Hey all,

I went to my gundealer today, mostly because he said he had scopes that i wanted to look at.
I've never really been in gunshops before - my dad has a gundealer friend, who he occasionally buys ammo off, but in that case he just meets the guy somewhere, and boxes labeled "keep out of reach of children" move from one car to another.

anyway, went to see this guy, and it's one of the best places i've ever seen :p

i handled a few rifles, just because i could, ( he had a small room with about 300 guns in it :D) including a .223 Version of my VS-SF II (a little heavy, but very nice), a Blaser R93 in .270 (also good, especially the foregrip, which had a built- in pad, for comfort. Also, the Tikka Stainless Light is surprisingly pretty, and very, very light (if anyone has any idea how accurate this is, i'd like to know - it could be a great stalking rifle.) Also held a L96 in .338 Lap. seriously heavy gun, but it's kitted out as a military sniper rifle.

Anyway, finally got my hands on a scope. i looked at a Zeiss 5-25x56. a Schmidt and Bender 2.5-10x56 with flashdot and a 3-12x50 with illuminated recticle. The Zeiss was pretty pricey, and i felt that i wouldn't need the 25x and it didn't justify the cost. I decided on the 3-12x50, with an L7 Illuminated Rec. it's pretty nice, and the illumination works well, just about to go test it in the dark-twilight. Also bought some Weaver steel mounts and bases, some lense covers and a little bipod.

all in all a good day :p just thought i'd post a some thoughts on the rifles and wondered what you guys thought?

_Kar.

PS: Swift ammo - surprisingly tall

Rifles like the Tikka , Howa and Weatherby Vangaurd also made by Howa are absolutely great because the only thing in mind when they build these is accuracy and low cost . Granted you don't get nice figured walnut and all the pretties but those things don't put meat in the freezer .
I have a 338 lapau and trust me you want that rifle as heavy as possible or it will break your shoulder but you can't beat it for 1000 yard shots or even further unless you step up to a 50 bmg .
Only thing better than a good day in a nice gun shop is a great day shooting .

I swapped for my tikka new because I ain't getting any younger and i still backpack into the high country after Deer.http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-12/79966/P1010035.JPG The Tikka I ended up with is in 270. I scoped it with a Leupold Ultra lite in 3x9 power so the whole Package comes in at 6 pounds 12 ounces.http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-12/79966/GFTMS-P1010069.JPG As for accurate these guns are built for accuracy. I didn't have much time befor deer season to get a load worked up for mine two seasons ago. And as luck would have it the second load I tried, involving a Nosler Balistic tip and some IMR 4350 shot 3 rounds into .423 at 100 yrds. The Tikka is made by Sakko useing the very same barrels as found on the Sakko. They cut cost by useing just one size action simmaler to what Savage did for years, but the rifles are gaurateed to put 3 rounds into an inch or less or they don't leave the factory. If you are trully looking to find a light weight inexpensive hunting tool buy it now befor someone else does they don't stay long on dealers shelves and are hard to get ordered in a timely manner due to demand. I have taken 5 bucks with mine in 2 seasons and will take many more in seasons to come here's a few more picshttp://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-12/79966/P1010024.JPG of some the bucks it has taken.http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-12/79966/P1010062.JPG Dennis.

I think if you found a dealer that good, you ought to post the name & location!

.

Erm,

John Lambert,
Wexford.
Ireland :p

But I've been inside a proper american gunstore, and those are amazing :eek:
unfortunately, i was about 12, so all i could do was ask if they stocked BB guns (no :( )


_Kar.

Well I'll tell ya 'bout my trip to the gun show.

Eight or ten years ago while working out of town I had with me one of those el cheapo Corbay 45/410 single shot derringers they usta sell. I kept it in my motel room figuring it would work in an emergency and be cheap if stolen while I was gone.
I show it to this guy I am working with and hes' gotta have it. I tell him "you can buy one at the gun show for $60", but he wants it now and offers to trade me a Yugo made Zastava Tokarav with two clips "straight across". How could I say "no?" So I have this 9mm Para Torkave the Blue Book says is worth a hundred or two, I don't really want, but I keep it anyway.
About 10 days ago I get to lookin on Gun Broker and see the darn things are bringing a fortune compared to what I thought it was worth, so off to the gun show last weekend over in Boise I go. Some guy offers me over 300 more than I have in the 9mm so I sell it, kick in a couple of bucks more and buy me a New Vaquero 4 3/4" in 45 Colt.
Now, I have no use for that Ruger except I been wanting a Colt SAA since I was a kid in the 60's ands this is about as close with Colt's prices as I will ever get.
So need it or not I have a 45 LC Single action, insert grin here, I am a happy camper about my trip to the gun show to say the least. Guy that bought it probably is happy too as I am sure he will make another buck on it, but what the heck a bird in the hand so to say, and I didn't need to list/mail it etc.
Ya'll have a good week OK.
Marlin

I gotta move to ID!