A Cooper is definitely an option. I just bought my second Cooper a few weeks ago. And I am very satisifed with the two that I have.
However I am not in any hurry. So I thought I might find a good deal on a used one and be able to hunt with it this year. If I don't find one by X-Mas then I probably will order a new Cooper. However I will probably order a 22 Hornet first. Then the 30-06. Tom.
Own three Cooper lefty rimfires and am very happy with all of them. But one thing I learned is it is a crap shoot to order upgraded wood. On one .22 I paid something like $700 to upgrade the wood only to end up with something that looked off the shelf. Cooper, to their credit, agreed to restock it and this time forwarded me photos of blanks to pick from before they carved one up. Bought my wife a production JSR .22 with no options and the wood was super nice. Learned my lesson, see photos of the blank or the rifle before committing.
My biggest fear is when I die my wife will sell my guns for what I told her they cost.
The standard French walnut upgrade is well worth it. The grain and look of that wood is way better than Claro in any comparable grade. However, it is somewhat lighter in color usually. Mark handled my Cooper orders as well. A lefty 243 Classic 54 and a lefty 52 JGR in 25-06AI.
Or if you are looking for a little larger budget gun, there is always Dakota. However, now that Cooper handles the 30-06 with the 52, you can buy a Cooper with a hell of a lot of upgrades, and still be under the price of a basic Dakota.
Posts: 2852 | Location: Michigan | Registered: 02 September 2001
I have a left hand Dakota I bought back in the late 80's. Maybe 1990 I don't remember the exact year.
It is a 280 Remington. And it has a nice stock on it. And at the time was reasonably priced(still high). But there is no way I would pay their current pricing for those rifles. The one I have just doesn't shoot that great, and even if I did I could have more rifle built for less than their current prices. So Dakota is out.
