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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 ST-18, a great pick.
Sabatti Forest is a break-barrel Over & Under rifle. It was designed to suit the traditional European hunters and it can be used in multiple hunting conditions and environments. It has a lot to offer both in the practical and visual departments. The Forest’s oil-finished stock is made of fine walnut and is decorated with a hand-checkered pattern. The rifle has a removable forend and it ends in a traditional straight buttstock that has a rubber recoil pad to tame the heaver calibers’ kick.
Figure 1: Sabatti Forest in 12/76 – 6.5x55 SE (Source: https://www.sabatti.it/en/product/forest)
Sabatti Forest’s barrel is 600 mm (24-inch) long and has a fixed front sight and a fully foldable rear sight. It is a combination of a bottom rifled barrel and a top 12 or 20-gauge smoothbore barrel. The latter can be a great close-range backup option when the shooter finds himself in a tight spot during big game hunting. To open (or “break”) the combined barrel of the Sabatti Forest, the shooter must move an opening lever that stretches from the top of the tang towards the buttstock of the rifle. The lever is approx. 40 mm (0.16-inch) long. By opening the barrel, the shooter also cocks the rifle.
The rifle features two triggers, though, one for each barrel. The smoothbore one is triggered by the front trigger, and the rifled barrel is triggered by the rear standard trigger with a pull weight of approx. 3.2 kg (7 lbs). However, because the Sabatti Forest STE variant comes with a French set trigger for the rifled barrel, the triggers are switched on the STE. This is the only difference between the two rifles. Both variants also feature a safety catch (behind the opening lever) that prevents the rifle from firing.
The receiver of Sabatti Forest is machined from a single high-strength steel block. It features a 12 mm dovetail with a recoil notch cut into the rib that stretches over the chamber. The inevitable result of the high-quality materials used to produce the receiver is an increased rigidity of the whole rifle.
Each of the Sabatti Forest’s barrels can be chambered for one cartridge:
20/76 – .22 Hornet
20/76 – .222 Rem.
12/76 – 6.5x55 SE
12/76 – 7x57 R
12/76 – 7x65 R
11/76 – .30-06 Spring.
12/76 – .308 Win.
12/76 – 8x57 JRS
12/76 – 9.3x74 R
Sabatti Forest STE is the only Forest variant available on the market. In contrast to the standard model that has a standard trigger for the rifled barrel, the Forest STE comes with a French set trigger.
Sabatti Forest STE
Sabatti Forest features a 12 mm dovetail that allows for various scope mounting solutions. It is equipped with a recoil notch.
Figure 2: The receiver of Sabatti Forest with a visible mounting surface - 12 mm dovetail (Source: https://www.sabatti.it/en/product/forest)
The necessary condition for rifles to have one-piece scope mounts interchangeable is that the mounting surfaces of these rifles match in every dimension. Since Sabatti Forest comes with a 12 mm dovetail, most one-piece scope mounts suitable for a 12 mm dovetail will fit on the Forest, too.
Similarly, there’s also very little dilemma around the interchangeability of two-piece scope mounts. Therefore, any two-piece scope mount that fits on a 12 mm dovetail will also fit on the Sabatti Forest.
Should you have any additional information regarding possible mount matches, please contact us. We will gladly accept your help and expand our database accordingly.
MAKipp scope mounts are perfect for break-barrel rifles. They are simple to install, reliable, and recoil resistant. This, combined with a relatively affordable price, makes them one of the most suitable fixed scope mounting solutions for the Sabatti Forest. This MAKipp scope mount for a 12 mm dovetail comes with a 10-year warranty and is made of aluminum.
Order MAKipp Fixed Scope Mount for 12 mm Dovetail
When it comes to flexibility, detachable repeatable scope mounts are the way to go. Being able to easily attach and detach an optic without any tools and retaining zero at the same time can be a great advantage – an advantage that some are prepared to pay for a little bit more since repeatable scope mounts can come at a bit heftier price compared to their fixed counterparts. If this is what you’re looking for, you might want to consider this aluminum INNOmount scope mounting solution of German quality for your Sabatti Forest.
Check out INNOmount for 12 mm Dovetail
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.
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