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I have a model 71 that was made in I believe 1937. It belonged to a friend of mine’s grandfather who was a retired colonel in the air force. Back in the 30s he decided he was tired of breathing dust and sweating and that he wanted to see mountains. So at the ripe old age of 21 he sold his horse and just about everything else he owned and moved to Alaska for 4 years (his wife claimed it was because he was mad when she turned down his first marriage proposal). Anyway he purchased this rifle new while there, kept it while he lived there, and then after Pearl Harbor he sold it to a hunting guide friend of his and came back home to enlist.
During the 50s he was stationed in Alaska and had the opportunity to buy the gun back from the friend he sold it to and kept it.
He was a really neat gentleman. He served a couple of stints as a pilot at Jump school in his career and was awarded a medal for getting all the paratroopers and crew off the plane when the engines blew out right after take off.
Anyway, I’ll get some pics of it and post them. It has some really nice wood that he said it came factory with and an original bolt sight. When his friend owned it he mounted a scope on it so it has the extra holes, he didn’t keep the scope on it, but it looks nice.
I had read that people complained about the M71 having bad recoil, but I fired off a bunch of em at some hogs I scared in the pasture this morning. Dropped a couple of em. I find the recoil is softer than a 30-06 to me. I have read that some people like using 180 or 220 grain bullets in their loads with it. Not sure if they are casting their own for that or not. I will definitely have to get dies to reload as these guys are pricey to buy. But I really like this rifle.
Again I will get pics posted soon.
You must be one big dude. I am 6″2″, weigh 260 lbs. and mine kicks the dog crap out of me. Good reason I don’t shoot it often. Big Larry
Hmm, I’m 6’4″ 230 so not really. That’s interesting. I know they say recoil is different for everyone, but I find this surprising.
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The bullet weight makes a BIG difference in the recoil, and Winchester made (3) flavors of the 348 WCF cartridge; (1) 150-gr; (2) 200-gr, and (3) 250-gr, and it has my experience that the 250-gr load is the shoulder buster.
Bert
WACA Historian & Board of Director Member #6571L
In the past, I had a Model 71 standard .Shot a couple of deer with it and put a few holes in paper with it.Used both factory 200 grain ammunition and 200 grain hand loaded ammunition.Never found it to be overly hard on the shoulder.:)
Sold the rifle at a weak moment .One of these days I will make atones for that error in judgement 🙂
November 7, 2015
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348 not especially bad unless you settle in at the bench with a couple boxes of factory loads. I lucked into a few boxes of factory loads, dies and components so I can shoot all I want with this rifle….which isn’t much! I can’t wait to knock a big hog on it’s butt with it, tho. So many hog guns, so little time!
Mike
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