Sako 85 Finnlight

[Ogopogo]

Hey guys, having a hell of a time choosing a caliber for this gun, this is my first expensive rifle I will be purchasing and so I want to make sure I make the right decision. I will be hunting deer, elk and moose in BC. At the same time I want a gun I can go to the range and practice a bit on my shooting. I don't see myself shooting more than 300 yards, but who knows I am only in my late 20's and may get to being a better shot as I get older and wiser. I currently shoot a browning a-bolt in a 7mm rem. mag. and I find the recoil to be just fine. I'm wanting the overall length of the gun to be short. I was also thinking if I go with a 30-06 and get a scope with ballistic turrets it would compensate for the massive drop 30-06 are known to have. Right now I'm comfortable shooting about 200 yards, max 225. I've never shot any other caliber so I don't really know what to compare with a 7mm. Any advice would be most definately appreciated.

- something similar to a 7mm recoil
- overall length of rifle to be shorter
- able to ethically kill a moose or elk possibly out to 300 yards

Finnlight overall rifle lengths as per caliber:

308 (40 1/2" overall length)
270 WSM, 300 WSM (44 5/16")
270 Win, 30-06 Spr. (42 3/4")
7mm rem. mag, 300 win. mag. (45 1/6")

[r106]

none of them. Keep your 7mm and get a .338 win mag. Or a small bore ultra light for just deer. Your 7mm will do almost anything that those calibers listed will do. Or if you just want to replace your 7mm then anything you listed will work

[CanuckShooter]

Stay with the 7mm and get the barrel shortened.....and the stock trimmed down.....OR...keep the browning and buy a carbine. Just a couple of ideas.

[todbartell]

of the options listed, and based on your criteria - I'd go with the 308. Unless you're shooting past 400 yards, the 308 doesn't give up much to a magnum. Use a quality 165gr bullet and practice shooting. Put the bullet in the right spot and that's all that matters. Cheers

[ufishifish2]

I'm with TB. The .308's are super accurate and will therefore drop whatever you're shooting at as long as you do your part. Plus there is something to be said for less recoil. Why the hell does everyone think they need to be shooting cannons in Canada I'll never know!

[CanuckShooter]

I'm with TB. The .308's are super accurate and will therefore drop whatever you're shooting at as long as you do your part. Plus there is something to be said for less recoil. Why the hell does everyone think they need to be shooting cannons in Canada I'll never know!

One simple word, bears.....you go ahead and pop at a charging bear with your 308 pop-gun, I'll stick to the 338mag tossing 125gr Accubonds thankyou.

[Weatherby Fan]

If you going to go with the 308 get the 30-06 as you can shoot it all day long without much recoil also,if you don't handload there's tons of options for bullet weights and premium quality bullets in factory ammo,seems more logical than the 308 other than gaining a cpl of inches on the OAL

[mikeboehm]

7mm-08 in sako 85 finnlight. I have one and love it

[The Hermit]

I'd get the Finn in .308, sell the 7mm and replace it with a Sako 85 in.338 for big game! Thats what I've done and I think those two calibers are all a guy could ask for! The .338 has less felt recoil than the .300 mag cals.

[todbartell]

One simple word, bears.....you go ahead and pop at a charging bear with your 308 pop-gun, I'll stick to the 338mag tossing 125gr Accubonds thankyou.

125gr? Loading light to reduce recoil???? ;)


I'd get the Finn in .308, sell the 7mm and replace it with a Sako 85 in.338 for big game! Thats what I've done and I think those two calibers are all a guy could ask for! The .338 has less felt recoil than the .300 mag cals.


less recoil than a 300? Probably because you shoot 30 cal weight bullets in a 338 Mag :lol:

[Fisher-Dude]

I can understand that you want to toss that Japanese pot-metal A-bolt and get a Finnlight - wise choice! :wink:

All the Finnlights are within a few ounces of each other, so weight's not really a big factor in your choice.

I have a 300WM, 7mm RM, 308, and 250/3000 in my gun safe, and it's really hard to determine which is the best all-round gun. I'd probably have the toughest calibre choice between the 7mm and the 300. If I only could have one, it would probably be the 300.

There's a good write-up in the new Outdoor Edge that chooses the 7mm RM as THE best all-round calibre.

Good luck!

[Ride Red]

none of them. Keep your 7mm and get a .338 win mag. Or a small bore ultra light for just deer. Your 7mm will do almost anything that those calibers listed will do. Or if you just want to replace your 7mm then anything you listed will work

I would have to agree. A 338 WM or a lighter caliber would be a great compliment to your 7mm. You have a good gun in that Browning, so IMO I'd buy some other caliber that you would like also.

[Ride Red]

One simple word, bears.....you go ahead and pop at a charging bear with your 308 pop-gun, I'll stick to the 338mag tossing 125gr Accubonds thankyou.

Don't you mean 225 grain ?

[The Hermit]

125gr? Loading light to reduce recoil???? ;)




less recoil than a 300? Probably because you shoot 30 cal weight bullets in a 338 Mag :lol:

Actually even with the heavy bullets it has less felt recoil... I think it is because the larger diameters has less pressure build up? It is more of a push than kick. I couldn't stand shooting the 300 weatherby mag and can bang away with the .338. If its just in my head don't freakin tell me!!! LOL

[Ogopogo]

ya i'm actually having to sell the 7mm in order to buy the finnlight, right now honestly I'm leaning towards the good ole 30-06. I'm going to go out shooting this weekend with the father out-law (lol) and he has a sako 85 bavarian in a 300WSM so I'll compare his against the recoil on my 7mm and I'm thinking the 30-06 is about on level playing field with a 7mm in regards to recoil energy and recoil velocity, and I could shoot that 7mm all day, I would go with the 7mm again but the damn thing is 2" longer than the 06, which is the reason why I want the finnlight to have a smaller lighter gun. great input though, its funny I've got this exact thread on alberta outdoorsmen too 11 votes - 308, 10 votes - 300 win.mag. 9 votes - 30-06, are the top three choices over there so far, then I go onto "best of the west" forum and everyones saying 7mm, lol, I guess there thinking I'm wanting to shoot out to 1000 yards, which would be normal talk on that forum I guess lol

[BillyBull]

Ogopogo, you never mentioned why you wanted the short length -- just because or your mountain back packing -- if I was choosing only one of those options I would go with the 300wsm. Have the 308 and 270 and both are great, not a real fan of the 7mm and have really enjoyed my 300wsm. The recoil is fine and the weight is good. Mind is the Ruger SS model (not in the same price/quality as Sako) but nonetheless its a great gun to hunt with and you can reach out an touch just about anything. Have fun with your new purchase project.

[ThreeFuturehunters]

I have a Sako 75 finnlight in 300wsm I dont regret one single second on the rifle or the caliber, that rifle "just fits" !!

[moosinaround]

I would keep the 7mm mag, or sell the 7mm A-bolt and buy another lighter 7mm mag. I voted for the 270wsm cause it is a pretty cool caliber, but the 7mm is so close to it it might be redundant?! Are these the choices in caliber based on the Finnlight model? Sure would be nice to have a 7mm mag, or a 300 win mag might be a bit "snappy" on the ole shoulder though! Why not look at the X-bolt if your a Browning guy?? I shot a 7mm mag in the x-bolt a couple weeks ago, and I sure liked it! It was a tack driver too!! It is a nice dilemma you have anyways!! Good luck on your decision, you will enjoy any of the calibers you have mentioned. Moosin

[CanuckShooter]

Don't you mean 225 grain ?

Yup....typo I guess.....

[BlacktailStalker]

I've been rocking the 300wsm since they came out, killed a whack of game with it and so far so good.

[ravensfoot]

I have the Tikka 300WSM, in Laminate with Stainless Steel, I added a limbsaver Recoil pad cause i'm a whimp. I absolutely love shooting this gun, it is a tack driver and I dropped my first moose with it last year. I also own a .280 and .270 If you are into ballistics, read up on the 30-06, they don't compare that well with you 7mm mag. Good Luck, Sako makes a real nice gun!

[BC Bill]

Go with the 338 federal that way you have a 338 with a 308 case

[Ogopogo]

well guys I had a heck of a time finding a 30-06 finnlight, found one in alberta at a buddies families gun store and hes bringing it back to town next week after huntfest. Yahhhhhhh cant wait to shoot her, now I just have to figure out what scope to mount on it, thinking zeiss conquest with the z plex, 3-9X40, what do you guys think of that combo

[pg83]

You can't go wrong with zeiss, swaro, leupold or leica in my eyes. It just comes down to personal preference. I am very close to forking out the dough on a finnlight in .300WM topped with a leupold VX-3L 3.5-10 x 50mm potentially with CDS.

[Marlin375]

I am with BC Bill.

Sako (one of only a few) chamber the 338Fed. You can shoot it all day long like a 308 but it will kill a moose like your 300WM inside 300 yards, even further, but you said 300 would likely be as far as you would shoot. I would never choose a 308 over a 338Fed for the same price, ammo might be cheaper for the 308 but if your not shooting cases of it, it really does not add up to much. If you hand load there is even less difference in the price of ammo, if ant at all.

[BCBRAD]

I have a Finnlight in 30-06 and a regular Sako M-85 in 9.3x66. It is hard to tell the difference between the two until the trigger is pulled......to say both are portable and relatively light so while I like the Finnlight the regular M-85 is a fine choice with many calibers to choose from.