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Just bought my first Sako

Sako Collectors Club Discussion Forum

jhbrown9

Member
Don't even have it yet, might have overpaid, but wanted one for a long time. 300 win mag, two stocks, l61r. First question, it has a 5 digit serial number but is 93236 which seems high to be pre garcia. It was an impulse buy, not a caliber that I was neccessarily after, and the description / pictures were more vague than I would prefer. But im still excited. The auction didn't have pictures to determine 3rd locking lug, or garcia imprint on barrel. Ill know more once it gets here. Figured someone here might have been a competing bidder. If anyone cares you can see the limited pics here.
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=558159882

You'll here more from me in the coming weeks once I take possession and get it out to the range.

Josh in Oregon

Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk
 
That is not a Sako L61R "Finnbear". The seller has grossly misrepresented the rifle. Neither stock is factory. Looks like a custom rifle built on a Sako L61R action that somebody got an aftermarket synthetic stock for also. Hard to tell from the pics, but it appears to be an aftermarket barrel as well. $610 isn't bad for the whole shebang, as the action alone would probably bring $400. Just be aware that the only thing Sako is the action. You can always put a new barrel on it in the caliber of your choice, reblue it & have a nice custom hunting rifle with 2 stocks, but then you would have more money in it than a factory original Sako would cost.Welcome to the club.
 
Josh:
Welcome to the forum . . . it is a Sako Super 74 action with a very low serial number. The term "Finnbear" refers to the long actions. Forester refers to the medium actions, and Vixen refers to the short actions. The little button on the rear of the bolt tells us it is a "Super 74"
If the floor plate and magazine box are Sako . . . then you did well as a rookie.
And yes . . . we would like to hear how she does at the range.
And don't be afraid to contact one of us in the future on your next buy, if you have any questions on what your looking to purchase.
 
You don't find anything that says Sako on it for much less than what you paid. I sometimes scan the online ads looking for Sakos with asking prices under 4 figures. Not many like that.

Welcome to the forum.
 
Thanks all, sent out the money today. Going on vacation next week, but I'll report what I find when I get back. I knew better than to bid on so little info, but was impulsive. I've built many Mauser's up, and am not afraid of a custom build. Might be expensive, but I have a 7mm Krieger blank that could make this a 28 nosler, or 7 stw. If it ends up that it is a non original barrel, ill see how it shoots, and if poorly, ill re-barrel to a caliber I desire and sell off one of the stocks to makeup a lil of my impulsive spend. If it shoots well, I might keep it in 300 win mag and reblue or cerakote. We will see.

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Maybe you were more cagey than impulsive. I have gotten some of my best deals based on a few blurry pictures. As long as the price is right and you're gambling with small money.
 
OK, got the rifle today. First I'll say that I'm happy with what I got, as I had worked myself up thinking I'd get the worst.

Good news
Factory Sako barrel and is indeed a Finnbear barrel. Obviously the magna-porting was done later. Says Finnbear Made in Finland on the side, and Cal 300 Win Mag on top right in front of the front receiver ring.
Both stocks are bedded well and fit fine.
Everything works smoothly and function check looks good.

Less great
Bottom metal, barrel, and bolt handle have varyling levels of bluing loss. I suspect this gun was hunted regularly over the years.
Bolt body has some freckles, but they aren't pits so I should be able to polish out with some flitz.
Gun had oil everywhere, and a good amount of gunk in that oil. I'll need to strip it down and give it a good cleaning.
Barrel looks good with a flashlight (although dirty). I'll have my local gunsmith take a looksy with a proper borescope.
Fiberglass stock doesn't seem to have a maker name anywhere, and has some abrasions from use. Likely a bell and carlson, I assume McMillan would have their name somewhere.
Wood stock has flat forend, with contrasting color front, massive grip base and rollover comb. Reminds me of a Weatherby stock. No maker name, some abrasions but in pretty good shape. I have not inspected it fully.

Odd provenance
5 digit serial number, the action says L61R Made in Finland on left side of the receiver, and Magnum in small letters on right. No importer markings on the receiver or the barrel. But as pointed out earlier, since the pin is in the bolt shroud, likely a 74 action. To top it off, the magazine box says AIII? Mix and match seems to be a theme with Sako's. So?? Maybe someone took one from Germany home with them, or a later barrel was screwed on to the action?? Dunno. Need to get some rings and shoot her. If she shoots straight I'll probably leave things alone. If not, I might consider rebarreling. I will probably sell off both stocks to finance an original finnbear stock of the correct vintage. Not sure yet.

Since the barreled action appears to be complete and original (except the magna-porting), would it dramatically hurt the value if I had it reblued, or cerakoted? This model probably isn't ever going to be a collector, but I don't want to hurt the resale if I ever look to trade up. I hunt the wet side of the state generally, although this rifle has me thinking of pronghorn. Either way, it would just satisfy me more to have the entire rifle have a consistent finish.

Original auction pics,

pix252860259.jpg pix391075428.jpg pix990903343.jpg pix391521973.jpg

Excuse the cell phone pics, but I was excited and wanted to get some up.

2016-06-02 16.36.16.jpg 2016-06-02 16.36.03.jpg 2016-06-02 16.35.52.jpg 2016-06-02 16.35.16.jpg 2016-06-02 16.34.41.jpg 2016-06-02 16.34.31.jpg 2016-06-02 16.33.51.jpg 2016-06-02 16.33.40.jpg 2016-06-02 16.26.53.jpg 2016-06-02 16.25.23.jpg 2016-06-02 16.25.14.jpg 2016-06-02 16.25.08.jpg 2016-06-02 16.24.56.jpg 2016-06-02 16.24.50.jpg 2016-06-02 16.24.35.jpg 2016-06-02 16.24.24.jpg
 
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It looks to me like it has had a lot of good hunting use, and I'd suspect it may need a new barrel which you should know quickly with a bore scope. The serial number from the underside of the bolt is missing, which uncommon to find, so you may not have a matching bolt, but that shouldn't be a problem - others more knowledge on this site are better to advise. It's never going to be a collectors gun, so I see no down side in having it cleaned up and re-blued / cerakoted. I bought a mint Sako 300winmag built in late 70s a year ago for $800, so you may want to keep that in mind before spending a lot to rebarrel/recondition what you have. Anyways, you may find the barrel still has plenty of life left and that it shoots well, in that case you have a great rifle that you can hunt with in tough conditions and not worry about pampering it to keep it mint. Best wishes.
 
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