Blaser R8 for Dangerous Game

[BeeMaa]

My thought as well. My .300 set-up uses the long semi-weight barrel and makes up into a very heavy rifle indeed - one reason I used standard/sporter profile for the .375. Recoil on the .300 is nonexistent, and yet, I find the lighter .375 very manageable. And of course it is a joy to carry mile after mile. Nice to be able to configure a preference.

When you get the Contessa, be sure and get the one specifically designed for the R8.

Yes, Contessa for Blaser R8 with Swaro rail.

The 416RM (along with the 458LOTT & 500J) barrel only come in the 22mm safari weight barrel.
Plus having the 375 the same will allow my wife to feel more comfortable when shooting her version of a "big bore".

I've been toting around a 11.5# CZ550 for quite a while and have grown comfortable with the weight.
If mountain hunting and long treks (over 10 miles with climbing) come into play down the road, we can reevaluate.

 

[Fastrig]

My thought as well. My .300 set-up uses the long semi-weight barrel and makes up into a very heavy rifle indeed - one reason I used standard/sporter profile for the .375. Recoil on the .300 is nonexistent, and yet, I find the lighter .375 very manageable. And of course it is a joy to carry mile after mile. Nice to be able to configure a preference.

When you get the Contessa, be sure and get the one specifically designed for the R8.

Planning on getting the 23” fluted semi-weighted barrel for the 375 H&H and the same but 25” for the 300 win mag... barrel weight almost the same as the standard barrel (.1 lbs difference). The Jaeger model I’m looking at is 7.2 lbs with wood stock, so say 8.5 or so with scope...think this will work great

 

[Tally-Ho HUNTING SAFARIS]

you guys are all talking my language now
i have the R8 in 416 rem mag in 22mm barrel, with kick stop in stock
yes its heavy, but to be honest i really prefer a heavy gun they just better and i really dont mind carrying it around all day
other barrel is 300wm also in 22mm but fluted, i dont like to have big gap between barrel and stock so went for same diameter just thought the fluted barrel is too cool

 

[Von S.]

After reading a few people praising the r8 I finally was handed one and shot hundreds of rounds through it and can say that I was impressed. I like it, but as I have said many times I pretty much well like all weapons and the rounds that get stuffed into them.

There is something that just puzzles the hell out of me and that is the question of people who might not use one rifle for dangerous game because they don't consider it reliable enough, but will turn around and give it their official " okey-dokie " on plains game and such.

It makes no sense to me. If it is not reliable I wouldn't use it on anything...... the same way I wouldn't use a rifle that shot coffee can sized groups no matter who shot it.

So would I use it on dangrrous game? In 500 Schuler I most certainly would. Would I recomend it to others? Absolutely not! And thats simply because I have never liked recomending anything for any purpose because sure as hell someone will take it apart and not put it back together right. Or when they miss or wound most times they blame everything but them selves.

 

[BeeMaa]

Just arrived today, used but still in great condition.
Steel receiver with kickstop in the stock and 300WM barrel.
Christmas came early for us.
Yes..both of us.
Technically it's her barrel and my stock so we get to share for a while.

Blaser R8 300WM

• BeeMaa
• Dec 3, 2019
• 3

Blaser R8 300WM

 

[BeeMaa]

We will be pulling the trigger this weekend on the rest of our Blaser stuff.

Only one remaining question...
Is there a 375H&H semi-weight (19mm) barrel that has a barrel band sling swivel?
Or is it only available on the Selous (22mm) barrel?

Blaser website says it's not, but you never know.

 

[One Day...]

To the best of my knowledge (?) BeeMaa, only Selous barrels have a barrel band front swivel mount (and traditional iron sights - other barrels may be ordered with Blaser-style iron sights).

Since your .300 Win barrel is a Selous barrel, and your .416 Rem barrel will be a Selous barrel, it would really make sense to have a Selous .375 H&H barrel, but this is where the Blaser hostage-taking rip-off (am I saying it strongly enough?) shines: they are asking as much for a simple f...ing steel pipe (OK, OK, with barrel band front swivel mount and iron sights) than you are asking for your entire AHR mod 2 .375 H&H ... with scope & mounts mind you!

Your African Dangerous Game rifle is here and ready for you.
Price is $2800 for members and that includes shipping to your FFL.
Payment via PayPal or certified check accepted.
PM me if interested.

CZ550 375H&H w/ AHR #2

• BeeMaa
• Nov 17, 2019
• 1

CZ550 375H&H w/ AHR #2

CZ550 375H&H with Bell and Carlson stock to include the following.
Leupold VX3i 1.5-5x20mm in Warne QD rings.
Graco BreaKO Mercury Recoil Reducer 7/8"x4" 14oz bedded in the butt of the stock.
AHR #2 upgrade:
Barrel shortened and recrowned to 22".
Front sight is red fiber optic banded and hooded.
Rear sight changed to express fixed style, no folding leaf.
Barrel band sling swivel added and filled front sling swivel on the stock.
Bolt handle filled and straightened.
3-position wing (Win M70 style) firing pin blocking safety installed.
3.5# trigger installed.
Smooth action and ejection operation.
Stock is glass bedded.
All metal is Gunkote "graphite" dull finish.
Overall length is 43".
LOP is 14"
Weight with the recoil reducer and scope is ~11# unloaded.
Balance point is at the magazine.
Magazine holds 5.
Shoots 1.5 MOA with Swift A-Frame 300 grain loaded by Swift out to 200 yards.
Has been to Africa and accounted for 9 head of PG and has minor handling marks.
I'll also include a Quake Industries Claw Strap.

THAT is what drove me away from the R8. I have only so much Vaseline to handout...

But now you are stuck, so I would advise you to get the .375 H&H Selous barrel otherwise you will likely regret it, and I hope you have a higher level of tolerance for this type of being-taken-advantage-of than I have...

PS: I know, I know, R8 lovers will hate this post and they are likely already licking the stamps for the hate mail...

 

[BeeMaa]

Just tring to keep as much wood as I can on Mrs BeeMaa's stock.
If it is available in 19mm they wouldn't have to mill out as much out of the channel for it to fit.
She wants the barrel band sling swivel as well, so if it has to be 22mm, so be it.
Besides, she's gonna want to shoot the 416 anyway and that only comes in the 22mm.

It's not hate mail, they are called Christmas cards this time of year.

 

[One Day...]

From a solution-providing perspective BeeMaa, keep in mind that if you get a 19 mm barrel without iron sights, any gunsmith can solder a barrel band front swivel mount on it, and even if you get a 19 mm barrel with Blaser-style iron sights, if memory serves (?) the front sight is not soldered but screwed on the barrel, so it is easy to remove it temporarily to slide the barrel band and put it back afterward...

As to Mrs BeeMaa shooting the .416 barrel with her rifle (no steel chassis, not recoil reducer) I would suggest that she tries it first with your rifle, and without a scope to alleviate the risk of getting a few stitches on the forehead. There is quite a significant jump in recoil (+60%) between the .375 and the .416. Just saying...

 

[BeeMaa]

From a solution-providing perspective BeeMaa, keep in mind that if you get a 19 mm barrel without iron sights, any gunsmith can solder a barrel band front swivel mount on it, and even if you get a 19 mm barrel with Blaser-style iron sights, if memory serves (?) the front sight is not soldered but screwed on the barrel, so it is easy to remove temporarily to slide the barrel band and put it back afterward...

As to Mrs BeeMaa shooting the .416 in her rifle (no steel chassis, not recoil reducer) I would suggest that she tries it first on your rifle. There is quite a significant jump in recoil between the .375 and the .416. Just saying...

Appreciate the info on the gunsmithing.

As for Mrs BeeMaa, she said "bring it" when I mentioned the 416RM.
I'm getting her a kickstop that I can add if she feels like she needs it.
She prefers a little more heft to a gun anyway and it could help it balance even with the 300WM barrel.
I will insist that she shoot it from mine first, because it's heavier, but I know her too well...she will want to do it on her own.
At least with the RMR she won't be getting scope cut.

 

[One Day...]

... As for Mrs BeeMaa, she said "bring it" when I mentioned the 416RM...

Tell her that "real women" shoot the .500 Jeffery, which happens to be perfect because Blaser offers a barrel for it:

But in truth, without a scope, about nothing bad can happen. That is the other immense advantage of the reflex sights like the Docter, RMR, etc. they are so far forward, you cannot possibly get hit by them

 

[Red Leg]

The barrel band swivel is absolutely unnecessary on an R8 - particularly if your forend has the sling stud at the tip. That would not be a factor for me in selecting a particular barrel profile. I personally think a R8 with a Selous weight .375 barrel would feel like an artillery piece (awful small hole through a lot of steel). The full length semi-weight is more than I care to schlep through the thorns, but I can see why someone might opt to get that weight. All that iron may keep the recoil from bothering her, but you better rent or indenture a gun bearer for the duration.

I realize I have said this a lot, but the most perfectly balanced and shootable .375 that I have ever fired is my R8 with standard sporter barrel. A fluted semi-weight is essentially the same thing.

And who cares what @One Day... 's theoretical opinions are about the R8 (offered over and over and over ad infinitum)? I mean seriously ........ I'll simply say - as an actual owner of several calibers and barrel weights - mine provides the best and most useful return value I have ever realized in a new rifle. Ever.

And tell your blushing bride that you know this ex Airborne Ranger curmudgeon that shoots all his buffalo with a .375, because he chooses to do so because it is the best tool for the job.

 

[One Day...]

You got me a won bet Red Leg, I had wagered with Mrs One Day who is reading by the fireplace beside me what your response would be. She asked me what I was chuckling about when I clicked "post" earlier

Tell us again, what is the best .375 H&H configuration for a R8? Just kidding , don't we all tend to repeat ourselves through the various threads/posts? That is the nature of the blogging beast, I suppose

And who cares indeed about any opinion from anyone (yours and mine included), we all have opinions (which, by the way, are very real), and we even occasionally throw in data (which is very real too), and we all tend to repeat ourselves, because the questions tend to be repeated - again, the nature of the beast - but no-one has to follow neither your opinion or mine, right?

Seems BeeMaa is going his own route, apparently integrating some of your input and some of my input, and some of others, into his own decisions, and that is the best possible outcome we can all wish for. He asked for unvarnished honest opinions, got them, and formed his own. Mission accomplished

Enjoy your scoped .375 H&H buff my Airborne Ranger friend, this Airborne Commando will keep stalking his to stone-throw distance and wack them with his open-sights double .470. And it looks like BeeMaa will give them red dot .416 medicine. The cool thing is that we are all right

 

[Red Leg]

You got me a won bet Red Leg, I had wagered with Mrs One Day who is reading by the fireplace beside me what your response would be. She asked me what I was chuckling about when I clicked "post" earlier

Tell us again, what is the best .375 H&H configuration for a R8? Just kidding , don't we all tend to repeat ourselves through the various threads/posts? That is the nature of the blogging beast, I suppose

And who cares indeed about any opinion from anyone (yours and mine included), we all have opinions (which, by the way, are very real), and we even occasionally throw in data (which is very real too), and we all tend to repeat ourselves, because the questions tend to be repeated - again, the nature of the beast - but no-one has to follow neither your opinion or mine, right?

Seems BeeMaa is going his own route, apparently integrating some of your input and some of my input, and some of others, into his own decisions, and that is the best possible outcome we can all wish for. He asked for unvarnished honest opinions, got them, and formed his own. Mission accomplished

Enjoy your scoped .375 H&H buff my Airborne Ranger friend, this Airborne Commando will keep stalking his to stone-throw distance and wack them with his open-sights double .470. And it looks like BeeMaa will give them red dot .416 medicine. The cool thing is that we are all right

Don't tell anyone else, but if I go back to harass another buffalo, it will likely be with my Douglas and Son .470. Everyone needs at least one Stewart Granger experience.

 

[Von S.]

Ya just gotta love it......

Two men enter.......one man leaves.

 

[Red Leg]

Don't tell anyone else, but if I go back to harass another buffalo, it will likely be with my Douglas and Son .470. Everyone needs at least one Stewart Granger experience.

Even if it is a less effective tool for the job......

 

[brif]

Why not look into a jsip barrel with the irons of your choice and the band for about half as much as the Selous barrel? I know they are working on a 404 barrel as well.

 

[One Day...]

Don't tell anyone else, but if I go back to harass another buffalo, it will likely be with my Douglas and Son .470. Everyone needs at least one Stewart Granger experience.

Even if it is a less effective tool for the job......

Ah but the romance of the big double, Red Leg, the romance...

 

[BeeMaa]

@Red Leg I see your point on the weight and we may still go with the semi-weight 375.
Mrs BeeMaa is a trooper, not one to complain (unlike myself) about much of anything, let alone the weight of a rifle.
Carried my 11# 375 for the better part of 2 miles on our last trip with no problems.
Also, my stock doesn't have a front sling swivel stud, but it can't be to hard to install one.
We are not set in stone at the moment, so everything is up for discussion.
And I appreciate your input.

@One Day... I appreciate your input as well.
BTW - I mentioned to Mrs BeeMaa what you said about the 500J...
...she mumbled something like "you should know all about being a real woman".

Why not look into a jsip barrel with the irons of your choice and the band for about half as much as the Selous barrel? I know they are working on a 404 barrel as well.

First, allow me to welcome you to AH.
I've looked at J. Sip & Sons but at the moment we are not looking for something Blaser doesn't offer.
I won't rule it out in the future, but at this time it's not a consideration.

 

[BeeMaa]

Christmas has come early again for the BeeMaa's.
All the OT work has paid off and we are racking up some CC points.

Placed the order this morning with Euro Optic.
Decided to go with the safari weight 375 barrel with the sling swivel stud.
Intuition stock to be channeled to accept the 22mm barrels.
Opted for the Trijicon RMR with 1 MOA for the 416 in a Trijicon RM60 QD mount.
Throwing in a set of Leica Geovid HD-R 10x42 for good measure.

Mrs Beemaa has started a weight lifitng regimen to account for the added weight.
I should probably get on board with that as well.

Gonna be a while before the stuff is here, I'll keep you posted.