Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Express Rifles and Big Bores Only .370 Sako

.........Each rifle is its own individual with or without an accuracy guarantee. The M77`s have improved quite a bit over recent years. They improve every year.

If a rifle shoots 2" groupings with factory ammo, the groups will in most cases, tighten up with reloads. I don`t look at what a rifle does with factory ammo, I look at what it does with the reloads. That`s where my accuracy concerns are. I`m not worried about a gun writers report of 2" to 2 1/2" groups coming from out of a M77 Ruger.

If after reloads are tried and accuracy remains piss poor, then I`ll have a beef. Until then; nope!

I like the 370 Sako Mag./9.3x66. I like it so much that I picked up a chamber reamer from PTG about a year ago as I was looking at building one in the future. (Still looking at doing one but, in the meantime, another project took priority.) When all is said and done though, I think it is a fairly redundant cartridge, especially when compared to the 9.3x62. In fact, the original developer of this case used a standard x62 reamer and simply ran it in an additional 4mm. I don't own any 9.3's yet which is why this is the cartridge I'm looking at to fill this slot in the battery.

At that point accuracy would have to improve by a factory of two times for me to be interested.

My experience has been tight-shooting rifles tighten up a bit with re-loads - just the same way loose-shooting rifles tighten up a bit with reloads.

I've never seen a crappy shooting factory gun - become a shooter - due to some re-loading technique.

I think that's why Sako makes the point of bragging about 5 shots into an inch - with factory ammo. Meaning a re-loader can even do better than that.

On another post dealing with CRF v. PF actions there was a lot of discussion about how Mauser actioned rifles are the best choice for close encounters with dangerous game. It is not simple to convert a mauser to any cartridge other than those for which the action was originally designed specifically those in the 7x57 thru 30-06 class. If you accept the proposition that mausers are the very best, then consider that a 370 or a 9.3x62 will easily and reliably run thru the standard 98 actions most commonly available and will hold 4 or 5 down.

For a long time I wanted a Sako Hunter in 9.3 x 62 for some odd reason, they will not even bring them into the States, so they come up with this 370 Sako, fine, great. We should be happy that they even bother at all. It took a few decades for the 338 Winnie to gain popularity it has today. I have no need of a 370 Sako, this is not to say that at some point I Would not give one a try. After all what is wrong with 286 gr bullet out of a barrel? and you can have five more besides!

I like the concept of the 370 Sako. It has some benefits that our current list of cartridges in this class do not offer, enough that there should be room for both types. I hope it is a success. I kind of like the idea of some offspring from this case too. Some of us like a bit more than can be obtained with a 30 06 class case without going the full blown mag route.

I wanted one to be my "B.C. big-bear" round. But after reading about "Furprick" waiting for more than a year for his - I changed my mind and went with a 375 H&H (which the store had in stock) to suit the same purpose

hey, Brian, they say I should have that Sako in 9.3x66, in a month or so, at least when Sako starts shipping to Canada again. they had some metal problems in their factory that slowed orders, from what I understand this is behind them now. The 9.3 is a special order so I hope I get it soon, alternatively I will take a 375 HH like you have. And , my other Sako 3006 does shoot <1" groups with the first handloads I tried. it has been termed a 35whelen on 'roids and thats just what I want. My 35whelen pushes a 250gr FXB to 2684 fps the 9.3 will run a 250 to 2750fps and a 286 to 2550fps, I like that and it will be in a quality rifle with guarenteed accuracy.

I think it's a big yawner.

If you handload, you can get 2500 from a 9.3x62 with 286 grain bullets. So the .370 is only 50 fps faster. Not much progress since the 9.3x62 has been around since 1905.

So they paid Boddington some $$$ to go shoot a buffalo. Yawn. The 9.3x62 has been considered an excellent buffalo cartridge for decades.

If you handload, you can get 2500 from a 9.3x62 with 286 grain bullets

Is that with a 22" bbl ?

Ask Mule Deer. He posted it.

I've read the piece by Boddington, and if I were looking for the holy grail in rifle cartridges it would not be a 9.3mm to start with. It doesn't make any sense, compared to American cartridges of the same ilk, as it fits into a too narrow slot in the 9.3mm's to begin with. But for the person who thinks they must have "the latest" or "all there is" to make them happy, hey, go for it!

But I must say that if the rifles I have now can't keep me happy, I honestly doubt that adding another would alter that mood! Just my experience and what I observe in others. Or, shouldn't we mature enough in our thinking to get over the rationalization that there's a real "need" for such a rifle and cartridge? In all honesty, we probably have too many already that are more than adequate for that supposed "need", that are languishing unused in our safe, with a layer of dust on them creating the impression that they are truly ugly rifles and a "new" 9.3mm SOMETHINGOROTHER would cheer us up!

But, of course, we must convince ourselves that what we want is going to satisfy, in the short term at least.

Bob

www.bigbores.ca

I get 2500 fps with 286's in a 23.6 barrel from a 9.3x62. The loads were pressure-tested and were right around 60,000 psi.

The .370 is basically a new round that's factory loaded to what we can handload the 9.3x62 to. The factories could load the 9.3x62 to the same basic level, but there would be the problem of 100-year-old rifles, just as there is with the 6.5x55, 7x57, etc.

The .370 is another in a recent spate of factory cartridges designed to appeal to real rifle loonies who obsess over such things--and who also tend to handload, so aren't going to use the factory ammo much anyway. This seems a little weird, but there you are. Or we are.

I like the power of a 250gr bullet at around 2650-2700 fps, the whelen i have will do this, although at or above max, but has proven itself over 15yrs of shooting moose , b-bear and the odd mule deer. Also, I like sako rifles, the 9.3x66 will easily do what my whelen does and then some with a better selection of bullets on the heavy end. So basically i am changing from a 35whelen to something a little better in a quality rifle. I know it will down big animals at the ranges they should be shot with little difficulty.

I'll keep my 9.3X62.

When it came out, we in Europe woundered, what Sako had in mind with it. After all,

9,3x62 - common in Germany
9,3x64 - steady following
9,3x74R - common in doubles or combination rifles
9,3x57 - moose mainstay in Scandinavia

there really is not that much ground left in the .366 bracket.
Having a 9,3x64, I am set it that one.

And so will I.

I was curious about what Craig Boddington had said in the G&A article that was referenced at the start of the 370 Sako thread, so looked it up. Far from being "hoh-hum" about the round, he really liked it! He even ordered one on a left hand action and stated he had come to see it as an excellent cartridge (paraphrased). His opinion can be found on the last page of the article.

Yes, the 9.3x62 can get 95% of the 370, and the 9.3x64 gets 105%; however, to claim that the new round is thus redundant makes about as much sense as claiming the 30-06 can get 95% of the 300 WSM and the 300 RUM gets 105% of it, so the WSM is redundant.

The 370 Sako kind of reminds me of the idea behind the 427 Shelby Cobra - adding extra horsepower to a preexisting small package.

Living in brown bear country, 6 in the gun beats 4, especially when the debate is mostly about .009" in diameter.

Hmmm, G33/40 action that needs a project, 22" barrel...

I had the chance to test the 9,3x66 when it hit the french market years ago. I was well surprised by the easy to control recoil, the power and accuracy of that cartridge . Even if it's easy to push the 9,3x62 to higher than factory velocity, (i've done it too) the 9,3x66 do that in factory loads. The standard Mauser case head is a plus compared to H&H or 9,3x64 cases head and the Sako rifle hold 5+1 cartridges.
Note: if the 9,3x64 is a bit faster on paper such velocity is from 65cm test barrel. Take notice also that the 9,3x64 is only loaded by RWS even if not a best seller they keep it loading. The 9,3x66 aka 370Sako can serve well hunters who don't want a magnum rifle, who want a bit more power and speed than the 9,3x62 and don't handload or have difficulties finding 9,3x64. Then as MD says there are enought rifles loonies to buy some. I thing it's closer to the 375H&H than to the 338Winch. Last year i used one Sako synthetic in such caliber to hunt mouflon (corsican ram) overkill for sure but fantastically effective with 250grs Powerhead (Barnes. Rifle is light enough yo be carried all day long and power is there and i agree with BCBrian.
I lived some years in Canada, knows a bit the BC and Yukon and north of Quebec where a resident can hunt alone if he get the right licence. Sometime 2 shots more can be a god thing.
If i had'nt two 9,3x62 in my safe i think i'll buy a 370/9,3x66, but thinking to re chamber my Steyr Pro-Hunter...

Sorry for bad english writing above...Here some pictures of a Sako 9,3x66/370Sako synthetic with mouflon ram and ewe shot with it. Optic is a Swaro 1,25-4x24 battue scope in Sako mounts. Third photo give an idea of the landscape where this hunting occured.