Vintage FN Sporter in .308 Win Is Back In The Field And Looking Good!

[Mr VJP]

Yesterday a good friend of mine brought his newly acquired, but vintage, FN rifle, over to my place to zero the scope. It was made in the late 1950’s, or early 1960’s by Fabrique Nationale of Herstal, Belgium, and is a wonderful example of a quality bolt action rifle of classic design. It utilizes a Mauser type controlled round feed action with a barrel chambered for the .308 Winchester round, a popular cartridge today, but less common when the rifle was made.

 

After a safety check, a visual bore sighting and a successful shooting session on my range, I asked him to leave it with me, so I could do a thorough inspection on it as well. The rifle’s in very good condition with an excellent bore, and appears to have seen little use for some time. It did appear to need some cleaning and detailing though.

 

This morning, I disassembled the rifle’s major components. I cleaned, polished and inspected the finely hand checkered walnut stock. I scrubbed the bore until it was like new, cleaned the action and the bolt, while simultaneously cleaning and lubricating the trigger assembly and magazine components. After everything was cleaned, I reassembled the rifle.

 

What you see here is the end result of about two hours work. The rifle once again shows the beauty and craftsmanship built into it, the way it did when it was young. I don't care for his scope, rings or recoil pad, but he says he's looking to upgrade those after this deer season ends.  To me, a fine bolt action like this isn’t just a firearm, or a tool. To me, it is a beautiful work of art that enhances the thrill of deer hunting when carried in the forest.

 

Some folks detail, or even restore, fine automobiles. I love the results of their labors. Fine firearms are worthy of the same type of labor. I love the results of that labor too.

 

 

 

Edited September 27, 2015 by Mr VJP

[Lawdwaz]

See through mounts?

[Mr VJP]

No.  But not good ones and a little too high IMO.

 

[Pygmy]

Nice... I  did some work on one just like it except in 30-06 last winter...The sad thing is that the old gent that owns

it hunts and shoots very little anymore, and he'll probably never use it..

 

It has an old Redfield scope on it with a post/crosshair..Shoots pretty damn good with 150 grain Rem green factory loads..I think he should give it to me..

[Mr VJP]

Tell him he should give it to you.  You never know what a man may do.  LOL!

 

Another thing about this vintage FN is the old non-detachable sling swivels.  At one time it was considered a plus to sell a rifle with sling swivels on the stock to make putting a sling on it simple.  You want to be able to take the sling off???  WTH is wrong with you?

 

I may have a set of sling studs I can put on it for him so he can use detachable swivels.  Now where did I put all those spare sling parts??

 

[Lawdwaz]

Is that a long action Vince?

[Mr VJP]

It's a standard length action.  I believe the same one FN used for 30-06 and the like.  It's longer than my short action Remington 700 SPS, but I forget what it measures.  The magazine well is made for the .308 rounds though.

 

[ny hunter]

Very nice looking rifle....I agree the scope is a bit high..

[Lawdwaz]

Interesting......I don't know beans about those FN/Mauser action being a LH rifle shooter.

 

I do have a interesting gun you guys will enjoy........it'll probably go on Gunbroker pretty soon.   A Belgium Browning Medallion Safari Grade 30-06 with period correct B&L Balvar scope in adjustable mounts.  (the scope has no internal adjustments)

 

Not sure what it's worth but we'll see soon.

 

 

 

 

[Lawdwaz]

Oh yea, made in 1962.

[Pygmy]

SWEEEET...!!...Pardon me, I need to go someplace private......

[ny hunter]

Nice looking rifle........

[steve863]

It's a standard length action.  I believe the same one FN used for 30-06 and the like.  It's longer than my short action Remington 700 SPS, but I forget what it measures.  The magazine well is made for the .308 rounds though.

 

 

Now I just have to point this out.  In the other thread you said you didn't buy a Remington in decades??  The model 700's with the SPS designation have only been around for 10 or so years if I remember correctly.  If you own an SPS, you obviously have a relatively recent model Remington.

[Mr VJP]

I own one of the first 700 SPS rifles to be made and I believe I've had it close to 20 years.  Perhaps it just seems that way to me since I use it all the time.  It was made prior to the one's that were recalled for trigger issues, so it's an old one.

 

I will have to pull out my records to see what year I bought it, but it was well before Remington's quality went to hell.

 

Lawdwaz,  that Browning rifle was actually made by the same factory as the one I posted in the pictures.  Browning contracted with FN in Herstal Belgium to make their Belgian made bolt guns, as well as most of their shotguns at the time.  Belgian Browning guns are much more collectible and sought after than the Japanese ones.

 

The bolt sleeve and safety on the Browning rifles were changed to meet Browning's specs, making the bolt sleeve more streamlined with a sliding safety on the stock rather than the wing type on the back of the bolt.  Other than that, you can probably see the similarities between your rifle and the one I posted.

 

Last time I checked values, rifles like yours were selling for $1500 to $2000 in that condition.  They may be worth even more now.  There is quite a bit of collector interest in them.

 

BTW, the action cut out on the old FN measure 3 1/8".  They also made a magnum length action during the same era, but it was for magnum chamberings only.

 

 

[steve863]

I own one of the first 700 SPS rifles to be made and I believe I've had it close to 20 years.  Perhaps it just seems that way to me since I use it all the time.  It was made prior to the one's that were recalled for trigger issues, so it's an old one.

 

I will have to pull out my records to see what year I bought it, but it was well before Remington's quality went to hell.

 

 

 

 

I hope you do tell us the true date you bought it.

 

Just to prove you wrong I went back a few years thru Remington catalogs.  The earliest I see a model 700 SPS listed is 2005, which is closer to what I said and nowhere near 20 years.

 

Have a look for yourself.

 

 

http://cartridgecollectors.org/ammunition-catalogs/Remington

Edited September 28, 2015 by steve863

[Mr VJP]

You’re right.  My records indicate I bought it new in March 2006 for $425.  I guess thinking it was a lot older was just wishful thinking, or perceived based on the vast amount of carry I’ve done with it since I got it.  It does have the serrated trigger, so it wasn’t part of the recall, making me think it was older as well.   I also see it was the only new Remington firearm I ever purchased.  I wanted a 24” barreled walking varminter in .223 and the SPS, with the 24” matte finished, recessed crown barrel and standard black synthetic stock fit the bill.  There is a noticeable difference in the quality, compared to the older 700’s.  There are plastic parts that replace some of the metal parts used on the older rifles.  Back then I hated the look of it, but it has since become acceptable looking as a hunting tool.  The “lawyer” trigger was also too heavy, so that was brought down to 3.5 pounds.

 

I’ve owned a lot of Remingtons over the years, but all the rest were bought used.  I still have a 660, 742, 700BDL and 700ADL as well as shotguns in 48, 870 and 1100, but all are 1980’s manufacture or older.  I’ve had some really old Remington SxS’s and even a rolling block in the past.

 

My records also show I purchased my first Kimber, the 84M 7mm-08, in December 2003 after waiting close to 6 months for it to come in.  They were new then with a long waiting list.  Mine has a 2 position safety on it, not the 3 position they went to shortly afterwards.   In contrast to the Remingtons, every Kimber rifle I own was purchased new.  I rarely ever see them on the used market, unless they are asking too much for one.

 

In any case, I was wrong and you are right.  However, this doesn’t mean I will be buying a new Remington at any time in the future.

[Mr VJP]

Just an update on the FN.  I fired it for the first time since the cleaning and tune up.  I put a paper plate @ 100 yards with a small spot drawn on it with a Sharpie.  I took one shot and couldn't see any holes in the plate.  I was starting to get annoyed. Then I took a look at the plate with my binocs.  There was a .308 bullet hole dead center in the black dot.

 

I raised the scope 4 clicks so it will hit 1" high @ 100 and decided the cold bore shot was the most important when hunting.  My buddy will get the rest of his ammo back to practice with.