"Straight Pull" Bolt Action Rifles

So after my last post I have become fascinated with the "straight pull" bolt action rifles. I have found two modern hunting rifles thus far and was wondering if anyone knew of an others. Google hasn't been to helpful in my search.

This is what I found:

Mauser M96 American
This gun was produced only 3 years the regular model was produced in 1996 - 1997, there was a premium model in 1998.





Blaser R8

This is a high end rifle system that has interchangeable barrels (wide variety of calibers), scopes and stocks.




So my quest is to learn all I can about these unique style of bolt action rifles. What else is out there?

The Ross rifle.

The Browning T-Bolt rimfires -both old and new versions.

Also, I think Browning did a straight pull centerfire bolt called the Cierra for a few years..

And of course there are the toggle link straight pull bolt Biathlon rifles from Izmash in Russia and the Fortner Action from Anschutz.

Blaser still makes the R8's predacesor, the R-93. Its slightly lighter and sleeker, but can only handle calibers up to .416 Rem. Mag. The R8 can go up to .500 Jeffery.

Before that there was a Blaser "Ultimate" and an R84 I think.

In early straight pulls there is also the early military Steyr, the U.S. Navy 6mm Lee, and several models of Schmitt Reuben used by the Swiss for many decades.

I have a matched pair of R93 Professionals with 9 barrels that is the backbone of my "retirement battery" so I'm biased.

Lee 1895 6mm Navy and its hunting versions, Steyr 1895 military rifle, Ross, and others. Here you have a not well known Finnish straight pull the Lynx94. The hunting model here possess stock that was designed by a french stock maker friend of mine to follow french, german and other european hunters.

This rifle is very well made and has very good reputation in Finland. Calibers available: 6,5x55, 270, 7x64, 308, 30-06, 8mmMauser, 338Federal, 9,3x62

this model is for shooting comp with laminated stock ajustable cheek piece and lengh of pull.
Dom

Don't forget the Swiss Schmidt Rubins. I really like the K31 which was the final version. The K31s are the best surplus rifles to come into the country in a long time. PH

I am curious how a turn-bolt shooter does with a straight-pull. Is it a problem to get over trying to lift the bolt? (I tend to be a very slow learner when it comes to adjusting habits.)

Heym makes a wonderfully accurate straight-pull rifle called the SR-30. I used one on a cull shoot for fallow deer in Ireland a few years ago. Most of the shooting was fairly long-range sniping, but once we stalked a bunch of deer that we found bedded down, and I had no problems slamming the bolt handle back and forth while doing some quick shooting.

However, when working a regular bolt I use a back-and-forth motion anyway, with the palm of my hand. The typical shooter who grabs the knob firmly with thumb and fingers, then goes through four separate motions to work the bolt, might have more trouble with the transition.

For some reason I've always done a "palm, hook, push" without it ever being taught to me. It might be because when I first started I was too little and weak to get a good grip on the bolt knob with my fingers.

i learned it cause one of my first centerfires was a SMLE.....so now i run all bolts like that, my wife uses the other method and as a result hates any of my cock on closing rifles....

I started out with a .22, but my first center-fire was a MkIII Enfield. I hadn't thought of that, but I am sure that it reinforced the action.

Yeah, Lee-Enfield bolts need a good push!

Yeah so much so that the Hun thought "The Old Contemptibles" were armed with machine guns.

K31 with S&K mounts and Burris Scout. 308 performance, $650 all up. Far faster than a $3500 Cooper Scout. And it uses stripper clips and a QD magazine.



ALSO takes a Nasty bayonet!

Ah, yes, but it hasn't been officially annointed and blessed.

I've got a Swiss K-31 and a Steyr M-95. Both are interesting rifles, but the K-31 is made to high quality commercial standards.

Yeah, the K31's are very well-made rifles. Mine will shoot very very even without a scope!

One of my frend's son has a K31.

It is nice

The only serious drawback I've seen is when left-handed shooter try to use the rifle. A left-handed buddy of mine eventually gave up using his K31 in CMP matches, because working the bolt for the rapid fire was too much.

That's one of the many beauties of the Blaser R93 and R8. All you need to change is the bolt and bolt head to convert from right to left hand action. It's a completely modular rifle.

Browning made another straight pull called the Acera. As I recall it was available in 30/06 and 300 Win Mag. I think it was only available for a few years, and did not sell well.
Bfly

Bfly...

"Acera" was the name I was trying to come up with in my post on page One..

For some reason, I thought it was "Cierra"..

I guess that is an example of how "forgettable" Browning's straight pull rifle design was.

Hi Jim,

The Acera was not so bad but Browning did'nt push the concept enough. Be assurerd that the idea of straight pull rifle with interchangeable barrel is always there, in Browning designers brain. Could be ressurected some day because of the euro market for such type of rifles.

Here some pictures of the Merkel Helix RX, the straigh pull rifle the Acera could have been, if BW Int had followed it's designer..

The Merkel does'nt offer the long magnum receiver(H&H type cartridges)the Blaser has, but it's lighter than R8, 2,9kg real, weighed on my scale with wood stock. Will be offered in 222, 223, 243, 6,5x55, 270, 7x64, 308,30-06, 8mm Mauser, 9,3x62 and 7Rem Mag, 300WinMag, 338WinMag. Future calibers in study are 375 Ruger, 9,3x64 and 8x68S. I had the chance to use one Merkel Helix RX in 30-06 in Portugal to take red deer stalking and one in 9,3x62 to get red deer and wild boar during driven hunt. They are fast and effective but a bit expensive at 2900 euros wood standard version, same as Blaser93 but less than R8.
Barrel, bolt head and magazine are all you need to have another rifle. It's very well appreciated in Sweden where hunters are limited to 6 rifles but it's the receiver that count, not the barrel. In that country R93 and R8 are best sellers mostly synthetics because of weather.
Dom

As you all know I shoot a Blaser R-93, as far as the transition goes, I think it was done in 6 shots or so. The Blaser is the most practical rifle I have ever owned and I have owned a bunch over the years. From 22RF to 416 Remington if you want. From Grey Squirrels to Elephants. Never mind about ease of transport.

i haven't had a problem with them. The K31 schmidt is a masterpiece. Try sub m.o.a. with a surplus military rifle. The germans at one point mounted optics on them and sold them as sniper weapons. The swiss ammo is considered to be by some as match grade.
I also have the earlier carbine version and the long rifle.
I think they are fully in a class with the swedish and the finnish mosin.

Merkel Helix is maybe the most recent construction of them all. In tests it is found to be more quicker to load than Blaser R8 or the older R93.

RoninPhx,

I've mostly shot my K31 with Swiss military ammo. It's so accurate I haven't bothered doing much handloading!

they are just really neat rifles. I have the st pierre base on the right side, and being left handed it works for me. brass is from starline and sierra bullets. the fire control group has to be seen to believed. If there is a negative it could only be from the hob nail boots kicking the butstock, and the black grease they used to clean the barrel with and for lubrication, but easy to cleanup. I have a case of the ammo set aside. It is in a black laquered cardboard box, and typically swiss in perfection. I think you could dump it a lake and come back a month later and the ammo inside would be okay. the steyr 91/30 is a little short cutdown guy. Main attraction is the big fat bullet. A few years ago ammo was available for sale for it in the original boxes in stripper clips marked 1938 with the german eagle and waffen marks. Worked like a charm too.

Browning Acera.

Acera http://www.google.fr/search?q=browning+acera&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

Additional comment: I wrote this message while on page one, but when I reached page 3, I realized it was redundant...

One more European design from the original Blaser R 93 designer Strasser RS 05.

That is a beautiful rifle. thank you for posting the picture.

I agree with that.

Not a hunting rifle by design but sure works as a squirrel gun and not too shabby in a prone .22 match: An Anschutz 1827 Biathlon rifle with a Fortner Straight pull bolt. Thumb on the rear of the bolt, finger on the trigger (about two ounces or so), fire, rotate the hand up catching the toggle, case ejects, push forward with thumb, new cartridge chambers. Repeat. Very fast if you want it to be.