I doubt whether i’d buy another Sako rifle the last 2 have had issues that nobody seems to want to know about especially Sako /Berretta, the mod 85 22-250 bought new then after 3 weeks all the clear started lifting from the laminated stock, twice brought to their attention and GS nothing still after 9yrs .the latest one 7mm rem mag Sako soft fore end sags to touch the barrel contacted Berretta Australia their answer was ''sorry we don’t make a exchange stock that fits .I then asked ''Would a trg stock fit, Answer ‘‘no, completely different action’’ , so then I ask ‘‘So ok then what would your suggestion be for me to do as I need the rifle’’ ‘‘SILENCE’’ no more contact so maybe the question was too hard for them ‘‘BUT’’ here’s my answer ''No more Sako rifles for me ‘’ in my opinion these rifles don’t deserve the premium price like the older ones
Update , Sako are asking for photo of stock touching the barrel so I sent them 2 also state that this the first they’ve heard of this problem . Obviously they don’t get info from forums I’ve read of atleast 3 in America and 2 mentions in Australia besides mine complaining of the soft fore end on the same rifle but i’ll take their word and see where this goes .
But i’ll give it to them this the first time they’ve got back to me in 9yrs. They probably think I want it fixed for nothing but I just want it fixed
Well after too’ing and frowing yesterday and this morning I’ve been told to get a gunsmith and try bedding the barrel it may stiffen the flex in the fore end of the stock after hearing that I realised I was being played because bedding the barrel would not have anything to do with the flex of the fore end of the stock unless you bedded the barrel from the chamber to the full length of the fore end of the stock. Firstly they wanted a photo without me holding the rifle only with the bipod fixed, then the age of the rifle and how long I’ve had it and a serial number( fair enough) then for the not picking up the first bullet from the mag ( Have you tried another mag?) no because for $154 i’m not buying another just to have 2 useless mags , but in all honesty I can get bye with single loading so that’s not a big problem, then the ‘‘try bedding the barrel to stop flex’’ so after being treated like a knows nothing person I told them what I expected from a rifle and told them I basically was wasting their time and mine and said I would set about trading away from sako to another brand . (all is silent) I have had 3 new sako rifles in the last 7yrs and all have had issues 22-250 mod 85, 25-06 Roughtech, and 7mm Roughtech rem mag . The 22-250 - clear started to peel off at 3 weeks, 25-06- sloppy bolt, rough finish, accuracy, 7mm- soft fore end on stock, won’t pick up first bullet from mag. none of this is life and death problems but at the premium price you pay for a sako one would expect almost nil problems and a better after sale help or do I expect too much
I bought a Sako sight unseen because of reputation. I must admit it shoots very well. but the quality of wood left me a little disappointed it was a very light and plain wood. The fit and finish could probably be improved on. However when seeing the standard of a lot of other brands these days it is probably better.
I think it is only the shotguns that are truly still made to craftsman standards but when you see the price even then you think holy shit how much am I paying for that piece of timber.
I had a fondle of a 20k parazzi under and over this morning and I can’t see how it’s worth it either.
I have a Sako 85 in 30-06 and have never had any problems with it. The only issue is the barrel sits slightly off to one side in the channel but is still free floating and doesn’t touch anywhere.
I doubt that I would buy another at that price as I think I would end up with a better outfit building it myself.
Yes 1Fatman I think Berretta will cut quality and corners for profit but it will end badly for them same as it did before buying the Sako plant . I presume all rifles have some type of fault that can be easily fixed but sako is one that after market parts can’t be bought easily making it a problem child when a problem arises and for the price, there shouldn’t be any problems. I’ve tried to buy an after market stock but nobody sells them or makes them, they have to be made as an extra making them twice the price finally putting the price up in the price range of a precision rifle so why not just buy a precision rifle in the first place it would save a lot of head aches in the long run
@anon19591382 have you considered a Hatcher stock you could choose whether you want a thumb hole or a traditional type stock what type of wood you would like ect. He has bits of ebony you can use for the forend and or bottom of hand grip.
Only catch is that they are not fully sanded and finished. I didnt find that part too hard at all. I had to do the complete inletting myself as it was a custom barrel V block that I glued in and the barrel channel as my barrel was a bit larger than most. But with a half circle chisel just dragging it down the centr line quickly cut a channel.
Or Trekkin may also be able to help you with a new stock. Having the old one should make thier job of doing the inletting for you easy.
Yes Sungazer I have looked into a hatcher stock but at that time they were in the process of moving camp or something and couldn’t start to do one for me until much later but they did give me a quote and because it wasn’t a standard brand stock they’d have to set the machinery up different and that would cost extra bringing the cost up a little too high for an unfinished stock putting me in the position not to have one made as it would have been the last decision as i’m not keen on the Thumbhole type stock
What the dude is talking about is stock stabilisation, not barrel bedding. Two processes often done together on synthetic stocks… it’s a pain in the arse!
I’ve done it before on the famous Howa sponge stock. Used some pretty serious epoxy along with some carbon fiber webbing to add rigidity to a flexy fore-end. The issue is not at all uncommon on synthetic stocks.
if you like the feel of the original stock but not the squishy fore-end, i’d vote for getting Trekkin to copy the stock in laminated bamboo or some other material.
Fair enough but if you need some help with it. I am not that far away from him and may be able to get a bit of special attention (deer hunting kickback).
I quite like the thumbhole stocks for hunting. I just find it makes them a little easier to handle as in carry gives a few more options and when cleaning it provide a good place to hold on to when working the cleaning rods.
Thanks guys for the help , much appreciated but I believe it’s Sako’s problem even though they just brush you off, they sprook how good this stock is yet the truth is it’s a piece of shit the way things are at the moment it can stay in the gun safe if I have to replace the stock it’ll be worth more than a precision rifle yet the quality is far from it maybe I’ll just stop spending on it now and trade it in like I told the Berretta people.
Gwion , it’s not a real comfortable stock by any means it needs a cheek pad because it’s like holding a board against your face and thin and low but all fixable but why when the front is soft. I believe once you start hacking into a rifle it’s not new any more this rifle hasn’t had 60 rounds through it as yet and yet i’m going to have to spend between $500 and $1500 to make it shootable and comfortable. This is money I don’t have sitting in the draw . if I did all this work it would be a well over a $3000 rifle , I bought a Sako thinking spend some money and it will last me a long time but how wrong I was. but thanks for the help but the way I feel about Berretta at present I could run a drop saw through the rifle and post it back to them. Thanks fellas but I don’t know at present what i’ll do but trading out of it still sounds like a good way of going depends on how much I loose on doing so. Cheers
I don’t get why they can’t swap out the stock for a timber one… ?
I know that it doesn’t fix the stock issue but for a replacement stock there is a possibility but with all solutions it costs money.
You can buy a GRS laminated stock blank and have the inlet done by your friendly gun smith or forum member if you don’t want to tackle it yourself.
I had a quick look for a price and The Barn has them for $815 to $990 depending on choice of style;
https://www.thebarn.net.au/categories/GRS/5443?utm_source=grsriflestocks&utm_medium=traffic
Not sure what it would cost for the inlet to be done.
Here are a list of part numbers that I got from GRS to make it easier.
They do a stock for the Sako A7 but it is a short action only.
Here is a link to their website if you want to have a look.
Me to Gwion but apparently the set up is a one off type for that model I did ask this question of them but the answer is the actions are different I even asked about the TRG stock but no again ,I compared it with mymod 85 sako and it was extremely different then there was the it’s not our fault or we haven’t had this problem with others , which is a load of crap have a look around some forums and you will see especially in the USA .
Thanks 1Fatman for that although my point is $2200 for the rifle new , $815 to $990 for stock then maybe $200 to $350 to fit it, then freight to and from gunsmith . Mate it sounds just easier to bail out and start again , I’ve just have to decide what i’m going to do and soon before I loose too much on it . cheers and thanks
What model is it, exactly?
G’day Gwion it’s an A7 Roughtech Range 7MM Rem Mag 26’’ barrel. I’ve been told the standard A7 stock won’t fit it as the tang area is different . it has no solid or removable tang ,the tang is moulded into the stock and protrudes up into a groove in the forward section of the action at the bottom.
Weird… sounds pretty silly to have a rifle model that can’t be put into a different stock!