The idea of a new rifle was born in the now distant 2007, when the Merkel Jagd und Sportwaffen GmbH, a leading arms company based in Suhl, in the heart of Germany, aspired to develop a hunting rifle intended to make its mark. The 21st century rifle would have been an ergonomic and effective straight-pull gun, later called Helix.
Merkel Helix rifle series
In detail, the linear bolt-action system has a stroke that is half the length of a bolt-action one and this makes the Merkel Helix rifle extremely fast while maintaining solidity thanks to the rotating 6-lug bolt head.
Moreover, since the bolt moves inside the action, the shooter can reload while remaining in the aiming position, and since the action has a universal length, the barrel can be replaced with any of the available calibers available in the catalog. On the barrel the sights for drive hunting with high-contrast fiber optic inserts are factory standard, while the Picatinny rail is integrated into the receiver. Finally, the Helix models can be stripped down in a few simple steps and without tools.
Merkel Helix Speedster: a rifle designed to be accurate
The versions proposed over the years are many and cover a wide range of hunting styles. To these they added the Helix Speedster, a rifle designed to be accurate even on long distances with a redesigned thumbhole stock configuration: the stock "hole" is open at the top so as not to inhibit the reloading speed.
The hunter, therefore, can benefit from a solid grip and greater accuracy thanks to the straight pistol grip and the index in a perfectly parallel position with respect to the barrel, without having to renounce a smooth sliding of the thumb.
In addition, the stock is made of polymer with rubber inserts that increase the grip on both the forend and the pistol grip, while the stock geometry and stiffness, combined with the microcellular dampeners, reduce the recoil. Lastly, Merkel has further optimized the stock construction with a cheek-piece which can be adjusted in height, as well adding exchangeable buttplates that allows to “customize” the stock total length. The swivels are also functional and can be attached or removed depending on the situation.
For more information please visit Merkel website.
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