Okay, let's discuss the rifle each of us miss the most, be it a rifle we owned and loved but for some reason allowed it to get away, lost, stolen, blown up, sold under extreme financial duress, or perhaps the exact rifle we really, REALLY wanted and swore we would obtain someday but never did.

Mine... I was a sophomore college student and just getting into hunting and shooting. None of my family shot or hunted or fished or camped, so I tried to learn what I could from magazines and books. I had my first good rifle, a new Remington 700 ADL in .30-06, with a 4X Bushnell Banner scope. I added a recoil pad and sling swivels and was off. The rifle shot very well, and 40+ years later, it still does.

So I was reading various sporting publications trying to learn more about deer and found an obviously knowledgeable writer named John Wooters. Wooters really knew about all North American deer and how to hunt them.

Then I saw his favorite deer rifle. It turned out to be a SAKO Forester in .308 Winchester with a lovely wood-to-the-muzzle Mannlicher style stock. It had an 18 inch barrel. I was in love!

It took me two years to find my own. Short barrel, fully stocked guns weren't popular for hunting in the wide open western Rocky Mountains, and few shops carried SAKO around here then. A couple ordered what they thought I wanted, but on arrival, they weren't wood-to-the-muzzle Mannlicher-stocked. Finally, when one did arrive in it's correct configuration, the wood was lovely, the metalwork crisp and intricate, the bore gleaming and the trigger pull the impossible glass rod break. I fit it with a 4X Redfield Widefield. I worked up good hunting handloads with premium bullets. It would shoot 5 round groups into 1-1/4 inches from the bench at 100 meters, and as long as you stopped at 5 rounds and then let it cool, I avoided the Mannlicher stock's tendency to string groups all over as the wood and the metal tried to push each other around. It handled so sweetly and made my Rem 700 feel like a railroad tie or club.

The main problem was the rifle was just too pretty. The oil finish on the highly-grained wood brought out the wood's colors. The polished metal pieces could be used as small rounded mirrors. Although I took care of my gear, my Remington had already gotten a few scrapes and scratches. I feared of marring this Scandinavian beauty for which I had paid nearly 4 times the Remington's cost.

The issue resolved itself in a totally unforeseen manner. Opening weekend. A friend had a key to some private gated acreage with a reputation for big deer. We would likely be the only locals hunting there, as the property owner ran it as a hunting concession with a nice lodge and his sons as guides. Hunters were well-heeled in Land Rovers! To get to their horses!

We ran into some of them late Sunday afternoon, and they were businessmen from Connecticutt. One had already shot a fine 4 point mule deer. We chatted and drank water with them, and when one got a look at my SAKO, he got really excited. He had owned one that had been stolen during an airline flight on a prior hunt elsewhere and hadn't been able to get another. He offered to buy it on the spot. I said, no, I had just bought it myself. He made me several increasing offers, and..... shamefully... I folded.

The man traded me a Browning Safari made in Belgium by F.N. with a German scope and $1,000 cash for the SAKO. The Browning had gorgeous wood, too, and was chambered in .375 H&H. It, with it's scope, was probably worth more than I paid for the SAKO, let alone the $1,000 boot.

We shook hands, traded rifles and ammo, he counted out ten new bills, and we went separate ways.

I immediately regretted it. My buddy reminded me that I could probably trade the Browning for another SAKO, and the $1,000 would more than buy another SAKO.

Long story short, I could never find another Mannlicher Forester in the time I had from college and working a full-time factory job in those pre-internet days. The Browning came to a tragic ending, too, which I will save for another telling.

So who else has lost their true love rifle?

First, I knew John Wootters, Jr. slightly and have both editions of his, Hunting Trophy Deer. John was also very knowledgeable about WW II aircraft and about snakes. He was a consultant to the Houston zoo.

I know the very Sako .308 that you mean. John had many rifles, but it was a favorite.

I had to sell a Sako Finnbear and other guns to afford a wedding, and a Mannlicher-Schoenauer M-1908 8X56mm carbine with double set triggers had to help finance my college tuition when the VA was late with an Education Bill check, not an uncommon occurrence.

I love my Winchester M-70 Fwt. Classic .270, and hope I never have to sell it.

What I never got: a high grade classic M-70 from the custom shop, probably in .30-06 and one in .375 H&H. Add a Lee-Enfield sporting model from BSA or one of the famous London gun makers, built on a SMLE .303 action. And a Rigby .275. A custom rifle made on a M-70 or Mauser action and stocked by a man like Dale Goens remains a fantasy.

Those are the highlights. I'd like to replace the Mannlicher, but with a later model, chambered for ammo easily available here. I was lucky to find occasional boxes of RWS or DWM 8X56 mm then, and haven't seen any in years.

I had an Anschutz Model 1413 Super Match 54 that I acquired in college. That was the nicest rimfire target rifle that I ever owned. After college, I tried shooting outdoor courses of fire, and I really enjoyed how it shot at 50 yards/meters and 100 yards.

Sadly, I was involved in a motor vehicle accident in '07 which left me disabled, and with a poorly functioning left arm. The part time job that had supplemented my regular job was history, and I had to sell it in order to save my home. I never got what it was worth, but it helped to hold off the bill collectors.

Unfortunately, considering how things have evolved, I doubt that I will ever be able to replace that rifle with the Unertl scope.

__________________
Judge control not gun control!

I had a "M24" in .30-06 built for me in the early 90's. Rem700BDL, light trigger, 5 and 10-rd magazines, tuned, 26x1" bull, sub .5 MOA, high-end Leupold scope, bells, whistles. The gunsmith's name was Randy Landen (LANDTEC). When it was ready, I drove to his compound in southern KY to pick it up and he took time and gave me a 1/2 hour orientation on the rifle.

Several years later, I needed money quick and I had a buyer that offered 50% more than what I paid for it. Regretted the sale almost immediately but justified it because at the time because I hadn't fired it in a couple years, I didn't have a good place to shoot, nor the time.

I called Randy about a year and a half ago to see if by chance he was still building rifles and he said that he had long since retired (he was in his 90's). I just hadn't realized that much time had passed. We talked for about half hour about stuff - getting old, family, etc.

I still regret the sale. It was a special rifle made by a special man.

At age 18 I was in the LGS, a very large store and noticed an interesting rifle hidden deep in a rack. I reached thru the racked rifles and read the tag on the trigger guard. It listed a price of $125.00. At first I thought it was a 1903 Springfield and I assumed it was a non functional example. To make a long story short it was actually a 1943 vintage 1903-A3 in very clean condition. The salesman refused to believe the price was correct but after checking with his manager, the rifle was mine. I shot the rifle for several years. It was my pride and joy. '06 ammo was cheap in the seventies. Then, in college and in need of gas money, I sold it. I haven't found a replacement yet.

Had an early model Savage model 110.
LH 270, walnut stock. Also the early extractor which was basically an O ring.
It would shoot tight groups with factory and most all my hand loads.
I think at the time I wanted a 'prettier' rifle.
What was I thinking?

__________________
NRA LIFE MEMBER

None. I prefer semi-auto's.

A got a great deal on a SIG Model 202 bolt action rifle and it was in 270 Win and it had an amazing beautiful stock. The Sig Model 202 and 200 have silky smooth bolts with no side play in them. Well the problem was the rifle was so fantastic looking that I couldn't stand the thought of scratching it up so I decided to trade it and in the trade I got a Browning Citori O/U and a Browning A-Bolt in 223.

Well, needless to say I miss that beautiful rifle but in the end I got two guns for it that I actually use.

Remington 541. Not sure which version it was, thinking the S but dad still has it so I guess I need to ask for sure. Anyway I recall him buying it in the early 1970's. Seems like he paid quite a bit for it back then, may $300 or so. Way more than he or I have paid for a .22 rifle before or since. I do recall we put a pretty decent scope on it and man did that thing shoot! Keeping all hits on the head of a crow silhouette target was easy no matter what the range.

Besides being a shooter it was a looker too, at least by the standards of the day. I haven't seen it or shot it in close to 40 years but as I said my father still has it so I imagine it'll be mine one of these days.

I keep checking the local gun stores but haven't run across one and the ones I see online are going for a pretty penny other wise I'd have had one of my own a long time ago. There are probably more accurate .22's around for less money but this particular rifle is the only one I care about.

__________________
BCCI Life Member #2068

I miss my FFV Husqvarna in 25-06.

in the mid 90's i bought a new Rem. sendaro in 270win. it was an awesome rifle, i would shoot holes on quarters w/it @ 200yds. well to make a long story short, i bought a Weatherby mkV and sold off the sendaro to a friend to re coop some of the cash i spent on the Weatherby. its been over 15 years now and every once in awhile i contact my friend about buying it back, to no avail. one of these days i hope he gives in & sells it back, but im not gonna hold my breath.....

Back in the mid-1960's I found and bought a very nice M70 in 300 H&H, which I took to Alaska with me when I was in the AF in Anchorage. When my tour was up, I relunctently sold it. I know it is now an obsolete cartridge, but it was a very classic combination to own, and I miss it.

I know this will sound stupid, but due to age and bad back, about
a year ago I decided to sell off all my magnum big game rifles.
Most of them were pre 64 M-70 Wins. All these rifles were in very
nice shape, even though most were bought used. The one I miss
the most , SAKO FinnBear .375 H&H. I bought this gun new when
I was a teenager in the 60s. Unlike American models it had the
long barrel. The recoil was not bad for a 375 and gun seemed
to shoot anything you put in it, when sighted for the load. Still
have the dies and several boxes of ammo, if the chance comes to
pick up another one. This gun had a beautiful stock, as most of
older SAKOs did.

I was a Marine Corps midshipman in Auburn University's Navy/Marine ROTC unit in the early 1970s. We drilled with 1903 and 1903A3 Springfields. Mine was a Remington '03A3 from July 1943.

In the 1980s, I found a Remington '03A3 in near mint contion. It had the 2 groove barrel, but was still a very accurate rifle. I added a no-drill scope mount and worked up a load that would group at 3/4" @ 100 yards. My wife at the time wanted some furniture and the '03A3 went bye-bye.

Like the above poster, i haven't found a replacement yet.(

__________________
John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

I miss my Krags. Sporters in 6.5 X55 and .30-40. Needed the do re mi.

__________________
and what his trumpet saith

A Remington 1903A4 sniper Z4 serial number block.

Did that accident have anything to do with a boat?

__________________
"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Two I miss and regret. Damn, you for reminding me. A Rigby which was a superbly fine rifle, that in most probability I'd rarely use except in Safari. A Holland & Holland, same damn reason, and an 03'A3 Springfield war relic that belonged to an Uncle. I cherished him and the rifles, probably a British Enfield or 5 or 6 of them, damn fine rifles.

Then, I got old. It sneaked up on me, kinda creepy like. You look around each day and yes, you love these things you have chased over hill and dale, you searched, bargained and acquired.

I collected and accumulated EVERY S&W and Colt double action revolver ever made, along with the single action and semi automatic Colt's as a sideline along the way.

How many guns can a man own? Quite a few. When does it become impractical....without heirs, kids even if they are interested, eventually you realize it's time to pass them on to someone else for posterity and appreciation. The money, well that's something else, for another chat.

Most of mine are gone. Can't take them with you. Just a few I'll leave, only to get the job done, if needed. Just my take on the question.

Cheers;
Lefty

When I was young and dumb (in my early 20's) I worked in a gunshop with a gunsmith and a range, I was in heaven. I bought, sold and traded far more than my share of guns. Some I don't remember, some I never shot and a few I regret.

The ONE that I REALLY regret letting go was an Interarms MKX Whitworth Express rifle in 375 H&H. It was a CLASSIC British style safari rifle, Mauser action, beautiful hand rubbed walnut stock, quarter rib with express sights, barrel band sling swivel. Absolutely perfect.

I foolishly traded it away a few years later, even made a decent profit on it. But I can't replace that rifle today for less than 5 times what I originally paid for it. That one will haunt me until I do replace it, someday.

Just thinking about it tonight pisses me off, lol.

TRE

__________________
Fine guns and fine smokes.

An old Winchester in 30-06. Traded it off for something or other.

__________________
Even older, even crankier....

I generally preferred lever guns, but one bolt rifle was a great favorite. It was nothing fancy, just a sporter-weight Remington 700 ADL in .243 Winchester. But I loved it for varmints and deer, and it threaded needles with handloads. Sold it near the end of my drinking career, and still miss it though I haven't been able to hunt in years.

__________________
Oh well, what the hell.

I didn't lose it, I sold it...but it is gone nevertheless. 1991 I barreled my first action. It was my own personal rifle and so that made it almost an experiment to me. She was a Remington 700 308 heavy barrel that probably should have stayed the way it was. There was nothing wrong with the way it shot, but I wanted to see just how accurate of a rifle I could "build."
I got a 40X trigger, an H.S. Precision Police stock, a Leupold Mark4 M1 10X Premier Reticles mil-dot scope {which was about as state of the art sniper as it got back then} and from Brownell's a Harris McMillan polygonal rifled, fluted barrel.
I put this thing together and the first 10 rounds out of the pipe went into the same hole at 100 yards. My friends and I could not believe how fantastic this rifle shot. We enjoyed it for about three years. Several of the local deputies I know even used it to shoot in sniper and police competitions.....and then I let a buddy talk me out of it.
There have been many other rifles since and many that cost or were worth more, better calibers, scopes, stocks and barrels, but none have replaced that one. I bought it used and it had a "U.S." stamped receiver.

In 1957 I bought a BSA Royal in .222 Remington Magnum. I don't remember which scope I put on but it was in the 10-12X range. I disposed of the rifle when I went into military service in 1959. It was one very beautiful rifle.

Stu

I have a Remington bolt action 22 when I was a kid.

My mom sold it off when I was away at college.

A Flaigs's custom built; Mauser action, mannlicher stock in 7x57...... a LGS/shop had it in Harrisburg.... I was young and dumb........ didn't know what it was or anything about the caliber..... the gunsmith tried to get me to buy it... research pre- internet was so slow...... went back the next weekend and it was gone!!!!!

A Flaigs's custom built; Mauser action, mannlicher stock in 7x57...... a LGS/shop had it in Harrisburg.... I was young and dumb (mid-80s)........ didn't know what it was or anything about the caliber..... the gunsmith tried to get me to buy it... research pre- internet was so slow...... went back the next weekend and it was gone!!!!!

Came about as close as you could get to buying that very same rifle. The magazine advertisements as I recall, were photographically astonishing. I went to a large gun shop, I think it may have been Leslie Edelman's, not sure though, and I handled the rifle, but I didn't have the what all to make the deal. Yeah, another regret. What ever happened to the brand name company? Did INTERARMS actually produce them, I don't believe they did. They were primarily middle men in the gun biz. I don't recall? But those Whitworth rifles were from my observation, at the time, pretty fine business pieces for big game. By the way, the .375 H&H and .458 kill on both ends of the rifle. Ask my rotator cuff.

Cheers;
Lefty

Lefty,

Interarms was in fact the middleman/importer, they didn't make the Mark X. I believe, if memory serves, that they were made in
Czechoslovakia or one of the Eastern Block countries and imported after the wall fell. It was a spectacular rifle, a proper express rifle in every way. I have been able to find other Mark Xs in lesser calibers (7mm, 30/06, etc) and even a couple of 375s & 458s on Gunbroker etc. But I have never been able to find the Whitworth Express model for a price I could part with. The other Mark X 375s I've found don't have the express sights and other "safari rifle" features. The stock on the example I had was stunning hand rubbed walnut, the ones I've seen for sale lately have had more of a gloss type finish, sort of Weatherbyish.

I WILL have another someday, it is #2 or #3 on my gun "bucket list" (behind a S&W model 52 and a Registered Magnum), just have to find the right deal when I have the right funds.

And yes they do kick a bit, but in my young dumb days I enjoyed shooting that rifle with a 300gr bullet at max+ velocity. It certainly got your attention.

TRE

__________________
Fine guns and fine smokes.

I had a mossberg 800b in .243win, my first hunting rifle. Like a fool, I sold it off for some reason. It was very accurate, great functioning rifle, but cheap wood with pressed checkering and clunky action.....but it would sure shoot.

Actually, I had two such rifles, both accurate as all get out. And, believe it or not, neither one was what you would call fancy or exotic. Both would probably be considered a proverbial "plain Jane" of firearms.

One was a Ruger M77 Bicentennial model in .30-06. It was my favorite deer and elk rifle. My youngest son, Paul, always loved that rifle and I promised him that when it was time for me to cross over that eternal bridge, he could have it.

Then, one day, I figured...why the heck should I let him wait for that rifle? Who knows?...I could be around for another 50 years! Let him enjoy it now. So, when he was old enough to leave the nest, I let him keep that rifle to use for the next elk hunt and for all the other hunts in his life where he needed a good, solid, accurate rifle.

Then, I acquired a Ruger Hawkeye Compact in .243 to replace my aught six. Inasmuch as I was getting older and had had some shoulder surgery done, I was looking for a nice little deer rifle that didn't have as much recoil.

The .243 was perfect and shot like a dream...with factory ammo to boot! Also, I found that its smaller size made it a perfect saddle gun.

Then, Paul's son, Brig, finally became old enough for his first deer hunt. He passed his Hunter Safety course with flying colors and was looking forward to the Coues deer season there in Arizona. I figured that little .243 Hawkeye Compact would be perfect for him, so I let him use that for his first hunt. As luck would have it, he dropped a nice little buck at over 200 yards with a perfect shot to the "boiler room."

He called me that night and said, "Grandpa, I hope you don't mind, but you're never going to see that rifle again."

So, there you have it. Yep, I lost two of my very favorite deer rifles, but, truth be told...I really don't mind a bit. In fact, I'm glad that two of my favorite people own those guns now and, even more importantly, use those guns.

Paul and Brig with what was formerly my .243 Ruger Hawkeye Compact.

__________________
Pack light and cinch tight.