WINCHESTER SXR2 PUMP ACTION RIFLE

After almost 30 years of carting around my guaranteed deer slayer (a Remington 7600 308 pump) it was time to try and break in a new one. First trip out was on Anzac Day for a scouting trip and to pinch a bit of firewood so it was up the hills with time for a play. I set a hunk of wood about a foot square up on a log at about 50m and let a couple go. I thought “I could get used to this”. Kaos, Cobloaf and Tailgate also managed to hit the target and were similarly impressed. On the weekend of the 27 th it went for its first real visit to the bush, only to have the visit rudely interrupted by a radio call about Brenda’s Patrol having a bit of a sleep up on the main road. While we went and sorted that out the others went for a hunt. I don’t know why, because the buggers can’t shoot straight and another one escaped the net.

I got close a couple of times to firing a shot at a deer but just couldn’t quite get there. It was looking like I would have to go back to the old deer slayer to get off the mark. But then Kaos missed one due to a feed issue with the fancy pants BLR and succumbed to the pressure of using my rattly old 7600…and he actually managed to hit one. This was followed up with a weekend planned for a visit to Mathesons Flat so I fitted the Meopta red dot to the Winchester so I could use the shooting bench there to sight it in. Meanwhile I had another call from Erica in at Gunsport to say there was another parcel for me from Winchester. Five packets of premium crackers to play with. I had a play on the Friday arvo and got it pretty close, which was better than my old rifle, so I was right to go for Saturday. I was thinking this thing can shoot alright, it’s just going to be up to the nut behind the butt.

In the field on Saturday I gave Brax’s mum one of the packets of 168-grain Browning Pro crackers to load her rifle with so that at least I had a bit of a chance to see how they might perform. She was in one of the prime spots down along the river. Away the hounds went, not long after they crossed just above me; I never got a look at what they were chasing. They crossed back into the hunt area higher again and went back down through the gully and onto the downstream spur and they were singing. The radios went quiet and a ‘pop’ echoes up the river. The radios kick into gear again and it’s “what’s going on, who fired the shot?”

Well, Brax’s mum managed a mature hind bailed in the river. She was quiet on the radio, which is unusual for her, but the deer was laying in the scrub where she dropped it. One shot on the button and it was all over. So, 168 Pros are definitely sufficient to harvest deer from about 15m. I bet her heart was pumping, it’s the first deer she has actually harvested all by herself and it had three of her own hounds with it. I got a few happy family snaps when I got there to remember the occasion.

Saturday arvo it was back to the bench for more of a play. It didn’t seem to matter which crackers I fed through the magazine they all shot pretty damn good. I mentioned that I was going to try and shoot a group and one of the stalwarts (Ken) suggested that it should be at 50m not 100. So I plonked a target up at 50 and settled into the sandbags after loading the 9 shot magazine with 155.5-grain Winchester Match ammo. Now these things are fair jumping out of the barrel at 2910 fps and they might kick just a little bit. I plonked the first one in the target, worked the action, settled in and let the second one go. I repeated that for the third one and said “that’ll do donkey”.

Kaos wanted a go as well and he’s used to using an 06. I didn’t tell him that it might kick just a little. I can’t write what he said after he squeezed the first round off but it sounded sort of like “ouch”. His group was slightly bigger than mine but he hadn’t fired as many as I had to get used to the rifle. When I was talking to Winchester about optics for the rifle and said “a red dot will do”, it was mentioned that it might be a bit hard to do any accuracy testing. I reckon if this was fitted with a good scope and dialled in correctly, it would outshoot a lot of firearms out there today.

As I said earlier I had been close but no cigar up until last weekend when a hind poked her way out of the scrub in front of me. I got the first one away just a bit far back and then a couple more as she jumped out and across the clear space. She didn’t go far, so now the monkey is off my back. This one was with the Winchester 150-grain Copper Impacts and I think they are a bit hard for 10m shots. All the others down the bottom of the hill asked if I had a semi-auto as the shots were pretty quick. I’ve got a bit of history with this saddle as I shot my first sambar with the rattly old girl, back when it wasn’t rattly, right in the same spot.

So the real question is: would I buy a Winchester SXR2?

It’s got a couple of things I’m not super fond of but I’m learning to live with them. I’m not a fan of the 9-shot magazine as it digs into your back when you are carrying it and if you aren’t careful it can pinch the ends of your fingers when you snap it into place. There’s a 4-shot mag available that would cure the magazine in the back. With the Remington 7600 you can crack the action open and it stays open, but with the Winchester you have to open the action, eject the round and lock it back. Little things that are no big deal. Just something different to what I am used to.

It's got lots I like. The stock is adjustable with shims/wedges so that you can set it for where it suits you. You can get the sights and stock set up to suit the way you shoot. Left, right, up and down, the only thing you can’t change is length of pull. The length of the stock may not suit smaller or shorter people though. The fore end is a bit of a reach but it’s in the right spot for me and I’ve only had two people comment about it being a bit far for them to be comfortable. The black finish is easy to keep clean with pretty much just a wipe over. The sling swivels are in a comfortable spot.

The fit and finish of the rifle are not too bad, there’s just a couple of rough edges that probably should have been cleaned off before the fore end was fitted. The one I reviewed is all black; they are available in a timber pattern and camo, and in 308, 30-06 and 300 Win Mag. My initial guess was that it was lighter than the 7600, but it is actually around 200 grams heavier.

So, the answer to the question…would I have one? Yes, in a heartbeat! I almost pulled the trigger on a bargain one the other day and would have except that it was in 30-06 and everything I have is 308. I wouldn’t have even asked the treasurer beforehand! I have found over the last 40 years that it’s much easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission. Chocolates, Moscato and flowers help as well.

Now, I wonder if Winchester will do me a deal on a slightly used SXR2?