• Hey All! Lately there has been more and more scammers on the forum board. They register and replies to members requests for guns and/or parts or other things. The reply contains a gmail or hotmail address or similar ”anonymous” email addresses which they want you to reply to. DO NOT ANSWER ANY STRANGE MESSAGES! They often state something like this: ”Hello! Saw your post about purchasing a stock for a Safari. KnuckleheadBob has one. Email him at: [email protected]” If you receive any strange messages: Check the status of whoever message you. If they have no posts and signed up the same day or very recently, stay away. Same goes for other members they might refer to. Check them too and if they are long standing members, PM them and ask if the message is legit. Most likely it’s not. Then use the report function in each message or post so I can kick them out! Beware of anything that might seem fishy! And again, for all of you who registered your personal name as username, please contact me so I can change it to a more anonymous username. You’d be surprised of how much one can find out about a person from just a username on a forum such ad our! All the best! And be safe! Jim

Short Actions An unbelievable tale - I went to a gun show and found a Sako!

Sako Collectors Club Discussion Forum

icebear

Sako-addicted
Went to a gun show in Tucson today. For the first time in many months, there was a line to get in. Not only that, a whole extra area of the exhibition hall had been opened to meet the demand for tables. The down side was that an awful lot of the new vendors were peddling jewelry, quack pain remedies, and God only knows what else. As for the gun portion of it - well, there was a genuine improvement in quantity and quality over last time. Still, I get the impression that it weren't for AR's, Glocks, and knife sellers, we wouldn't even have gun shows. There were lots and lots of big multi-table displays of ammo - mostly at elevated prices. The most breathtaking ammo prices were for FN 5.7 ammo. I've been told there's a shortage, and I saw one 50-round box priced at $200.

But wait, there's more! Way in the back there was a guy selling some guns he said belonged to his aunt. Among them were two Sako L46's and a Steyr .222. First guns of that class I've seen in a while. He was just putting away one of the Sakos, which he had sold, but that left one, with some of the prettiest wood I've seen on an L46. And I'm a sucker for wood. I kind of agonized over it, as I have a number of very similar guns, but I couldn't say no to the wood. Price was in keeping with the current market at $1200, including the Lyman Alaskan in old Sako rings. The glass on the Alaskan is surprisingly clear and bright and it's undoubtedly original to the gun. I'll probably leave it on there.

The rifle has a couple of curious features. There's no front sight, which is very unusual on an L46. Oddly, my wing-safety L46 also lacks a front sight. The other oddity is the shape of the forend tip. It's cut at a reverse angle like later Sako stocks, rather than the rounded shape typical of all but the last L46 stocks. I've included a picture of it with my other one to show the difference. I suppose it could have suffered some damage and been recut, but that's inconsistent with the gun's overall condition. Here are a few photos. More in a day or two; I'm a bit rushed at the moment.

L46 Sporter II - 1.JPG L46 Sporter II - 2.JPG L46 Sporter II - 3.JPG

2x L46 Sporter.JPG
 
Lucky you. Actually found a classic rifle at, of all places, a gun show. What, no rattlesnake jerky or home-made hot sauce for the ride home? Is it an optical illusion or is the barrel shorter on your new one?
 
Those Lyman Alaskans command a pretty good price all by themselves -- I think you got a deal on the package. I feel like the fore end is probably recut, but I wouldn't let that dim my enthusiasm.
 
Those Lyman Alaskans command a pretty good price all by themselves -- I think you got a deal on the package. I feel like the fore end is probably recut, but I wouldn't let that dim my enthusiasm.
I'm also suspicious that the barrel may be a replacement. I don't see the usual Finnish proofs. I'm going to pull the action out of the stock and see what I can see. The very low mounting of the scope obscures the view of the top of the barrel. Will post more tomorrow. (update - the Finnish proofs are below the wood line.)

Still a nice gun, and that wood made the deal for me. I was surprised at the image clarity of the Lyman. Thanks for the info that they are collectible and in demand; I had no idea whether those 7/8" scopes were any good or how they were regarded by collectors. I'll probably leave it in place; I like having the original scope, and I have plenty of other rifles with high-powered scopes. This one can be for plinking.
 
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Nice find! Went to a local show yesterday. One Sako, a AI singleshot target model with target trigger in 6mm PPC USA. $1600 & I had the strength to walk away. I may weaken & the seller is local & I have his contact info. Just when I had sold every Sako except one I run into this. This is the second show in 6 weeks I've seen this guy with this gun. First Sako I've seen at a show in over a year. Wonder why it hasn't sold at that price, which makes me think I'm missing something.
 
@icebear

Caliber and serial # please!:) .222 I presume?

And if you can hold your hands steady after such a great find, can you take a pic of the barrel where it meets the receiver please?:D

On my small iph*ne screen the barrel looks like the early profile, where the caliber was crudely punch marked on top of the barrel or something like it. But hard to tell where I am sitting.

BTW, I have a box of Sako parts waiting for me on the other side of the country and I know there are several Sako sight ramps in it. Not just sure if there are any early ones but will know more in a week or two.

Jim
 
Icebear you did good. I like it when both sides of the stock have character as yours does. And I like the dark streaking. Like stone, I think the fore end has been cut off. Looks like about 3/8". I also went to the Fort Worth gun show yesterday.....your description fits it almost perfectly (except the FW show had less Sakos, one A series is all I saw). I did see 6 boxes of Rem. brand 222 mag, 55 gr HP. Since I have about a dozen boxes, I only bought 2 boxes because they were too pricey at $55 each. Normally too steep for me.
 
Nice little 46!
Believe it or not, this is the second L46 I’ve seen with this type of stock variance. Is it in upper range of serial numbers? I also noticed it’s blessed with the later styled bottom metal.
The timber is quite interesting!
Great find!
 
Caliber and serial # please!:) .222 I presume?

And if you can hold your hands steady after such a great find, can you take a pic of the barrel where it meets the receiver please?:D

On my small iph*ne screen the barrel looks like the early profile, where the caliber was crudely punch marked on top of the barrel or something like it. But hard to tell where I am sitting.
Here are the photos in answer to your questions. I do believe the barrel is the early profile - but the serial number is in the 33000 range, and it has the late style milled trigger guard. Also note that the barrel is not indexed properly - the proof and inspection marks are below the wood line.
Believe it or not, this is the second L46 I’ve seen with this type of stock variance.
That is interesting, to say the least. Can you provide more information, or even a photo? It might be just barely possible that this is some kind of factory repair to a stock that was damaged at the factory. I find it baffling, really. There's no indication that the gun has ever suffered any damage (or been shot very much, for that matter).

Is it an optical illusion or is the barrel shorter on your new one?
It's an illusion, caused by the perspective effect of the newer gun being farther from the camera than the older one. The barrel on the new one is, in fact, slightly longer than the other one.

L61R - Here are the photos you asked for.
L46 Sporter II - BBL proofs.JPG L46 Sporter II - SN.JPG
 
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Since I have about a dozen boxes, I only bought 2 boxes because they were too pricey at $55 each. Normally too steep for me.
Check out Midway for .222 Magnum ammo. They have 50 grain Nosler in stock for $75 for a box of 50. It's excellent ammo; I've gotten great results with it in all four of my .222 Mag rifles. Nosler does load it in 55 grain as well, but I didn't see any in stock at Midway and it's generally harder to find than the 50.

Here's a link:
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1002022448?pid=936282
 
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Thanks Icebear, but these may be 222. It looks like only the title says it's 222 mag. If you read all the ad including the specs, it says the ammo is 222. In the Q&A section 2 years ago someone asked which triple deuce it is, but got no answer. However the reviews from 2 to 7 years ago write about it as if it's the mag. They have an absolute no return policy though, so I'm going to call them and make certain it's 222 mag.
 
Sorry Icebear..I looked back thru my photos and it’s gone. It was numbered higher than yours, 49000’s somewhere. It was plain and very blonde. To me ,it looked legit.
Does yours have the usual caliber stamp across the barrel?
 
I'm going to call them and make certain it's 222 mag.
An excellent idea. I noticed the glitch in the description, but figured it was just a typo. I have several boxes of the magnums; I don't know if Nosler even made that type of ammo in regular .222 Rem. Best to check it out; Midway has a lot of errors in their listings.
 
Sorry Icebear..I looked back thru my photos and it’s gone. It was numbered higher than yours, 49000’s somewhere. It was plain and very blonde. To me ,it looked legit.
Does yours have the usual caliber stamp across the barrel?
If it was in the 49K serial range, it most likely had the new style stock with the slanted forend tip and Monte Carlo cheekpiece. I have a couple of L469's like that, and the very last L46's were the same. The stock on this one is the old style with a straight comb stock and the old-style checkering. Here's what you probably saw. This one is a .222 Magnum.
222 Mag 1.JPG
As for the barrel stamping, see the first photo in my post from earlier today. It is an uncommon variation, as identified by L61R.
 
I had the strength to walk away.
I walked away from this one three times and was headed for the exit when I decided to go back and buy it. And the reason the 6PPC is still there could just be that not many people are in the market for one, or even know what it is. I used to have a single shot Sako like the one you are describing; it was super accurate. I sold it to a friend who wanted it quite badly. He later reciprocated by selling me an AV in 9.3x62, which I still have. Sometimes karma comes around.
 
All very interesting comments. Soooo many variations! Saw a vintage Alaskan scope, that looks like yours, asking $650 at recent gun show. Don't exactly recall model but am pretty sure of the price. If possible I'd like the Aunt's phone number and a recommendation of a good restaurant in Tucson.
 
Tucson restaurant recommendation:
La Parrilla Suiza, I was pleasantly surprised by a different dish, steak, grilled plain chorizo & white goat cheese. 5E049B8F-103C-48B9-82FC-1D4170D18B5A.jpeg #42 on menu. Not hot but unique NW Mexico dish.
 
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All very interesting comments. Soooo many variations! Saw a vintage Alaskan scope, that looks like yours, asking $650 at recent gun show. Don't exactly recall model but am pretty sure of the price. If possible I'd like the Aunt's phone number and a recommendation of a good restaurant in Tucson.

I'm blown away by the notion that a 65-year-old, 7/8" scope is supposedly worth $650. Somehow I doubt it will be changing hands any time soon. It evokes the old gun show saying, "He must really love that (gun, scope, etc.). At that price, he's going to own it for a long time." It does, however, suggest that it's quite a bit more valuable than I initially thought!

As for the other, I can't help you with the aunt's phone number, and in any case I think I got her last Sako. The .222 Steyr was still there when I left, along with a whole rack of shotguns. I can recommend restaurants in Tucson, which has been recognized by UNESCO as an "International City of Gastronomy" (whatever that means). I haven't eaten at La Parilla Suiza but it has a good reputation. Avoid El Charro. It's immensely popular with tourists and snowbirds, and it serves tourist food. For complex social reasons, I once ate there with an old friend who, like me, had served as a US diplomat in Mexico. Her comments do not bear repeating. My favorite is a local chain called "Mariscos Chihuahua." They specialize in fresh seafood from Baja. It's a plain, middle-class sort of place - the owners and most of the customers are local Mexican-Americans. They had me as a customer for life one day when I ordered my favorite, filete a la plancha (grilled filet of fish). The waitress said sorry, we don't have any fish today, would you like some shrimp? She went on to explain that the chef had gone to the market that morning and hadn't liked the fish, so he didn't buy any. Now in my book, any restaurant that will knock off half the menu to keep their quality up is a gem forever.
 
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