La Sabatti with the presentation of the rifle called Nuova Rover he inaugurated the premises of Sarezzo chosen as the Exhibition Hall: the speech of Eng. Emanuele Sabatti was, as always, very detailed and of strong interest for the present public. The new rifle starts from the company consideration of forming a team to entrust the ideas, studies and consequent confrontation to several elements in order to reach a weighted final decision. The commercial success carried out by the rifled barrel sector has required the distribution of some positions of high responsibility to several people, some already in the company, others recently entered with specific tasks, adequate for the extension of the work. In the technical production sector, the people already close to Eng. Sabatti take on a different autonomy, in the sector of image and relationship with a certain clientele, Mrs. Cristina Abbiatico will control the Exhibition Hall, which now goes under the English-speaking name of Show Room to which the Custom Shop is added, that area where customers with particular needs they can contact to optimize their weapon; later an Academy will also be launched in which to carry out educational and promotional activities.
In a nutshell we have summarized the updating of Sabatti's operational future: as always, Gardone's style, or rather Inzino's, is based on very clear concepts, expressed in concise terms, but full of technical and operational innovations. To start the specific discussion on the new rifle, we cannot leave out the green wave, or green if you prefer, which here is not a way of saying, but a concrete way of doing: given that the company had come to redo the roof here is the roof with photovoltaic panels that allows a conspicuous energy saving from the usual sources, passing to solar ones. Since one thing is being implemented here and another is already being thought of, the immediate future sees the expansion of this plant to another corporate body to almost completely achieve self-sufficiency in terms of used and self-produced kilowatt hours. Here, too, verbal expressions contained at a minimum, however, accompanied by operational realities ready for use.

The objectives of the New Rover

In today's proposal remains the name that about forty years ago brought Sabatti into the world of rifles with sliding swivel action, four decades in which the basic technical base remained the same, demonstrating the goodness of the initial project.
Today the customer's needs have changed and through technology and metallurgy an innovative product is offered, not only in step with the times, but also a little further ahead. The two fundamental characteristics taken for granted are: precision and lightness. For the first we can start with the drilling of the barrel, the most evident element, and the company has always been autonomous in this delicate operation since the start of the sector by buying the first rotary hammer, obviously replaced over time and always updated to obtain yields better. However, precision and therefore the performance of the barrel starts a little further back, therefore from the castle: the traditional Rover element in steel, made of precision casting, is abandoned precisely for the reason of the overall lightness. The new component is obtained from an extruded aluminum alloy, the Ergal 7075 worked on numerically controlled machines where the constancy of precision is absolute: to facilitate the assembly of the optical pointing systems on the ring and bridge, the integral bases type Picatinny. Here a fundamental element comes into play consisting of a sturdy perforated cylinder, inserted in the ring of the castle. The fixing is done with two Allen screws which cross the lower extension of the ring which acts as a force discharge prism. The system allows the barrel to be changed without having to intervene to adjust the headspace. Metallurgy and its knowledge go hand in hand with the choice of the best components: savings can be made perhaps in other points, but not on materials, especially those relating to the safety and performance of the weapon.



The combination of steel and Ergal requires particular attention and the manufacturer has already shown that they master the situations with the Saphira rifle and very recently with the SKL 20 kipplauf: the different degrees of resistance to wear, from rubbing or percussion, require some precautions to which is added the reaction of the critical point, here represented by the cylinder inserted in the ring, in case of emergency. It is easy to understand how everything has been designed with guarantee sizing, but certain decisions are made by thinking about some recklessness of the shooter. The treatment of this particular on which the energy is discharged from the shot takes into account one factor: maximum hardness is certainly a good solution, but with the critical factor of fragmentation under "a load of 11" (as Montalbano would say). At this point the complex jumps and the shooter is at great risk. A particular heat treatment, of which Sabatti masters the executive process, makes the external part extremely hard while retaining, at the same time, the internal one a toughness capable of absorbing energy undergoing dimensional variations, but without ever shattering. The shooter will therefore be able to observe the trouble he has produced without suffering consequences which, to get to the point, can be lethal. Proceeding with the novelties, the shutter presents the three tenons at the head, obtained from the main section and with the mortises made in the cylinder just described above; in the right flap there is the interlocking seat for the extraction nail which therefore works with orthogonal linear motion for greater guarantee of grip on the groove of the case. The handlebar is stuck in the cylinder and the firing pin acts as a locking device for the particular. A classic rocker lever on the left side of the castle allows the bolt to be removed while on the right the button of the two-position safety protrudes, with total locking of cocking, trigger and firing pin. One to three positions will be desirable.

Several details
There are ten preparations proposed for the New Rover, and others will soon be added. The barrel length varies, again according to the models, from 41 to 61 cm and the stocks are made of wood, wood with a “soft touch” surface finish or special synthetic. Meanwhile, we see the variable accessories such as the metal sights, for the models where they are provided, the "sport" knob on the handlebar, the cheek rest of different height to optimize the posture of the eye in relation to the optics, and the butt pad spacer for the right size from the trigger. Three models for magazines aimed at shapes and capacities, from 3 to 7 shots, according to the type and therefore the use of the shotgun. Five more models for the muzzle brake, also designed for different types of speargun, with the Small Jet Brake model patented thanks to some particular design features: dimensions and weight are minimized while improving performance. Lastly, to better underline it, the trigger group that is proposed either with French stecher or in the 3-lever Match Type: we are lovers of steckers, but Sabatti's direct releases are really at the highest level. At the moment there is already an appreciable variety of calibers: .223 Rem. - .243 Win. - .270 Win. - 6,5 × 47 Lapua - 6,5 × 55 SE - 6,5 Creedmoor, .30-06 Sprg. - .308 Win. - 7 Rem. Mag. - .300 Win. Mag. Others will follow as well as a reduced measure of action for small cartridges is expected.
To conclude: the prices to the public, including VAT, range from € 930,00 for the Rover Hunter model to € 1.530,00 for the Rover Scout while the empty weights range from 2.800 to 3.300 grams.


The very first tests that we have already conducted in a day of intense rain, more suitable for spearguns than for these, with a New Rover Mod. Hunter have shown a remarkable adaptability to different loads, original and otherwise, with traditional bullets and with MRR which we will talk about more extensively on another occasion anticipating that a company was created between Sabatti and another figure in the sector, a start-up as they are designated today, precisely for the production of such bullets which, we recall, are turned one by one from bars pure copper. A remarkable expansion of the industrial interests of the Inzino company.

