Sako P-72 .22 Magnum

[bloorooster]

Don’t sell the .22 mag short brother Avon! I used to shoot chucks at 200 + on a regular basis. CCI maxi mags shot well but my favorite was Win Super x 40gr. Holding at the hairline between the ears.
Now of course this is not a P 72, nor is it a .22mag, but if you are looking for a scope that fits behind the rear sight without having to rise above to clear , the Burris Mini works well. I still ended up removing the ramp blade to squeeze the objective bell a tad more forward. The rings are med Burris steel rimfire.
Bloo

 

[stonecreek]

The Burris minis seem to have very critical eye placement, although I'm sure they have excellent optics. I like the Leupold Compacts (now "Ultralight", I believe). Eye placement isn't as non-critical as with the full size Leupolds, but still quite generous compared to competitive scopes.

 

[bloorooster]

The Burris minis seem to have very critical eye placement, although I'm sure they have excellent optics. I like the Leupold Compacts (now "Ultralight", I believe). Eye placement isn't as non-critical as with the full size Leupolds, but still quite generous compared to competitive scopes.

Yes , I agree, the Burris has a much tighter range to eye placement compared to Leupold. I actually tried a Leupold 3x9 compact , but it was simply too long to mount behind the rear sight and keep it low enough to weld.
Optics are decent, but not outstanding

 

[stonecreek]

But that's a stunning rifle you have that Burris on. The stock is identical to Sako Deluxe, but I can't identify the action from that angle. Looks like a rimfire, though.

 

[bloorooster]

But that's a stunning rifle you have that Burris on. The stock is identical to Sako Deluxe, but I can't identify the action from that angle. Looks like a rimfire, though.

P54…thank you stone

 

[avon_7]

Don’t sell the .22 mag short brother Avon! I used to shoot chucks at 200 + on a regular basis. CCI maxi mags shot well but my favorite was Win Super x 40gr. Holding at the hairline between the ears.View attachment 30699
Now of course this is not a P 72, nor is it a .22mag, but if you are looking for a scope that fits behind the rear sight without having to rise above to clear , the Burris Mini works well. I still ended up removing the ramp blade to squeeze the objective bell a tad more forward. The rings are med Burris steel rimfire.
Bloo

Beautiful Rifle..

 

[Squish0]

I just bought a P72 .22 Mag. I have only ever seen two for sale in Australia in 20 years
The owner really played hard ball with the price and would not budge an inch. I ended up paying $1500 Au for it.
It came with two magazines.
It has open sites on it though the rear williams is missing the blade. I'ts in very good condition and I shot it the other day. Nice 1" clover leaf groups at 100. I have it's .22LR version in NZ and If I see a hornet I will buy that also

Hi mate, is there any chance you could post a picture of the magazine? I have inherited a P72 in 22mag but I'm having issues with the magazine feeding the last 2 rounds. If it's loaded with 5, the first 3 come out fine but the last 2 won't feed. The nose of the round stands up to high.

I believe the issue is the tabs on the top being bent over incorrectly but I'm hoping to see some detailed pictures of a 22mag magazine before trying to adjust it. Knowing how rare these are I don't want to risk damaging it.

Thanks

 

[avon_7]

Here you go. My magazines only hold 4 rounds. No feeding issues...

 

[Jeeps-And-Guns]

Here you go. My magazines only hold 4 rounds. No feeding issues...

Same here, mine only holds 4 rounds.
If you can fit 5 in it, there might be a chance someone has modified the follower, put it in backwards, or maybe even bent it.
It is supposed to have a slight bend to it as you can see in the pictures.

 

[Squish0]

Thank you for the help.

I was able to see where mine was slightly bent on one of the tabs at the rear causing it to push the case rim forward on the last round. I have moved it back out and it's now working well.

The follower was also flattened out slightly and I have added a small bend to make it look like the one pictured above and it will only take 4 rounds now.

I have not used this gun in 10+ years. My farther bought it new in the late 70's and it's still in good condition. I finally got around to giving it a good clean up and using it again.

I am amazed at how rare these are because it is such a nice gun. I remember my dad saying he had never seen another one after he bought this and when I had it at the range it attracted a lot of attention. It shoots very well.

 

[avon_7]

Apparently they were only made for a couple of years in .22 mag

 

[stonecreek]

I am amazed at how rare these are because it is such a nice gun.

By chance I met the gentleman who was the president of Garcia Arms at the time the P72's were imported (and, in fact, was able to purchase his P72 .22LR from him). He told me that he was extremely reluctant to import the P72 since, in his words, "Who would want to pay $500 for just a .22?" You can understand his attitude since most of the higher-quality .22's from American manufacturers were selling for a fraction of that at the time (mid-1970's).

I suspect that the president's reasoning was reflected in small sales numbers for the P72 and M78. Further, the .22 WMR was the least popular of the three calibers the rifle was offered in -- probably due to the large difference in price between .22 LR and .22 WMR ammunition -- so the .22 WMR is the scarcest of a rather scarce rifle model.