Sauer 100 Classic XT Review

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Monday, 16 October 2023

Jonty Drew reviews the Sauer 100 Classic XT

Coming from the Blaser family the Sauer 100 boasts a formidable heritage. It is a turn-bolt, polymer stock rifle, with a cold hammer-forged premium barrel. The rifle has a magazine of 5 rounds, a simple push side-lever safety with an ‘open-safe’ setting and weighs a little over 3kg. I was looking forward to getting my hands on the Sauer 100 and was delighted to hear that it was available for pick-up from Blaser HQ.

Promptly arriving at Blaser HQ I was greeted by Fredric Hanner, CEO of Blaser Group UK, and invited in whilst the rifle was being signed-off. The reason I was collecting the Sauer 100 is to run the Proficient Deer Stalking Certificate level 1 (PDS1) Course at Harper Adams University. This is an exciting time, and we are very grateful of Fredrics generosity of offering the rifle.

Once the rifle had been signed off, I said farewell to Fredric and Blaser HQ and was eager to get home to get hands-on with the rifle.

When I first handled the Sauer 100, I was pleased by the weight, lending itself to comfortable lowland stalking and also long hunts if necessary. The rifle is well balanced and the bolt smooth. The polymer stock suits rugged fieldwork and is comfortable, both ergonomically and for grip. Having had previous experience with the Blaser R8, I was surprised and happy to find the trigger of the same quality, which is exceptional for the entry-level cost of the rifle.

Once I had established my initial impressions and fitted all the necessary accessories, I headed to the range to understand the rifle further with some live firing in various shooting positions.

Arriving at the range to first zero the Sauer 100, I was excited to spend some time shooting and to further understand the rifle. This is a practice I would recommend for all rifle shooters, as the ability to know your rifle is arguably more important than the make and model. We should, however, want to aspire to have the best tools for the job and I was anticipating the Sauer to deliver.

Once the target was set up at 100m I went back to the firing point, got comfortable in the prone position, and familiarised myself with how the rifle lay in my shoulder, how my cheek rested on the adjustable cheek rest and adjusted the eye-relief accordingly. Once comfortable and having bore sighted the rifle, I decided to go ahead and zero the rifle. The three shots fired on target gave a tight group allowing easy adjustment. Once adjusted I took two confirmation shots, proving worthy of the name.

The Sauer was comfortable to fire in the prone position, the bolt provided a consistent cycling action, and the trigger was a pleasure to use. Using the Blaser sticks, I took a further three shots at the target and felt confident with the simple and reliable mechanics of the rifle. Overall, very impressed. The Sauer 100 had lived up to its heritage and after a few more shots from various shooting positions I was looking forward to using the rifle on a stalk later that week.

Featuring in the County Deer Stalking video ‘Fallow buck, Dragons & St George’ the rifle performed flawlessly using 125gr Hornady monolithic copper rounds on a mature fallow buck. The Swarovski Z6i 2-12x50 scope kindly provided by Swarovski Optic, is a magnificent addition and gave me the clarity to make the correct shot placement in early light.

Overall, the rifle is reliable, consistent, comfortable on the shoulder and simple to use. With its moderate weight, premium barrel, and competitive accuracy I can see it lending itself to the majority of hunting trips. I believe that the rifle will be loved by all the students of the PDS1 course at Harper Adams University and I also look forward to using the Sauer on stalking outings with the students that pass their PDS1 course. I also believe the Sauer 100 could become a close hunting companion of mine, only time will tell.

To watch Jonty in action with the Sauer 100 during a County Deer Stalking film, just follow this link: youtube.com/watch

To read more about the delievery of the Proficient Deer Stalking Certificate Level 1 at Harper Adams University, follow this link: harper-adams-university-pds1-deer-stalking-certificate

For more Rifle Reviews follow this link: rifle-reviews