I have been a big fan of Winchester Model 70's for over 50 years, so I am not looking for someone to bash Winchesters. I would just like to know what has happened in the past couple of years, it is very difficult to find a Model 70 on the shelf in a gun store in the Dallas area and I would like to know the reason why. I know it is like Ford and Chevy, but I think Winchester is just as good or better than any other brand of rifle.

I know that Remington is the largest rifle maker and Savages are much cheaper, but that and Browning and a few other brands are all that I see when I go in any gun store or sporting goods store. Where did all the Model 70's go!!

Not sure but the FN made M70's are some great shooters

Cabelas have winchesters in store

I became a Mod. 70 fan earlier this year after getting a new Super Grade in .270 Win. (FN mfg.). Smoothest Mauser-type action I've ever used and very accurate. Fit and finish are excellent. I'd like to have one in .30-06 Spfd.

Only place I've seen them pretty regularly is Cabela's.

I think they lost a lot of marketvwhen they stopped production, that and not pushing the tactical market. Love mine

I think Gander Mountain has some although I doubt anyone on here would step foot in there. They are beautiful. I'll have me that Super Grade 30-06 one day.

One other thought concerning the lack of M70 inventory out in the market place... Ya'll know that after the original New Haven plant was closed by FN some years back all US made M70 Winchester stuff was taken off the market. FN had started a production facility in South Carolina for a re designed M70 and was building military grade products for non US distribution, then after a couple years and all the old style New Haven product had washed out of the distribution system, they expanded the SC plant and intro'd their new products and have slowly added to that product line.

Then late last year or early this year announced that all M70 product parts would continue to be built in SC to the higher QC levels that had been established but assembly would be transferred to the existing FN plant in Portugal where lots of Browning label products have been built for 30-40+ years.

Sooooo the thought occurs to me that FN is experiencing a slow rollout as they get the Portugal plant settled out & may have anticipated a slow startup and have not as aggressively advertised or solicited US wholesale/retail orders as in years past for the Sporting Hunting Market...and effectively sold out of the new stuff for this year.

I agree with Wetduck about Winchester missing a market in not chasing the tactikool market, but that's easy enough to redesign and produce a product line for from the exisiting FN Patrol series stuff still in production in South Carolina if you have production line capacity available.

These guys running FN are not making the same mistakes as the Cerberus Beancounter directed Ownership of the Remmy Firearms Group has made with downgrading the overall quality and reputation of every gun company they have taken over.

As per usual Ma Nature abhors a vacuum and someone will fill the remaining demand for a M70 style rifle...and there is one that is meeting some of that demand already besides Kimber & at Kimber price points, called MRC or the Montana Rifle Company 1999 with their hand built version of the M70 design that has been in producution for a couple years already, with a fixed non custom producution series named the ASR or American Standard Rifle in 4 MSRP levels running from $1099 to $1399 with 22 calibers available in Right & Left hand in the 2 lower price points, wood/blue & SS, Synthetic/blue & SS (in the same exact B&C Medallion stock as the Winchester Extreme Weather) and a 7 caliber medium/heavy caliber series ( 35 Whelen thru both 375's, both 416's & both 458's at $1279/$1399 ( that look like a Ruger Safari grade)and a 5 caliber heavy caliber (338 Lapua thru 505 Gibbs)Dangerous Game Safari Grade in both finishes at $2300 & $2400 on the last price sheet I saw in 2012.

These are the same folks who built the CZ WSM's, and come from a successful full custom shop series with several grades from $3000 to $5000.

After a slow start with product originally designed for a gunsmith to provide the final finish couple years ago as is common in the custom parts & gun market, I am now hearing very good reports on accuracy and fit & finish commonly in the production ASR Series. Check 'em out 'cause some of the unusal calibers are 260, 6.5x284, 338Fed, 7WSM, 7x57, 280 as well as the normal 243 thru 338Wmg's.
JMHO & YMMV
Ron

cabelas is the only place around that has them that i know of. bass pro in grapevine had a big clearance sale on them last year as much as 50% off. i got a 243 featherweight for 499.told a friend who rushed up there and he bought the last 3 or 4 i think. the sales guy told me they were trying to get rid of them and would not carry winchester rifles anymore.

i have a 270 in supergrade also and it is amazing.

coonsaw

Firearms Unlimited in Fort Worth has three gently used ones for $650 each. One each of .308, 270 Win and 30/06.

I love my Stainless Win Model 70 Classic Boss in 300 WM.

X2

They are great guns, but higher priced Vs Remington and Savage. A lot of people would rather buy a Sendero or Sako or Kimber when they get above the $1000 mark. Not saying they are making the better choice.....just is what it is. The Browing Xbolt has the same problem with price. For the record, I just bought a Browning X-bolt in 300 Win Mag!

WW Fwt's & Sporters list at $879 +/- according to the factory website when I surfed the site yesterday...or right about where Ruger Hawkeye's & Remmy CDL's MSRP's are at.

IMO where WW is over priced is the M70 Extreme Weather's at $1-$200 below Kimber Montana MSRP's are, but the Ultimate Shadow SS/syn & CRF is about $900 MSRP as I remember..and that's why I think the MRC SS/syn XW's with the same B&C stock at $1200 is a better buy than the WW EW's, and has waaay more caliber selections and is available in RH AND LH. The bargain in MRC's is the wood/SS at $100 over the wood/Blue guns that WW no longer makes at all.

Have ya'll priced SAKO M85's lately??? Avg FinnLite runs $15-$1600 to the Bavarians at ? ummm $23-$2400 to something at $10,000 wow...I thought SAKO's were a tad high when I Repped them for 6 years in the '80's but Beretta want's all of us everyday po boy's buyin Tikka's at Ruger'Rem/'Chester prices.

FWIW I ain't buyin nuthin that Cerberus aka Remmy firearms group makes or sells.
JMHO & YMMV
Ron

I picked one up (25-06) last fall and took a nice buck with it late in the season. It's such an attractive gun I put it in the safe and may leave it there until one of the kids get it after I'm gone.

I've been shooting the same Winchester Mod 70 270 Carbine for 25+ years now. I don't see me ever buying another "go to" rifle. It's short, easy to handle, easy to shoot, and puts the bullet where I'm looking 99% of the time. The other 1%...I just miss. Several years ago I made my longest shot with it at 364 yards. Dropped a buck in his tracks. This year I made my shortest shot with it at 7 yards. So my personal experience is that it's good from 7 to 364 yards.

The first deer rifle I bought was a Model 70 .270 back in 1984. Still have it. Shoots great, looks great !!!

CDNN has like 6 models of the mod 70 in various calibers for sale new from $699-$1099 I believe.

CDNN has a bunch, I have one in .300WM i'm trying to get rid of

I have a Sako 270 Bavarian that shoots one hole groups at 100 yards, verified. Well worth every dollar for accuracy like that. You get what you pay for with a Sako.

I'm sure it was probably overpriced but I saw a new model 70 featherweight in 7-08 at Bass Pro Grapevine a few weeks ago. I wasn't buying anything at the time but that's the model and caliber I'd like to pick up sometime. I too don't see new ones very often anymore.

I don't know much about Sakos, but recently bought a nice used Sako A7 in 270 on here for my son. It had DNZ mounts as well. I put a Leupold Vari-XII 3x9 on it and that is the best shooting rifle we have ever owned.

I would say that this gun is replacing his Winchester M70 in 270 that he has been using for nine years. However, he said that the M70 is still a keeper forever. Though after getting the Sako the M70 may be retired to the back of the safe.

FWIW, SAKO A7's are the in between upgrade from a Tikka T3 and what I would be looking at if I could find the right calibers. Last year I did score on a M85 killer looking Hunter Grade 260 (that is now a dicontinued caliber) at the time and was my targeted trade. But missed on a cherry used standard A7 270 SS/syn at $700 trying to do a 3 for 2 swap until the dealer got cold feet on me. Haven't seen any A7 Tecomates to know the difference and justify the price increase over the standard A7's though.
Ron

I have a Supergrade in 30.06 that my wife gave me for our wedding back in 2001. It has some good looking wood on it and is a very smooth shooter

I've been shooting a model 70 extreme weather ss in 270. I love it so far. I have only taken two deer with it but its been on quite a few trips. Some people dont like the trigger on the newer 70's but i really like that there is not alot of creep or travel. Im going to try and lighten it up a bit after deer season.