8/24/2011

Standing inside a Cabela’s retail location it’s almost impossible for one to absorb the store’s enormity, especially when you consider there are 31 more locations across North America that exhibit similarly majestic wildlife displays and endless aisles of outdoor gear. As impressive as these stores are, Cabela’s typifies the American Dream: a mid-western husband and wife who started a mail-order company on their kitchen table. As a landmark to 50 years of being the “World’s Foremost Outfitter,” Cabela’s is offering 10 limited-edition firearms.

In 1961, Dick Cabela placed a small advertisement in “Sports Afield” magazine. It simply read, “5 hand-tied fishing flies ... FREE. 25 cents postage and handling.” The response was good, and that fall Dick and Mary Cabela decided to send out a three-page mimeographed catalog to their customers. That catalog contained the first gun Cabela’s ever offered for sale: a pellet rifle that cost a mere $9.95.

With a dedication to customer satisfaction, spurred by a love of fishing and hunting, Cabela’s has, indeed, become the world’s foremost outfitter. A single trip to any Cabela’s can completely outfit a hunting or fishing adventure anywhere on the planet. If you can’t make it to a store in person, you can order online, or you can still fill out an order form in the back of one of the company’s massive catalogs and mail it in like outdoorsmen have been doing for 50 years.

With the 10 guns in its 50th anniversary line, Cabela’s goal was to offer firearms representative of the time when the business was founded. Firearms include those with bluing as rich and deep as the eyes of a shipyard maiden and with real walnut stocks like those found on the firearms lusted after by sportsmen in the early 1960s. Working with Browning, Cooper, Ruger, Smith & Wesson and Winchester, Cabela’s has created a selection of elegant, limited-edition firearms with only a modicum of embellishment. They are undoubtedly collector firearms, but collector firearms that are more at home in the field than on display.

For nearly two months I have been handling and firing five of these firearms. In every case, either through the nostalgia evoked when opening each box, the craftsmanship admired during the examination of each firearm or the pleasure of their performance, each gun brought a smile of satisfaction that tugged on my purse strings.

A Half-Century of Success
When Dick Cabela purchased $45 worth of fishing flies and carried them back to his Chappell, Neb., home, it’s unlikely that he ever thought he would be celebrating 50 years of business by offering 10 classic firearms. His journey is one of the greatest examples of the American dream to which sportsmen and gun owners can deeply relate.

Why has Cabela’s been so successful, and why do American outdoorsmen support it so strongly? It’s simple, really. Fishermen and hunters were looking for a place to shop, a place to tell and hear stories, and a place that was as passionate about their pastime as they were. Initially, these sportsmen found that in a mail-order catalog, and now they find it on wondrous display all across our nation. People can feel at home, be with friends and be in the company of all the tools their hobby requires at any Cabela’s.

These 10 fine firearms mark high points in our firearm heritage and are here for us to celebrate our American ingenuity, right along with the Cabela’s family. And, it’s all because a young man decided he could bring good products to outdoorsmen at a good price.

Sometimes with the purchase of a new firearm, buyer’s remorse can set in. Sometimes the rifle, handgun or shotgun is not all you thought it would be, even when it is a custom, special or limited edition. One thing is for sure with all the Cabela’s Anniversary firearms—just as it is with every product Cabela’s sells—satisfaction is guaranteed. If you are not completely satisfied, simply return the merchandise and your money will be promptly refunded. Cabela’s commitment to that creed and the success it has brought is indeed something to celebrate.

Winchester Model 94, .38-55 Win.
Without question, the Winchester Model 94 is one of the most iconic hunting rifles of all time. The lever-action is an American firearm that symbolizes hunters, cowboys and the American pioneering spirit. Designed by John Browning, the Winchester Model 94 is likely the best-selling high-powered rifle in U.S. history. Cabela’s believed the 94 had to be one of the 10 anniversary firearms, and the company has done an excellent job of celebrating this American classic.

With its Grade III walnut stock, crescent buttplate, button magazine and 24-inch octagonal barrel, this rifle truly captures the spirit of the 94 Winchester. Chambered in .38-55 Win., it is suitable for medium to big game, especially when loaded with the potent +P ammunition from Buffalo Bore, which launches a 255-grain bullet at almost 2,000 fps. The rifle shoots as good as it looks, averaging just over an inch for 10, five-shot groups with two different loads. Cabela’s will offer only 750 of these rifles, and all have a tastefully small, gold Cabela’s logo on the receiver’s topstrap, as well as a handsome gold-wire wrap at the muzzle.

Winchester Model 70s
Another classic American hunting rifle is the pre-’64-style Model 70 Winchester. Though a bit more modern than the 94, the pre-’64 Model 70 has often been referred to as the “Rifleman’s Rifle.” Winchester helped Cabela’s bring this classic big-game rifle back in limited quantities. Three versions are available: the Sporter, the Super Grade Safari and the Featherweight Super Grade.

Cabela’s went to extensive lengths to ensure these rifles reflected the features that riflemen treasure. Every detail down to the Marble’s sights on the Sporter and Safari versions and the stock profiles and checkering patterns on all three are the same as you would find on an original. Even the hump on the barrel where the rear sight is mounted is even present. However, unlike original pre-’64 Model 70s, with the Anniversary models a stock screw is not teamed with this hump. Barrels on all Cabela’s Anniversary Model 70s are free-floated.

The Sporter model is chambered for the .300 Win. Mag. cartridge, which was first available in 1963. Only 750 of these splendid rifles will be offered, and they all feature Grade III walnut and a red Pachmayr Decelerator recoil pad. These rifles will shoot, too. The average for 75 shots—five consecutive, five-shot groups with three different loads—was only 1.45 inches.

Controlled-round feeding has long been the hallmark of the Winchester pre-’64 Model 70, and this is especially appreciated and demanded while hunting dangerous game in Africa. The Super Grade Safari Anniversary Model 70 is designed just for that purpose. Chambered for the potent .458 Win. Mag., this rifle is modeled after Winchester’s 1961 Trade Gun. Its Grade III walnut stock, ebony fore-end tip and flip-over express style rear sight culminate in a rifle ready for the Dark Continent. Only 400 will be offered.

Connoisseurs of fine sporting rifles recognize the connection between the Winchester Model 70 and the .270 Win. cartridge. Since 1925 hunters have trusted the .270 Win. for big game all over the globe, and with a supporter such as Jack O’Connor, the .270 Win. was destined for greatness. Cabela’s put the .270 Win. in its Model 70 Featherweight Super Grade rifle and did the cartridge justice. With Grade V walnut and rich bluing, this rifle will make the heart of a true rifleman skip a beat. This is a chance to own a legendary rifle for a legendary cartridge, from a legendary outfitter. Only 500 are available.