Straight-pull rifle

The straight-pull rifle combines bolt-action precision with faster cycling. Increasingly popular in Norwegian hunting.

The straight-pull rifle is a variant of the bolt-action where the bolt is pulled straight back and pushed straight forward, without turning it up and down. This allows faster cycling than a traditional bolt-action rifle, and you can maintain your cheek weld between shots.

The Blaser R8 is the most well-known straight-pull rifle in Norway. It features a unique system where you can swap barrels and calibers in a few minutes, and it can be ordered with a right or left trigger release. The Merkel Helix, Browning Maral, and Chapuis ROLS are other popular models.

The advantage of straight-pull is speed. During driven hunts or when hunting moving game, you can fire follow-up shots noticeably faster than with a traditional bolt-action. Many hunters also find they maintain better awareness of the game because they don't need to move their head away from the scope image.

Accuracy is on par with good bolt-action rifles. The Blaser R8 is known for good accuracy right out of the box, and is used by many experienced mountain hunters who prioritize light weight and reliability.

The downside is that straight-pull rifles often cost more than comparable bolt-action rifles. The Blaser R8 starts around 30,000 NOK, while a good bolt-action from Tikka or Bergara can be had for less than half.

Maintenance is similar to a bolt-action: clean the barrel after use, lightly oil the mechanism, and store in a gun safe. The interchangeable barrel system on the Blaser R8 requires that you zero each barrel separately.