What problems have you encountered with your Blaser R8?

[Strausser]

R8 decocked after every shot.
Sent it in,no problems of any kind after I got it back.
I think that was in 2012,have fired around 5k rounds since that.

 

[HWL]

My problem with the R8 is..... my wife said to me: "Now you can sell all your other rifles....."!

HWL

 

[Ed Lally]

R8 Professional, R8 Safari, .22-250, .300 WBY, .375 H&H, .458 Lott, 1000’s of rounds, 0 issues, 100’s of smiles.

 

[marksman]

"Not sure why they are shelf warmers in Germany".

It's ugly and looks more like a shotgun with insert barrels.
If you can afford this price, we go to a gunsmith with the desire for a double rifle - but not to Blaser.
Not for a double.


@R93
Weapon detonations occur from time to time with other manufacturers in exactly the same way.
But a blocked barrel or overpressure and you have the bolt in your eye, that makes the R 93 really dangerous.
Overloaded ammunition also occurs with factory loads.
In this context, one should also ask why Blaser brought out the R8 as a reinforced R93.....
Nevertheless,Blaser remains the most innovative hunting rifle manufacturer.
Everyone else has been asleep for 100 years
Foxi

having seen the damage done to a shooter where his R93 blew up at Little river range here in Australia l do not like being near Blasers when fired
l was the range officer at that time and looked after this poor bloke who was/is a Blaser enthusiast but he was crucified by the Blaser community because of the blowup with all sorts of opinions and rubbish that it was his fault
l note it is very difficult to find anything about Blaser blow ups for some reason although at that time l did research it to become more familiar and saw quite a bit but they do exist and not just for the reasons of operator error
its like with the original Remington triggers not being safe, it will never happen to me till it did

 

[Bullthrower338]

having seen the damage done to a shooter where his R93 blew up at Little river range here in Australia l do not like being near Blasers when fired
l was the range officer at that time and looked after this poor bloke who was/is a Blaser enthusiast but he was crucified by the Blaser community because of the blowup with all sorts of opinions and rubbish that it was his fault
l note it is very difficult to find anything about Blaser blow ups for some reason although at that time l did research it to become more familiar and saw quite a bit but they do exist and not just for the reasons of operator error
its like with the original Remington triggers not being safe, it will never happen to me till it did

I had a R93 and got rid of it for the same reasons! The Walker trigger is not unsafe and I along with many people that are experts on that trigger will also back up,
I bought an R8 just to see if they live up to the hype, great shooting rifle, mine failed to feed the second round when three were loaded. Did it several times then quit when 4 were loaded into the magazine. I’m still not enamored with it like most. Nice rifle but I will still pack a double and a traditional turn bolt across the pond. Innovative rifle, but still not sold!

 

[Hunting Hitman]

No problems with the 3 R8’s I own. Ridiculously accurate amongst all the combinations I have.

HH

 

[R eight]

having seen the damage done to a shooter where his R93 blew up at Little river range here in Australia l do not like being near Blasers when fired
l was the range officer at that time and looked after this poor bloke who was/is a Blaser enthusiast but he was crucified by the Blaser community because of the blowup with all sorts of opinions and rubbish that it was his fault
l note it is very difficult to find anything about Blaser blow ups for some reason although at that time l did research it to become more familiar and saw quite a bit but they do exist and not just for the reasons of operator error
its like with the original Remington triggers not being safe, it will never happen to me till it did

I’ve heard that story of the R93 in 338 Lap blowing up. The story I’ve heard is that the rifle was being shot with ammunition and chamber lubricated with Hornady case lube. Apparently a couple of cases suffered head separation before the action let go. But, I wasn’t there and I really don’t know what the facts are.

Anyway, you were there so what are the facts.

 

[FlyGuy]

Used to own a Blaser R93...

A bit of dust getting into the "little fingers" of the bolt head caused one or two issues.
Other than that, no complaints at all. Well built and very accurate.

With the R8, the worst problem I can think of accidentally leaving the trigger / magazine at home.
Happened to a friend of mine a few years ago. Luckily there were enough spare rifles to go around.
I can assure you, it's the first thing to be packed and the last thing that gets triple checked. lol...

 

[marksman]

there were no case head separations,
l don't know if he had been lubing the cases but did hear that he was
he had shot over 50 shots before the action did not lock when he fired and the bolt blew back shearing off the handle going through the stock breaking a piece of the cheek piece off before tearing a big chunk of the the poor blokes cheek off, he was lucky to have been shooting prone
it should not have fired out of battery IMHO, the action did not blow up
there were many many opinions about how this happened but l did retrieve the bolt and saw that the collets were sheared off and bent around maybe half to two thirds of the bolt, it looked like it had been dragged on bitchumen behind a car,
the bore was clear, the barrel had no bulges,
the shot cases looked like l would expect fired cases to look
what l have heard was that with that model rifle (Blaser tac2) there is a plastic washer that was eventually changed to a metal one used to cam & lock the finger splines into the locking groove,
this plastic washer if it was damaged then the action is unlocked during firing
some time after this accident l was contacted by the company lawyers who after quite a conversation did not need or want my help anymore
my problem with the whole ordeal apart from being horrified by his injuries was the treatment of this bloke who was a Blaser fanatic by the Blaser community,
at that time as l have said l did some research on Blaser rifle blow up's and found that this accident had happened a few times beforehand in exactly the same way, meaning that the action did not blow up but the bolt was sent back into the shooters face causing horrendous injuries but l can't seem to find any of it now on Google LOL
anyway l don't feel comfortable near Blasers firing and would not shoot one, there are quite a few people from that day who feel the same, give me a m98 anyday

 

[One Day...]

Come on, let us be honest guys, there is one major problem with the R8.

You just cannot stop buying new barrels (and scopes) for it !!!

• .222 Rem (wife trainer)
• .223 Rem (my trainer)
• .22 LR (my trainer too now that we built our retirement house on some acreage and I have my very own private 100 yard range)
• .270 Win (wife PG)
• 9.3x62 (wife DG)
• .257 Wby (my MG [Mountain Game])
• .300 Wby (my PG)
• .375 H&H (my carnivore DG)
• .458 Lott (my herbivore DG / stopper)

Thousands of rounds, here and abroad, never a hiccup.

So, yes, you need to close the action for it to go bang, and you need to feed the proper cartridge in the proper barrel / magazine insert / bolt head. Ain't life a pain...

 

[marksman]

this is a very interesting thread from Africa hunting forum with evidence and photos of exactly what l am talking about, lucky this thread is still around, its what l could not find on google
many of the members who have replied to this thread have replied to this one also
lots of pictures and a safety warning, but anyway

SAFETY WARNING!

WARNING!! As I was unable to find a forum dealing specifically with firearms safety, I trust that the moderators will move this thread to the appropriate section. Before that happens, I have placed it here, initially,hoping that as many shooters/hunters as possible see this? and that perhaps...

www.africahunting.com

 

[R eight]

this is a very interesting thread from Africa hunting forum with evidence and photos of exactly what l am talking about, lucky this thread is still around, its what l could not find on google
many of the members who have replied to this thread have replied to this one also
lots of pictures and a safety warning, but anyway

SAFETY WARNING!

WARNING!! As I was unable to find a forum dealing specifically with firearms safety, I trust that the moderators will move this thread to the appropriate section. Before that happens, I have placed it here, initially,hoping that as many shooters/hunters as possible see this? and that perhaps...

www.africahunting.com

Interesting. But none of it refers to the R8.

 

[marksman]

Interesting. But none of it refers to the R8.

no emotional damage then, just go and buy some more barrels

l don't actually care, l do not trust Blaser period and for very good reasons shown in the link l posted
there are no lies in anything l have said that are repeated by others in the link
l conveyed a story about something l was witness to and my opinions because of what l witnessed
its funny how the company lawyers wanted me to take the stand as a witness for them till we had a chat
l have witnessed many different blow ups but no other rifle blew the bolt back into the shooters face

but l would still like to know how do you close a straight pull bolt at 90%?
is that just too ridiculous to answer?

 

[Daisy]

no emotional damage then, just go and buy some more barrels

l don't actually care, l do not trust Blaser period and for very good reasons shown in the link l posted
there are no lies in anything l have said that are repeated by others in the link
l conveyed a story about something l was witness to and my opinions because of what l witnessed
its funny how the company lawyers wanted me to take the stand as a witness for them till we had a chat
l have witnessed many different blow ups but no other rifle blew the bolt back into the shooters face

but l would still like to know how do you close a straight pull bolt at 90%?
is that just too ridiculous to answer?

I wouldn’t fly on an airplane either. They crash sometimes. Same for cars.

 

[Philip Glass]

I’ve always dry fired on an empty. I never fired the gun on 375 barrel before and put in an empty fired in another rifle. The bolt closed up easily and dry fired but would not release. It would cock and dry fire again but still would not release. I tried until I got tired that evening. The next day it released easily after a few attempts and ejected the round. I don’t have an explanation but I lost some confidence in the R8 after that. A standard bolt action rifle you have options but with an R8 you just have to trust the engineering. I still really like the rifle as a rental rifle on hunts but I don’t think it will ever replace my conventional bolt action rifles as a first choice for my hunts after that.

Maybe for what you want to do you need the snap caps. I dry fire with nothing. Most modern rifles are fine to dry fire regardless of what our fathers taught us.

 

[Philip Glass]

Those who don’t like em…have never owned one. Seems everyone who has one likes it. Would love one some day in .45 Blaser (cute little round).

Yes!

 

[Philip Glass]

My problem with the R8 is..... my wife said to me: "Now you can sell all your other rifles....."!

HWL

 

[Philip Glass]

Why do these threads always get derailed by stories of a different rifle having suspicious problems? The OP asked the question about the R8. If y'all want to discuss a different rifle then start your own thread and get off of this one!

 

[RETD16]

Hello All, I have a nephew that has an R93 in 300 Win Mag and the damn thing is incredibly picky about which ammo it shoots ok. The only bullet it seems to like is the 150gr Hornady Interlock. It shoots monolithic bullets, Partitions, and A-Frames all over 1 1/2” @ 100 yards. He is very capable of shooting well under an inch with magnum rifles. Any advice? Has anyone else had this problem? TIA

 

[Powdermaker]

I have two R8's (Professional stock and GRS Norwegian made birch laminate) and four barrels, .223, 22-250, 30-06 and 375 H&H. I have never had a problem with factory rounds. The 22-250 would occasionally misfire using reloaded ammunition. I would hear a click but no dent on the primer. I am assuming this is a case sizing problem. Likely need to full length resize rather than neck sizing but I haven't taken the time to investigate further. Anyone else run into this problem?