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Sako My new SAKO

Sako Collectors Club Discussion Forum

Malcolm B

Member
I’m a new member here and I just purchased my first SAKO since 1971. I had a 222 all those years ago but was stolen. This one I just acquired is a beautiful rifle, certainly not mint but still very nice. It has a Leopold fixed power 7.5 scope on it. My plans are to have it re-bored to 358 Winchester which is my favorite caliber.
36CA7E8D-F839-4113-90E7-A10AA396FA20.jpeg 0F8A9CA0-C908-4C77-83AE-2559BB3D1190.jpeg 91465458-3704-4C7E-A3DA-9E57848DD0DF.jpeg 74860F41-CBDE-4546-A65E-247D4A337B83.jpeg CCF96245-7640-43B2-AFFF-DAE5EBF33EA4.jpeg 6A0A41F2-7533-469B-851E-2B14A9AC5F5B.jpeg 7317CE3C-B4DA-460A-A1F5-FCAB3504968B.jpeg
 
Welcome! That's a very nice looking Model 72 -- and it has the straight, not swept back, bolt handle which was only used on some of the Model 72's and apparently no other models.

I've heard rumors that some re-boring outfits won't rebore a factory Sako barrel because "they're too hard". I suspect this is an unfounded rumor, or possibly only an excuse from someone who didn't want to take on a job. Anyway, do let us know how you come out with your rebore if you do it.
 
Malcolm B.
It sure looks to be a very nice rifle. It is yours to do as you please. You did not say what caliber it is, but would you please tell us why you have a grudge against Sako rifles
that would cause you to to destroy its value by doing a 'Bubba" job on it?
Sakojim.
 
Malcolm B.
It sure looks to be a very nice rifle. It is yours to do as you please. You did not say what caliber it is, but would you please tell us why you have a grudge against Sako rifles
that would cause you to to destroy its value by doing a 'Bubba" job on it?
Sakojim.
Sakojim,
This will be my 4th re-bore to 358. It is defiantly not a “bubba” job. They are professionally re-bored and all of fine are very accurate rifles. I do not see it as destroying a rifle, I feel it will make it better for my use. It is a 243 at the moment.
 
Malcolm. To each his own. Enjoy it, but as I said the value will go down. With three of them to shoot already, I can't understand the reason. If you did it with non collectible rem-chesters I would feel better. Sakojim.
 
Good morning all.
Thanks for the likes concerning this discussion. I did not want to mention it before but I have a concern about re-boring a medium action L579 to .458 because the very limited production of .458 Win by Sako were built on the L61r heavier action. There are several other .458 calibers which may be of lighter strength, but it would seem to me that the Sako L579 medium action and barrel would not withstand the power of that cartridge. Secondly, the bolt face and action might be a little small for that diameter cartridge. Being ignorant of the technicalities of this type of re-bore, I would appreciate the opinions of some of our experts that would benefit all of us. Thanks for any in-put.
Sakojim.
 
Sakojim
I believe it is .358 win that Malcolm B is suggesting. It’s parent case is .308 win , necked up. The L579 action would be fine as far as a rechambering goes but I’m not sure the barrel diameter will tolerate being thinned to .358 bore. Winchester did it with their model 88’s (a rare bird!) so I wouldn’t say it’s impossible.
I have heard the same about Sako barrel steel (Bofors?) being very hard to work with.
The M 72’s may be a better choice for this as well since they have a larger overall barrel diameter and taper, and it’s not really on fire as far as the levels of collectible interest.
Each to his own I suppose, but it may cost more than it may be worth, in future values. Then again, if one has a specific liking or desire to modify to a caliber they enjoy, the value is mute, so to speak.
My 2 cents worth…..Bloo
 
Thanks Bloo for the correction. My stupid mistake from poor vision I guess. Glad to learn that barrel diameter is a possible major consideration even with .358 caliber. Sakojim.
 
The Model 72 will likely never be a "collectible", particularly not in the most common caliber of .243, so if the only modification is changing the diameter of the bore to a somewhat rarer caliber then it's value will possibly go up and not down. If it were a Sako in 7/08, .260 Rem, .280 Rem, .300 H&H, .264 Win, 218 Bee, etc. then modifying it would be a much different story. Regardless, it is Malcomb's rifle and he should use it the way it pleases him.

Rebores are sometimes a crap shoot. The barrel is amply heavy to go from .243 to .358, but how well it will shoot after such an operation can't be known until afterward. But he's had good luck in the past so has reason to be confident.

Malcomb: Be sure to let us know how your rebore turns out. The .358 wouldn't be a good fit for most of the hunting I do, but where you have shorter ranges and heavier animals it should be a great game gun. You probably have good reason (experience) to like the .358, but you could also opt for the similar .338 Federal if you wanted something different.
 
Hi everyone,
Let me go into a little more detail here about my choices. I am a avid fan of the 358 Win. I believe it to be one of the most overlooked cartridges out there. I am a cast bullet shooter and use them in all my BA and lever action rifles. I have downed many varmints with my 222 and cast bullets. I use cast in my ‘06 and 358 to take deer too. Where I live and hunt a long shot for me is limited to 125 yards and that is rare, usually 30-75 yards. I cast HP bullets for hunting and they perform extremely well.

As of right now I am loading some 243 cast loads to try in this rifle. If it gives me good results I may hold off on the re-bore. I have tried cast in 2 other 243 rifles with dismal results. Maybe the SAKO will perform better. The fellow who does my re-bores tell me the SAKO is no problem as he has done several of them.

I appreciate all the discussion and it looks as though this will be a helpful and informative group.

Thank you, Malcolm
 
A bigger bore makes sense for cast bullets. You could probably bore all the way out to .375 for a .375/.308, which is about the largest you can go with a .308 case and still have a shoulder left to headspace on. If you wanted something even more exotic you might do a .375/.284. The fatter .284 case goes in the L579 magazine just fine and the rebated rim is the same size as the bolt face, so it requires no alteration to the action. But, you can probably get all of the velocity you can use for cast bullets with the standard .308 case, so going to a larger case would be of little benefit.

Not sure any of these would offer much benefit over a standard .358, however.
 
I have located and purchased a set of SAKO rings to replace the Weavers. Are there any instructions that I need to follow to mount them or is it pretty straight forward?
Thanks
 
You have the original Sako ringmounts of the same vintage as your rifle. They are the High rings, which may or may not be compatible with the scope you plan to use. They will allow scopes with bell diameters larger than 40mm lens diameters to be mounted in most circumstances, but may be higher than necessary for scopes normally associated with the 358 Win. They are windage adjustable by using the smaller knurled knob. The larger knurled knob is used to tighten them to the action dovetails. There are many threads here that explain how to properly use them. Understanding how to properly mount & use these ringmounts is important, so educate yourself on their correct usage to have good results. If your scope choice is one with a 40mm lens diameter or less the ringmounts you have may be higher than necessary & not provide a good cheek weld to the stock.
 
I've heard rumors that some re-boring outfits won't rebore a factory Sako barrel because "they're too hard". I suspect this is an unfounded rumor, or possibly only an excuse from someone who didn't want to take on a job.

That's true. I had that straight from Dale LaBounty, who was for many years a top name in reboring. 20 or so years ago, I called him about having a Sako rebored. He told me he wouldn't do it because the Sako barrel steel was so hard that it tore up his tools. He could rebore a Sako barrel but he couldn't make any money on it because of the tool damage. So he didn't do Sako or Tikka barrels any more. Now that was a while back and there may be more durable tools available these days, but that's what he told me - and he was the guy who had the experience.

I have a custom Sako in .358 Win, but it has a replacement Marquart barrel. It was built by Atkinson & Marquart, a highly-regarded custom gun builder of the 1970's.
358-1.JPG
 
That's true. I had that straight from Dale LaBounty, who was for many years a top name in reboring. 20 or so years ago, I called him about having a Sako rebored. He told me he wouldn't do it because the Sako barrel steel was so hard that it tore up his tools. He could rebore a Sako barrel but he couldn't make any money on it because of the tool damage. So he didn't do Sako or Tikka barrels any more. Now that was a while back and there may be more durable tools available these days, but that's what he told me - and he was the guy who had the experience.

I have a custom Sako in .358 Win, but it has a replacement Marquart barrel. It was built by Atkinson & Marquart, a highly-regarded custom gun builder of the 1970's.
View attachment 23768

Icebear,
That is a nice rifle. I have a Tikka T3 that has been re-bored to 358 and it is a MOA shooter with my 250 gr cast bullets. I had mine re-bored byJES in Oregon. He will do the Forester too UNLESS my new find wins out. I just got a Winchester 88 in 308 and it may go to Oregon instead of the SAKO. It might remain 243 for the time being. I have some fox and cats that the 243 would be perfect for thinning them out somewhat. Thanks
 
I was able to bring my new SAKO home today. I am extremely proud of this rifle and for the time being it is going to remain 243. I was able to finally acquire some brass and 2 Lyman 243 molds. I obtained some good information about loading cast in the 243.

I did notice 2 things I had not seen when I first examined the rifle. First the barrel I know this is a sporter weight barrel but there is a lot of metal around that 6mm muzzle. Not a complaint, I’m pleased about that. Secondly the rear sight looks as though the elevator is missing. I’m assuming it was to get the sight low enough to clear the scope. I have a set of SAKO rings on the way to me and if I can figure out how to mount them I may can re-install the elevator. Any ideas where I might locate one?
Thank you, Malcolm
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Hi Malocm B & Sako friends!

Just read your post & I thought about a Forester .308 has a cross-bolt to firm up the stock & prevent possible stock splitting. You may want to consiuder that option. I have put hidden cross-bolts in two of my AV stocks & so far so good !!
Best of luck, B/T
 
Hi Malocm B & Sako friends!

Just read your post & I thought about a Forester .308 has a cross-bolt to firm up the stock & prevent possible stock splitting. You may want to consiuder that option. I have put hidden cross-bolts in two of my AV stocks & so far so good !!
Best of luck, B/T

Thank you for all the help with this rifle. My gunsmith and I have decided not to try the re-bore on this rifle. Since I did not want a 243 i have posted it for sale (locally) and will pursue the re-bore with a future candidate. It is a beautiful rifle but not my caliber. Again, thanks for you input.
Malcolm
 
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