Thomas Davis
Active Member
What is the rarest factory chambering in the Sako Finnbear rifle? L61R
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Respectfully, very highly suspect. Even if there’s a photo of an L61 with a .243 barrel screwed to it- it simply does not make it original. Maybe it’s actually an L579. I find so many misinformed folks (on the net) who may be well meaning but are often 100% wrong. Pretty sure others will agree.L61R chambered in .243 Win
I agree but would still like to see it- if it exists.Respectfully, very highly suspect. Even if there’s a photo of an L61 with a .243 barrel screwed to it- it simply does not make it original. Maybe it’s actually an L579. I find so many misinformed folks (on the net) who may be well meaning but are often 100% wrong. Pretty sure others will agree.
Most .264's were Bofors since relatively few were produced after 1968 as the popularity of the caliber waned and it was eventually dropped. Curiously, in the early production of Finnbears the .264 was one of the most common calibers. I guess that speaks to fads and trends in chamberings.I have found a Finnbear that is stamped Bofors and is chambered in 264 Win Mag. So not that rare? It's a Deluxe. What is it's value in 99% condition? I believe it has been refinished. Even the blue.
A good point, but Sako has, historically, been more focused on the US market than on Europe. And the Finnish domestic market favors American calibers such as .30-06 and .308. As best I recall, when I was in a hunting club in Finland we had one guy who used a 9.3x74R Valmet double to hunt moose. The rest of the guys mainly shot .308 or .30-06, and I think there was one .300 WinMag.When we say "rarest" factory chambering, are we referring to total production or what chamberings were imported to the U.S.? I have to think that the metric calibers like the 7x57 & 7x64 would be more common in Europe, but I have no way of proving that.
Hi Stonecreek,Most .264's were Bofors since relatively few were produced after 1968 as the popularity of the caliber waned and it was eventually dropped. Curiously, in the early production of Finnbears the .264 was one of the most common calibers. I guess that speaks to fads and trends in chamberings.
Regardless, a Sako .264 in any configuration brings a premium, and especially in Deluxe. However, refinishing, even if well done, will discount the value substantially. A pristine, fully original Deluxe .264 could easily bring $2,500 or even more; how much a refinished one might command is much harder to say.
Of course, if you're the Gunfather you can charge double the price for a non-original Sako and apparently some yokel with more money than brains will pay it.
The Bofors stamped 264 Deluxe is at the top or very close to being the most desirable L61R.But to give you just a small snapshot for the early L61's, I was at the Tulsa gun show this past weekend and saw 3 Bofors 264 Deluxes for sale. Two had the 26" barrel, the other 24.4". They ranged from $2300 to $2900. I didn't buy one because I have 4, and I'm saving my money to buy a Bofors marked Deluxe 375. In 40 years of looking for the Deluxe 375, I've seen a total of 4, and 2 of those were not for sale. Of the two 375's that were for sale, one was in poor condition so I passed, and I called too late on the other. It looks like I'm never going to find the bofors deluxe 375. The 375, 338 and 300Win Mag deluxe are very rare, but only a small number of Sako buyers consider them desirable, and it seems less are looking to buy one. While at the gun show, I also saw 3 Golden Anniversary, with 2 priced very close to $3000 and 1 priced at $4500. Also, I saw a total of 8-10 270, 30-06 and 7 mag. I didn't see a 300 H&H or 25-06.Thanks for the replys and shining a brighter light on this rifle for me.