Blaser double rifles
Originally this morning I wanted to write a short piece about big game hunting which was going to lead into a consideration of double rifles, but perhaps it is for the best, but I ran out of time last night. However, having considered various Blasers that are available I thought that in a change to our schedule, we would have a quick look a the Blaser double rifle instead
Now I freely admit that whilst I have never hankered after an elephant stopper, as configurations & the hunter go, possibly above all others the double is steeped in the mystique of the dark Continent. So set aside your Realtree for a moment & pop on your pith helmet instead.
That still doesn’t mean that your humble correspondent has ever wanted one - working on the basis that as a big girls blouse when it comes to recoil, there is little point in buying something chambered for the 3/4" Wrath of Thor cartridge which will knock you into next week - certainly not one for me
However about nine months ago, I had occasion to handle this rifle (which incidentally is still available). Quite why the dealer got it out of the rack I am not sure – I was there to look at a left handed .243 – but he handed it over & to be honest, my jaw dropped on the spot. I would never ever purport to have shot a huge number of rifles, but I can say that I have never handled anything like it. Ever.
That way that it sits in your hands or comes up to your shoulder is staggering. It swings beautifully, just like .... well just like a well balanced shotgun. It was simply one of those Road to Damascus moments & I became a believer on the spot
Now to deal with this weapon in particular, aside from a few small marks on the woodwork, it is in beautiful condition & is chambered for the .30 Blaser round which is slightly more powerful than .30-06 – so perfect for the wild boar that are becoming increasingly common in our countryside
That aside, its a round that isn’t widely available so you are going to have to get it built to order which isn’t cheap but a rifle like this has absolutely no place on the range – once you have set it up, you are only going to use it on game, so in the big scheme of things, it wouldn’t cost too much to keep well fed
Apparently it will group to 2” at 100 but that is almost irrelevant , we aren’t talking about taking long shots over the moors with a rifle like this, it’s for close quarters, thick cover & moving targets. In fact forget boar for just a moment, if your man were to download some cartridges, I suspect that you could come up with something that would be ideal for woodland deer
& should I win the lottery this evening, first thing on Saturday, I’d phone the dealer with my credit card at the ready, without a shadow of doubt
Comments
A most handsome gun, and if it handles as you describe - as I am sure it does - it is well worth lusting after.
You are lucky in your pusher: clearly an excellent salesman.
Is that the backsight just above the forend?
Posted by: Jeff Wood | October 23, 2009 3:25 PM
Very handsome!
"That way that it sits in your hands or comes up to your shoulder is staggering. It swings beautifully, just like .... well just like a well balanced shotgun. It was simply one of those Road to Damascus moments & I became a believer on the spot "
I have found that that is a typical reaction of people who handle a fine double rifle, particularly if they are already used to shotguns. If the stock of the rifle is a reasonable fit to the shooter, the handling characteristics are uncannily good.
I can attest to this - I went to the gunshop to buy ammunition one day, and suddenly found myself the owner of a gorgeous Browning Express 25, which cost me the equivalent of a year's beer money. Worth every penny: it took a boar and a red deer hind on its very first outing, and practically everyone who handles it has that same "road to Damascus" experience. Anathema to the purist, but consider adding a tiny Docter red-dot sight (or the new Zeiss clone thereof) for superfast target acquisition in dappled woodland settings.
Posted by: Denis | October 23, 2009 4:04 PM
Oh, wild BOAR not wild bore.
Posted by: toad | October 23, 2009 4:54 PM
"It was simply one of those Road to Damascus moments & I became a believer on the spot."
A good double rifle will do that to you. The last one I ever fired in anger was a double .375 H&H -- the make escapes me, because it was borrowed but it was German, either a JP Sauer, a Heym or a Krieghoff -- probably the latter. It had (as all good doubles, shotgun or rifle should) side-by-side barrels, none of that newfangled over/under nonsense.
The good ones handle just like the best shotguns, and I'll be frank, I don't find the .375 H&H recoil to be that much worse than a 12ga when fired offhand. Certainly, when I fired this one, I hardly felt any recoil because of the adrenalin.
I wish I could say that the quarry was something big, but it wasn't: just a rabid wild dog, at about twenty yards distance. Not much left afterwards, though.
Posted by: Kim du Toit | October 23, 2009 5:36 PM
There was an article about double rifles in the American Rifleman recently. I think that most retail in the region of $9 to $15 thousand, so not cheap! In the UK I'd guess you'd switch the $ for a £ sign.
Posted by: Rob | October 23, 2009 6:03 PM
Kim/Rob - sadly it is yet another one of those lottery rifles, but I have at least bought a ticket for the weekends draws.
It's 'in the rack' at £3,250 but there is no doubt a bit of a deal to be done but only a bit of a deal !
Posted by: Mr Free Market | October 23, 2009 6:22 PM
Check out the Hummingbirdrifle double - 22 Hornet - cost like the mileage between stars.
http://www.hoferwaffen.com/hofer_52s.php?id=14&lang=en
Posted by: trainer | October 23, 2009 7:15 PM
Very nice indeed. I like the look of the Blaser single shot break action rifle, too. Another case of "when I win the lottery".
Posted by: Nikkormat | October 23, 2009 7:38 PM
Don't have a pith helmet but I was born wearing a Topee, and I like to see a short little double - like a Howdah gun. My school-friend Chandal's uncle was the Maharaja up the street from us and had some nice tiger skins and old rifles - and an old Bentley that a Peace Corps kid tried to buy off him - ha!
Posted by: DirtCrashr | October 23, 2009 11:59 PM
Here's something I stole from Tam ....
a pic of a double in .22 Hornet ...
Posted by: Kristopher | October 24, 2009 8:00 PM
There's a really good site on doubles that is run by a guy in Dubai. If you're not familiar with it it's accuratereloading.com
Posted by: emdfl | October 25, 2009 1:26 AM
I can see that im going to have to get you to meet a good friend of mine he has somewere around TEN double rifles!
Posted by: ajdshootist | October 25, 2009 11:40 AM
Kristopher, thanks for that link - a gorgeous little piece.
Posted by: Jeff Wood | October 25, 2009 12:52 PM
"...once you have set it up, you are only going to use it on game..."
Such as liberal politicians
Col Beausaber
Posted by: Beausaber | October 28, 2009 3:10 PM