Short Actions 218 Bee on GI Sold this AM is it real?

I saw this 218 Bee this AM due to an alert I received from GI. Question is, is the darn thing genuine?

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...8-bee-rare-.cfm?gun_id=101273731&watch_list=1

Check out the roll stamp (if you can call it that) for the caliber and I don't see Bofors on the right side of the barrel.


rick

 

Do you know what is sold for?? thanks mike

 

Legit. Looks like the bolt has been jeweled and sling studs installed. Rifle looked to be in decent shape, what was the asking price ?

DeerGoose

 

Sorry but the price was blocked out after it sold.

rick

 

I have seen photos of 4 roll stamped like this and one rifle in my hands like this A fellow member from down under bought one like this IIRC correctly and posted some photos . Seems to be April 1950 approx build/ ship, did they stamp Bofors on barrel during that period? I do have anything that old to check for myself.

 

Hi Everyone

Many Thanks for the input. I got suspicious when I looked at the chamber ID on the side of the barrel. It appears that the 218 was hand struck as the "8" is out of place and overstruck at least once. Also, I have seen 218 Bee rifles with caliber marking just like this one but they were crisp and professionally done which is characteristic of Sako quality. Finally, I was expecting to see a Bofors mark on the right side of the barrel but nada on that score.

 

I don't often check the sale price on GI, but of the 10 or so times I've checked, the sale price has always been listed. Does not listing the price raise any flags, or is that an option the buyer or seller can request?

 

Once sold, seller edits listing as sold and price is replaced with “sold”

 

OK Thanks everybody for contributing.

rick

 

The rifles from the late 40's & even into the early 50's didn't show the "quality" you are associating with the later rifles. In fact, they were rather crudely built, from a cosmetic standpoint, compared to other rifles of the same period. Inconsistent & misaligned stamping, mixing different features like safety types, sights, etc within the same time frame, crudely finished birch stocks (brushed on finish), crudely stamped & finished metal parts & poor or even non-existent checkering are just a few examples. Only through the urging of Firearms International & the lure of the American market did Sako improve to what we admire today. I recently refinished a 7x33 Sako Mannlincher stock from the 50's that had 18 LPI checkering on the pistol grip area & 20 LPI checkering on the forearm. Makes me wonder where "quality control" was that day!

 

Also, Finland at the time was recovering from a devastating war with Russia. Everything was in short supply, including skilled craftsmanship. Finland was not the shining, high-tech industrial powerhouse it is today. In the late 1940's, Sako was still selling sporterized m/39 military rifles for the domestic market (in addition to the L46). Those rifles were extremely accurate and reliable, but not necessarily pretty. Sako sporting rifles became a semi-luxury product in the 1950's when management decided to go for the American market.

 

The Bee was sold for $2300.

 

That was a good buy!

 

Must have been an inside job as it was sold as soon as the post hit the GI site.

 

Hello Paul,

My L46 - 6,3 X 33 R which came out of production 1st October 1949 is not crude at all. If you look at the photo's of my 6, 3 X 33R on the SCC you will see that my rifle's serial numbers, Sako name, Town and calibre markings are all neat, tidy and alligned. There are NO crudley stamped metal parts, and although only chequered on the pistol - grip with birch stock there is nothing crude about this particular rifle. I think during the late 40's & early 50's the U.S.A. demanded from Sako chequered walnut stocks, which I think should of remained Artic Birch. Trust the Yanks to spoil things - some things should just be left alone.

Blackjack { England Gt. Britain }

 

That's a question of taste - and I'd say you are in the minority. Arctic birch is a good stock wood; I have many Finnish military rifles with such stocks and some of them are quite attractive. For that matter, my dining room set is custom made from solid birch and it's beautiful. However, for rifle stocks, most of us prefer walnut, especially if it has visible grain or figuring. Birch is slightly harder; density is about the same. As for "Leave it to the Yanks to spoil things," I can only respond with two words: English food.