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January 19th, 2010
At the Media Day rifle venues, “Tactical” rifles were definitely the featured attraction. There were, of course, many AR-based black rifle offerings, but the purpose-built, precision bolt guns really were the stars of Media Day this year. Savage has a new .338 Lapua Magnum, its first ever. SAKO unveiled an impressive new .338 TRG with front rails and a very sophisticated folding stock (more on that later). Barrett had some thundering big boomers on display. You could feel the compression from the muzzle blast on the new .416 Barrett a dozen feet away. JP Enterprises had its handsome new MOR-07 on display. This features an aluminum chassis with either tubular or square 2×4-style fore-arm, plus a buttstock that looks like the Magpul AR stock. JP’s new MOR (Manually Operated Rifle) is offered either as a chassis to fit Rem footprint receivers, or as a $4499.00 complete rifle.
Though there were many impressive domestic tactical bolt guns, one of the nicest overall designs, in this Editor’s opinion, came from Austria’s Steyr Arms. The new Steyr SSG 08, shown below, features an advanced folding stock that is solid in the locked position while offering full adjustability of comb height and length of pull. The pistol grip was one of the most comfortable I’ve tried. The SSG 08 features a unique, 3-position triggersafety. In the “full safe” position, a positive pop-up selector locks the safety in place and actually blocks the firing pin. The detachable box magazine can be secured in two positions. In the first, the magazine is fully retained in the gun but you can cycle the bolt without picking up or extracting a round.
While the SSG 08 had all the tactical bells and whistles (such as forearm rails and 10-round magazine), it was the overall execution and competence of the weapon that impressed me. The design was well thought out — there were no “rough edges”, and everything, from the buttstock hinge to the mag release, functioned smoothly (and quietly). What separated the SSG 08 from most of the competition was the quality of the trigger. Many of the tactical rifles had very, very heavy trigger pulls with lots of over-travel. The Steyr SSG 08’s trigger was crisp and light. Shooting this gun was a pleasure. One noticed the attention to detail in every element of the rifle. We are told that Steyr received input from Austria’s Special Forces on this rifle. We aren’t surprised. With the SSG 08, one can see that real marksmen were involved in the design.
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January 11th, 2010
 Les Baer Custom (LBC) is a highly respected maker of “semi-custom” 1911 pistols and AR platform rifles. Now Baer moves into the precision bolt-action rifle market with impressive new offerings for 2010. Baer will sell two different bolt-guns, each fitted with a Stiller custom action and a cut-rifled barrel made in-house by LBC. Available chamberings (for both models) are .243 Win, .260 Rem, or .308 Win (later this year LCB will release a .338 Lapua). Remarkably, Baer guarantees these new guns can deliver half-MOA 10-shot groups with match grade ammo.
The new Les Baer Custom bolt-action rifles all feature a Stiller Tac 30 action with Picatinny rail, Wyatt precision floor plate with Wyatt detachable box magazine (DBM), along with a “match grade” 24″ cut-rifled, 5-groove LBC barrel. A Timney match trigger with 2.5-lb pull is fitted, and both action and barrel are coated in a matte-black Dupont S finish.
Two different Bell & Carlson composite stock designs are offered. The LBC Tactical Recon Bolt Action Rifle features a tactical-style stock, similar in appearance to the SAKO TRG stock. It has a vertical pistol grip, undercut toe, plus an adjustable cheekpiece and adjustable buttplate. MSRP for the “Tactical Recon” model is $3560.00.
If you want a lighter rifle with a more conventional stock, the LBC Tactical Varmint Classic features a varmint-style composite stock with a narrower fore-arm, “standard” wrist-grip shape, and a straight comb. There is a small hook in the underside of the buttstock. Like the “Tactical Recon” model, the “Tactical Varmint” features a Stiller action, Wyatt bottom metal/magazine, and 24″ cut-rifled barrel. MSRP for the “Tactical Varmint” is $3410.00.
New Les Baer Bolt-Guns have 10-shot Half-MOA Guarantee
We talked with Les Baer yesterday, and he told us that the prototype Baer tactical rifles have show outstanding accuracy during testing, producing some 1/2″ groups at TWO hundred yards. Accordingly, Baer is offering one of the best guarantees in the business. Both LBC tactical bolt-guns “are guaranteed to shoot 10-shot groups under 1/2 MOA with match grade ammo.”
The new LBC rifles will debut next week at SHOT Show in Las Vegas. We hope to get our hands on one for field testing. It will be interesting to see if the rifles can really put 10 shots inside one-half inch (center to center) at 100 yards.
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November 15th, 2009
Kelblys Inc., long-respected as a producer of benchrest actions and rifles, has expanded its product line. Now Kelbly’s will be offering complete tactical and tactical/hunting rifles. Produced in a wide variety of chamberings from 6.5×47 Lapua all the way up to 300 Win Magnum, these new Kelbly rifles are available as either single shots or as repeaters. To learn more about the new Kelbly rifles, visit Kelbly’s enhanced website.
Shown above is Kelbly’s new Atlas rifle. This rifle’s$2800.00 base price includes premium components: Single-shot Atlas action with 20 MOA or Flat integral scope base, Jewell or Shilen trigger, Krieger or Bartlein Barrel, Kelbly’s HCFB or Hunting stock (with recoil pad and swivels), Double screw rings (30mm or 1″). Available options include: McMillan A5 stock, CDI Magazine w/ 5 round AICS Magazine ($260), 3-Round Blind Mag ($150), Kemper or Vais Muzzlebrake ($185 Installed), Karsten Adjustable Cheek Piece ($75), Barrel Fluting ($120), Long-Action Upgrade ($70), Painted stock ($300), CeraKote Barreled Action ($200).
Kelbly’s new Grizzly II Tactical/Hunting rifle costs $3300.00 before options. Shown above in wood thumbhole stock, this rifle features a single-shot Grizzly II Action with 20 MOA or Flat integral scope base, Krieger or Bartlein Barrel, Jewell or Shilen Trigger, Kelbly HCFB or Hunting stock (with recoil pad and swivels), Double screw rings (30mm or 1″ scope tube). Grizzly II options are the same as for the Atlas model, except that a detachable box magazine is not offered with the Grizzly II. NOTE: The stock in the photo is a prototype wood thumbhole. The production Grizzly IIS will use a Kelbly fiberglass HCFB stock (standard), or McMillan A5 stock (optional at extra cost).
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July 28th, 2009
Tactical Rifles (TR), a Florida-based precision rifle builder and parts-maker, has introduced new, ultra-durable bottom metal for Rem 700 and Rem-clone receivers. Why do we need better/stronger bottom metal? Just take a look at photo below. It shows a factory Rem floorplate that failed at the trigger guard.
The TR floorplate/detachable magazine assembly is lighter, yet stronger than factory bottom metal and competitive after-market products: “At it’s thinnest part the TR floorplate assembly is 150% thicker than our nearest competitors’ unit.” That makes the unit much stronger and more durable. In addition the TR floorplate is designed to work with TR’s milspec, dual-stack, center-feed magazines. This center-feed mag design provides more reliable feeding and function.
The photo below left shows a TR floorplate assembly under the wheel of a heavy pick-up truck. As you can see in the right photos, the “overbuilt” TR bottom-metal passes this test with flying colors.
TR floorplate assemblies are now available for purchase as a replacement part for any Remington 700-style rifle. Minimal gunsmithing is required but the end result is, according to tactical rifles, “dramatically increased reliability … without the binding that occurs in some of the other detachable box magazine (DBM) systems available today.” For more info, visit TacticalRifles.net, or call 877-811-GUNS (4867).
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