As the title says, looking for opinions from people who have owned and shot one. I currently own multiple rifles (Benelli, Bergara, CZ) and was looking to get the latest Beretta BRX1 but during my research I got more intriged by Blaser R8 as Beretta seems to be trying to copy that rifle. Granted there is not much need of a straight pull in for the type of hunting we do in Texas or a reason to own such as expensive gun but I'm just dreaming about it.

Unlike in Europe, we in US of A have no restriction in owning mutiple rifles so I keep going back and forth wether it is worth to own a "system" or just buy mutiple rifles in any caliber I need. So would like to know owners opinion if they think it is worth it or not.

I had a Blaser many years ago. Beautiful wood and the action was like it was on buttered glass. For what they cost now, I would not buy one. I would get multiple rifles in the cartridges I want instead.

If you just want a straight pull, you can still get a Swiss K31 for under 500. Swiss Products has a mount where you can easily install a regular eye relief scope with no modifications to gun, makes for a good hog rifle. I'd love to have a Blaser though, and some of their proprietary calibers look pretty interesting.

Budy I hunt with got one last year with the super great Blaser scope. .300 Win Mag, the Blaser muzzle brake, feels like a 6.6 Creedmoor's recoil. This is VERY accurate.

The Blaser place in San Antonio is a great place to start. I've heard Mad Dog in Arizona is a weird guy to deal with.

I never had much love for these straight pull rifles but his Blaser mad a believer out of me.

I have an R8 Ultimate in 375 H&H, semi weighted round barrel. No flutes, no muzzle break. IMO, the system can’t be matched. It’s an excellent rifle, always returns to zero regardless of the number of times you break it down and put it back together. I used it for a SE bear hunt, hiking through some nasty terrain. Never regretted taking it. The weight is on par for my other rifles yet it’s very compact and I am a fan of the thumb whole stock. I’d absolutely buy it again.

I bought mine from Eurooptics but sent the stock to the guys in San Antonio to have the forend opened up as I am running a semi-weighted barrel on the 375. They are great guys and know their stuff.

I really like the Ultimate but at that price, I am partial to wood so been looking at getting Lexus in 30.06 with additional 6.5 CM barrel. Attached is the photo of what I'm envisioning the rifle to be. Have you guys had any issue with getting parts or support for Blazer? Not that I've ever had any issue with any other rifle but when spending almost $10k on one rifle, I keep going back and forth to find justification

With that said, I am also really liking the upcoming Sauer 505 that looks amazing.

I have shot and dialed in multiple R8's. Each time I shoot one, I get more and more impressed with them. I was shocked at how accurate they were. I had several in the .3's and .4's groups, and this is a "hunting" rifle. But it's on par for accuracy with the best custom rifles I've seen. They are super light rifles, which also means they kick like a mule with the magnums. I had a customer bring me a 338 Win Mag to dial in with some 225 Barnes TTSX bullets. I got to the third load that shot one hole at 100 yards with good speed, and I was DONE!!! I called him and told him the good news on the groups and the bad news of the recoil. He laughed and said that's why I let you dial it in!! It was one of the top 3 recoiling rifles I've ever shot. I think it's a 6 lb gun and it kicked like it, too.

Some of the R8's won't get the higher speeds (i.e., normal speeds) of some other barrels. I've chased velocity several times on the R8's to get more speed. And switching powders didn't get there either. I've spoken to several R8 owners and they say the same thing. But they do shoot great!!

I waited a little while for Europoptics to get my barrel in from overseas when I ordered it but beyond that and since completion, I have never needed any additional parts.

I’ll echo Chad’s comments. My 375 is the most punishing recoiling rifle I own. Sure, it’s a big magnum so it kind of comes with the territory no matter the platform. It’s the only rifle I have ever been scoped by but it was my fault and knew it was going to happen prior to pulling the trigger. My setup was not ideal, but it got the job done. They are deceptively lightweight and compact. Even with my semi-weighted barrel. Shoot a box of shells and you won’t be able to raise your arm the next day, trust me I know.

I shoot 300g Barnes TSX’s and my average muzzle velocity is 2,619 fps. Tightest group to date is .70 moa at 100yds. Don’t have any intentions of shooting beyond that with this caliber but I did shoot it to 200yds at the range for fun. It did surprisingly well at grouping even at that distance.

I keep talking about getting a smaller caliber/barrel/bolt but haven’t gotten around to doing so. I don’t think you will regret it.

My buddy ordered the .375 barrel from Keefer at Europtics. They sent it to San Antonio for barrel threading for an Area 419 muzzle brake with a .416 suppressor ordered.

His .300 Win didn't kick bad at all with the factory radial brake. I think he's in for a surprise when he touches off the .375 H&H.

The Sauer are fantastic rifle, of course no straight pull action. The wood available on the 505 can be breathtaking.

The folks in San Antoino can take care of anything you need.

Yes, at lease in pictures I like the wood on 505 even better than the 10K Blaser that I am looking at. So is it worth to wait for Sauer or does R8 offers enough features over it to justify buying it over 505?

I'm just a poor old man but I read a lot. Think they are both equal in quality and available wood. Might take a while to get a really figured 505. Wood is fairly easy to swap around on the Blasers.
YouTube Wild Boar Fever. One of the Gentlemen uses a beautiful 505 for his driven boar gun. I LOVE wood but for utility, I might choose the Synrco Carbon Fiber.

You choice would be which action.

I’ve got a couple. I have one or two minor reservations, but they are generally excellent. The scope mounting system is superb. This one is a .300 WM with a safari profile barrel.