Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Express Rifles and Big Bores Only YOUR preferred action?

what is your prefered action for a big bore?...

I only have two, and one is not a big bore in the African sense. My .458 WIN MAG is a M70 African (post-64) and feeds slick as glass - hard to beat a Model 70 action. My 45/70 is a Marlin M1895 - it amazes me how smoothly it can feed those large cases out of a tube mag, onto a lifter, and up into the chamber. If I was building a classic African rifle I would go for a pre-64 Winchester (unless it was to be a H&H length cartridge).

Winch. M70.. First, last, always...

My prefered action is a Mauser that has been worked over extensively. The M-21 and 22 Brno actions are fine without modification..Most of my guns are modified mausers..I also like the pre 64 M-70 action...As you can tell I am adament about the control feed feature, mostly because I hunt a lot of dangerous game.

lever

I'm full tilt into my double rifle lunacy at the moment but I have to say I really like the CZ 550 (with a little work). I anxiously await the possibility of a lefty. It's a little too big for a 375, IMO, but is well suited to the larger cases (think 416 Rigby up to 505).

I have two single shots, both big bores, and I like them both, but if I had to choose, I'd have to say the falling block #1 Ruger is it. Slick as owl snot on a door knob. (405 Winchester)

Modern commercial Mauser 98 - Dumoulin, Hartmann & Weiss, Prechtl, and Recknagel - for bolt guns.

Martini-Hagn action for single-shot.

McKay-Brown action for doubles.

Winchester 1886 or Winchester 95.

Jim

Pinot: What are they getting for a Prechtl mauser these days,if you know?

Yup; Mauser or M70 IMHO

I like the bolt action for big bores, in particular...I like the Weatherby Mark V action. I like the lever action on the Marlin 1895 also...for the .45-70. I think that I would like a really good 'double rifle' also...I hear they are addicting...and super expensive.

Bob,

It depends on what size action. The standard length/bolt-face run $3800 and the magnum size goes for around $4300. These prices are just for the action. Barreled actions and complete rifles will be considerably more. They also have five different sizes of bottom metal to match with the cartridge you want. (One of these will accommodate 4+1 for the 500 Jeff. :o)

i beleive a cz for about 700 will do the same...(grin)...lol

For some reason I always liked the enfield action for the big boys. It can cost alot to do it right but to me its worth it.

Pinot: Thanks for the info. I think New England Custom Guns near Lebanon, NH has them; about 2 hours from my house....this is not good .I may have to go see them

yup, doesn't get any better. jorge

I have a couple in Ruger #1, and would like a little more weight. I just got a CZ550 Safari Classic in 375 H&H and am delighted with it. It has more length of pull, overall weight and bulk to make shooting a large caliber more pleasurable.

If I could get a Pre 64, or a later controlled feed Win 70 at a good price it would be fine. I just saw a nice 458 Win 70, used on consignment for $1800, I paid 899 for my CZ, so no contest after spending a few nights cycling the action, and using some Flitz for about 50 cycles it really slicked up. Not quite as smooth as my old Pre 64 Mod 70 featherweight 30-06 but for $1000 difference it's great.

Prechtl

Being left-handed really limits a persons options. Here's my favorite .375 H&H Model 70.

Sako for normal stuff.

M70 or Mauser claw for big dog rounds.

Spot

Right now I own big bores in CZ 550 (standard and magnum), commercial 98 (FN and Mark X), Win. Model 70, Ruger No. 1, and a German side-by-side double. Have also owned a Ruger Hawkeye .375 Ruger, and it was super-reliable. Was just up in Alaska and they are really taking over up there.

They all work fine if the owner makes sure they do, both through tuning and practice.

DocFoster,

Great looking rifle you got there. What you feeding it?

Mule Deer,

Were you up here fishing and hunting?

My load is Winchester cases, CCI 250"s and 77 grs. of IMR4350. The bullet is 300gr. Hornadays for plinking and deer/black bear. 300 gr. Nosier Partitions for anything bigger. Both loads shoot to pretty much the same impact.
Doc

bearstalker,

Yeah, was up with the Shoemakers hunting (ptarmigan), fishing and photographing bears. Had a great too-few days! The weather cooperated for our stay, and we also had a great evening with Mike Petrov and his wife in Anchorage.

Being a lefty I have grown quite fond of the Ruger actions as they are readily availible in stainless. I just picked up a couple of the new Hawkeyes...man are they sweet. The new triggers are MUCH better but still not adjustable. I used to have a Winchester I was quite fond of as well but its to hard to find one in a lefty stainless these days. Seems like most here will recommend Winchester. Either of the 2 would be and are my choices.

The Hawkeyes in .375 are selling like crazy up in Alaska.

It doesn't take much to improve the Hawkeye trigger if you dont like the factory pull. I did one on Taj Shoemaker's rifle in about 15-20 minutes, including taking the barreled action out of the stock and putting it back in.

I may end up doing a trigger job on mine just like my MKII but for now I think the LC6 trigger is so much better than the last variation I am just going to shoot em as is. I have to say I am very impressed with the new Hawkeye...now if Ruger would just make the Alaskan in 375 Ruger for us poor old lefties.

Actualy it does get better than a Mauser or a model 70.....the best of both but better than either. It is called the Model 76.

Now this rig has some kind of cool lines to it!

Dober

FN Mauser or a Model 70 are hard to beat. I don't have a problem with a well broken in CZ or Ruger either for what it's worth. They are just not as slick from the start, but all of mine get pretty well broken in eventually.

Love my Marlin 45-70's

Krag

Have a Danish Krag in .450 Alaskan, built by Johnson't Kenai Rifles.

Ruger M77. Worked for my Africa trip.

I have used a variety of bolt actions between .375 and .450, right now I like the Ruger M77 Hawkeye rifles. They do take a bit of care to get them field ready, especially for dangerous game (those would be the ones that run toward you rather than away from you).

jim

In the custom field there is nothing that will beat the M-98 Mauser design for all around dependability and reliability.

In a current, off-the-shelf, factory rifle the new Ruger M-77 Hawkeye series has the field to itself in regards to smoothness of operation and reliability.

Twins

I have a mauser in 458 win, i like it.

but i have got ahold of 2 1917 enfields, so i guess that will be my preferred action!

I started he Mauser and M-70 lynch mob and I am of a mind they are the best of the litter, especially for dangerous game as they have the control feed feature.But the Ruger, CZs and other control feed guns are good also..Lets not over look the wonderful control feed Enfield action that can be made up in 505 Gibbs and 500 Jefferys and all manor of big bores.

I like the single shots, I like the double rifles, and I like old Sakos, Remingtons in varmint calibers and eve in deer rifles. Ruger no. 1 are really super rifles.

I love the old Winchester lever actions. I have several M-94s one in a 30-30 and the other in 25-35, and I hunt with them still. Savage 99s hold a nostalgic place in my heart as my family used them on deer and elk as did I in my youth..

I even have a lovely little Savage M-219 break open 30-30 with a Williams guide peep sight that fills my heart with joy..I am gonna shoot a deer with it this year...

I would never limit myself to one gun, one action or one caliber, its just not kosher!

It's probably not a "true" big bore, in the classic sense, but the smoothest and fastest big bore that I own, or have ever used, is my Ruger 96/44. Nothing comes close.

Is it my favorite "big bore"? Though it is an all-time favorite carry-around rifle, my favorite actions for true big bores are two: My Marlin in 45-70 and my Ruger No.1 in the same cartridge.

The only reason my CZ550 in 458 Win doesn't top the list is because I shoot from the left side.

Bought a CZ 550 in 9,3x62 and have another CZ 550 Medium Magnum that wants to be a lot of things! Probably a 375 Ruger or 358 Norma Mag. Once fitted with a 3-position safety, the CZ 550 is perfect to me for a big bore build.

My preferred choices for big bores are:

Bolt action- Mauser style with CRF and M70 safety

Break open- Side by side double, sidelocks, two triggers

Single shot- Falling block- Ruger #1 is suitable

Lever action- Winchester 1886

Handgun- Smith & Wesson X-frame "500"

Those are my personal choices for action types in order of preference. Rodney.

In the range of 2,000.00 bucks, the Dakota M-76 is to me the best of the best. I know it's a lot of money. It has the gas problems of the M-70 fixed for ever. You don't have to spend any more money on the action, it's already where you want and action to be.

Yes a guy can spend a lot more for a good action, but for that much money the M-76 is awfully hard to beat. And there is no wait for years, spend money and two years of BS phone calls while you wait.

Frank DeHaas claimed the BRNO ZKK Mauser actions were the finest bolt actions ever made. My experience agrees with his statements.

That ought to give us CZ550 fans some confidence!

I have had 416 Remingtons on a Rem 700 and a CZ 550 Safari. My current 416 Rem is on an SS M-70 Classic. I like my M-70 the best. The CZ was good, but you don't really need a 10.5 lb 416 Rem that holds 5 rounds in the magazine. I think the CZ would really shine in the larger chamberings, like 505 Gibbs, 475 Capstick, etc. My M-70 weighs 9.25 lbs scope in it's McMillan stock. That's perfect for me.

Sako L 61 R

Lever action Marlin......... I have 2.

I have never seen a BRNO ZKK 602 action in the flesh, wonder how many years ago they stopped building them?

In big bore dangerous game rifles, I prefer a highly customized Mauser, double rifle or a Pre 64 Win. and in that order. Other than DG rifles I like a lot of different actions.

The best Mauser ever is the Brno 21 and 22 small ring double square bridge IMO..

In all seriousness, my preferred big-bore action would be the Garand.

With the McCann Industries .458WM Garand, and either a standard M1 or a McCann Industries 338WM Garand, you'd have an excellent combo for Africa and wouldn't really need anything more anywhere else.

It might seem an odd choice, but I like shooting in John C. Garand matches. If I could hunt everything from prairie dogs (accurized Ruger mini-14) to elephants (458WM McCann M1) with rifles that functioned exactly like my match rifles, I wouldn't use any other action. Plus, I've read favorable reviews of the .458WM Garand in Zimbabwe. A rugged battle-rifle-based semi-auto stopping rifle with a stout aperture sighting system has virtues that help it shine entirely in its own lights, even if you're not a Garand fan (if such a thing is possible).

Unfortunately, a semi-auto hunting rifle battery isn't even a viable 50 state option, let alone a world wide option, anymore. So my second choice, but the mandated choice courtesy of the legislatures of some of the states/countries I've hunted in, would have to be a variant of the M98 Mauser.