I've got three of them - baikals, that is. One is new - same thing as are on the market today. What can I say? It works, never failed (double trigger non-ejector - what's there to fail?), it's strong, patterns great. But it doesn't feel like a sbs ought to. In fact, it feels like a log. Even Benelly semis balance better.

Now, the old ones (1958 and 196something) - they're OK, they feel like doubles, a bit too much wight-forward, but a definitly sbs feel. And the quality is much better. So, while Baikals are quite good value as compared to other brand-new offerings, the feel is all there is about a sbs. So I'm with danross70 - older is better.