Did you ever buy a rifle not expecting much, but it became a keeper?

[dan belisle]

When my brother moved to Alaska I swapped him a LH 7mm Rem Mag for his RH model 70 in 270. I was going to rebarrel it as I've never really cared for 270's. But I made the mistake of shooting it. Very accurate rifle. Ended up refinishing it and keeping it.

 

[Jgoulin]

Two of them actually, first was a 1873 Springfield trapdoor (1884 manf). I bought it expecting to have a little fun shooting 5 gal pails at 50 yrds...that damn thing shot 3" at 100 all day.
Second was a Savage Axis .223 , just wanted an inexpensive coyote rifle. Best shooting rifle I have ever owned( and Ive had some good ones), will shoot single hole right out of the box.

I picked up a savage axis II in 25-06 maybe 8 years ago at a cabelas boxing day sale. It was so cheap they made me buy it. Came with a weaver scope. I had no expectations but paid so little for it I knew I could flip it quick. That darn thing shoots like a laser.

 

[Kilo Charlie]

My A-Bolt in .280; I bought it in 1993 because there were no Rem 700's available, either Mountain or BDL.
That was 1n 1993 so 27-odd years later, it's still my go-to rifle.

 

[SuperCub]

Owned (and sold|) a few Marlin X7s in the day. They were el-cheapo rifles that ticked off a lot of boxes including accuracy.

I'm not sure why Remington dropped it after they got Marlin. They could have just added a drop mag or hinged FP and went with that.

 

[caramel]

Tavor 7 is terrific as well, namely for the accuracy I squeeze out of it. I was worried about it when I bought it, as rumor had it that they were something like 3 MOA guns, and IWI had been working to get better accuracy out of them but nobody had a chance to see if they succeeded. I've been running Federal bulk stuff into 1 MOA or better since I first squeezed the trigger. Its been 100% reliable and has great handling characteristics and ergos. Just a really well thought out rifle really.

Agreed, this rifle was a total surprise, cant say enough good about the Tavor7. JP.

 

[c1a1]

Ruger Scout. Light, short, very accurate.

 

[Slimbo]

Owned (and sold|) a few Marlin X7s in the day. They were el-cheapo rifles that ticked off a lot of boxes including accuracy.

I'm not sure why Remington dropped it after they got Marlin. They could have just added a drop mag or hinged FP and went with that.

Isn’t the 783 basically a tweaked and rebadged X7?

 

[SuperCub]

Isn’t the 783 basically a tweaked and rebadged X7?

AFAIK .... You are correct. I just liked the old X7s better for no good reason.

 

[diemaco]

Ruger Scout. Light, short, very accurate.

I never found my scouts to be overly light. Especially the laminate stock.

 

[caramel]

AFAIK .... You are correct. I just liked the old X7s better for no good reason.

I have kept one X7VH in 308 new in box, you are right, those were very good rifle at low price. JP.

 

[fraserdw]

Mossberg 464 zombie gun. Expected very little, 1000 rounds later and not a single stuck shall or misfeed.

 

[Eagleye]

Marlin 336A [24", ½ magazine] I have always like the Marlins, but after seeing how well this
lever action shoots, it became a permanent resident of my gunsafe. Feed it what it prefers, and
it averages very close to MOA right out past 200 meters. Definitely a keeper!! Dave.

 

[Suther]

I picked up a savage axis II in 25-06 maybe 8 years ago at a cabelas boxing day sale. It was so cheap they made me buy it. Came with a weaver scope. I had no expectations but paid so little for it I knew I could flip it quick. That darn thing shoots like a laser.

They're not the nicest rifle ever made, but man do they shoot. My Axis in 270win has printed sub-MoA groups with most handloads I've put through it, and the 150 Partition out of that rifle put up my best 3-shot group to date - 0.215". Lucky group? Absolutely! But still an impressively accurate rifle/load combo.

I guess that rifle would fit the bill for this thread too. I bought it for ~$235 (scoped!), because it was the cheapest hunting rifle I could get to upgrade from the Enfield Sporter I had 5+ years ago. I have since moved on from that rifle because I shoot left handed now, but its the one right-handed hunting rifle that I kept, its now my backup/loaner rifle.

 

[TheCoachZed]

I traded some junk in my basement for a Santa Barbara Deluxe in .30-06, with worn finish and cheap Bushnell scope. It shoots as well as I can, and now I regret buying a .270 last fall.

 

[PSE]

303 Mk 5 Enfield Jungle carbine

Short, light and rugged. A joy to carry in the bush with plenty of firepower on tap. Accurate enough for a shorter range hunter and great as a RV camp gun for the boonies. Excellent peep sights with very fast acquisition in low light as you would expect in a jungle carbine.

I didn't expect much when I first bought it (cheap at the gun show), but it grew on me.

 

[Johnn Peterson]

303 Mk 5 Enfield Jungle carbine

Short, light and rugged. A joy to carry in the bush with plenty of firepower on tap. Accurate enough for a shorter range hunter and great as a RV camp gun for the boonies. Excellent peep sights with very fast acquisition in low light as you would expect in a jungle carbine.

I didn't expect much when I first bought it (cheap at the gun show), but it grew on me.

Many years ago, I acquired my first of the same and am now at my 5th or 6th. My 1st, for years, took a beating behind the seat of my '57 Landrover PU and I'm sure it ended up gradually shooting better over the years. My latest is MINT and the cleanest I've ever had. In addition, with it I have the 'trimmings', a spare mag, the original sling and a bayonet with sheath .

 

[PSE]

Many years ago, I acquired my first of the same and am now at my 5th or 6th. My 1st, for years, took a beating behind the seat of my '57 Landrover PU and I'm sure it ended up gradually shooting better over the years. My latest is MINT and the cleanest I've ever had. In addition, with it I have the 'trimmings', a spare mag, the original sling and a bayonet with sheath .

Nice!! - don't put the latest behind the truck seat - It is very hard to find one in that kind of condition.

 

[gristle111]

Ruger Hawkeye 77 LH in 375 ruger (pre muzzle break) . That thing is as accurate as any gun I've had.. even with the snot kicking. Nothing shoulders as well. Even better than my savage 99. Trigger is amazing.
Honorable mention. My latest Chinese sks. Great innards.. great trigger. Beautifully abused stock. Just feels so good in the hands. Keeper!!

 

[Norma]

I bought and sold many rifles, my first two Sako A7 in .308 and .30-06 are my favourite and still in my gun safe.

 

[SHELL SHUCKER]

I got a nice Mosin Nagant 91/30 hex receiver unit from Tradeex some yrs back that had good wood and metal, though the bore was kinda dark. It took a bunch of careful cleaning to get the bore tidy again to the point I reckoned it to be good for hardcast 180 gr boolits. I point bedded the action and fitted a Huber trigger to the
bugger & filed the front sight to a tapered pin style. I also polished the camming surfaces in the bolt assy' to smooth up operation a tad.

My first test group went like this.


That sealed the deal for me as a keeper rifle for plinkin' & huntin' deer from a hide. Soon after, I made up a longer, swept back bolt handle for the old gal to
further ease in operation. Since me eyes now suck when using open irons, I'm gonna fit a Brass Stacker scope mount & scout scope on 'er to stay in the game.