I've had 4 of them. Next to my FN Supreme, they look pretty plain Jane. But 3 of the JC Higgins that I've had scopes on, will all shoot well. My favorite hunting rifle, (at least right now ) is the 270. That rifle will shoot 7/8's groups with everything I've had through it, except for Remington factory fodder. If I found one in "Excellent" shape, I'd give 375.00 for it, no more. The ones that are advertised on the various gun auctions for 450.00 plus are way over priced. The guns were manufactured by High Standard with FN actions. They aren't a cheap FN Sporter.



They are however a very nice working rifle, one that I don't get worked up about if it picks up scratches and dings. I kind of like the JC Higgins Model 50 on the barrel



If you buy one, change out the trigger. The original is a hokey 2 piece affair.

Shhhhh. Keep it quiet! You guys are right. People walk by them when they see J.C. Higgins and don't bother to look for the FN on the action. I have a Model 50, '06, ugly as sin, but it shoots 1" groups all day long. Not to bad for a $110. rifle with Lyman 4X scope. My Model 51, '06 doesn't shoot as good, 1 1/2" with a Leupold 3X9 and to think I paid $200 for it! The Model 51 might become a .404, though.

who the hell was JC Higgins, anyway??

-tincan

Hes the guy that struck out Babe Ruth the most. He had a blazeing fast ball and threw more strikes per pitches thrown than anyone in the history of the major leagues. He was also a great hitter, he had more hits and a better batting average than Babe Ruth

GSP7, I have never heard that baseball story before, are you pulling our leg or what??? I have also heard though that he could have been a Sears employee. Ya never know I guess. Where did you learn of this baseball guy??? Sounds interesting for sure. I have always wondered who he really is.

By the way, I have JC Higgins 51-L, 30-06(Made in Sweden, HVA action), its a Husqvarna action. I have heard also that they have High-Standard bbls. and Fagen stocks. But I have never verified any of this. The "Husky" is just about my favorite rifle, it shoots very good with a variety of loads, everything from "the load", which is 13g. of Red Dot w/any bullet; to Sierra 125's and IMR 4895, to 180's and 56g. 4350. I had a Leo M8-4X on mine, but had to take it off for another gun, and put a 3-9x50 Tasco World Class on instead, but it holds up fine. I want a Burris B-Plex on it badly though.

Happy shooting.
Redrider

it sounds good though. Maybe he was Ted Williams drinking buddy?

not that it really makes any difference, but I would much rather own a really fine military 98 mauser (such as a 1909 Argentine or an FN) due to the c ring in the 98 versus both sides being bored out in the J. C. Higgins Model 50.

However, although many people here speak of the "gun" as being accurate, we all know that it is mostly the barrel and good ammo that controls accuracy.I have a feeling that if many of those older Sears 50s like the one I had were rebarelled with a really fine barrel they would get much more respect from the shooting fraternity.

KevinNY;
Yes, it does seem that FNs are very expensive anymore, especially the odd calibers, .250 Sav, .300 Sav, 7X57,
etc. Very little literature is available on these guns
and Im surpized that someone hasnt made a book on them
with variations, calibers, dates of manufacture etc. like
they have with Remington 700, Winchester 70 etc. I do
run into common calibers every now and then, almost always
.270 and .30-06 as a rule, conditions run from poor to
excellent, prices from 200-650. I also encounter JC Higgins
Model 51s once in awhile, prices are getting high on those
also, but they just dont have the appeal of a good FN
Supreme.