German Perfection: Testing Sauer's New Model 505 Rifle

In the late spring of 1945, the rumble of Russian armor could be heard approaching Germany’s twin gun-making cities of Suhl and Zella-Mehlis in the mountains of Thuringia. Packing frantically, the owners, their families and workers from numerous firearms factories were evacuated ahead of the Soviet host to the American zone. Among the storied gun manufacturers were Anschutz, Walther, Krieghoff and J.P. Sauer & Sohn.

Fast forward to the present day. J.P. Sauer & Sohn is now part of the Blaser Group, which, along with Sauer, also consists of the elite gunmakers Blaser, Mauser and Rigby, as well as the optics and thermal imaging firms of Minox and Liemke.

J.P. Sauer & Sohn is Germany’s oldest gunmaker and one of the most esteemed. Over the years they have manufactured everything from flintlocks to shotguns and even the “Sturmgewehr 44.” In 1972, Sauer launched the Model 80 rifle, a thoroughly modern bolt-action rifle that was succeeded by the renowned Model 90 in 1981 and later imported by Colt. I have always been of the opinion that the two most attractive production rifles of their era were the Mark V Weatherby and the Colt/Sauer Model 90. Their level of precision, polishing, bluing and stock making were nonparallel.

The Model 90 begot the innovative Model 200, a modular rifle that permitted barrel swapping by way of having the bolt lock directly into the barrel rather than into the action’s integral receiver ring. This concept eventually morphed into the improved Model 202 in 1985 (I owned one of these and unfortunately, let it go about 20 years ago, much to my chagrin.), and eventually the Model 404 in 2015. But, enough of history, let’s return to the present and the current progeny, the new Model 505.

German Roots Meet Modern Engineering

In May, I had the pleasure of once again visiting the Blaser Group’s HQ in Isny im Allgau, in Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany, about two hours southwest of Munich. Both an administrative and manufacturing hub for Blaser, Mauser and Sauer, the campus and its facilities are state of the art. Myriad robotic CNC, hammer forging, boring, finishing and polishing machines line the nearly sterile factory floor, where the Germanic penchant for organization, efficiency, precision and cleanliness are evident everywhere.

The Model 505 resulted from the vision of Sauer CEO Julian Wengenmayr, who I have been happy to call a friend for more than a decade. Julian is young and enthusiastic, along with being a passionate and experienced hunter, qualities that make for a successful gun-company executive and are all too rare in our industry today.

While the prior Model 404 was a good rifle, most didn’t deem it to be a great rifle. The 404’s trigger was labeled by users to be “not as good” as that of its predecessor, the Model 202. The Model 404 was also heavier, and its high base price of $4,000+ resulted in fewer sales than expected. A change was in order and the result is the Model 505. Here are the attributes that set the Model 505 apart from its competition.

Lighter, Unique Skeletonized Action

Starting from a forged steel billet, a five-axis CNC machining center uses 86 tools and two clampings, including 12 proprietary tools, to reduce the billet into an action with only eleven percent of its original weight remaining. All this is accomplished in a total of 85 minutes of run time.

One-Piece, Mirror-Polished Bolt

After machining to their finished form, both the one-piece, six-lug bolt and action are subjected to a rigorous and time-consuming, two-step polishing process involving both vibratory and drag grinding. This results in finishes superior to polishing by hand. There are no rough edges on the bolt or action and parts are totally burr-free.

This results in such a smooth finish to both the bolt body and the internal receiver rails upon which it rides that the bolt will gravity feed from open to closed position within the receiver with just a gentle flick of the wrist.

I can attest right here and now, that in my forty-seven years as an editor and writer, I have never cycled a turn-bolt action as slick, smooth and fast as the Model 505. It is nearly as fast as the straight-pull Blaser R8 and in fact, the M505 has something in common with it, which we will get to in a moment.

Unlike the Model 404, the 505 does not use a separate bolt head. When changing from one caliber family to another, a bolt and barrel can be purchased as options. Extraction is via a spring-loaded extractor with an oversized claw and ejection is accomplished with a spring plunger mechanism.

Thumb-Actuated Cocking Piece

The second piece of the puzzle that explains the 505’s speed of operation is the external, thumb-actuated cocking piece. Nearly identical to the cocking piece found on the Blaser R8, it is slid forward with the thumb of the firing hand to cock the rifle. As there is no mainspring compression when opening or closing the bolt, there is relatively little resistance when feeding and ejecting shells. An added bonus, as with the R8, is that the 505 is completely safe to carry with a round in the chamber when the cocking piece is de-cocked. There is literally no way for the rifle to accidentally discharge. To de-cock the rifle, a slight downward pressure is applied to the rear of the cocking piece and it will slip backward into its “uncocked” position.

Two-Piece Stock

Essentially, the Model 505 is a chassis rifle in that the forend never comes into contact with the barrel. The 505 will shoot to minute of angle with most loads I have tested, which is in line with other high-quality, switch-barrel rifles I have used. Due to the precision of its design and manufacture, the 505’s barrel can be removed along with the optic and the rifle will maintain its zero. This is a huge plus for “have gun will travel” hunters who desire two, differently chambered barrels equipped with say a red-dot optic and a scope. Once the barrel/optic is zeroed it will remain so, regardless as to how many times they are separated and reinstalled.

I demonstrated this at the Blaser shooting theater. I fired a three-shot group, then removed and reinstalled the barrel and shot another three-shot string. I then removed the scope from the barrel and fired yet another three-shot string. The results were surprising, with the rifle holding zero throughout.

Which brings up another point. The decision was made to mill the top of the 505’s barrels with four, integral elliptical cuts borrowed from Blaser. These mate to Blaser’s superior quick-detachable saddle mount. While expensive, it is bombproof (as I have found in nearly a decade of use with my R8) while allowing complete repeatability of zero when the optic is removed and reattached.

Otherworldly Trigger

I have often said that the barrel is the heart of the rifle and the 505’s hammer-forged tube is no exception. But it is the trigger that is the rifle’s soul, and the trigger on the 505 is out of this world. It is fully adjustable from ¾ to 2 ¾  pounds. Remarkably, there is literally no take-up, creep, overtravel or anything else to distract from its bloody perfect operation. Nothing. Zip, nada, zilch. It must be experienced to be appreciated.

The Bottom Line

The new Sauer 505 is attractive, with a streamlined, innovative design. Slick as ice, smooth as glass and fast as a two-dollar whore, the bolt glides effortlessly within the lightweight, highly polished steel receiver. With innovative stock designs, switch-barrel capability and priced slightly more than most of today’s high-end production rifles and appreciably less than others, what’s not to like?

Well, the 505 is lighter than the 404, but it can’t be called a lightweight. The skeletonized steel action does help reduce weight; still the rifle will weigh in just shy of eight pounds with a 22-inch barrel.

While I have found the 505 capable of minute-of-angle accuracy with most of my test loads, it will not likely produce sub-minute accuracy with factory loads. But if you are a serious travelling hunter, or one who appreciates German engineering at its finest, the 505 will do all you ask within ethical hunting distances.

A feature I do like is the rifle’s use of detachable, 3-and 5-round single stack magazines. The nearly flush fitting 3-round mag creates a very trim and slim action that carries in the hand more like a lever-action rather than a bolt-action with staggered box. The rifle balances well, between the hands, more like a shotgun than most rifles, and its heft makes it hang steady in the offhand.

The 505 will initially be available in nine or so chamberings popular today from .223 to .375 Holland, including some of today’s trendies like the 6.5 Creedmoor and PRC and traditional favorites like the .243, .308 and .30-06.

Several versions of the M505 will be available here for American hunters. The base model uses a traditionally shaped, polymer stock and will retail at $3,200. The test gun shown here with the thumbhole polymer stock will retail at $3,500. Five ascending grades (and prices) of walnut will also be available, along with a carbon fiber stock option at considerably higher cost.

In the Field with the Model 505

On my trip to Germany in May, I was fortunate to be invited to participate in a short hunt for roe deer. These diminutive forest creatures are considered by many to be “Europe’s whitetails.” In the spring of the year, the deer are generally hunted at first and last light from a hochsitz (high seat).

It was a cool, gray, drizzly evening as Julian and I walked through the dripping forest to the stand. Once there, we would keep watch until dark.

The first deer appeared about half an hour later as a pair of does stepped into the open field from the forest to our front. Julian studied them carefully, but both were mature and likely pregnant, so we allowed them to feed contentedly. A short while later another doe appeared, but it was plain to see from her distended belly that she carried a fawn. As night fell, we returned to our vehicle with the intent of returning before dawn in the morning.

Back in the hocksitz by 5 a.m., the day dawned damp and chilly, with a slight ground fog clinking to the green grass. About an hour later, two deer appeared in the treeline across from us. Julian studied them intently as I waited for his assessment.

Finally, as the pair crossed the field toward the treeline in which we sat, Julian appeared satisfied. “They are both Schmalreh [barren doe yearlings],” Julian whispered. “You may shoot them both.”

The deer stopped just short of the trees to our right and about 150 meters away. I placed the crosshairs on the leading doe and as she turned toward the woodline, the Sauer 505 barked. She fell to the shot and lay still.

The second deer moved too quickly even for the extremely fast-cycling Model 505 and disappeared into the cover of the forest.

About six weeks following my return from Germany, a synthetic thumbhole stock Model 505 arrived at my dealer. Our hog hunting on California’s Central Coast is at its peak in mid-summer with lots of barley and safflower in the food plots. The terrain is generally steep, rolling hills terminating in either canyons or expansive bowls.

One such bowl held a big, lone boar just after sunup. After a 200-yard stalk along the two track, I was positioned above the feeding hog. My pal Jaime ranged the shot at 150 yards. Taking a steady rest on the quad-sticks, I pushed the 505’s cocking piece forward as I found the boar in the Zeiss’s crosshairs. He was facing away, but within a moment he turned and offered a quartering shot. Holding just behind the ribs, I fired and the big boar dropped instantly and began kicking. I paid the insurance and he lay still.

The Sauer 505 is a hunter’s rifle, developed by hunters.  If you are a serious, discerning hunter that appreciates speed of operation, along with “best in class” German engineering and precision, look no further than Sauer’s new 505.

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