I recently purchased, at an estate auction, a rifle with the following markings on the barrel -- Flaig's 7mm Rem Mag ....... FN Action Made in Belgium. It is in pristine condition.

It has a Weaver K6 - C3 scope and no fixed front or rear sights came with it.

Have three questions: Where might I purchase the fixed sights?; What might the age be or where may I find some written material to determine the age?; and, What might be the value?

Thanks for any info you might be able to provide.

Flaigs rifles were featured in several of the Guns and Ammo annual editions in the custom rifle sections circa 1965-1970.

Don't recall seeing iron sights on any though. NECG might have something suitable.

pete87-

Flaig's was a large custom gun shop located in Millvale PA. They ran text-heavy ads in most issues of The American Rifleman from the 1950s into the 1970s. I've seen ads from the mid-60s featuring the FN actions. Because the 7mm Rem Mag was introduced in 1962, your rifle was produced or at least barreled after that date. In the early 1970s Flaig's were using Ferlach Mauser actions; some of those rifles carried iron sights, although the FN-actioned rifles were not advertised with them. The barrels on the FN rifles were often made by Douglas.

Presumably by "fixed sights" you mean the barrel-mounted open sights. The connotation of "fixed" is usually "non-adjustable", and most open sights of centerfire rifles are adjustable.

Brownell's will have a selection of sights suitable for the rifle. You might consult with your gunsmith before ordering, because matching sight heights front and rear can sometimes be a non-trivial exercise.

Value? Do searches on AuctionArms, gunbroker, and other sites. Don't overlook the completed auctions, and remember that asking prices are frequently high on ads for unsold pieces.

--Bob

Bob,

Good advice, and a good posting.
I'm now in the search for info on Charlie Flaig himself. Not much I can find on him. Lots on his Hunter's Lodge however.
I visited his store many times when I lived north of Millvale, and saw his fine German rifles and shotguns he sold, plus those magnificent Ajax scopes, with the monster objectives.
Also, I never learned what happened to those fine drillings, etc, after he died, which I think was around 1980, +. or -. I know he was 86 when he died after a fall the broke his hip, or leg, not sure which.
I know that his right hand man, Bill Knabel, ran the Lodge until about 1988, or 1989 when it closed for good. Last I heard was Bill was working in a gun shop up Rt.19 in Wexford. Bill would know what happened to all of those old Drillings that were once owned by the Nazi elite, including Herman Goehring. I saw all of those Drillings one time.

Flaig's is a name you don't hear about much any more. I was dating a gal in Pittsburgh and I would stop at Flaigs as Millvale was on my way home to Rochester, NY.
It was just an incredible "Candy Store" for men. It is sad that it is long gone.

I still have a Flaig's Mauser in 300 Weatherby that a friend put together for me in about 1963.

I stopped in at Flag's in the early 1980's. Not much going on at the time, but I sure remmeber those Rifleman ads in the '50's. I wish I had bought an FN barreled action then.

I can't answer too much about Flaig's itself, but I can offer some insight as to GB and the best way to find TRUE values (as opposed to the pi-in-the-sky-prices I see on there for almost everything):

On the mainpage, down at the bottom-left, there is a thing called GOING-GOING-GOING. Click that. Up pops a new search device. put FLAIG in it (or some variation therein) and then in the little window marked SHOW ONLY find COMPLETED AUCTIONS. when all that is set, go for the search (you might have to sign in to do so - no big there)!
Now, the key to Gunbroker is this - THERE ARE SELLING PRICES AND THERE ARE BUYING PRICES. Ignore the stuff that did NOT sell. You will also notice that there are searches on there that repeat over and over with no bids - tell you anything?

Anyway, that is about how it is done. i have been watching the Flags stuff for awhile - I am thinking I may try to find one for myself. they seem to sell fro $450 to 700, depending. Good luck...and post some pics of it!