90 Years of Rifle Accuracy
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SAKO- wasn’t even born when it hit newsstands, but I still have a hand-me- down copy of the May 1972 issue of Guns & Ammo that I picked up in Califor- 90 YEARS OF RIFLE Inia as a kid. In it, Jim Carmichael celebrated Sako’s ornate 50th Anniversary Model, based on the Finnbear action and chambered for 7mm Remington Magnum. I must ACCURACY have read that issue front-to-back a dozen times in the decades since. So you can probably undertand how nos- Back in 1972, gunwriting legend Jim talgic—and excited—I was to find myself Carmichael went to Finland to cover flying to Finland to learn first-hand about Sako’s 50th anniversary. Here’s a one of the finest gun companies in the tribute to Carmichael’s long-ago trip, world. And to write about it for the same along with a look at what’s new there. magazine Carmichael did so long ago. Footsteps in Finland I arrived to Helsinki through Amsterdam. How culturally unique Finland is became By Eric R. Poole immediately apparent to me. The country seems trapped in its own history. Thick reindeer hides offered for sale were stacked three feet high outside a Christmas shop inside the airport terminal, suggesting Finland was home to Santa Claus. But I couldn’t envision bringing back such grim a quiet kind of precision: For discreet target practice, the use of suppressors is reminders of the fate of Santa’s four- encouraged throughout europe. here, the author shoots a suppressed .308 sako TRG-22 from its bipod. he averaged 0.98-inch five-shot groups on five targets at legged helpers to the kids back home. 100 meters. A combination of anticipation and a sun that couldn’t set (and shined through the shade-less windows) kept me awake for most of the first night. I woke up early Shuttled by bus, I arrived later that detailed review of the latest products. and explored Finland’s capital by vividly morning to the Sako (pronounced sock- Of particular interest to American big- marked footpaths, observing a Russian o, not say-ko) factory in Riihimaki, a game hunters is the current development of architectural influence and old military wonderful small town located roughly 20 an XL action that will afford the consumer buildings that had been converted to res- miles north of Helsinki. Ushered from extra-stout Safari-grade rifles chambered taurants, shops and businesses. Small cars the bus, I was taken to a former ammuni- for elephant stoppers like the .416 Rigby and a public trolley lined every street. No tion manufacturing building that had and .458 Lott. To date, Sako has only been trash littered the corners and no bubble been converted to a conference room and known for small, medium and large actions gum stained the concrete sidewalks. The exhibit hall. Raimo Karjalainen, Sako permitting rifles chambered in everything country seemed sterile and efficient. general manager, and Pentti Louisola, between .204 Ruger to the TRG-42’s far- senior product reaching .338 Lapua Magnum. manager, led a As we continued our hands-on tour of group of U.S. deal- the factory. I peered into every open box, ers and I through a inundating Raimo and Pentti with ques- complete history of tions. Is this going to be a Model 85 bolt, the company and a I asked, holding up an L-shaped piece of cast steel? For each rough, unfinished part I held up, they’d dig out a finished version of that particular component. a blast from the precision spoken here past: to read Jim carmichael’s origi- I’ve visited numerous factories, and knew nal 1972 article on the quality of Sako products from my his visit to sako, go travels in the military and from evaluating to gunsandammo. many Sako rifles, so I had preconceived com search key- ideas of what to expect. But what struck word: 50 Years me sideways was the relative absence of 44 GUNS&AMMO ANNUAL 2011 ANNUAL 2011 GUNS&AMMO 45 CNC machinery. Raimo indicated more raimo karj- alainen, sako modern machinery would soon replace the general manager, old, but here inside the plant there were was caught ran- only a few CNC machines. domly inspecting For much of what was in operation, old- a freshly built er equipment was used to forge the parts sako 85 waiting and hammer the barrels. I saw skilled to be tested for function and ac- craftsmen finishing each part under a curacy at the fac- critical eye—wooden trays and shelves are tor in riihimaki, still used to keep components organized. Finland. It became obvious that history and tradi- tion still plays a critical role here. After some initial hesitation, Raimo al- lowed an experienced assembly craftsman to teach me how to build a Sako, a Model 85S as it turned out. My instructor was a out and put away legacy there—just one employee who was various metal and the son of a previous craftsman. Perhaps wood fixtures he it was the language barrier (he was one created to make his of the few Finns I met that didn’t know job easier. English), but he already had the barrel in We rolled the the action before I realized that he wasn’t stainless steel action over in a vise and going to wait for me to figure out what I attached the most intricate part, an properly extract. And just like that, “our” was supposed to do. He effortlessly pulled adjustable trigger group. We threw in a rifle was placed on one of many rolling bolt group tested the trigger for function carts ready to be fired in the factory’s the name says it all: the pistol grip caps and gauged it for safety. I don’t remember basement range. are unique to sako and tikka rifles. what the gauge read since I was caught off guard when I discovered that we were testinG, testinG... working in kilos. Watching Sako rifles being proofed isn’t He kept right on moving, mated a exactly a spectator’s sport. An inspec- polymer stock held to the action by a tor placed each one in a low-tech fixture forged triggerguard, and pulled down drawn out like a file cabinet from the an air tool to set the action screws at the wall. He loaded and mechanically fired a proper torque setting. He finished his proof round, then pulled out the drawer part by filling a detachable box magazine before removing and visually inspect- of inert ammunition and running the ing the bolt and fired case. He inserted triangular-headed bolt fore and aft while another round and repeated this process watching the rifle smoothly feed and four more times before the rifle moved on this tikka t3 sporter hadn’t been revealed to the public until the author’s visit. Blend- ing sako accuracy with Finland’s competitive shooting heritage, it’s an out-of-the-box .308 match rifle that repeatedly punched dime- sized five-shot groups at 100 meters. 46 GUNS&AMMO ANNUAL 2011 cast as asingle piece, this l-shaped component will become a bolt for a sako 85. sako still uses many of the same machines, wooden organiz- ers and tools that originally built the company’s reputa- tion. sako’s success can be attributed to highly skilled hands-on labor and a critical eye. to accuracy testing. At the accuracy station, two young men fresh out of the country’s obligatory military service were verifying (redun- dantly) that each rifle was capable of printing a five-shot 1 MOA group at 100 meters. Shooting each rifle on a Caldwell Lead Sled, the technicians looked through a Swarovski optic set in rings that were readily transferred to the next rifle with a nominal point of impact shift, a tribute to Sako’s Optiloc ring and base system. To the left of each shooter is a com- puter that reports each impact on an clearly organized in a wall of wooden shelving, sako barrels are hammer forged, electronic target positioned downrange. polished and finished at the factory. calibers currently range from .204 ruger to .375 h&h. Once accuracy is verified, the rifle is placed back on a cart for final inspection, packaging and shipping. I took a picture of Raimo handling and inspecting rifles that continues into Finland’s Olympic brake. The bench setup wasn’t the most from a cart that was similar to Carmi- achievements before covering military ideal for getting the best accuracy out chael’s image of Col. Elias Hyden doing arms (ever hear of Valmet?). The tour ends of this specialized sniper rifle, but I did the same thing more than 40 years ago. with a history of wintery challenges faced manage to repeat my earlier sub-MOA Some things never change. by Finnish moose and wildfowl hunters. groups on a few targets just by utilizing We left Riihimaki for regal accom- By the time we departed for the Loppi the bipod. If I could have just one Sako, modations at Vanajanlinna, a magnificent shooting range, we were perfectly primed the TRG-22 would be it. hotel and restaurant that’s considered a to pull triggers. I’ve been a quiet fan of the Sako Quad castle. Built in 1924, it’s a magnificent for about six years now. I evaluated one combination of Baroque and Scandinavian ranGe time alongside Glenn Gilbert back in 2004 Renaissance architectural styles and sits Like most clubs, the Loppi range features when the first one came in to the NRA.