Thread: Does a Blaser really make much sense in New Zealand?

Love Blaser rifles, bit heavy and too many moving parts for NZ Bush? Be great to start out with one and then just add barrels.
Great for back shots, with owning a semi auto hard work now in NZ

Massive generalisation about Europeans and flash gear, maybe Blaser owners just save up for their dream Rifle.

Sounds a bit like driving.

Everyone driving faster than me is an irresponsible idiot, and those slower should be shuffled off to an old folks home...

Please yourself. I hunt with a 30 year old Remington that has had 5 barrels and looks like hammered shit, and with a Merkel drilling that cost more than most of the cars I've owned. Both are equally appropriate.

On the straight pull aspect I have a Beretta BRX1 in 308 and absolutely love it. It's not the lightest rifle around but for the hunting I do it's great. Shoots 1MoA with good ammo and I've shot a lot of animals with it. Pretty quick on follow-up shots which is good if you come across a mob of pigs.

Think of it as a poor mans Blaser. It has most of the same features but a hell of a lot cheaper.

to me the only advantage with a blazer is one rifle various calibers - never a great idea to constantly swap rifles - get used to one and how it handles - but likely more accurate custom made out there - yes sticking my kneck out there but true ?? - not my cup of tea - sooner have a Sako 75

Originally Posted by Barry the hunter

to me the only advantage with a blazer is one rifle various calibers - never a great idea to constantly swap rifles - get used to one and how it handles - but likely more accurate custom made out there - yes sticking my kneck out there but true ?? - not my cup of tea - sooner have a Sako 75

Think that is the point 223 to 500 Jeffery on one stock. I agree 75 is hard to beat

Originally Posted by Barry the hunter

to me the only advantage with a blazer is one rifle various calibers - never a great idea to constantly swap rifles - get used to one and how it handles - but likely more accurate custom made out there - yes sticking my kneck out there but true ?? - not my cup of tea - sooner have a Sako 75

In Europe some countries limit ownership to one rifle hence the predominance of rifles with swap barrel/calibres/catridges there.

If the OP likes the straight pull concept have a look at the Beretta BRX1. Give the Browning Maral a miss, a mate had all sorts of accuracy issues with his.

On a more somber note, if the antis have their way, straight pull actions may end up being added to the banned list here in NZ.

I would hope that a three shot mag would be a good defence for exempting them.

I have a few thoughts on this...First, if it is in budget and you want it , then that is your call. Same with cars...2nd hand toyota will do 99% of what a new Bently will as far as doing car things...but one is a toyota and the other a bently....

One difference between Euro hunting and Kiwi hinting is that Euro hunters are not exposed to the impacts of the environment and usage... Scratching up and scuffing a stock on a new $1k rifle is a lot easier to live with than a $10k one....both will likely still shoot better than most shooters are capable of and will both function equally well... I would cry if I scuffed the crap out of a 10k rifle stock using it as a brake / third leg during a unintentional slide down a scree slip / rock fall / river crossing etc Doing that same thing with a $500 rifle will still be disappointing but it would not be quite so painful to look at later in reflection, if you know what I mean....

At the end of the day, it is your money, your hobby and your desire so I would never tell you what you should do. I really like the look and feel of the Krieghoff Semprio but if I could afford one, I would likely be too scared of damaging it to actually take it out hunting proper...

I have a Blaser R8 in 6.5x55, I love it, the straight pull action and safety on them just makes sense. I have a carbon Stug stock which makes it a lot nicer to carry. I always wanted one and a Sako Finnlight I bought just couldn’t scratch the itch. It doesn’t really do the job any better than a Tikka and I wouldn’t even try to justify it.

I can’t remember what I paid for it, but it was second hand.

Since you already know what they’re like, I suggest you have a go with a Tikka or Sako etc and see if you like them, if you don’t then get an R8 and live happily ever after.

I think they are great for NZ conditions! I have 2 x R8's - both in carbon stocks, about 10 barrels (from .22LR to 28 Nosler) and 6 or 8 different scopes to go on them - from a red dot to a 5-40x56. I've bought it all over time, with the vast majority being second hand. As has been said, they are very expensive and heavier than other rifles, but i've managed to lighten them a fair bit and I love the interchangability of the parts - I can use the same stock and trigger etc for everything. I really like the fact that on the same trip I can use my red dot or 1-5 in the bush then change to the 3.5-28x50 when I reach the tops. The straight pull and safety (as mentioned in an earlier post) are also a huge plus.

If you want one get it!

Originally Posted by Rich007

I think they are great for NZ conditions! I have 2 x R8's - both in carbon stocks, about 10 barrels (from .22LR to 28 Nosler) and 6 or 8 different scopes to go on them - from a red dot to a 5-40x56. I've bought it all over time, with the vast majority being second hand. As has been said, they are very expensive and heavier than other rifles, but i've managed to lighten them a fair bit and I love the interchangability of the parts - I can use the same stock and trigger etc for everything. I really like the fact that on the same trip I can use my red dot or 1-5 in the bush then change to the 3.5-28x50 when I reach the tops. The straight pull and safety (as mentioned in an earlier post) are also a huge plus.

If you want one get it!

The safety on Blasers was the most valuable feature for sure as I could walk or drive around with a round in the chamber and be 100% confident it wouldn't fire. I would never trust a traditional safety like what you find on a Tikka. The saddle mount system was also useful as I had a night vision scope, a 1-5x Khales, and a 6-24x Swaro that I could swap them depending on what kind of hunting I was doing and not have to re-zero the rifle.

The issue however is the price of the barrels, which is often more than a new Tikka. Is the ability to swap barrels really that advantageous as just buying an extra gun and having change left over? In Europe you could find a lot of second-hand Blasers and barrels at decent prices and can sell them almost immediately for what you bough them. In NZ I'm really not seeing any second hand barrels on TradeMe or on the forums so I feel like I would have to custom order one and spend a fortune on it. I had no trouble selling my rifles in Europe, but in NZ, seeing this dude with an R8 and custom wood stock not get any bids for the last 2-3 weeks makes me think I'd have a very hard time getting rid of the rifle if I needed to.

A beautiful custom wood stock R8, with saddle mount, a Swarovski scope, and the polymer stock at $8,000 ($4k euros) would sell instantly back in Europe and people would think the seller is brain dead to list it at such a low price... but here there's been zero interest which was kind of shocking to me and gave me pause. A big drawback was that this guy took the AKILA mounting system out of the polymer stock and put it in his new custom stock (which is likely heavy and not something you'd want hike up a mountain with and risk scratching it) and I don't know if it would be easy to swap that back into the polymer stock. I looked up the price of one of these things (https://akila.ltd/product/akila-system-part-acsr93h/) and it's like $2,700 NZD + much more for shipping, import taxes, and all the paperwork headaches involved in bringing this part over.

Given all the feedback provided here so far, I think I'll just get a Tikka and build out a proper mountain rifle that I can hike with instead of carrying around a heavy heirloom piece that belongs in a display case. I enjoyed the R8 and R93 in Europe... but maybe it's time to try it the Kiwi way.

There’s still a cheap and light R93 on this forum for sale. Can come with a 223Rem barrel also

Originally Posted by kiwijames

There’s still a cheap and light R93 on this forum for sale. Can come with a 223Rem barrel also

I completely missed that. Thanks!!!


Edit: It's left handed and I don't even know where I would get the right-handed bolt assembly either than ordering it from Germany and waiting maybe months for it to arrive.

Really nice rifle though and at a great price too.