There are many less expensive rifles on the market than the Anschutz 1782 but few, if any, offer such high quality of manufacture as this prestigious German centrefire, which has features and accuracy that have to be seen to be believed.
The switch-barrel 1782 is a development of the previous 1770 and 1780, and its looks similar but has additional features.
The massive slab-sided receiver of the 1782 is machined out of chrome moly steel and blued, with short Picatinny bases machined integrally into its top.
The massive receiver has a wall thickness of 7mm, a width of 33mm across the flats and a height of 40mm.
The flat-bottomed action has a square-backed split lug protruding downward from the receiver ring which sits against a steel plate at the rear, while the front face of the receiver makes contact with a secondary lug at the front.
For maximum rigidity and precision, the 1782’s action doesn’t just lie in the stock. Rather it is attached to a massive aluminium action carrier with additional abutment, and integral magazine well which evenly supports it in the stock.
Even if the stock swells from getting wet or shrinks due to dry heat, the carrier stabilises the action and barrel and prevents them from shifting.
The rigidity of the steel receiver combined with the extra support furnished by the carrier contributes materially to the 1782’s superb accuracy.
The trigger guard is an integral part of the carrier. The paddle-like magazine release catch is located in front of the trigger guard and tensioned by a powerful spring in the rear of the magazine well which holds it back against the front of the guard. Pushing the catch forward releases the magazine to drop out into the hand.
The detachable magazine is as ruggedly constructed as the rest of the 1782. The walls are made of pressed metal and it has a polymer follower and alloy floorplate that sits almost flush with the bottom of the stock.
The action carrier is held to the stock by two screws at the rear and a single screw up front that also holds the secondary recoil lug in place.
The barrelled action is held to the carrier by a pair of captive action screws. The front screw is threaded into a steel plate held in the split recoil lug by the two set screws which retain the barrel in the receiver ring.
After I’d wound out the front screw, the barrel lifted out of the forend and it took me a while to find the rear action screw, which is accessed through a hole in the base of the magazine release catch, behind the spring.
When removing the stock, I’d recommend removing the rear screw first to prevent the barrel rising out of the forend and replacing the screws in reverse order.
The 1782’s receiver has been completely reconfigured by removing much of the top metal between the receiver ring and bridge, opening up the ejection port and allowing plenty of room to thumb a cartridge down into the magazine if necessary.
Full-diameter construction eliminates the necessity of broaching long raceway channels in the receiver, and a rounded roof combined with a longitudinal groove in the bolt body engages a rail on the left sidewall.
Operation is bolstered by having another rail on the right side to fully support the bolt and ensure it travels smoothly back and forth. Since the locking lugs don’t extend beyond the outer diameter of the bolt, three additional grooves in the bolt body seem to serve no useful purpose. When the bolt is cycled there’s not the slightest trace of any sideplay or wobble.
The hefty bolt is the same as that of the 1780, a one-diameter affair some 200mm long with a diameter of 20mm. The bolt body has four flutes on the upper half.
A multiple-lug locking system is used in an asymmetrical dual-row array which doesn’t protrude beyond the diameter of the bolt body, and it gives the 1782 a low 60 degree rotation.
The bolt face is deeply recessed and houses a plunger-type ejector at 2 o’clock directly opposite a T-shaped claw extractor carefully designed for breech integrity and set into the face of the right lug.
The bolt handle is slightly swept back and a large round knob is level with the front of the trigger. I don’t care for the way it sticks out to the side to bruise the shooter’s hip when he’s carrying the rifle on his left shoulder. I’d like to see it bent down more and sit closer to the stock.
Replacing or installing a different barrel is easy. Simply align a gas vent in the side of the chamber with a hole in the side of the receiver, whereby it is indexed by a small lug entering a transverse dovetail slot.
The face of the barrel has a short counterbore, followed by a shallow feed cone leading into the chamber. Cams milled on the locking lugs advance the bolt about 1.5mm during closing. A powerful leverage is achieved, yet, as with the Weatherby Mark V, this camming is a bit short and balking results unless the bolt is slammed forward hard.
The six lugs lock into the rear end of the barrel and the relationship between the flat-nosed bolt and the squared-off barrel face forms a very effective breeching system.
The 1782 has a one-piece firing pin with a defined stop area to prevent damage from dry firing. Its tip is quite long and needlelike but fits closely in the firing pin hole to prevent bending or jamming. Firing pin fall is short and fast — only 4.83mm.
Lifting the bolt handle cams the cocking piece into a holding notch to lock the firing pin against accidental uncocking. The 1782 has a pair of cocking cams so that the uplift of the handle — the cocking stroke — compresses the mainspring coaxially and the downstroke of the handle completes the cocking cycle.
But despite dividing up the work and friction between a pair of cocking cams, the 1782’s bolt lift is very heavy, eliminating any chance of a fast repeat shot without removing the rifle from the shoulder. This is puzzling because the 1780’s bolt handle was much easier to lift!
A sliding two-position safety lifts the firing pin when engaged and raises an integrated bolt lock which prevents the bolt handle from being raised. Operation of the 1782’s safety is easy and silent, with no metallic clicks to alert game.
The barrel has a graceful contour. It measures 30mm at the front of the receiver and tapers off gradually over the chamber before commencing a straight taper to reach 18mm at the dished muzzle. Barrels are manufactured using the same special button-rifling process Anschutz uses for their world-renowned match target barrels.
The trigger is an intricate single-stage unit attached which breaks cleanly but offers the option of being set to a two-stage let-off. The blade can be adjusted by 15mm to accommodate different hand sizes and finger lengths. Weight of pull can be adjusted between 600 and 1800 grams, but is factory set at 1200 grams. All trigger adjustments can be made through the trigger guard without removing the stock.
Some 1782s have a Germanic-type stock with hogsback comb and Bavarian-style cheekpiece, but the test rifle, the Classic model, had a nicely figured walnut stock with a high, straight comb, minimal drop at heel and a hand-filling rounded forend.
The pistol-grip is tightly curved with a palm swell on the right side. Panels of fine chequering in a borderless point pattern adorn grip and forend. The butt has no cheekpiece, is capped with a thin black WEGU recoil pad and a pair of sling swivel bases are fitted.
Overall, the 1782 is a handsome sporter that balances nicely and handles well from all field positions.
For testing, the rifle was sighted in with Federal Vital-Shok ammo loaded with the 165gn Sierra GameKing bullet at a nominal muzzle velocity of 2700fps and then checked for accuracy with both it and a variety of factory ammo and selected reloads. The accuracy results are listed in the table below.
In assessing a new rifle, there are several functional details count a great deal. Does it load and feed easily? Does the bolt cycle smoothly? If the magazine is detachable, is it easy to remove and replace? Does it hold a constant point of impact? Is accuracy consistent? The answers to all these questions is an emphatic “yes”.
ACCURACY
| Ammo | Bullet weight (gn) | Velocity (fps) | Energy (ft-lb) | Av. Group (inch) |
| Fed. American Eagle | 130 | 2945 | 2504 | .995 |
| Federal Fusion | 150 | 2880 | 2763 | .802 |
| Fed Power-Shok | 150 | 2817 | 2643 | .827 |
| Federal Gold Medal | 185 Berger | 2572 | 2718 | .680 |
As this review was uploaded there was limited stock of the 1782 in Australia. Your local gun shop can tell you which models and calibres are available.
SPECIFICATIONS
- Type: Bolt-action with dual-row 6-lug bolt
- Calibres: .243, 6.5 Creedmoor, .308 (tested), 8×57, .30-06 and 9.3×62
- Barrel length: 58cm (23”)
- Overall length: 109cm
- Weight: 3.2kg
- Magazine: Detachable box holds 4 rounds
- Trigger: Single-stage set to 1200 grams, adjustable 600-1800 grams; can be altered to two-stage
- Sights: None. Integral Picatinny rail front and rear
- Stock: American classic oil-finished, checkered walnut
- Price: From about $3800
- Distributor: NIOA
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