I had my gunsmith take a hard look at the bore on mine with one of those fancy borescopes. He said he'd bet money it was never fired.
You're quite correct about them being a bargain. I got a chance to test mine out on some Federal land up north. It was 600 yards according to the laser range finder. I was pretty shocked at how well it shot with nothing but a $50.00 4 power Bushnell. Once I had the range, that cast iron skillet was ringing like a gong.
One of the guys I was shooting with had been mocking my rifle, especially since I had the National Match M1A along, too.
"Why are you bothering with that antique? You'll be lucky if it doesn't blow up in your face!"
He had a fancy new Remington 700 with a Leupold on top.
His groups were a bit better. I'll admit that. I attribute that to the fancy aftermarket trigger he had. But we were both hitting the same target at the same range accurately enough to do the job.
And when I told him what it cost to put mine together, and he told me what his rig set him back....well his tune changed considerably.
Before the day was through he was asking me if he could give the Ishy a try. Then he asked where I got it, and where the sporter stock came from, etc etc.
I graciously gave him all the info I had and let him pop off a few of my handloads.
I expect he'll own one soon. AIMsurplus has a few left. Since they're C & R I can get another one shipped right to my house should the fit stike me.
I have a feeling it will.
Nugen'ts trying to rehabilitate him,
I'm a huge Nugent fan so I'm a bit puzzled by his attitude on this one. Normally he's a take no prisoners kind of guy and let's face it, Zumbo really stepped on his Johnson.
Maybe Uncle Ted's trying to convert him from one of those effete hunting snobs into a hard core 2nd Amendment fundamentalist. I wish him luck with that.
Personally I got fed up with those Fudd types long ago. According to most of them if it ain't a $3,000.00 custom made Ed Brown with some fancy glass to match, well you ain't worth talking to let alone shooting with.
Well Mr. Zumbo we can't all live right outside Yellowstone in a $500,000 'cabin', we can't all afford top dollar custom made bolt guns, and most of us hoi polloi will never, ever be able to come up with the scratch for an African safari or a Montana elk or sheep hunt let alone a custom rig for each and every critter we put on the wall or in the pot.
Add to that the fact that he was blissfully ignorant of the fact that 75% of gun owners will never, ever hunt anything in their lives and it's easy to see how Zumbo revealed himself for the elitist snob he really is.
'F him. I won't shed any tears for his 'career'. He'll still have that tiny little shack near Yellowstone and a rack of rifles that most of the rest of us unwashed slobs will never be able to afford just one of.
Tonight I just bought a Sig 229 in .40 with a .357 barrel, 5 mags and 100 rounds of ammo...for $550! And he just remembered that he has a holster that he won't need and gonna toss that in too!
Zumbo's lasting legacy will be the aid and comfort he gave to America's domestic enemies, who wil be quoting him for years...