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Sako Limited (natively ) is a Finnish
firearm A firearm is any type of gun that uses an explosive charge and is designed to be readily carried and operated by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see legal definitions). The first firearms originate ...
and
ammunition Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of oth ...
manufacturer located in
Riihimäki Riihimäki (; ) is a town and municipality in the south of Finland, about north of Helsinki and southeast of Tampere. An important railway junction is located in Riihimäki, since railway tracks from Riihimäki lead to Helsinki, Tampere and La ...
, Tavastia Proper in southern Finland. It also has owned the Tikka brand of
bolt-action rifle Bolt action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the turn-bolt via a bolt handle, most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the firearm (as most users are right-handed). The majority of b ...
s since 1983, and is now owned by the Italian firearm
holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the Security (finance), securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own Share ...
Beretta Holding Beretta Holding is headquartered in Luxembourg. It is an holding company for the Italian industrial group and holds direct or indirect participation in 26 companies, including Beretta. The eponymous company is managed by fifteenth-generation de ...
. The name Sako comes from the company's former name ().


History

In 1919, two years after Finland declared independence from the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
, the Suojeluskuntain Yliesikunnan Asepaja (Civil Guard Supreme Staff Gun Works) opened in a former
Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...
brewery to repair private arms and recondition Russian military rifles for Finnish service. The rifle repair shop became financially independent of the civil guard in 1921. The Suojeluskuntain Yliesikunnan Asepaja moved from Helsinki to an ammunition factory in Riihimäki on 1 June 1927, and reorganized as SAKO in the 1930s. Sako started exporting
pistol A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a gun barrel, barrel with an integral chamber (firearms), chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the Englis ...
cartridges to Sweden in the 1930s and continued manufacturing
submachine gun A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine (firearms), magazine-fed automatic firearm, automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to descri ...
cartridges through
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Another Finnish firearms manufacturer
Tikkakoski Tikkakoski is an urban area (a '' taajama'') and a district of Jyväskylä, Finland, about north of the city center. Before 2009, Tikkakoski was part of Jyväskylän maalaiskunta. Having originally been part of Tikka-Mannila, Tikkakoski beg ...
, which owned the Tikka brand, was merged into SAKO in 1983. In 1986, the arms manufacturing division of the government-owned
Valmet Valmet Oyj, a Finnish company, is a developer and supplier of process technologies, automation systems and services for the pulp, paper, energy industries. Flow control serves a wider base of process industries. History 1999–2012 Valmet ...
conglomerate (which itself had been derived from the Valtion Kivääritehdas, VKT) was merged with Sako and called ''Sako-Valmet'', with ownership split evenly between
Nokia Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications industry, telecommunications, technology company, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, originally established as a pulp mill in 1 ...
and Valmet. After further organizational shifts in state ownership, the company was sold to the Italian
Beretta Holding Beretta Holding is headquartered in Luxembourg. It is an holding company for the Italian industrial group and holds direct or indirect participation in 26 companies, including Beretta. The eponymous company is managed by fifteenth-generation de ...
in 2000.


Post–World War II production

The first civilian rifle bearing the Sako name was the L42 (Luodikko iflemodel 1942) chambered for the 7×33mm Sako cartridge, prototyped in 1942, and commercial production started after World War II. Sako developed the 7×33mm cartridge based on the
9×19mm Parabellum The 9×19mm Parabellum (also known as 9mm Luger, 9mm NATO or simply 9mm) is a Rim (firearms)#Rimless, rimless, Centerfire ammunition, centerfire, tapered cartridge (firearms), firearms cartridge. Originally designed by Austrian firearm designer ...
pistol cartridge, by making a longer case and "necking" the case down to 7 mm calibre (7.21 mm bullet diameter). This cartridge was designed for and well suited to
capercaillie ''Tetrao'' is a genus of birds in the grouse subfamily known as capercaillies. They are some of the largest living grouse. Feathers from the bird were used to create the characteristic hat of the bersaglieri, an Italian ace infantry formation. ...
and black grouse hunting, a popular sport in Finland, Sweden and Norway. The L46 was later denoted L461 "Vixen". The L461 has been very popular in Finland and Sweden, especially chambered for the .222 Remington cartridge and has a great reputation among aficionados. In 1957, Sako launched a longer action, the L57, subsequently renamed L579 "Forester". This is a "medium action" intended for the .308 Winchester and similar cartridges. In 1961, Sako introduced the L61R "Finnbear" for long cartridges like the .30-06 and 6.5×55mm. Between 1959 and 1974, Sako produced a lever-action gun, the Sako Finnwolf, in .243 Winchester and .308 Winchester. Between 1976 and 1988, Sako produced an autoloading match pistol, the ".22-32", then ".22-32 New Model", then "Triace", three versions of the same handgun, slightly modified. It was chambered for .22 Short, .22 Long Rifle and .32 Smith & Wesson Wadcutter, with conversions (barrels, slides and magazines) for each caliber. It is suitable for ISSF (tehn "UIT") sport pistol events (Rapid Fire Pistol, Standard Pistol, 25m Pistol, and Centerfire Pistol events. It can be used for 50m Free pistol). Sako has also produced a number of rimfire rifles, among them are the P72 Finnscout, M78, Finnfire,
Quad QUaD, an acronym for QUEST at DASI, was a ground-based cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization experiment at the South Pole. QUEST (Q and U Extragalactic Sub-mm Telescope) was the original name attributed to the bolometer detector instrume ...
and Finnfire II. The M78 was also chambered for the .22 Hornet and the .22 WMR in addition to the .22 Long Rifle. During the 1980s (1987), Sako started using the AI/AII/AV designations (previously used for models imported to the US) for the three action lengths in Europe. The complete rifles were still designated L461/L579/L61. The bolt was given a slight cosmetic makeover, with the hammer covered by a conical shell. This visual design was also used on the later models (M4/5/691, M75, M85). The L579 could be delivered with detachable magazine although the default was a hinged floorplate. From 1987 to 1992, a version of the short (Vixen) action was produced for the .22 PPC and 6mm PPC cartridges, when Sako introduced these former
wildcat cartridge A wildcat cartridge, often shortened to wildcat, is a custom-made cartridge (weaponry), cartridge for which ammunition and/or firearms are not mass-produced. These cartridges are often created as experimental variants to optimize a certain ballis ...
s as commercial cartridges, denoted ".22 PPC USA" and "6mm PPC USA" to avoid confusion with the specialized bench rest cartridges which required a "tight neck" chamber. These actions are the same external dimensions, and have the same bolt diameter as the 222 Remington, 222 Rem. Magnum, 223 Rem. cartridge actions. Only the bolt face recess was enlarged to suit the PPC case. In 1992, the first of the "newer" Sakos, the 591, was introduced as a replacement for the L579. Shortly after, the 491 and the 691 were launched. These rifles (491/591/691) are not as highly regarded as the L461/L579/L61R and according to folklore, the quality of the workmanship is slightly inferior for the 491/591/691. They featured a separate recoil lug, also found on the 75, and a Tikka trigger assembly. However, these rifles were available in left-hand configuration both as a medium action (591) and long action (691) In 1997, Sako launched the 75, named for Sako's 75th anniversary. The 75 was externally similar to previous Sako models, but the construction was radically different featuring three symmetrical locking lugs and a detachable magazine. Before the 75, Sako hunting rifles (except the L46 and the L579) did not have detachable magazines, but a hinged floorplate with the lock placed on the front of the trigger guard. Sako's latest (and current) model, the M85, was introduced in 2006. In 2020, S20 was released.


Current production

Including the new Sako 90 and 100 series. Updated August 2024.


''Sako'' brand

* Sako S20 — A modular "hybrid" rifle with aluminium
bedding Bedding, also called bedclothes or bed linen, is the materials laid above the mattress of a bed for hygiene, warmth, protection of the mattress, and decorative effect. Bedding is the removable and washable portion of a human sleeping environment ...
chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of a manufactured object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpart ...
and interchangeable furnitures ( buttstock/grip and fore-end) * Sako 85 — Sako's premium-line
bolt-action Bolt action is a type of manual Action (firearms), firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt (firearms), turn-bolt via a cocking handle, bolt handle, most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the firearm (a ...
centerfire Two rounds of .357 Magnum, a centerfire cartridge; notice the circular primer in the center A center-fire (or centerfire) is a type of metallic cartridge used in firearms, where the primer is located at the center of the base of its casing (i. ...
hunting rifle A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting and higher stopping power, with a barrel that has a helical or spiralling pattern of grooves (rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles ar ...
, available in many configurations and calibres from .204 Ruger through to .416 RM * Sako A7 — Sako's mid-price-range hunting rifle, filling the gap between the Sako 85 premium line and the Tikka T3x value line hunting rifles. The A7 combines different features from the Sako 85 and the Tikka T3, along with a unique in-line detachable magazine design, and is currently (2010) available only with a synthetic
stock Stocks (also capital stock, or sometimes interchangeably, shares) consist of all the Share (finance), shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided. A single share of the stock means fractional ownership of the corporatio ...
, in combination with either a blued chromoly or
stainless steel Stainless steel, also known as inox, corrosion-resistant steel (CRES), or rustless steel, is an iron-based alloy that contains chromium, making it resistant to rust and corrosion. Stainless steel's resistance to corrosion comes from its chromi ...
barrelled action. * Sako TRG — A long-range
sniper rifle A sniper rifle is a high-precision, long range shooting, long-range rifle. Requirements include high accuracy, reliability, mobility, concealment, and optics, for anti-personnel weapon, anti-personnel, anti-materiel rifle, anti-materiel and sur ...
geared toward law enforcement and military use * Sako Quad — A rimfire rifle, available in a variety of configurations with interchangeable
barrel A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden stave (wood), staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers ...
s in .17 HMR, .17 HM2, .22 LR and .22 WMR calibres * Sako Finnfire II — A rimfire rifle available in .17 HMR and .22 LR calibres


''Tikka'' brand

* Tikka T3x — Sako's budget-range centerfire hunting rifle, available in calibres from .204 Ruger to .338 WM * Tikka T1x MTR — A "multi-task rimfire" rifle with the same receiver footprint as the T3x, introduced in 2018, available in .17 HMR and .22 LR calibres


Sako model history (Europe)


Models


References


External links

*
Gunwriters' M95 Assault Rifle
{{Authority control Beretta Holding 1921 establishments in Finland Manufacturing companies established in 1921 Riihimäki