What bolt action rifle do you regret buying

[FlyGuy]

Not my own rifle, but a friend bought one of those Remington's with the triangular barrel back in about 2012. Never seen a factory rifle with so many problems!

Put me off Remington forever.

 

[BeeMaa]

Mine was a Savage Bear Hunter but it was about the chambering, not the rifle itself.

It was a 300WSM and an absolute useless cartridge compared to the options afforded by the 300WM. It was a horrible decision.

 

[375Ruger416]

Not my own rifle, but a friend bought one of those Remington's with the triangular barrel back in about 2012. Never seen a factory rifle with so many problems!

Put me off Remington forever.

I had one of those! Mine worked well and shot quite accurately, but the muzzle blast off the integral brake was terrible - especially for a 223!

 

[Raven]

I purchased a Sako 85 Kodiak in 338 Winch some years ago - big problems in expulsion and extraction (unforgivable in every rifle but mostly in a DG stick).
The rifle was beautiful but as everyone can figure out, I expected a flawless hunting tool.
Nevertheless, Beretta has been absolutely perfect on warranty, I even had the chance (that I sized) to change the rifle with other stuff of the Beretta group.
I'm sure Sako fixed the problems, that in my opinion were due to the design, as the new Sako 90 is quite different indeed.
I wish they would make a 90, laminated grey, inox, irons. Maybe with a wider butt blade.

Many Sako 85 in large calibers have such problems with shell casings. I also have a Kodiak, but in .375 H&H Mag. Shell casing always was extracted normally, but it hit the scope. I looked at the information on the Internet and saw that a huge number of Sako 85 owners are experiencing this.

I set the canadian bar Near. Now the shell casing hits it, not the scope.

I won't say that I really regret the purchase, but I was definitely disappointed. Here, after all, it's not a single marriage, but a design flaw. Why did they start selling the rifle all over the world?

 

[Altitude sickness]

I have two Sako 85 one in .308 the other 7 Rem Mag. Both eject fine without hitting the scope.

 

[BGGMKLR]

Mine was a model 700 XCR in .300 RUM. Talk about severe recoil! I recently sold it at a loss just to get rid of it.

Remington produced several models in 300 RUM that were...in my humble opinion...unstoppable.
An amigo won a new Sendero at a fundraising dinner and had no use for it. He offered it me me at about 40-45% of cost. It took only one shot off the bench to realize why.
I returned it to him and politely told him... no thank you.
Best
Spike

 

[BGGMKLR]

Remington produced several models in 300 RUM that were...in my humble opinion...unstoppable.
An amigo won a new Sendero at a fundraising dinner and had no use for it. He offered it me me at about 40-45% of cost. It took only one shot off the bench to realize why.
I returned it to him and politely told him... no thank you.
Best
Spike

EDIT: Unshootable...not unstoppable.

 

[Raven]

I have two Sako 85 one in .308 the other 7 Rem Mag. Both eject fine without hitting the scope.

Of course, not all Sako 85s are like that, otherwise no one would use them at all. But still, there are a lot of similar cases. And there are videos on youtube of various people who have encountered this problem.

 

[deewayne2003]

Not my own rifle, but a friend bought one of those Remington's with the triangular barrel back in about 2012. Never seen a factory rifle with so many problems!

Put me off Remington forever.

That was the exact same model my cousins ranch hand had that would fire when safety pushed to fire!

 

[Phil Giordano]

Many Sako 85 in large calibers have such problems with shell casings. I also have a Kodiak, but in .375 H&H Mag. Shell casing always was extracted normally, but it hit the scope. I looked at the information on the Internet and saw that a huge number of Sako 85 owners are experiencing this.

I set the canadian bar Near. Now the shell casing hits it, not the scope.

I won't say that I really regret the purchase, but I was definitely disappointed. Here, after all, it's not a single marriage, but a design flaw. Why did they start selling the rifle all over the world?

Agree 101%
The problem is by design
Hope the new Sako 90 has better project!

 

[Phil Giordano]

I have two Sako 85 one in .308 the other 7 Rem Mag. Both eject fine without hitting the scope.

Maybe they do just in larger calibers?
Don't know...

 

[Altitude sickness]

It’s well documented in the larger calibers. I’ve also read the big bores are not as accurate as a Sako should be.

 

[375Fox]

Maybe they do just in larger calibers?
Don't know...

It happens in my 270 win and 375 H&H but not my 300 win. It’s an unfortunate design flaw, but it just limits you to standard duplex scopes or medium rings. Rotate scope 90 degrees to eliminate issue. Other than that it’s a great rifle. My 300 win and 375 H&H are the most accurate rifles I own. Capable of 0.5” groups with Barnes bullets and 1” with most others. They aren’t picky with ammo.

 

[Phil Giordano]

Anyway I believe they fixed it with the new model 90. The head of the bolt has a totally different and more efficent design. Sad they don't make a Kodiak model anymore (gray laminated/inox/irons)...

 

[fourfive8]

Savage 110 in .223 bought new for cheap in about 1988. Barrel nut and stove bolt bolt. No mas

 

[Kevin375]

Not one in this list, but I'm starting to regret my last purchase. I bought a Steel Action rifle few weeks ago and the rifle itself is great.
A very strong straight pull action, an excellent trigger and a great handling and balance as well. But the barrel sucks !
Mine is in .338 Winchester magnum and has a 56 cm barrel ( 22 inches) and a standart profil (17 mm) and one argument sellers use a lot is : barrels come from Lothar-Walter.
I dont think mine is a compliment for the brand ! I'm an avid reloader and it's impossible to have a sub Moa group so far. And I also noticed a terrible point of impact shifting regarding bullet weights and powder used. I'm going to buy a factory box of ammunition next days to confirm it, but I lost my faith with this rifle.
Being a Blaser man for 20 years now, I have never seen such results. I will call the gunsmith and let's see what we decide ! I can try to trade mine against one with a semi-weight and longer barrel, or the easiest way of doing is to get another Blaser R8 with a semi-weight barrel in the same caliber.

 

[Altitude sickness]

Are you sure your scope erector springs are not maxed out on windage or elevation. And, or that the scope tube is not in a bind.
Both create POI shifting shot to shot

 

[MTA]

I had a Christensen and had endless trouble with it. As did three others that bought similar guns who I know.

Finicky to cycle. Ejection the brass regularly hit the scope and fell right back in causing a jam. Picky on which loads it shot well. Sold it at a loss.

The used gun racks at Scheels in DFW are filled up with Christensen rifles.. I dont think I have heard of one positive experience about them

 

[Winmdl71]

Remington, pre bankruptcy quality was questionable at best and was steadily declining. I’ve not seen anything from the “new” Remington to make me want to have another.

 

[meigsbucks]

Ruger Scout rifle in .308. Never gave good accuracy and no load was consistent. It went down the road.
Winchester M70 in .308. Never gave even fair accuracy. Down the road it went as well.