Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Winchester Collectors Model 70 classic Laredo with boss value

I’ve got a guy wanting to trade me a model 70 classic Laredo with the boss break on it.. it’s chambered in 7mm stw, gun is in good condition had one ding on the barrel.. I have a couple model 70 but I’m not sure on the worth of this one.. Thanks for the help guys

Even though the 'book' shows the BOSS to be an add-on, real-world markets frown on it. What helps is the chambering - ergo, it's the full-sized LA and is desirable for other conversions.. Best guess, without pics, is about $8-900 +/-..

And if there's at least 24"s of barrel length left, I'd cut that boss off and throw it in the trash, have a good Smith cut you an eleven degree recessed target crown and call it good.

Thanks guys, I believe I can trade for it for around $800. It’s got a 6.5 20 50 vari x iii on it too.

If you can get it for $800 with the scope,you should take it.

I thought it would be worth that, the scope is a little rough but still should be worth 3-400 I guess...

Just wondering what’s so bad about the boss? I’m not familiar with them

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The BOSS does work to tune the barrel vibrations to the exit time of the bullet. This will result in smaller groups. Good bullets, straight ammunition, seating depth, and all the other things are not "corrected" by a BOSS. But in general you shouldn't have to "chase" the optimum muzzle velocity for the barrel's vibrations. Instead, you tune the barrel to the load instead of the load to the barrel. This is especially handy if you do not handload your own ammo.

The muzzle brake (not "break") is effective to significantly reduce recoil, but as with all brakes, it is loud, no . . . LOUD.

If you can find the correct BOSS CR (for Conventional Recoil) weight, you can have the accuracy benefit of the system but with no recoil reduction and less obnoxious muzzle blast.

The weight has the benefit of protecting the muzzle a bit, but at the expense of the CR weight in particular acting as a "funnel" to catch whatever debris might fall toward the muzzle when the rifle is standing upright. I don't consider either especially important.

I've had experience with "non-collectable" things eventually becoming "collectable." You might want to consider that before permanently altering the rifle. Redneck is correct that the "market" doesn't like them. Many have been sawed off. I wonder if someday collectors will be seeking out unaltered BOSS guns. Stranger things have happened.

Some people really dislike the looks. Some just don't want to mess with them. Some (who don't own a CR weight) understandably dislike the noise. Those who handload don't find them as useful as those who do not handload. Some people just seem to really dislike them, almost illogically. I don't know why, but they just really cannot stand them.

If you buy the rifle, I'd suggest playing around with it first before sawing it off because someone else told you that you should. I'd also recommend a CR weight.

The BOSS is what it is, with advantages and disadvantages. But there is nothing inherently "bad" about it.

Love my stainless Classic 30-06 with BOSS. I bought it to replace my father’s pre-64 featherweight 06. It is now the last rifle I would be without. I also got the CR weight to replace the brake. That brake was LOUD. I second the motion to try it before you cut it off.

Some more comments to my last post.

Mule Deer (John Barsness) posted some years ago that a BOSS with the brake ports was the loudest brake he had encountered. It worked to reduce recoil, but it was LOUD.

He also correctly pointed out that if your loads varied much in velocity with temperature, the rifle might not group as well at a different temperature than when it was "tuned." This is true, but it also true with non-BOSS equipped rifles. If your loads vary much with temperature, a load that was developed at one temperature may "go south" at a different temperature. He has written a good bit about this.

If the OP is seriously considering trading for the rifle, I suggest he determine if a CR weight is available. If it were me, that would weigh heavily in my decision. One needs to search specifically for the part number for a Laredo chambered for 7mm STW. That may or may not be a common weight. As far as I know some weights are appropriate to more than one chambering.

I've owned several Browning A-Bolts with the boss system. They are supper accurate if you have them set right and my 300 Win Mag's recoil is no more than standard or heavy 308 or a 270. Easy gun to shoot.

But LOUD is the understatement of the century. When I was shooting them at the range, I would put foam ear plugs in and then cover them with ear muffs. You couldn't put enough ear protection on. Not only are they loud but the concussion they produce is incredible. You want to be standing about 20 feet directly behind one with your ears covered and mouth open when somebody touches one off. If you are standing along side one your ears will ring for a week. Speaking of which, I liked my 300 Win Mag so much I bought a 280 Rem. I shot 4 times at a deer with it once and my ears literally rang for a week. I got rid of that sum bitch so fast... Well anyway with a 26" barrel you can almost tolerate them, with a 22" barrel forget about it....

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I have two BOSS guns and I immediately procured CR weights for each. In fact, I don't know if I initially shot my Model 70 .300 Win Mag with the loud brake at all.

But a while back a friend with a Model 70 .338 Win Mag (non BOSS) wanted to test out the concept. Both my .300 and his .338 are in identical Brown Precision stocks, so were almost identical rifles but for chambering. We wore plenty of hearing protection, but trust me, you can still tell a difference. We shot both rifles, and my .300 with both the brake and the CR weight. We concluded that in our opinions the increased noise from the BOSS was not worth the decrease in recoil. The decrease in recoil was quite significant, but just not worth it to us. I had long ago come to that conclusion, even without trying the brake. My .300 is within my personal "acceptable level of recoil."

We also concluded you can definitely tell the difference in a .300 Win Mag and a .338 Win Mag. I was shooting 180 grain bullets at a bit over 3000 fps. I don't remember the .338 load. I think they were 225 grain, but my have been 250. I had shot his .338 before with 250's, but not side by side with my .300. The .338 gets your attention. I can shoot it well enough, but it thumps you a bit.

Thanks for all the replies everyone, I think I’m going to try to see if he still wants to trade if so I’ll probably end up with it.. as for the boss I won’t cut it off at least not until I see how it shoots probably still wouldn’t cut it off anyway.. Thanks for all the help

Leave this forum and never return. You are banned.

Although it could be worse, you could have chosen to replace it with a 700

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We hope he meant "augment", not "replace"!!!

To the OP:
I did a bit of research for you. I cannot find a model number for a BOSS CR weight for a M70 Laredo in 7mm STW. However, the Laredo 7mm Rem Mag and the Laredo .300 Win Mag both use the #19606 CR. I'd bet that is the correct one for the 7mm STW. If you get the rifle, I suggest you try to find a CR for it. Once you have it in your hand, the important parameter is the actual physical weight. The vented BOSS brake and the BOSS CR should weigh the same.

In a quick search, I was not able to find a #19606. My guess is it is a rather uncommon one.
A machinist could make a perfectly good CR. It is not anything more than a thick walled tube with some female threads. Making a BOSS brake would be considerably more difficult, but a CR, not so much. However, I'm sure having one made would cost more than finding one. They seem to sell in the $30 range.

Hope this helps.

Trade for it, and buy the CR adapter. You can work on loads with the brake at the range. Once that's done switch to the CR and re-zero and call it good.

One to watch for a comp.
Non boss, but bid is at $1k

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/805519088

Actually, I meant so I wouldn’t ruin my father’s favorite rifle. I still shoot it and might hunt with it again someday, but I have hunted so much with that stainless Classic that it has become my most trusted rifle. Still love that featherweight though, and am angling for another one so each of my boys will get a pre-64.

Yeah, augment is better way putting it.

I buddy of mine traded into a Rem 700 in 7mm stw with a brake on the rifle. On our first range session after he fired his first shot from the 7mm stw I moved down 4 benches to get away from the damn thing. This was in October and the muzzle break would move the leaves laying on the ground down 2 shooting benches with each shot.