L46 7x33

[mrfiberclass]

A true Sako lover must have one of these - for me, it's THE Sako. Sako's first commerical rifle and their first own caliber. On this picture, I have the scope which came with the rifle - now it's topped by a Leupold 2,5-8x36. It shoots around 20mm with 3 shots at 100m with both commercial loads from Sako.

 

[mrfiberclass]

Hmm - doesn't work...

 

[stonecreek]

Yes, a 7x33 is quite a find for any Sako aficianado. The problem is, there are so few of the 60+ year-old rifles out there and available! I do know where one is that appears to be in reasonable condition. It is lacking a magazine, but I've found that the magazine for the .218 Bee or .25-20 only needs a judicious bending of the lips in order to work with the 7x33. If someone is interested, drop me an email and I'll send you information on where to find it.

Speaking of the .218 Bee and .25-20, those are pretty rare birds themselves. I've been looking, but not finding.

 

[mrfiberclass]

Tada!

 

[stonecreek]

Nice, nice, nice!

 

[weshowe]

rclass,

Beautiful rifle and a rare find. I was aware of the 7 x 33 cartridge, but it rare in the US, as is the rifle. Could you give us a separate post on the particulars of the rifle and the ballistics of the cartridge, what it was designed for, and what you have used it for...

Color me nosey.

Could this be an adaptation of the German 8 x 33 cartridge designed for the Stg 43/44?

Wes

 

[mrfiberclass]

7x33 is a necked down 9mm pistol cartridge made as long as possible. It was designed for hunting birds in the woods with dogs barking beneath the tree. It uses a 78 gr fmj bullet at around 725 m/s. In a SP 78 gr version, it is useful for small game up to and including roe deer.

 

[weshowe]

Thank you, my friend, for the info. I'll bet the cartridge would be fun to "play" with...

Wes

 

[stonecreek]

In addition to shooting capracaellae (sp?), the pheasant/turkey-like bird of the northern European woods, the 7x33 was also popular for commercial harvest of fur seals on the ice. The little 7mm FMJ at 2500 fps or so was perfect for head shots on fur seals.

I've been lucky enough to obtain over 150 rounds of ammunition for my 7x33, and I can cobble together ammunition from the spent cases using some adapted 7mm BR dies. My problem is finding bullets short enough to work through the magazine. The lightest bullets available for 7mm are 100 gr. HPs, which are somewhat too long. I've been hunting for a way to easily and consistently machine the noses off of the 100 grain Hornady HP, but the right method has thus far eluded me.

It's too bad that the (almost obsolete) 9mm Winchester Magnum case isn't a tad longer. I've measured several different ways and it is just too short to leave any useful neck if resized to 7x33. Some people have used .223 brass, but it is very undersized in the head area and would be only marginally useable if no other alternative were available.

 

[model70hunter]

Hello stonecreek, I hope you had a good shoot.

A piece of pipe split lengthways for a bullet holder used with a piece of channel iron and a c clamp might work if you want to wear a mask and hack saw them off.

Weld 1/2 the bullet holder to the inside of the channel iron.

weld the solid end of the c clamp to the bullet holder above.

weld the flexible end of the c clamp to the ohter 1/2 of the bullet holder, it will slide inside the channel iron.

take 1 7mm and cut it off in your vise until you get the length you need.

Measure your bullet holder and hack saw a cut only deep enough to cut the bullet tip off.

weld a piece of metal on the channel iron and cut away.

I probably wouldn't shoot bullseye matches for money but these should be good plinkers.

RCBS lists 7mmx33 Sako dies in their 2006 specialty catalog.
[FONT=arial black,sans-serif]56240 7mmx33 SAKO G 16


[/FONT]

 

[stonecreek]

Model70:

Thanks, and yes, we did have a good shoot. My Sako .244 HB (only the second one I've ever heard of in existence, although there have to be some more out there) was the clear winner. My first shot out of a cold barrel with it took a prairie dog at a lasered 400 yards. My second shot thirty seconds later took his puzzled mound mate. Later in the day I made the longest successful shot with it at what everyone estimated to be 600 yards. There were seven heavy-barreled Sakos in our group, but the .244 clearly took the prize this weekend.

Thanks for the thoughts on bullet nose trimming.

I was aware that RCBS lists the 7x33 dies, but at $150 or so I'll just make do with the neck-sizing function of adapted dies for the time being.

 

[alcap]

I have L57 #209 in .244 but not HB (LW?). See my May 29 post. Finally shot out barrel after 2500 - 3000 rounds. It's now a .308 while I search for another .244 barrel (any weight). Shot that .345" / 5 shot group an hour before I gave up on the barrel (no repeatability)

AL W.