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Sabatti Tactical SA

The History of Sabatti

Sabatti’s history can be traced back to the early 18th century’s Val Trompia, a region in northern Italy that is historically well known for metalworking and arms manufacturing. We know of one Lodovico Sabatti working there as a gunsmith in the early 1700s, in the city of Gardone Val Trompia. He was regarded as an excellent barrel maker and a flintlock pistol maker, skills that later became somewhat of a trademark for the Sabatti family.

In the first half 1800s, a man by the name of Giuseppe Sabatti gained considerable fame as one of the best Damascus steel barrel manufacturers ever, thus further contributing to Sabatti’s rising influence in the craft. In fact, it was throughout the 19th century when several members of the Sabatti family became respected practitioners of the trade, some of whom opened their own workshops, while others joined forces with other gunsmiths to open companies, many of which are still in operation today. Sabatti members also played an important role as gunsmiths in the turbulent years of Italian unification.

After a seeming decline of the Sabatti family in the first half of the 20th century, Antonio Sabatti entered a partnership with Giuseppe Tanfoglio to form a new company almost immediately after World War II (in 1946).  Their joint company was named SATA (Sabatti and Tanfoglio), and it reinvigorated the Italian gun manufacturing business. They first put all their efforts into manufacturing high-quality hunting shotguns and rifles, but in 1956 they also introduced their first pistols for personal defense.

The partnership ended in 1960 with Giuseppe founding Tanfoglio while Antonio’s sons set up their own company, which until 1990 operated under the name FIAS (Fabbrica Italiana Armi Sabatti). They seemingly split SATA down the middle – Tanfoglio specialized in hand pistols only while Sabatti to this day remains a well-respected manufacturer of hunting shotguns and rifles. And just like in the past, the quality of the barrels and actions are still Sabatti’s main strengths. They even patented a new Multi-Radial Rifling (MRR) system which extends the life cycle of the rifle’s barrel, and due to the lack of traditional sharp corners, it prevents excessive bore fouling. MRR system thus increases the overall quality of barrels, making Sabatti rifles, such as Sabatti Urban Sniper, Saphire, Saphire E.R., or Saphire Syn, a great pick.

Sabatti Tactical (SA) Rifle Review

Sabatti Tactical is a series of hunting and competition bolt-action rifles designed for precision shooting at long distances. It’s been in production for a better part of the previous decade and has only recently been retired, which was due to the introduction of the newer Tactical EVO model (link) in 2018. There are several different variants belonging to the Tactical series and they are largely the same, usually differentiating only by a look and a few minor technicalities. Therefore, when we talk about Sabatti Tactical, we are, unless specified otherwise, referring to all the Tactical models. They are available in both, short and long action lengths. We’ll be writing about the short-action Sabatti Tactical SA in this review.

Sabatti Tactical SA in .308 Win.

Figure 1: Sabatti Tactical Syn. Chrome in .308 Win. (Source: https://gun.deals/product/sabatti-rover-tactical-308-win-255-3-rd-inox-89999)

Sabatti Tactical SA (Short-Action) boasts the Sabatti’s traditional cold-hammer-forged barrel. The latter’s length depends on the variant and on the caliber the specific model can be chambered for, but it’s either going to be 610, 650, 660, 690, or 710 mm long (24, 25.6, 26, 27, or 28-inch respectively). The diameter of Sabatti Tactical’s barrel measures either 22 mm (0.86-inch) or 28 mm (1.1-inch). Sabatti is also known for its patented Multi-Radial Rifling (MRR) system which has a proven record of increasing the barrel’s accuracy and longevity. The MRR is quickly gaining recognition on the rifle market, and Sabatti already started introducing MRR to the Tactical series in the early 2010s. Therefore, the Sabatti Tactical series has rifles available in both rifling systems. Furthermore, Sabatti Tactical SA usually comes with either a threaded muzzle or a muzzle device already pre-installed. The latter is especially common with the newer variants.

Sabatti Tactical’s action is of the push-feed style and sports the traditional Rover design. Both the action and the bolt are made of strengthened steel. The bolt has 2 locking lugs for safety purposes and some of the variants have an interchangeable bolt handle (Sabatti Tactical Sport, for instance). There are four tapped holes on top of the Sabatti Tactical SA’s action for mounting purposes, although some variants might come with a Picatinny rail already pre-installed on the receiver.

Sabatti Tactical SA usually comes with a 3-lever Match trigger, but a more sensitive Stecher set trigger and a 2-stage trigger are also available on request. There is a catch located on the inside of the trigger guard that either opens the bottom of the magazine chamber or detaches the rifle’s magazine. Whether the rifle comes with a fixed magazine or a removable one depends on the variant, but a removable magazine is more common with Sabatti Tactical rifles. The capacity of the magazine also varies from model to model but generally speaking, Sabatti Tactical’s magazine has a capacity for either 3, 4, or 5 cartridges.

Sabatti Tactical SA ends in a, as the name of the rifle suggests, tactical-inspired buttstock with a recoil pad that can tame even the heavier calibers’ kick. Sabatti Tactical (except for the very first variations of the Sabatti Tactical FG – a Sabatti Tactical variant with a fiberglass-reinforced stock) also comes with an adjustable cheek-piece. Variants, such as Sabatti Tactical L, Tactical Hunter, Tactical Syn. etc., have cheek-piece adjustable by a thumbwheel.

Sabatti Tactical (SA) Calibers

Sabatti Tactical SA can be chambered for various calibers, depending on the variant:

  • .222 Rem.

  • .223 Rem.

  • 6 mm XC Norma

  • 6.5x47 Lapua

  • 6.5x55 SE

  • 7-08 Rem.

  • 7 mm Rem. S. A. U. M.

  • .308 Win.

  • .300 WSM

Sabatti Tactical (SA) Variants:

  • Sabatti Tactical Syn.

  • Sabatti Tactical Syn. Chrome

  • Sabatti Tactical Desert

  • Sabatti Tactical LW (laminated wood)

  • Sabatti Tactical FG (fiberglass-reinforced stock)

  • Sabatti Tactical Tactical Hunter

  • Sabatti Tactical Sport

Since short-action Sabatti Tactical’s receiver is modeled after Sabatti Rover 600, it, too, has four holes for mounting purposes.

The receiver of Sabatti Tactical SA with a visible mounting surface

Figure 2: The receiver of short-action Sabatti Tactical with a visible mounting surface (Source: https://gun.deals/product/sabatti-rover-tactical-308-win-255-3-rd-inox-89999)

receiver dimensions for Sabatti Tactical SA

A: 21.9 mm
B: 88.7 mm
C: 15.3 mm
BHU: 2.9 mm
Fi: 6-48
R1: R51
R2: R17

Scope Mounts Interchangeable with Sabatti Tactical (SA)

Rifles That Have One-Piece Scope Mounts Interchangeable with Sabatti Tactical (SA)

The necessary condition for rifles to have one-piece scope mounts interchangeable is that the mounting surfaces of these rifles match in every dimension. Rifles that have one-piece scope mounts interchangeable with Sabatti Tactical SA are the following:

Rifles That Have Two-Piece Scope Mounts Interchangeable with Sabatti Tactical (SA)

For two-piece scope mounts to be interchangeable, the mounting surfaces of the rifles must match in every dimension except the action length which can vary (distance B on the image above). This is because the distance between the two pieces of the mount is not fixed. Rifles that have two-piece scope mounts interchangeable with Sabatti Tactical SA are the following:

Should you have any additional information regarding possible mount matches, please contact us. We will gladly accept your help and expand our database accordingly.

Best Scope Mounts for Sabatti Tactical (SA)

Fixed Scope Mounts for Sabatti Tactical (SA)

MAKfix Rings are simple to install, reliable, and recoil resistant. This, combined with a relatively affordable price, makes them the most suitable fixed scope mounting solution for the Sabatti Tactical SA. They come with a 30-year warranty and are made of steel, which makes them a perfect fit for the short-action Tactical’s steel receiver.

Detachable Repeatable Mounts for Sabatti Tactical (SA)

INNOmount offers impressive solutions when it comes to detachable repeatable scope mounts for various uses. One of them is this one-piece scope mount of famed German quality. It is a great choice for your Sabatti Tactical SA, and it comes with a 10-year warranty as well. You will need to couple it with a Picatinny rail, though. Since Italian-based Contessa is no stranger to manufacturing scope mounting solutions for Italian rifles, we think this Contessa Picatinny rail would be a perfect fit.

Picatinny Rails for Sabatti Tactical (SA)

When you’re looking for a Picatinny rail for your rifle, you need to pay special attention to the length between the rear and front holes on the receiver (distance B on the image above). You can hardly ever go wrong with Contessa when it comes to Picatinny rails, and this is why we recommend this Contessa Picatinny rail for your Sabatti Tactical SA. An Italian scope mount for an Italian rifle – perfect!

Help Us Build Our Riflescope Mounts Database

If you happen to own this or any other rifle, we would appreciate it if you could help us expand our database by sending us some photos of the rifle receiver (the bare mounting surface of the rifle without the mounts installed). For your help, our company offers a fair return in terms of practical rewards.

Please send us an email for more information. You can contact us here: info@optics-trade.eu

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VIDEO

Introduction

In recent years we can observe that a trend of Picatinny rail has become widespread and global. It is driven by the NATO standardized rails, more commonly known as the Picatinny rail standard. Picatinny rail being the New Jersey Arsenal that developed it in 1995.

These mounting options are revolutionary. The biggest and best advantage being that the Picatinny rail can be used its entire length and not bordered to a few pre-designed slots like for example the Weaver rail standard was before.

The other main advantage is the ease of use and interchangeability. If a product is meant for a Picatinny rail design it will fit all Picatinny-rails, no matter the manufacturer or date of production.

Picatinny/Weaver Rail

Picatinny Rail and Weaver rail profile

Design

The Picatinny rail is almost exclusively crafted from a single piece of metal (in some cases aluminum). In this manner, the axis of the Picatinny rail is perfectly straight and aligned with the axis of the firearm. Therefore the rifle scope which is mounted onto this kind of configuration is certainly aligned with the rifle / gun and the trajectory of the ammunition.

Weaver rail design on the other hand is usually manufactured in two separate pieces, greatly increasing the possibilities for the axis to be crooked, overlapping, and out of line.

It is always harder to align two separate pieces to a third line than it is to align one piece to another. In this way, the lapping of two mounting rings on a single-piece Picatinny rail is no longer required.

The single-piece rail will assure that both rings are perfectly aligned to each other and that no unwished stress is transferred to the riflescope.  

Picatinny compare to Weaver Rail

The Picatinny rail itself is an evolutionary step forward from the older Weaver rail. The main difference between Picatinny rail and Weaver rail is the spacing of the slots. Picatinny rail design has them evenly placed exactly 5.23 mm from one slot to the other, 3 mm deep. For this reason, the mounting options are repeatable and the same as other firearms using the Picatinny rail standard.

Interchangeability was a major driving force in the development of the new standard as different NATO armies need to be compatible with each other.

Weaver rail has 3.8mm wide slots and these slots can be placed anywhere on the Weaver rail and in any number that the producer wished.

Advantages of Picatinny design

A big advantage for using the Picatinny rail design is the ever-present recoil stop. Furthermore, the manufacturing of the rail is not very technically demanding and can be done without the use of state-of-the-art machines which greatly reduces the cost of the finished product, making it very affordable.

The Picatinny rail is easy to mount and usually, this type of configuration does not transfer negative stresses and forces from the fired weapon to the rifle scope.

In addition, the Picatinny rail with its very long useable surface works well for mounting longer rifle scopes or to achieve optimum eye relief.

The durability and toughness are other big pluses for this solution.

Manufacturers of Popular Models

A majority of the Picatinny rings are fixed, but a number of best rated European manufacturers (EAW, MAK,..) have, in recent years, put a lot of effort into the development of detachable ring with100% repeatability, with which it becomes easy to remove the scope from the weapon without the use of tools.

No re-zeroing is needed with such mount options, but these models tend to be expensive. 

Weaver and Picatinny Rings

Picatinny rail and weaver rail share one more thing. It is possible to use the Weaver ring and the Picatinny ring on the Picatinny-rails, but it is usually impossible to use the Picatinny ring on the Weaver base. The reason being the above-mentioned positioning and spacing of the slots.

  • Picatinny mounts have a 5mm recoil stop that goes into the rail slot and since
  • Weaver rail only has 3.8mm wide slots such rings do not fit on Weaver rails.

Due to this reason, the Picatinny-rails are popular and prevailing on the market in recent years and eventually, these options will completely oust the Weaver rail from the market.