Semantics aside, when someone says "integral scope bases" I am thinking Sako, BRNO, CZ, or even square bridge Mauser, the last of which clearly pre-dates the Newton.

I, too, am curious about the Newton blow-up. I wonder if it was a case of trying to use the wrong cartridge in the rifle. This was the cause of a number of Springfield blow-ups, when 8X57 rounds were fired in the .30-'06 chamber. Both the bolt and receiver of the Newton were of a chrome vanadium alloy "capable of yielding a better combination of strength and ductility than the more commonly used carbon and low alloy steels."(Stuart Otteson, in his authoritative work, "The Bolt Action" Volume II)

Otteson describes the Newton action as combining "the strength of the Ross bolt head--seven lugs of basic buttress thread form--with Mauser's one piece bolt, ending up with one of the strongest and most certain locking systems ever devised for a high-power rifle."

No offence, and I agree about "the sincerest form of flattery", which, in this case, was the Winchester Model 70, which adopted the Newton angled ejector, the low scope safety, the low scope bolt handle, and the floorplate latch.

One area the Newton design falls down in is the bolt stop, which relies on a fragile pin to withstand the force of vigorous bolt manipulation. This pin, which is not even heat treated, bends easily and puts the bolt stop out of operation, making it impossible to remove the bolt for cleaning. Fortunately, the takedown feature of the Newton makes a repair easy, and replacing the pin with the shank of an appropriately sized drill bit solves the problem.

I bought my first Newton, a .30-'06, in the 70's. The barrel appeared to be a Springfield barrel which had been used to replace the original Newton, so I went to the trouble to have a reamer made for the .256 Newton cartridge and replaced the .30-'06 barrel with one in that caliber. It was fitted with a Zeiss Zielklein scope in a Redfield Senior mount, and that is the way I have left it. As a .256 Newton (cases made from .270 Winchester brass), it is accurate and deadly.

Since then I have acquired other Newtons, .256's, another .30-'06 and a .30 Newton, and most recently my prized 1922 Newton Mauser, rebarrelled by Niedner in .270, argueably a cartridge derivative of the .256 Newton. http://forums.nitroexpress.com/showflat....true#Post156312

I have never owned a Buffalo Newton, although I have worked with one owned by a friend.