Blaser r8

I'm thinking of getting myself the r8 professional. For you blaser owners are they worth the money. What's the accuracy and handling like.
Many thanks
sf
 
Go to the lakelands centre in Westmeath and have a good look for yourself. In the end its you who it needs to suit and fit properly. The are not cheap so by seeing one in the flesh will help you make up your mind.I prefere the R93 but thats just me. Glendine.
 
Last edited:
I bought the pro sucsess the thumbhole version,handling is superb as is the accuracy,it really is the most accurate rifle i've had my hands on and that's the same for both barrels i have 30.06 and 7mm rem mag,as for value for money i don't know what to say,probably a lot for what they are but for me it was worth it,as plastic stocks go they are the best IMO.
 
Thanks lads I never really took much notice of blasers until a friend got an r93 pro. In fairness they probably aren't the nicest looking rifles in the world but the handling is great. I haven't seen an r8 yet so I must do some research and decide then. I have 2 tikka t3's at the moment. One in 243 and the other in 270. I was thinking of trading in both and getting a 270 barrel now and a 243 barrel next year sometime. What do you think?
 
i bought a r8 professional last week in 243. can't fault it for accuracy and the straight pull action is great.

buy once,cry once.
 
I've got an R8 pro in .243 & 9.3x62 - it is a good enough rifle; the major pros are the switch barrel and QD scope functions, the main cons are the low capacity and linked trigger magazine. It is not as hard wearing as a much much cheaper plastic Mannlicher? My R8 is also disapointingly rough to cycle. But the mentioned pros are good enough for me, plus it is easy to shoot very well.
 
I have had the R8 pro for a while now.
It is very accurate, the load we developed put 6 shots in a thumb nail sized hole.
I like the detatchable trigger / mag.
As for value for money , you are buying into a concept and a brand, unfortunately you have to pay for both in this day and age. All that said the concept works exceptionally well.
My scope is on the rail mount and with this there is no question of whether or not the reticule is at twelve o clock.
very clever system that reliably returns to zero when removed and replaced.
Cleaning is easy as when you remove the scope the breech is totally open and easily accessed for cleaning.
These are my experiences of my R8 and I really rate it.
 
Once you live with a Blaser I don't think you will go back - it breaks down into something little bigger than a brief case and you can just take it apart to shake the water out. They also get a great reputation for accuracy and my R93 will always shoot better than I can. I've played with an R8 and can see no reason to upgrade my R93 for one so maybe you could save a few quid by going the R93 route and getting all the benefits for a bit less money the handling on either seemed very good to me. You are right though, they are ugly, but wait until your mates are trying to pack their rifles, themselves and their luggage into a tiny rental car and you can hop in with your Blaser brief case on your knee :)
 
Thanks lads I never really took much notice of blasers until a friend got an r93 pro. In fairness they probably aren't the nicest looking rifles in the world but the handling is great. I haven't seen an r8 yet so I must do some research and decide then. I have 2 tikka t3's at the moment. One in 243 and the other in 270. I was thinking of trading in both and getting a 270 barrel now and a 243 barrel next year sometime. What do you think?
Go with what you use most i guess but if you get another barrel by rights you should really have another mount and scope also as the mount is set up for that paticular barrel,having said that when i got my 7mm rem i did as advised and already had a spare scope anyway so it was no real hardship,thought i'd try swapping the mounts around and there doesn't seem to be any difference in the fit between my two barrels so i rekon i could have got away with just the one mount and scope.
 
270 R8 Semi weight barrel, atzl trigger, sonic 45 moderator ideal hunting rifle for mountain or woodland. Benefit over your tika is that it will be a bit shorter, and has a better trigger especially with the atzl trigger which is a factory option now. The shorter barrel makes a moderator more manageable. Tikas are usually pretty accurate and most blasers shoot clover leaf or better out of the box.
 
In all fairness, I after several stalking trips in atrocious weather in Argyll a couple of year back, I decided to go for a R93 Professional Blaser in .270 Win for deer.
For me at least, I have no regrets. OK, quality wise, Walnut is beautiful BUT in the Highlands of Scotland in BAD conditions, the synthetic stocked rifle is the only choice ! I dont give a damn what the stock looks like as long as it performs !
I was so convinced that last year I bought another Blaser R93 Pro. in .223 rem for Foxing !

Great guns !

Brider.
 
270 R8 Semi weight barrel, atzl trigger, sonic 45 moderator ideal hunting rifle for mountain or woodland. Benefit over your tika is that it will be a bit shorter, and has a better trigger especially with the atzl trigger which is a factory option now. The shorter barrel makes a moderator more manageable. Tikas are usually pretty accurate and most blasers shoot clover leaf or better out of the box.
now that would be my idea of a great stalking rig. I'd leave the mod off of it though. Thanks lads.
 
I own or have owned Sako, Steyr and Sauer. All good rifles and accurate, the Steyr once it was fitted with a good stock. The 22-250 was a Sauer Outback and the 308 an Elegance with rather fine wood. A couple of months ago I got the urge! and went over to Ivythorne Sporting.

My only premise was that I felt that switch barrel would best suit my needs as I really liked the concept of "knowing" one stock/trigger. I spent ages looking at Mauser - wonderful engineering but a bit too heavy for my tastes, more Sauers and finally, and as I was there, picked up a Blaser Pro Success. Not the prettiest rifle but perhaps in the same way that a Porsche is not the prettiest car!

The thumbhole stock immediately impressed. Trying a conventional stock, i.e. as my current rifles, felt slightly awkward. The Blaser trigger is superb and at least as good as my previous best trigger. I liked the logic of the scope being barrel mounted as I have a paranoia about maintaining zero. The weight is perfect for me - not overly light when scoped and moderated. A key point for my stalking is rifle O.A.L. The Blaser is 3"-3.5" shorter than anything else. By direct comparison a Blaser with a 22" barrel is shorter than a Mauser with an 18"!

My Pro Success Leather should be here next week with 4 barrels!
​Atb
 
I own or have owned Sako, Steyr and Sauer. All good rifles and accurate, the Steyr once it was fitted with a good stock. The 22-250 was a Sauer Outback and the 308 an Elegance with rather fine wood. A couple of months ago I got the urge! and went over to Ivythorne Sporting.

My only premise was that I felt that switch barrel would best suit my needs as I really liked the concept of "knowing" one stock/trigger. I spent ages looking at Mauser - wonderful engineering but a bit too heavy for my tastes, more Sauers and finally, and as I was there, picked up a Blaser Pro Success. Not the prettiest rifle but perhaps in the same way that a Porsche is not the prettiest car!

The thumbhole stock immediately impressed. Trying a conventional stock, i.e. as my current rifles, felt slightly awkward. The Blaser trigger is superb and at least as good as my previous best trigger. I liked the logic of the scope being barrel mounted as I have a paranoia about maintaining zero. The weight is perfect for me - not overly light when scoped and moderated. A key point for my stalking is rifle O.A.L. The Blaser is 3"-3.5" shorter than anything else. By direct comparison a Blaser with a 22" barrel is shorter than a Mauser with an 18"!

My Pro Success Leather should be here next week with 4 barrels!
​Atb
I must try have a look at the success version. The only problem over here is blasers aren't very popular and dealers only get them in if you want one. Lakelands is over 2 hour drive away too so it's hard to get time to go to them.... 4 barrels. You must be going to travel with it. What calibres did you get?
 
Might not make much off a differance to your journey time or would it? Jame McBride guns in Athlone he has a few in stock.
 
22-250, 243, 6.5x55 & 308 with a 9.3 to follow - should deal with most eventualities!
​Atb
 
Hi Frog,
Did you go for the 22-250 to keep the same bolt, or do you think it has an advantage over the 223?
cheers
PaulM
 
Back
Top