Some of you may have read my thread about getting a new Super Grade. I settled on a .270 and have been putting it through its paces at the gun range the past 2 days. When thinking about this purchase I looked for a lot of feedback on the current production super grades, but didn't really find much. Some threads on here were praising of it, most of the online gun mag articles read a little too much like a fluff piece, so although I am by no means a gun journalist, I thought I would give my impressions for anyone else in the future looking to buy a super grade Model 70.
First off, if you haven't priced them lately, they aint cheap. Best price I found on a brand new one was $1250. I did stumble across some used ones for around 1100-1150 that looked to be in mint condition, but for that price difference I decided to just get a new one.
Went with the .270 round for various reasons. There isn't a whole lot of difference when you get right down to it between most of the common hunting rounds. For the ranges I shoot deer, hog, or such at, I feel a Magnum or some of the larger rounds is just more bullet then you need. I wanted a long action for no other reason than I wanted a long action. I really was looking for a 25-06 originally, but they don't make em in that caliber. I finally went with the .270 just because I had shot it a lot in the past and was comfortable with its reloading range. Just my personal preference.
As for the gun, pics are below. It is a beautifully figured piece of walnut. Not quite as much figure as my Pigeon Grade Browning Superposed, but it is still a lovely piece of wood. At first I wasn't certain I would be a fan of the more muted satin finish as opposed to some of the more medium gloss finish I have seen, but it has grown on me. The SG has a lot of nice little upgrades over the lower grades, but for me the main one that mattered was the wood, and it is a looker. I had read previously to be sure to pick out your SG as some of the wood isn't as nice as others. I have to say I did encounter this on one SG I saw. It was a .308 that while figured nicely, had a much grayer/blacker tone to the wood as opposed to the reddish color in all the others I saw. Not sure why, it was a brand new gun, but the stock was just a different coloring which I didn't care for. The checkering is nicely done and you can definitely feel it when you grab the gun. It isn't quite on par with one of my Parker Shotguns, but it is nicer then the checkering on either my BLR .270 or my 1967 Remington 700.
The bolt is nicely jeweled, and while I read back and forth from people on how smooth it is compared to other rifles, all I can say is I love the smoothness. No complaints at all about how smooth this action works. The nice checkering on the bolt is a nice touch. The safety is a little stiff to operate, but seems to be loosening up with use.
The bluing on the barrel is exquisite, and seems to be holding up quite well. I have managed to cringe when I accidentally rubbed it against my truck door, but it didn't show any wear. Get overprotective on a fancy new gun.
The floor plate is nice heavy duty metal and closes up nicely, the recoil pad is all I need to shoot, especially with the weight of the gun. It is definitely heavier then a lot of modern rifles. But I will mostly be shooting it at the range or deer stand, so I didn't need to worry about hauling it. Plus, at 6'4" and 235, a 10 lb or so rifle isn't much trouble. I bird hunt with some shotguns over 11lbs. It makes the recoil a breeze. Now if you were worried about the weight, the featherweights I saw looked nice as well.
I haven't messed with the trigger adj, just because I haven't really determined it to be necessary. It is pretty easy to get to, and is covered in a bubble of wax or glue, that shouldn't be too hard to remove if you feel the need to adjust. Just make sure when taking the rifle apart to pay attention to how the magazine box goes in....
I put a Leupold Vx2 3-9x40 scope on it with Leupold base and rings. I found one at a scope store south of Houston for $320 for scope, rings, base, and mounts. He sold the scope to me brand new for $250. Its a nice scope, my first variable, my other hunting scopes are all pre variable designs. I like it, though 9x magnification isn't quite as much as you think in your head on a 100 yard range. But it is bright, and the click adj are easy to use and feel. The VX1 also has click adjustments now, but they are quite as defined when you turn them.
Shooting wise it is a real pleasure. Recoil on Core Lokt bullets is pretty negligible in 130 grain(my primary hunting factory bullet). The scope is pretty easy to sight in, even if you aren't a very good bench rest shooter, which I am certainly not. Haven't shot it free hand yet, but that is how I usually shoot to hunt, so now that I am happy with the sighting I will start shooting like that.
I won't comment on MOA, as I don't know that I am the rifle shooter to truly comment on such. I can say that for me it shoots very accurate.
So if anyone is considering buying such a rifle I highly encourage you. It is a beautiful piece of gun art that shoots well and is a joy to shoot. The VX-2 is also a very nice scope. Pics below!
First off, if you haven't priced them lately, they aint cheap. Best price I found on a brand new one was $1250. I did stumble across some used ones for around 1100-1150 that looked to be in mint condition, but for that price difference I decided to just get a new one.
Went with the .270 round for various reasons. There isn't a whole lot of difference when you get right down to it between most of the common hunting rounds. For the ranges I shoot deer, hog, or such at, I feel a Magnum or some of the larger rounds is just more bullet then you need. I wanted a long action for no other reason than I wanted a long action. I really was looking for a 25-06 originally, but they don't make em in that caliber. I finally went with the .270 just because I had shot it a lot in the past and was comfortable with its reloading range. Just my personal preference.
As for the gun, pics are below. It is a beautifully figured piece of walnut. Not quite as much figure as my Pigeon Grade Browning Superposed, but it is still a lovely piece of wood. At first I wasn't certain I would be a fan of the more muted satin finish as opposed to some of the more medium gloss finish I have seen, but it has grown on me. The SG has a lot of nice little upgrades over the lower grades, but for me the main one that mattered was the wood, and it is a looker. I had read previously to be sure to pick out your SG as some of the wood isn't as nice as others. I have to say I did encounter this on one SG I saw. It was a .308 that while figured nicely, had a much grayer/blacker tone to the wood as opposed to the reddish color in all the others I saw. Not sure why, it was a brand new gun, but the stock was just a different coloring which I didn't care for. The checkering is nicely done and you can definitely feel it when you grab the gun. It isn't quite on par with one of my Parker Shotguns, but it is nicer then the checkering on either my BLR .270 or my 1967 Remington 700.
The bolt is nicely jeweled, and while I read back and forth from people on how smooth it is compared to other rifles, all I can say is I love the smoothness. No complaints at all about how smooth this action works. The nice checkering on the bolt is a nice touch. The safety is a little stiff to operate, but seems to be loosening up with use.
The bluing on the barrel is exquisite, and seems to be holding up quite well. I have managed to cringe when I accidentally rubbed it against my truck door, but it didn't show any wear. Get overprotective on a fancy new gun.
The floor plate is nice heavy duty metal and closes up nicely, the recoil pad is all I need to shoot, especially with the weight of the gun. It is definitely heavier then a lot of modern rifles. But I will mostly be shooting it at the range or deer stand, so I didn't need to worry about hauling it. Plus, at 6'4" and 235, a 10 lb or so rifle isn't much trouble. I bird hunt with some shotguns over 11lbs. It makes the recoil a breeze. Now if you were worried about the weight, the featherweights I saw looked nice as well.
I haven't messed with the trigger adj, just because I haven't really determined it to be necessary. It is pretty easy to get to, and is covered in a bubble of wax or glue, that shouldn't be too hard to remove if you feel the need to adjust. Just make sure when taking the rifle apart to pay attention to how the magazine box goes in....
I put a Leupold Vx2 3-9x40 scope on it with Leupold base and rings. I found one at a scope store south of Houston for $320 for scope, rings, base, and mounts. He sold the scope to me brand new for $250. Its a nice scope, my first variable, my other hunting scopes are all pre variable designs. I like it, though 9x magnification isn't quite as much as you think in your head on a 100 yard range. But it is bright, and the click adj are easy to use and feel. The VX1 also has click adjustments now, but they are quite as defined when you turn them.
Shooting wise it is a real pleasure. Recoil on Core Lokt bullets is pretty negligible in 130 grain(my primary hunting factory bullet). The scope is pretty easy to sight in, even if you aren't a very good bench rest shooter, which I am certainly not. Haven't shot it free hand yet, but that is how I usually shoot to hunt, so now that I am happy with the sighting I will start shooting like that.
I won't comment on MOA, as I don't know that I am the rifle shooter to truly comment on such. I can say that for me it shoots very accurate.
So if anyone is considering buying such a rifle I highly encourage you. It is a beautiful piece of gun art that shoots well and is a joy to shoot. The VX-2 is also a very nice scope. Pics below!
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