Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Single Shots Merkel K1 (new to me)

It's left handed too. I have never mounted a rifle that feels like it was made for me like this Blaser.

You will love the Merkel. I'm going to hunt everything this fall with my K95. I have another one that has a 6.5 CM barrel on it, which I believe is about the perfect cartridge for these light rifles.

I bet that .300 kicked pretty hard!

Oddly enough, I had a 7x57R Sauer drilling for a while, and factory S&B ammo showed up shortly after I bought it at a local sporting goods store. There were five 20-round boxes and I bought 'em all--but then gave the rifle to a good friend.

It turned out the ammo was due to a mistaken order by one of the younger employees. This was during the previous "shortage" of ammo and components, and when he saw 7x57 ammo available from one of the distribution companies they bought from he bought it--not noticing the "R".

Right now they have another dozen boxes, ordered through the same mistake by another employee.....

But I would still bet on .308 ammo being far more available, even in Europe!

John

My Merkel K3 chambered in 7x57R.

Sure is a handy rifle, and holds zero quite nicely.

On those 308s, one SHOT Show, I was at either the Merkel or Blaser, cannot recall for sure, but the rep there had one in 308, and said his shot 3 in a cloverleaf......and I believe he was shooting me straight...no pun. No doubt they are accuracy, the rifles, and we know the 308 is a very accurate round more often than not.

Stunning and I'm actually jealous.

Just wondering if there's an advantage running a rimmed cartridge in these? I've got a combo gun with an 7x57R and that seems it would be quite ideal for those light Merkels.

Euro-Optics had these on clearance IIRC.



Merkel K3 Extreme, 270 Win. and threaded for a suppressor.

Scarce as hen's teeth.



I wanted this in 308 Win. However this 270 Win was all they had.



I grabbed it!

Over-scoped, but what the hey, its a European Rifle.

ya!

GWB

Many will say the rimmed cartridge is preferred in a single shot, if for no other reason than quick extraction.

The rimless cases are easy to extract. The rimmed cases may be slightly easier, but not enough to outweigh the advantages of the readily available rimless ammo (as previously mentioned) or brass. Another thing is that they will handle modern rimless pressures, which rimless cases are loaded to. I'd really like one in .22LR, but they don't seem to make them in rimfires...not sure if this is because of perceived lack in demand or some mechanical difficulty in a tilting-barrel.

One the one occasion I felt the need to reload my .308 quickly it was easy. The extractor brings the case-head far enough out of the chamber so it's easy to grasp.

But with normal-pressure loads you don't need it: Just open the action and tilt the rifle upside-down, and the empty case falls out.

GWB,

In the event you find a 308 to replace the 270 I will be your buyer.

Tom

Is this the 9.3x74R you brought to Thompson's one year? I recall it being fairly energetic on the back end

Very intriguing rifles, in any case!

yup!



IIRC it was the 2017 Hog Hunt!



Actually I think of it more of a Hoot n' Shoot rather than a hunt but....



I brought the k3 Extreme, 270 Win. to the 2019 hunt.











ya!

GWB

Nice. You always have such nice sticks. Good to see them used, I love it.

Really glad to see there are a few Merkel enthusiasts out there. I’ve got a K3 extreme in 30-06 and it has become my favorite rifle. I shoot a lot of Hornady custom lite 125 grain SST‘s and they are murderous on deer. I’m debating on taking it on a Dall sheep hunt I’m planning for August 2025. Need to step up bullet weight and velocity so I can hopefully kill something out in the 400 yard range. But we’ll see. I’ve got some time to think about it.

Mackey

Easter weekend, after going to the Calgary gun show, walking out clean, nothing turned my crank, 1 wk after Canada killed the registry. Went to a store to see what they might have on an Easter sale, new K1 on the rack, 7RM, at a silly cheap price, I couldn't say no to that, threw a 3-9x40 Zeiss Conquest Z600 on it and out the door I went. Like that little gun, bit of muzzle rise to it, but was easy to cure. I added a decelerator to it, makes it quite nice to shoot. It is a sweety to carry.