Steyr would be on the top of the list. Though both rifles are quality, they both could benefit from a few changes.

As for the CZ O/U double rifle, my opinion is they are strong, and well made, but as ugly as a mudd fence. Of course a Cape Buffalo will not notice an ugly gun, only that it shoots him, and he will take issue with that only! I, again do not like O/U double rifle for DGR duty, and when you top that off with a belted rimless chambering, it becomes a little silly, IMO. RGB's CZ 458LOTT O/U, IMO, would have made more sense if chambered for a 450NE 3 1/4", or 450#2NE, lowering the pressures not raiseing them. Even though the CZ wouldn't be my pick, so chambered, for a DGR, I still would rather have it, even with a belted rimless chambering than any bolt rifle in a tight spot, but not by much. Not as much because of the belted rimless chambering, but because of the O/U configuration.

Now,if you could make either of the bolt rifles CRF, and with a fixed magazine, and open the ejection port some, they would absolutely be my pick, because of the quality they embody. If the double could have it's barrels twisted around to S/S, and a rimmed cartridge chambered then the ugly could be overlooked. In the final analysis, they both will kill anything on Earth with the proper cartridge, placed in the proper place, but neither would be "MY"choice!

Now does that satisfy all the people who want to start a CRF, O/U war????

If the price is not prohibitive [about $7500] Dakota makes a CRF takedown without a detachable magazine [hinged floorplate]. You can get it in whatever caliber you wish and add other calibers that work with the bolt face. As an example Dakota has in inventory a 330/404 Dakota Traveler on hand for about $8700. That would be a very versatile combo.

.

Alf,

Where can one find more info on these as the Sigarms website is woefully lacking ? Thanks and great to see you back to full speed.

DB

.

ALF,
do you own stock in sauer?

.

Alf

Why not add a 9.3x64 barrel to your existing Sauer 202 in 6.5 & 8 x68?

It uses the same bolt head in the Sauer and you virtually have the same as .270 and 9.3x62 except better.

Alf,
Does it use EAW scope mounts?
Thanks,
Lawndart

I must admit i wasn't impressed when my brother bought the mod200 years ago but that might have been because the balance was a bit off with a 8x56 scope on it, on the other had i could live with that Hatari modle in maybe 7x64 and 9.3x62 or 300w and 9.3x64 but then a 416 wouldn't be bad to.

quote:

Originally posted by lawndart:
Alf,
Does it use EAW scope mounts?
Thanks,
Lawndart

I'm not Alf, but nevertheless...

The Sauers can use EAW mounts. Sauer also sells a pivot mount branded with their own name. In reality it is an EAW, or at least the way it works is exactly the same, but the bases are contoured to match the receiver shape. I would not be the least bit surprised if EAW manufactured the mount for Sauer, they are that similar. The Sauer version is more expensive than the EAW, though.

The pivot mount rings on Alf's scope sure look like they are EAWs (or Sauers).

- mike

My SAUER MOD 90 has RECKNAGEL mounts, very similar to EAW, I agree that the SAUER mounts are very similar to the EAW's also.

OK I'm sold! So what is a reasonable price for a used Sauer 202 takedown?
Peter.

.