Anschutz 1771 ,Cooper M51 classic or Sako 85 hunter.....those are the 3 choices...my guess is the sako And anschutz are about the same price with the cooper probably being more expensive...what’s most accurate Would be a coin toss IMO as I think they would all be pretty good.....functioning in really cold weather I don’t have a clue....Any opinions/ideas on the 204 ruger more than welcome.
204 Ruger... A , C or S which rifle would you choose and why ?
- Thread starter Whitetail Junkie
- Start date
In typical gun forum fashion, I will recommend the Savage in .22-250.
Merry Christmas.
Haha, so, so true.
And why waste all that money when you can have the Ruger American, tongue in cheek
To the OP with those choices it is personal preference they are all quality shooters.
- Location
- Edmonton Area Ab, Candle Lake Sk
The one that handles the best to you. If your purchasing in that price range fit and balance trump price anytime.
I have both a model 51 Cooper and a Sako 85 in 204 Ruger. They both have there pros and cons but if I were to only have one it would be the Cooper. The xS action on the Sako is too short to load bullets to a decent COAL to fit in the detachable mag of the 85. That said I use the sako as my main calling rifle for coyotes as I use 35gr bergers loaded to max mag length which is a extremely accurate hard hitting fur friendly load. The Cooper is used as a my main rifle to shoot over baits with 40gr bergers.
That’s wild you got one of each...what model of cooper rifle you got in the 204?
That I agree with only problem is there ain’t to many dressing rooms around my area to try on all 3...lol
I believe the Cooper started as a PHOENIX. It was suppose to have a snow camo stock when I ordered it but after waiting almost 2 years for it to be built I opted for a laminate stock. It has a stainless action, stainless fluted barrel and fluted bolt. Plus side is while I was waiting for the Cooper I bought the Sako. Sako is a VLS that fits me perfect. I have never hit so many running coyotes until I started using it. I don't think you could go wrong with either pick. On a side note I also have a browning Abolt in 204 that gets used for all the dirty work I do such as use on the trap line.
I have all three of those rifles, but not in .204.
M51 stainless in 6x45, 1771 in .17 hornet and Sako in .223. All with a 20" barrel,
I have three gripes with the Cooper, it's much heavier than I expected, the bolt is noisy, desticitive click when it cocks, and the safety clicks as well, I have a Cooper single shot in 6x47remington and was expecting the M51 to be about the same weight it's 1.5 lbs more.
Like the Sako a lot, no real complaints, other than I like the Sako vixen 461, more than 75,85.
The Sako will hold six rounds down, so 1-2 two more than the others, if that's important.
Love the Anshultz, a very accurate well balanced rifle, it's a bit heavier than the Sako, lighter than my stainless M51. Considering getting one in a second caliber.
You may want to concidered the CZ 427,in .204 I owned one in varmint .204 for a while, had to bed it wasn't much better than 1.5" to start, but was a good working rifle, once a bit of work was done,
M51 stainless in 6x45, 1771 in .17 hornet and Sako in .223. All with a 20" barrel,
I have three gripes with the Cooper, it's much heavier than I expected, the bolt is noisy, desticitive click when it cocks, and the safety clicks as well, I have a Cooper single shot in 6x47remington and was expecting the M51 to be about the same weight it's 1.5 lbs more.
Like the Sako a lot, no real complaints, other than I like the Sako vixen 461, more than 75,85.
The Sako will hold six rounds down, so 1-2 two more than the others, if that's important.
Love the Anshultz, a very accurate well balanced rifle, it's a bit heavier than the Sako, lighter than my stainless M51. Considering getting one in a second caliber.
You may want to concidered the CZ 427,in .204 I owned one in varmint .204 for a while, had to bed it wasn't much better than 1.5" to start, but was a good working rifle, once a bit of work was done,
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Hay whitetail junkie, still got that Franchi Fenice 28 ga of mine, ?
No mine is a 20 gauge I think you bought the 28G they had 4 sale at the same time....thanks for your insight in your earlier post.
2 years is a long time...lol...does the scope on your sako have big target turrets or just regular size? I ask because the scope I got for this future gun has target turrets which I’ve heard can cause ejection issues on some sako 85’s with the brass hitting the side scope turret and going back into the chamber...
I’ve got one of them pony’s in a Mark V already in the stable...mine like’s 55 grain Nosler ballistic tips with Varget.
I ordered the Cooper when they just started talking about the availability of snow camo stocks. I was hoping to take advantage of the fact that the dollar was worth more than the US dollar at the time. It was also a present to myself to mark my 50th birthday. I was told at the time it would be at least 9 months before it was built. Plus side is now I have a reason to order another one some day soon.
The Sako wears a silver Zeiss Conquest 4.5X14 X44 in Leupold ring mounts, regular size turrets, never have an issue when calling if I work the bolt aggressively. If I pull it back slowly the brass just sits there so I can collect it for reloading.
I paid for these rifles and a few more with the money I made selling the coyote hides. I'm at 12 right now this year and plan on getting out a bunch next week while I'm off for our winter break.
