The gun that surprised you the most

[austinjeane]

I picked up a custom P.O. Ackley rifle several years ago built on a 98 Mauser action and chambered in .270 Winchester. It is fitted with Lyman peep sights and is astonishingly accurate. The warmer the barrel gets, the better it shoots. Mr. Ackley was a consummate gunsmith.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

Long guns: H&R Model 800 Lynx semiauto. Bought it just to have an H&R.
Accurate and reliable.
Handguns. Mauser M1914 and CZ 27. GI bringbacks, bought them for fun.
Both have poor ergonomics and are tricky to disassemble, but both are accurate and fun to shoot.

 

[Donn]

Two milsurp rifles. My M1 Garand and Lee-Enfield 303. I expected both to be a handful. Turns out they're very well mannered and a pleasure to shoot. That said, I'm glad I didn't have to hump either of them.

 

[DWalt]

A junky Model 1916 Spanish Mauser carbine in 7X57 I paid $15 for about 15 years ago. I couldn't believe how well it grouped, even with the crude Barleycorn military sights. Ragged one hole groups at 50 yards from a bench over sandbags. I bought it to sporterize, but after that performance, I decided it was best to leave it alone. These were the ones Generalissimo Francisco Franco ordered the Spanish Royal Crest machined off the receiver ring.

 

[CO_Kid]

My beloved model 10 I've mentioned a bunch on this forum.

Got it 10 or so years ago for a song. Looked like someone left it in their yard for about 20 years. Price was so right, and every revolver fan needs a model 10, so I got it. Man was that a good decision. I love that gun.

 

[meaneyedcatz]

My parents bought me a 6.5x55 Swedish Mauser for my birthday in my early 20's.
Nice gun.
Got married, kids came along and family is always more important than my hobbies.
Moved to Illinoisastan and had now place to shoot.

Now we are back in Missouri, the kids are grown and I get to the range when I want.
The Mauser really surprised me. No kick, shoots flat and finds the center with tight groups. It's better than I remembered.
If I go out to the deer woods the Winchester stays behind.

 

[CCantu357]

Mine would have to my Model 19 no dash. I had just turned of age to own a handgun and was looking primarily for an 581/586 L-frame. This was about nine years ago and the internet was full of stories about how K-frame Magnums could not handle .357 Magnum rounds and buying a used one was like buying a ticking time bomb- the forcing cone could crack with every round. So, while I always liked the 19/66s, I really wanted that L-frame. I called my LGS, asked about a used 581 or 586, an was told all they had was a Model 19. I figured it would be a -3 or later model. When I saw the diamond stocks and the half-inch target hammer and target trigger, I fell in love. When I saw the 19 with no dash, and the original S&W trigger stop, I felt like it was Christmas day. Nine years later, wearing rubbber stocks and with out trigger stop, she serves as my nightstand gun. And keeping with a diet of .38s and mild .357s like Golden Saber, that forcing cone seems just fine. Of course, the monthly cleaning helps too.

 

[Evil Dog]

The gun that surprised me the most? A Browning High Power.... was packing things up at the range getting ready to head home. Pointed it down range and pulled the trigger. Oops.

 

[Cdog]

As posted by many here, the CZ family of firearms. From the CZ 75's, 452's, 527's, etc. For me they've all been over achievers.

The AR 15 platform. I've achieved accuracy beyond all expectation.

The "plastic pistols" haven't surprised me, what has is my acceptance and embracement of them.

 

[BigBoy99]

My biggest surprise was with a 9mm CZ75 clone, made by Tanfagilo in Italy. The gun was part of a trade deal and I figured that it was worth in the $75 - $100 range. It was thrown in at the very last to make the deal square. I got it home and put it in the back of the safe and there it sat for many years. On a whim, I took it to the range and boy was I surprised. It was the most accurate and smooth shooting 9mm I had ever tried. I liked it so much that I have now gone out and bought two more CZ75s!

 

[DWalt]

My biggest surprise was with a 9mm CZ75 clone, made by Tanfagilo in Italy. The gun was part of a trade deal and I figured that it was worth in the $75 - $100 range. It was thrown in at the very last to make the deal square. I got it home and put it in the back of the safe and there it sat for many years. On a whim, I took it to the range and boy was I surprised. It was the most accurate and smooth shooting 9mm I had ever tried. I liked it so much that I have now gone out and bought two more CZ75s!

EAA sells the "Witness", a CZ-75 clone by Tanfoglio. Extremely well made but heavy (in the all-steel version). Shoots very well, big benefit is its ability to quickly switch calibers on the same frame - mine is set up for .45 ACP and .38 Super, but also available in 9X19, .40 S&W, and 10mm. As close as you can get to the famous but seldom seen "Bren Ten" of yesteryear.

 

[M29since14]

Quite a few years ago now I was hunting a 6-inch Model 66 and located what appeared to be a very nice one down south somewhere. It arrived and I walked out into my driveway with the gun, a box of Federal 158-gr JSPs (always a VERY accurate .357 load), and my usual B33 target. At 15-yards the gun would not keep six rounds on the paper. A GREAT surprise!

After trying a couple different loads with the same results, we measured and checked about everything we could think of and could find no "reason" for its bad behavior so we could only assume the barrel had some not readily visible defect, probably close to the muzzle, and thus a new barrel was needed. Fortunately, the gentleman allowed me to return the gun and the problem went back, whence it came. That is the only revolver I have ever seen with a glaring problem that did not appear to have an obvious cause.

 

[RobertJ.]

I wasn't surprised to see the Makarov mentioned a few times. I had one 20 years ago, and it would shoot anything I put into it, and generally group them under 1" at 10 yards offhand. Well, I "needed" a 10-22, and traded away the Mak.

About 10 years ago I started replacing all the firearms that I liked and foolishly traded away, and the Makarov was one of the first. Russian made, adjustable sights, and chambered for the easy to find .380 ACP, a showpiece it's not, but when you get an autoloader that shoots this well, never get rid of it! As an aside, that 10-22 I traded my first Mak for is long gone!

My second biggest surprise was an H&R Model 365. A single shot, bolt action .22 that would group under an inch at 50 yards. I still have this one.

 

[spad124]

The most surprising was a comparison of two 1911s, a Colt Series 80 GM and a Norinco. My FIL bought the Colt in about 1993. Being recently married with two small children, I couldn't afford a Colt, but could afford the Norinco. When both guns came in my FIL, who grew up with guns and could outshoot most people, and I shot a comparison test. I expected my Norinco to be inferior to his Colt. However, his Colt could never get through a full mag without jamming. In contrast my Norinco fed and fired everything regardless of manufacture or bullet weight. Handloads included. We traded mags and his Colt had the same problem with my Norinco mags. Accuracy of the Norinco was the same as the Colt.

Off the Colt went to the smith. It was ported and polished. It came back, same jamming problem. Back to the smith. The problem still continued. Eventually the smith determined that the chamber was not aligned to the barrel. By then my FIL was so fed up he sold the Colt. To this day 30 years later he asks, "Do you still have that .45?" . I do and tell him yes. He always responds "Good. Don't get rid of it. It's a hell of a gun"