http://lazzeroni.com/ct_rifles.htm

Anyone ever heard of these guys? I will assume that some of you have. According to his statements, the performance of these rifles is amazing... from velocity to accuracy to durability. Mainly, I'm just wondering if any of you have any first hand knowledge of these rifles so that I can get an opinion of them from someone other than the maker himself.

thanks.

Heavy recoiling and heavy ammo pricetags!!!

The Lazzeroni large cases are huge. And, proprietary. Loaded ammo or cases are extremely expensive. Case capacities are not much more than the RUM cases though Lazzeroni velocity claims are much greater. Either he has a very liberal chronograph or pressures are extremely high.

All reports I have heard from owners of Lazzeroni rifles, or folks that own the Sako rifles chambered in the large Lazzeroni cases, are of outstanding accuracy. With pressures as high as would be required, the massive amounts of powder contained in the cases, and the temperatures produced by that combination would lead to a true "barrel burner" cartridge if care isn't taken. At least that is my best guess.

There is no doubt the Lazzeroni rifles are accurate and well made, as are the Sako rifles chambered for the Lazzeroni cartridges. Brass would be very expensive, and I have no idea how many loadings you could get per case because of the high pressures. I can't see much, if any, ballistic improvement over the RUM or Dakota cartridges at like pressures. However Lazzeroni did develop his cartridges before Remington brought out the Ultra Mag line. Kind of a modern day Roy Weatherby.

i had one that was built from a savage, it was a one year deal that they were made i beleave. i do not remember the model but i think it was a 116 lz, but it has been some time. if you go to the lazzeroni site they give you the reload info so it is cheeper than buying the ammo from them. it shot well but like it was said above the recoil is a bit much. the gun i had had the factory muzzlebrake

Lazzeroni introduced 2 different sized cartridges for caliber, kinda like Winchester offering the 300 Win Mag and the 300 WSM. I believe the shorter of the two cartridges for most calibers were offered by Savage as a production item. The larger cased cartridges are only offered by Lazzeroni and one or two being offered by Sako.

John began designing his large magnum cases around the 404 Jeffery, but I think he finally ended up with a new, different, and proprietarty cases. I may be wrong, it's been a while since I checked into the Lazzeroni line.

The price of dies, brass, and the rifles is outrageous. The cost alone makes the hundred or so Fps that one gains not worth it.

Every generation has It's own Roy Weatherby touting the "you can't push a bullet fast enough theory", Mr. Lazzeroni is ours. What most folks came to realize after plunking down the bucks for their own Weatherby back in the day , most folks today are realizing before ever touching pen to checkbook for the Lazzeroni.


444fitch

Every generation has It's own Roy Weatherby touting the "you can't push a bullet fast enough theory", Mr. Lazzeroni is ours. What most folks came to realize after plunking down the bucks for their own Weatherby back in the day , most folks today are realizing before ever touching pen to checkbook for the Lazzeroni.
444fitch

Thanks all of you for responding. The main reason I posted is because I had emailed and talked to John last year.... and again just last week. Last year he had Sako chambering a few of his rounds with their TRG action. One of the rifles in particular was only $800.00 ... a very fair price. When I went back to look at his web site this year, ALL of his rifles are in the $5,500.00 range, and the bullets, casings, and dies are all still very expensive. So I asked him what was up with that. Let me cut/paste in my email to him from last week, along with his response to me.


***MY EMAIL TO JOHN***

Do you have any of your older rifles still for sale? I seem to recall you guys having built some rifles on the Sako TRG action. I actually called to inquire, but ended up making a different purchase. Fortunately, I am very happy with my purchase I ended up making. Unfortunately, your selection of rifles on the web site are out of my price range. The rifles you had listed last year had a couple (I think) that were in the $1,200.00 +/- price range... and you even had, at one time, a special running on one of them that did not have the electroless process performed on it. I think that rifle was priced at just under $800.00. Long story short, I would like to know if you have any of your "older model" custom rifles built, and what price you are asking for them.

There is, however, one concern that I do have about owning one of your rifles... I am not a handloader. What options does a person like me have for acquiring ammunition for your rifles short of purchasing directly from you? I ask only becuase of the extreme price of a box of 20 rounds. I am sure you feel that the price you have set on your ammunition is fair, but still, at 3x the price per box for other premium factory ammunition, one will be paying a lot for those loads.

I appreciate your taking the time to answer my questions. I also understand that for me to fully make a decision on this, we might be better served by having a phone conversation. Please let me know if this is the case. Thank you very much.



***JOHNS RESPONSE***

Good stuff costs money ,,,,, and they are either worth it to you or they are not ,,,, that is for you to decide ,,,,

As far as the Sako TRG-S rifles ,,,, they were built and chambered in Finland complete by Sako ,,,, that is why there were in the price range they were ,,,,,

They have now been discontinued by Sako ,,,,, and you are not alone in trying to find one ,,,,,,

We do have a used Lazzeroni rifle in the Firebird caliber ,,,,, and you will find it for sale at www.gunbroker.com ,,,,,

Please let us know anytime that we can help ,,,,,,,



John Lazzeroni

***END EMAILS***

I agree with most of you here about his rifles. I think they look great, and if they perform as he states, they are amazing in their own right. However, even if I had unlimited financial resources, and made many many hunts for all kinds of game year round, that I could possibly justify paying for one of his rifles. I might get one because I could afford it, but not because I need it.

The "coolest" thing about his rifles (in my humble opinion) is that he has that crazy "electroless" finishing process done to all the metal on the rifle. But, this is not something HE does... He sends his rifles to a company that does the treatment, and they send them back. He told me that any rifle can be done, and it costs roughly $500 to do it. Now, if I had a real shooter that I planned on keeping forever, I would definitely consider having my rifle undergo the electroless finishing... for both the weatherproofing aspects, as well as the aesthetics.

In any event, I cant see me needing a rifle that performs to his specifications... Nor do I desire to hunt with what are effectively the biggest ultramag cartridges out there. My 7mmRemMag does just fine for everything I need at this time, and that's what I'll continue to use for most of my hunting for quite a while. Thanks again to all of you for your input on his rifles. Once again, they are quite fantasitc, but much much much more than I need or want in all respects.