Went to the Arizona Arms Association gunshow in Tucson and picked up a very interesting old FN-Sako in .30-06. It appears to be all original except maybe the safety, which looks sort of like a Buehler. It could be original - I don't remember what the safeties looked like on those guns and my reference books are buried in a pile of boxes (just moved into my new house). The wood shows a fair amount of handling wear, little dings, etc.but the metal is pristine - it may even be unfired. It even has the sight hood and European style rear sight. The guy I got it from said he bought it in 1982 and never fired it. It is fitted with a beautiful Nickel-Marburg 2.5-6x scope, which is even mounted in the correct size 26mm rings. (I've seen a lot of old 26mm scopes stuffed into 1" rings (25.4mm), which is NOT good for the scope!)
The real interesting part is the bases and rings. It has what appear to be factory Sako dovetail mounts that screw onto the mounting holes in the Mauser action. Oddly, the rear mount is checkered on top like a regular Sako mount but the front one is plain. I've never seen Sako dovetail mounts for the FN action before, but it makes sense that Sako would have made them. The rings are unique. They look just like regular old-style Sako rings, except that instead of the usual click stops on the windage nuts on the left side,. the nuts have a flange which is held in place by a set screw. Also, where the old Sako rings usually have a line scribed on one side to indicate the right way to set the top half on the bottom, these have a circle on each piece to indicate orientation. They do not bear any Sako marking - the only mark is the number 26 on the bottom of each ring. It occurred to me that these might be some kind of copy, but the only copy of Sako rings I am familiar with is the Spanish one, and the finish on these is way better than any Spanish copy I have seen. Brilliant polish, deep blue, and the knurling on the knobs is clean.
Have any of you guys seen rings like this before? Any further information would be welcome. Sorry I can't post a picture, but most of my computer stuff is still packed away, including the bit I need to transfer a picture from my digital camera. I will post a picture when I can.
On another note, I really enjoyed talking to the guy who sold me the gun. He was a B-25 gunner in the Pacific theater during WWII. He also very kindly sponsored me for membership to the Arizona Arms Association, so I am now a member. Hope I run into him again - I bet he has some interesting stories.
The real interesting part is the bases and rings. It has what appear to be factory Sako dovetail mounts that screw onto the mounting holes in the Mauser action. Oddly, the rear mount is checkered on top like a regular Sako mount but the front one is plain. I've never seen Sako dovetail mounts for the FN action before, but it makes sense that Sako would have made them. The rings are unique. They look just like regular old-style Sako rings, except that instead of the usual click stops on the windage nuts on the left side,. the nuts have a flange which is held in place by a set screw. Also, where the old Sako rings usually have a line scribed on one side to indicate the right way to set the top half on the bottom, these have a circle on each piece to indicate orientation. They do not bear any Sako marking - the only mark is the number 26 on the bottom of each ring. It occurred to me that these might be some kind of copy, but the only copy of Sako rings I am familiar with is the Spanish one, and the finish on these is way better than any Spanish copy I have seen. Brilliant polish, deep blue, and the knurling on the knobs is clean.
Have any of you guys seen rings like this before? Any further information would be welcome. Sorry I can't post a picture, but most of my computer stuff is still packed away, including the bit I need to transfer a picture from my digital camera. I will post a picture when I can.
On another note, I really enjoyed talking to the guy who sold me the gun. He was a B-25 gunner in the Pacific theater during WWII. He also very kindly sponsored me for membership to the Arizona Arms Association, so I am now a member. Hope I run into him again - I bet he has some interesting stories.