[garv123]

Doing a bit of research and if things go to plan for the summer I hope to pick up a .243 as a deer/fox rifle.
(super wanted me to wait a year between shotty and rifle so lets hope he gives me a third)

I was browsing around online for second hand rifles and didnt see too much.

Anyway i came across this on Duffy's website and was wondering does anyone have opinions on them. I took a liking to the stainless barrel model and the price of it new is cheaper than a lot of rifles second hand.

Didnt find many reviews about them online compared to other rifles.

It will be a under 200 yard hunting so it wouldn't have to do one hole groups at 100 yards.

http://www.shoot.ie/index.php?main_p...c171c820a0f268

[Cass]

I'd have a chat with fish slapped. He has one, and i believe is currently selling one with scope, etc.

Should be able to give you a review.





Here is the thread.

[cookimonster]

Hi Garv123,

Picked up the XS7 .243 off Duffy’s a few weeks back, its my first centre fire after decades of .22 shooting. I bought it based on massive reviews in USA and the price for a brand new rifle. Although I wanted it to bridge a gap between fox’s and deer I had no illusions about how little I would be shooting it over my life time so I was not willing (or able) to spend big money.
Its my first synthetic stock and compared to a good bit of walnut found on my Brnos its just a lump of plastic, but it feels well, looks mean and does the job.
The internal magazine posses no problem loading even with the full length picatinny rail. The barrelled / action strips down off the stock from the removal of two bolts (there is a issue with the rear retaining bolt that may split the plastic trigger guard- see internet). The fore end of the stock touches the barrel at the last cm or so but is 'free floating' back to the action.
Although the muzzle fairly jumps when fired its recoil is comfortable (I’ve got soft firing gas operated semi autos and its a while since a 303 left an 'impression' on me). So far I have killed a good bit of paper with it and have fired a wide range of makes and grains of ammo through it with no problems. Bar my lousy shooting it shoots well out of the box, well capable of MOA @ 100yrds.

So far I am happy with my purchase with little or no 'buyer’s remorse'.
There is another option for you to look at for same price range, the Savage Edge (now called the Axis), friend of mine has one on order.

Happy Shopping

[The Big Fella]

Id buy a second hand Howa over the new marlin. The howa has far supier build quality.

[garv123]

Originally Posted by Ezridax

I'd have a chat with fish slapped. He has one, and i believe is currently selling one with scope, etc.

Should be able to give you a review.





Here is the thread.

Cheers Ez, just had a look at the thread there.

Good looking package he has for sale.

What's the crack like out of the .308 compared to a .243. Is it much louder? A lot of where I lamp is behind a village and I wouldn't want to be creating too much disturbance. (without the muzzle break)

Originally Posted by cookimonster

Hi Garv123,

Picked up the XS7 .243 off Duffy’s a few weeks back, its my first centre fire after decades of .22 shooting. I bought it based on massive reviews in USA and the price for a brand new rifle. Although I wanted it to bridge a gap between fox’s and deer I had no illusions about how little I would be shooting it over my life time so I was not willing (or able) to spend big money.
Its my first synthetic stock and compared to a good bit of walnut found on my Brnos its just a lump of plastic, but it feels well, looks mean and does the job.
The internal magazine posses no problem loading even with the full length picatinny rail. The barrelled / action strips down off the stock from the removal of two bolts (there is a issue with the rear retaining bolt that may split the plastic trigger guard- see internet). The fore end of the stock touches the barrel at the last cm or so but is 'free floating' back to the action.
Although the muzzle fairly jumps when fired its recoil is comfortable (I’ve got soft firing gas operated semi autos and its a while since a 303 left an 'impression' on me). So far I have killed a good bit of paper with it and have fired a wide range of makes and grains of ammo through it with no problems. Bar my lousy shooting it shoots well out of the box, well capable of MOA @ 100yrds.

So far I am happy with my purchase with little or no 'buyer’s remorse'.
There is another option for you to look at for same price range, the Savage Edge (now called the Axis), friend of mine has one on order.

Happy Shopping

Just spotted yours there in the hardware thread.
How do you find the trigger on it?

What's the advantage to having the internal magazine?

[Cass]

Originally Posted by garv123

What's the crack like out of the .308 compared to a .243. Is it much louder? A lot of where I lamp is behind a village and I wouldn't want to be creating too much disturbance. (without the muzzle break)

The report from a .308 would be slightly louder than a .243 due to charge, bullet, etc. However all centrefire calibers create a report, and frankly if you were shooting in an area where people could hear no one would be able to tell you that you fired a .243 and not a .308 or even 6.5, .270, etc. When i say no one i mean any non shooter. They would still hear the bang of the sonic crack as the bullet travels through the sound barrier (supersonic).

The only way around this, whether you buy a .243 or .308, would be to get a mod to quieten the shot. A mod will quieten a shot, but only at the shooters position. So if i were standing behind you when you fired either calibre i would hear the "psssft" of the round being fired. Now if i were standing 100 yards out, and to the side (i'm only saying this for example purposes i'm not recommending anyone do this) and you fired both with a mod on i would still hear the crack of the bullet. If that makes sense?

The only thing you need to deliberate about is which calibre would suit you best in terms of game you intend to shoot, ammo cost, versatility, resale value, etc.

[garv123]

Yeah makes sense.
Never heard been around anything bigger fired than a .243 and just heard that a .308 would be much louder.
sound make my decision so.

[Cass]

The other aspect, without trying to fill your head with possibly useless info, is the design of the rifle.

If i fire a , 30", heavy barreled .308 and then a light barreled, 22" .308 the shorter barreled rifle would make a louder crack/noise. Now i base this on nothing more than observational assessment over the years.

For example when the Father would shoot the 30-06 i thought it made a rather loud noise (to put it mildly). Then one day i heard what i thought was a .338 LapMag being fired. Turned out it was a 30-06 rifle, and the shooter was using the exact same ammo as th Father, but his rifle was shorter, and thinner barreled. The report from it seemed much louder than the Father's.

I'm assuming someone could give a scientific reason, but i'm afraid it's not me. Then again maybe there is none, and it's all in my head.

[garv123]

I noticed the same thing with my heavy 22" barrel on my hmr towads the 16" skinny barrel on a friends cz when we were firing them. probably not on the same scale as a centre fire but its noticable.

[cookimonster]

Ref the trigger, never noticed a difference with the 'Pro Fire Trigger' to that of a ordinary set up. I was a bit wary in the beginning but all it is is safety feature and when you squeeze the trigger you do not notice that it is there at all. To adjust the trigger pull, you loosen a lock nut, adjust the screw, and then re-tighten the lock nut in front of the trigger. I haven’t done this yet as it is meant to be set at a recommended poundage suitable for hunting, time will tell.

Ref Ezridax and noise reduction. I have done what he recommends not to do. Two lads where shooting 308s, one moderated, one not and I was heading back to the car to the rear and off to the left of the firing point. The unmodified, was definitely louder (of course) while the modified sounded like a 22HV in the distance. Later back at the firing point I had the lad with the modified fire the 308 as I stood forward of the muzzle and off to one side. Result: it’s loud, very loud. Years ago I read an article in Guns and Ammo that a mod (bring back the old politically incorrect name) on HV stuff hid the muzzle retort at distance although animals heard the sonic crack they could not identify the direction.

Ref Magazine: Less parts to lose / clean? But requires more stripping to clean!
(Will post pic of it soon)

[fish slapped]

Howdy,

I have a X7s in .308 and this is my honest view of this rifle ... good and bad...

The stock is the worst part but is usable, Boyds do a replacement stock or a thumb-hole for it and at around €110 imported this is what I'd go for. With regards to the trigger guard replace it with a rem adl one, the plastic one can cause an issue as it crushes or splits if over tightens and I fail to see how it can provide proper bedding for the action as the rear action bolt passes through it. The rifle action is basically a Remington (who now own Marlin) copy of the savage action with their version of the savage accutrigger. I'm sure the building of the rifle was out sourced to keep cost down but none the less the action is strong, simple and good to use. The barrel is light and thin and is attached to the action with (again) a barrel nut alah savage. The rail it comes with is good but watch the retaining screws as their not the best, maybe best to replace them.

With my 308 coming in at 7.5lb with scope on and me using 180gr sp rounds I got Ireland custom rifles to fabricate my a muzzle break form titanium to take that bit of flip out as I like to see the reaction of the deer upon impact. the trigger is adjustable and is sweet to use in the field. The rifle is light enough to be carried all day and reliable.
NOTE: if you fit a bipod to the standard stock it will affect your POI and your groupings as it puts more pressure upon the barrel.

With the 180's my rifle was holding sub 1" @ 100 yards and I'm sure with a good boyds stock it would shoot .5" all day.

So where does that leave us ... well if you want a rifle you can throw around, chuck in the back of the Jeep and carry all day ... pick it up and fire ... not worry about cosmetic's , scratching an expensive stock and be a good genuine work horse of a rifle... then it's hard to buy better, yes there is the second hand route ... BUT is anyone comfortable going in to a dealers and spending money on a rifle someone else has decided is not for them??? and why is it not for them?? for the same money you can buy new.

Just my opinion .... hope someone finds it helpful ...

FISH

[cookimonster]

Zeroed this in a couple of weeks ago,


refined it a bit more today, then fired a few different makes and grains through it @ 100 yards.


The 58g where spot on, but 3 inchs high


The Federal 80gr were consistently good


Theses 100gr shot approx 2 1/2 inchs to the left and 4 inchs low (I held my point of aim high for this group) .

The black dot bull is one inch in diameter and the 22LR Hv is just for scale

Certainly not the ragged holes often seen here but the gun is shooting good enough for me, now all I have to do is refine my own shooting skills.