Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles “Pretty” deer rifles...

This is no time to get frugal with his money.

That went out the window when he said "pretty".

Life's too short to hunt with an ugly rifle....and I ain't doin' it. Give me all the blued, case hardening, engraving and fancy metal work I can afford. DO NOT carve my stock but make it a nice piece of any kind of walnut with a fine, hand rubbed oil finish in the pattern of a pre-WWI German stock with side panels. Don't be slathering on any shiny plastic crap. Checkering should be hand cut, 24-28 LPI and have a nice pattern. Don't make it a Monte Carlo stock with white spacers either and if it absolutely must have a recoil pad a Silvers or leather wrapped is all that's acceptable. Frankly, a nice checkered steel butt plate is fine for me until one gets to really big bores. I'll hunt with a rifle like that in any weather, anywhere in the world. Well, I guess I have.

For me there's 3 actions to be considered; Mauser 98, Model 70 or the split bridge Mannlicher/Schoenauer. The latter is a personal favorite even with the so called difficulties of mounting a scope. Since I don't use a scope that isn't an issue for me. The M/S probably isn't acceptable to most.

Fellow please, this is a family orientated site and if you insist on posting erotic content we will have to ban you.

Too late. Sold my Winchester model 70 30-06 FWT last night locally to a very happy buyer.

I still recommend a BACO-vintage Winchester model 70 ( ~2007-2012 made and assembled in the USA at FN’s South Carolina plant). Made to the highest manufacturing specs ( The SC. FN plant is ISO 9001 certified.)

Good luck.

Gotta as.

Are you intimately familiar with ISO?
As an ISO person?
Management or ISO administrator in a facility?


Or,


As a blue color production worker?

Recently had an ISO thread on the campfire, there weren't many who
believed that certification ensured quality.

A lot of managerial stroking, a lot of $ for paper.

Quality comes from top down good people.
Not a slogan on a company banner.

No doubt you are right about the quality of those rifles.

But that exist because management did their many jobs right.
As did the workers.
When I get audited, it's about paperwork, and if I know the company motto (seriously).
They never have any idea if I know what I'm doing.
Twenty minutes in most factories, and I could pass their audit.
Even if I didn't know what they did!

Hey, Whitebird. That looks a lot like a desert muley from the Ironwood Desert..... I was about to guess it came from Palo Verde, Ca., but the tag doesn't look like a Kalifornia, D-12 tag. So, Arizona, Mexico ? Very nice buck and rifle. E (that stands for Eremicus as in O.h. Eremicus, the latin name for the Burro Deer of the Ironwood Deserts)

I have a few, but finding them for around $1,000.00 makes it a hunting proposition to find one. I still think that a person can find a nicer rifle, for the money, than you would think, but you have to get out there and look. Here are just 3 rifles I got for less than $1,000.00 apiece, but you won't find them in a gun shop...

Oheremicus,

The deer was taken in Sonora, Mexico.

The most important characteristic I demand of my rifles is accuracy. If they can't deliver the bullet to the intended POI with high reliability they are sent down the road. Rifles that can do that are beautiful, no matter how homely or plain.

The hand-me-down Savage 110E in .22-250 is a good example. Dad gave it to me with about 2,000 pieces of brass. "Walnut finish" wood stock (ash?), blued barrel. Kept the 1,600 or so Federal pieces and gave away the rest. Worked up a load and it would deliver 5 into a group you could cover with a dime. Daughter #2 was kind when she called it "homely". After a couple K rounds in my hands it started shooting patterns. Cleaning would help for a few rounds but then it was back to patterns. So long to the Savage.

The Ruger American .30-06 Dad gave me is another example. Didn't mind the looks so much as the fact that no factory ammo I tried shot worth a damn. After Dad died it went down the road and the funds received for it helped on another purchase.

Not sure how many synthetic stocked rifles are in the safe but they are numerous and the number keeps growing. Kept missing the 4" steel at 600 a couple weeks ago with my .338WM Ruger boat-paddle/stainless semi-custom, but the misses weren't by much and were due to wind drift in variable/gusty conditions, elevation was right on. Nailed it on the 5th shot. Last time I tried something like that it took 3 shots to hit a clay pigeon at 600, and the first was a ranging shot as I'd never fired it at 600 before. Immediately after that shot I used my boat-paddle .30-06 to hit a clay pigeon as 600 as well. Took two shots to connect.

Beautiful rifles are nice to look at, but if they can't shoot they are museum pieces or safe queens in my book. My safes don't have room for either.

As I mentioned before, though, I do enjoy looking. Keep those pictures coming - especially of ones that shoot great.

Had that monsoon of an opener last yr, took this rifle.
Never again.
Pic is from the yr before.
Even w bland wood, I think it pretty. A little too pretty for downpours.

So I sold it.

But replaced it with a 760 ADL .35 rem.
Decent shape but not mint so less OCD about bad weather.

The #1 was in .243 win and I have a 700 synth in that too, so didn't need a "spare".
Did see a nice 7x57 #1 A on GB.

Was going to rebarrel the RSI to a 1A config in .35 rem. Said screw it.
Just bought the 760.

Will get another #1 in something different

ISO certification is merely political.

To pass one needs to say what they do, and do what they say.

Nothing more.

Design, tolerances, processes............are not defined by ISO.

Its a great scam.

Wish I'd thought of it.

You guys are great, that’s why I registered and posted the question here.

I can’t (in good conscience) go much more than $1000-$1200. Those in that range are plenty pretty enough for me.

I just like polished blue and walnut. Doesn’t have to be museum grade, just a good example of a rifle made with care.

The Model 70 series seems like a solid starting point.

I think you are good to go. A few of my rifles that had nice stocks and possibly some collector value I bought with wood and then got a syn stock to beat. The original stocks are still in the safe. Others that have nice wood I hunt with and enjoy refinishing them when they get too beat up.
BTW where is Geedubya? He has some awesome looking rifles that he hunts.

That CDNN linked High-Grade Fwt would be a front-runner for me. I's also do some calling around and see if one could maybe pick up one of the Winchester M70 JOC tribute rifles for close to your budget. Looks like a Nosler 48 Heritage can be had for ~$1200ish brand new as well.

Won't try to post a photo. But my '86 Winchester in 33 WCF is purdy………..rough. Original stock weathered, new barrel and all blued right over some screwdriver pry marks at the loading gate. WHAT? Yup. Right over the damage of a non mechanic ham fisted goof with a tool in his hand. The tang was not straightened. I bought it thinking it is so non original I can feel OK about sending it to Nonneman or another artist in leverguns.

If $1000 to 1200 is max then a nice used Kimber Classic or Classic Select would be a great choice.

A Classic Select.....



And a Classic............................




The Classic was new, the Classic Select was used. Both under $1000.

Now that’s a sexy rifle (top one especially to me). And a very good representative image of what I’m looking for.

Thank you. I'm planning on keeping that one. LOL
You should be able to find one of these for under $1000. $875 to $950 used. New would be $1100 - $1250.