My second rifle choice

[SStomcat]

I soumya,

The A. Francotte!! Specially THAT A. Francotte, to me!!!!

Good luck!

CF

Hi Clodo - So, I infer they make better quality bolts than the Rigby stalker at a better price. Thanks for your response.

 

[SStomcat]

I was steered away from the Francotte, apparently it seems that even though it is a custom built rifle it is not set up for scopes. Unfortunately, it fell into the wrong gunsmith who drilled some holes on the action without knowing what he was doing. Will take a lot of gunsmithing work to fit a scope on the rifle. A pity and not my cup of tea!

 

[SStomcat]

Gentlemen, what do you think of this combo rifle and the brand?

Sauer 404 XT 9.3x62 - NEW37214

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gordyandsons.com

 

[Longwalker]

The Sauer 404 is the one rifle I would trade a couple of my tried and true, well proven rifles to own instead. It is a wonderful design. I prefer the wood stock version, but that's an unimportant detail and personal preference.

I think the 9.3x62 is the perfect pairing to your big bore double rifle - use it for "everything else". Never have to worry about its effectiveness. Please disregard the marketing hype currently fashionable about long range shooting. Using a 9.3 is no range handicap for 90% of "real" North American or African game hunting situations. And the 9.3x62 bridges the gap between dangerous game and medium game without any flaws in its design or application.

The .243 is in another category. I have owned .243's and found them useful, but don't own one now. I prefer smaller cartridges like the .222 for small, furred or edible game. Less pelt and meat destruction with a .22 caliber centerfire. And I prefer larger cartridges like the 7mm08 7x57 or .308 for deer sized game. But the .243 would be a wonderful addition to a 9.3x62. Light recoil, flat shooting, and capable of taking smallish game with efficiency. Good for any time the 9,3 would seem too big or slow and so it fills a "gap" in your arsenal.

Sauer makes only high quality firearms. The 404 is their top of the line. You can buy a Sauer 404 and be assured it will work as advertised, every time, from the first time you take it out of the box. I have one of their older models, a 202. Extremely well made, accurate, and basically flawless. The 404 is just a little bit better.

 

[SStomcat]

The Sauer 404 is the one rifle I would trade a couple of my tried and true, well proven rifles to own instead. It is a wonderful design. I prefer the wood stock version, but that's an unimportant detail and personal preference.

I think the 9.3x62 is the perfect pairing to your big bore double rifle - use it for "everything else". Never have to worry about its effectiveness. Please disregard the marketing hype currently fashionable about long range shooting. Using a 9.3 is no range handicap for 90% of "real" North American or African game hunting situations. And the 9.3x62 bridges the gap between dangerous game and medium game without any flaws in its design or application.

The .243 is in another category. I have owned .243's and found them useful, but don't own one now. I prefer smaller cartridges like the .222 for small, furred or edible game. Less pelt and meat destruction with a .22 caliber centerfire. And I prefer larger cartridges like the 7mm08 7x57 or .308 for deer sized game. But the .243 would be a wonderful addition to a 9.3x62. Light recoil, flat shooting, and capable of taking smallish game with efficiency. Good for any time the 9,3 would seem too big or slow and so it fills a "gap" in your arsenal.

Sauer makes only high quality firearms. The 404 is their top of the line. You can buy a Sauer 404 and be assured it will work as advertised, every time, from the first time you take it out of the box. I have one of their older models, a 202. Extremely well made, accurate, and basically flawless. The 404 is just a little bit better.

Great writeup. I just had a major surgery and now need to reward myself with another pedigree rifle. This nicely fits my bill, unfortunately may not be able to fire for few months but the joy of adding one is endless