I have owned a Blaser Tactical 2 in .338 Lapua Magnum since late 2009 and can quite honestly say I absolutely love this rifle. The straight pull action on it is amazing. The only thing I found a little off with it when I bought it was the fact that it came with a 12 MOA rail from factory; $500 later, I had the genuine Blaser 40 MOA rail on its way to me to be installed here at home.
For quite a few years I was happy shooting the Blaser in its .338 Lapua format; I had other rifles in .308 Winchester and .300 Winchester Magnum to ease the burden on my bank account. I also reload which takes that sting down to somewhere a little south of shooting $5 bills down range. Still, I love it despite the expense of feeding it, let alone the initial purchase price of the rifle and optic (around $13K). I eventually got to the point where I wanted a caliber conversion kit for the rifle. From the factory they were available in: .223 Remington, .308 Winchester, .300 Winchester Magnum and .338 Lapua Magnum.
Now here lies my problem. The German government has banned the sale of what they consider military arms to civilians. This leaves me and others like me in a bit of a bind. Not only is it now almost impossible to get new conversion kits for these rifles; it is now almost impossible to source parts to repair these rifles should something go wrong and need repair. About 3 years ago I called my Blaser dealer here in Australia where I initially purchased the rifle from to inquire about a conversion kit and spare parts. This is where I was given the story above about the German government. What do I do now? I guess I have to see if I can find any spare parts on the second hand market. There is not a lot of them coming up here in Australia.
I had another idea; I know the Australian Army now uses the Blaser Tactical 2 in .338 and .308 as their new sniper rifle system. Who imports them for the Army? Through my research I found that an Australian company called XTEK does. Not only do they import them for the Army they also have made a new chassis for them and larger capacity magazines. I get on the phone to XTEK and I’m basically told not a chance of getting any parts or help from them, despite it being completely legal in Australia to own this rifle on the civilian market. At the very least I only want a spare bolt head for what I already have. Back to the 2nd hand market I go. Through a bit more fishing around on the internet I came across the John1911Blog and got in touch with Marky from there. He offered a suggestion for a barrel maker; however, nothing has panned out since.
My next option is to find a manufacturer to make the parts for me or find someone willing to sell me a .308 Winchester conversion kit. If you know of anyone, anywhere across the world please let me know. I know a few US Police departments have used them over the years. I’m happy for second hand parts. Please reach out if you have any. I have no problem importing it as I have a mate in the industry who can help me. I can be reached at precisionrifleguy@bigpond.com
Cheers,
Craig
