Sako TRG 22/42

The History of Sako

Sako (Suojeluskuntain Ase- ja Konepaja Oy) is rifle and ammunition manufacturer located in Riihimäki, Finland. It was founded in 1921, after the rifle repair workshop, opened in former Helsinki brewery, became independent of the civil guard. The workshop grew into a weapons factory, which produced hunting rifles as well as cartridges and moved its headquarters from Helsinki to Riihimäki. The first civilian rifle bearing the name Sako, was the L42, prototyped in 1942 and commercially manufactured a few years later.

After the World War II, domestic hunting culture thrived and Sako invested in development of hunting rifles. Due to this investment, domestic sales increased along with export to the USA and the rest of the world. In the 1980s, Sako merged with another firearm manufacturer, Tikkakoski and gained a valuable rifle line called Tikka. The production of military and law enforcement weapons started when Finnish defence forces ordered assault rifles and cartridges from Sako.

The company has changed multiple owners since 1921, but has ultimately been sold to Italian Beretta Holding in 2000. In 2006, Sako celebrated its 85th anniversary by launching a new hunting rifle family, Sako 85. In 2020, Sako introduced S20, the first truly hybrid rifle, designed for both; hunters and tactical shooters. Another novelty presented by Sako in 2020 was a brand new, lead-free Sako Powerhead bullet.

Sako TRG 22/42 Rifle Review

Sako TRG is one of the global icons in the precision shooting world. It has been in production for a long time already, serving as a crown jewel for the company. Sako has produced TRG-21 and TRG-41 from 1989 to 1999 and then replaced them with TRG-22 and TRG-42, which are still being produced. They added A1 and M10 models to their inventory in the 21st century.

TRG-22 is one of the best-known Finnish precision rifles, while TRG-42 is its Magnum version. Many countries, especially European, purchased TRG-42 rifles, while a few other countries opted for the lower-calibre TRG-22 rifles and both rifles serve the governments of several nations as their primary sniper rifle. The stock is fully adjustable and reinforced with high-tech aluminium and the bolt is at a 60° angle for fast bolt throw.

The TRG-42 is a rifle for serious long-range competitions and can be equipped with a vast array of accessories to meet the most demanding requirements. TRG-42 has double plungers for more effective cartridge ejection since 2013. The receiver is stabilized with 3 fastening screws, while the receiver includes 16.5mm (some may say 17mm) dovetail, which also includes 6 mounting holes for mounting purpose, 3 at the front and 3 at the back. This mounting surface is the same as the one on Sako TRG 21/41. This means, Sako kept this part of the rifle the same on TRG 21, 41, 22 and 42 rifles, so the mounts that fits one of these rifles will fit the other 3 as well. Another Finnish rifle with very similar receiver mounting surface is Tikka T3, which also has 16.5mm dovetail, so many mounts from aforementioned rifles fit T3 and vice versa. Despite the similar receiver mounting surface, Tikka T3 is mostly equipped with hunting mounts, while the TRG 22/42 is equipped almost exclusively with tactical mounts – picatinny rails and monoblock mounts.

Sako TRG 22, chambered for .308 Win.

Figure 1: Sako TRG 22, chambered for .308 Win. (Source: https://www.scopelist.com/sako-trg-22-308-green-fixed-stock-phosphate-metal-finish-jrsw716.aspx)

Sako TRG 22/42 Calibers

TRG-22 is chambered for:

6.5mm Creedmoor
.260 Rem.
.308 Win.

TRG-42 is chambered for:

.300 Win. Mag.
.338 Lapua Mag.

Sako TRG 22, chambered for .308 Win.

Figure 2: Sako TRG 22 receiver, chambered for .308 Win. (Source: https://www.collectorsfirearms.com/products/147156-sako-trg-22-308-win-r28641.html)

Scope Mounts Interchangeable With Sako TRG 22/42

Even though Sako’s traditional mounting system is tapered dovetail, they chose 16.5mm dovetail mounting system for their TRG 21 and TRG 41, which stayed the same through the years, so the successors of 21/41 - Sako TRG 22 and TRG 42 inherited this same mounting system, along with Tikka T3 and some of the Tikka rifles that came before the T3. Therefore the mounts for all these rifles can contain either “TRG”, “21/41”, “22/42” or “Tikka T3” in their names and they will still fit all of them.

Best Scope Mounts for Sako TRG 22/42

Picatinny Rails for Sako TRG 22/42:

For mounting a Picatinny rail, we can make use of the 6 holes placed in the dovetail. With the help of these holes, we can install a Picatinny rail on top of the dovetail and then install any mount that fits the Picatinny.

Detachable Repeatable Mounts for Sako TRG 22/42:

If you would like to have repeatable mounts, we advise you to mount Picatinny rail on the receiver and then repeatable monoblock on top of this Picatinny rail. For repeatable monoblock we would advise you to go with Spuhr QD.

Help Us Build Our Riflescope Mounts Database

If you have this rifle or any other rifle at home, we would really appreciate it if you could send us some photos of the rifle receiver (mounting surface of the rifle when there are no mounts installed), because it would help us expand our rifle mounts database. If you send us a photo of rifle receiver which we don’t already have, that would be of great value to us and we will definitely reward you for your help.

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