He removed lots of metal from the action under the rails, but left everything above them essentially alone. Physically, the frontal area, sectional density, and velocity of a 400- to 410-grain bullet presents the best overall combination of any other bullet from .375 and larger. The Rigby name was always identified with the finest quality in firearms, and as the 19th century came to a close, firearm technology was skyrocketing. Rigbys cartridge turned out to be slightly rebated-rim case, 2.900" long, .589" in diameter at its base tapering to .540" at the shoulder with a bullet diameter of .416". However, the Rigby case is much fatter. However, because increased diameter results in exponentially increased surface area, the larger the frontal area, the more resistance the bullet encounters and the less likely it is to penetrate adequately. It was recontoured at the pistol grip area into a much trimmer configuration than Winchester had put onto it. Top velocities can be achieved with Alliant 2000-MR powder. Plus, even though it burns considerably more gunpowder to achieve the same velocity as its more modern siblings- and theoretically generates more foot-pounds of recoil on paper- low pressures make for a long, rolling recoil impulse that is almost comfortable. Also, the workmanship on his rifles was as good as it gets. As cordite was susceptible to high chamber-pressure variations dependent on ambient temperature, the relatively moderate pressure loading of the .416 Rigby provided a safety margin against dangerously high pressure levels when used in tropical regions. Assuming your rifle shoots it well- and you're rifleman enough to place your shots precisely- I wouldn't hesitate to use it out to 400 yards or so on moose and the biggest antelope species. Today, in an echo of halcyon days before the Great War, we have resumed this arrangement with Mauser for our new range of Big Game rifles, making aspirational but affordable rifles for use around the world. There were no large-caliber cartridges for bolt-action rifles. .416 Ruger Last year I had the opportunity to travel to Mozambique and hunt Cape buffalo with Zambeze Delta Safaris. Muzzle energy is almost 5,200 ft-lbs, and even roundnose solids or softpoints carry almost 4,000 ft-lbs at 100 yards. Detractors correctly counter that the .416 Ruger barely achieves on-par performance with special gunpowders available only to ammo manufacturers, and that handloaders struggle to match factory ballistics with even rigorously charged home-brewed ammo. Everything about the rifle was altered in some manner, except for the Browning-engraved, hinged aluminum floorplate. More importantly, 8mm Rem. Westley Richards developed a .425 Westley Richards launching a 410-grain bullet at 2,350 f.p.s. The cost of a rifle from a custom maker will probably run well into four figures. The Lapua uses a modified .416 case shortened and necked down to accept a 8.59-millimetre (0.338in) bullet. As a Parent Cartridge It will also work perfectly on moose, elk, and deer, with suitable loads. How durable it will be by comparison remains to be seen, and well tell you about it in, oh, 50 years or so. 5 receiver. The original ammunition for the .416 Rigby used cordite as a propellant, firing a full metal jacket or soft-point round nose bullet weighing 27g (410gr) at 700m/s (2,300ft/s) generating 6,375J (4,702ftlbf) . 416 Rigby, (2) .416 Remington Magnum, (3) .416 Hoffman, (4) .416 Ruger and (5) .416 Taylor. The .416 Rigby excels when hunting really big species of dangerous game. Both the new cartridges will perform on par with their venerable counterparts, it's they don't do it with class or tradition, which is important to me. Internal case capacity is about five percent less than that of the .416 Rem. Our test .416 Taylor came with a dovetail-slotted rear sight base, and there was also a two-leaf rear sight to fit the slot, but we never installed it. In African nations which have enforced a ban on the use of sub 10.2mm (0.400in) rifle cartridge for dangerous game, the .416 Rigby can be considered for the hunting of lion or leopard. London . The .378 Weatherby Magnum case is essentially a belted version of the .416 Rigby case necked down to .375. We would have to recommend, Dont Buy It. Accurate, finely put together, easy to look at, smooth, and reliable. An engraver could install one easily enough. Coogan, Joe (October 2002). RCBS stocks more-or-less standard dies for the Taylor, and bullets are easy and greatly varied. Aside from custom gunsmiths, only Ruger builds rifles, and only Hornady manufactures ammunition. It is virtually identical to the .450 Rigby which it predates by a few years. This action, like all pre-64s, was controlled feed. We tried to get it to drop by banging the bolt closed, but it held. We all felt this fine rifle needed more weight if it were to be shot as much as it deserved to be shot, but as it was, wed have to say that it now sets our all-time standard for portable power. 2023 Outdoor Sportsman Group. The metal was removed to get the lower (right-side) cartridge wider within the magazine so it wouldnt force the upper one out past the rail. Heres what we found: Ruger Mark II Magnum .416 RigbyOur recommendation: We gave the classic-looking $1,550 Ruger a very strong Buy It rating. Aerodynamics play little part in the design of such projectiles. A scope would have probably reduced those, so by any measure, the Ruger shot extremely well. Caliber: .380 Auto Grains: 95 Number of Rounds: 50 $ 23.39. But for serious work on dangerous game, the .416 Rigby remains in a class by itself. Nominally based on the .375 H&H, the cases feature an "improved" shape with blown-out walls and a steeper shoulder. While superbly built rifles by Rigby and similar premium companies still manage to be sleek, well balanced, and of not-burdensome weight, most affordable .416 Rigby rifles have a slightly fencepost-like feel when compared to .416 rifles using sleeker cases and built on standard-size actions. Those numbers are just astonishing. of energy. OConnor was a gifted wordsmith and shared compelling stories of adventure with his rifles around the world. Such uber-mags like the .300 and .338 Lapua cartridges are based on the .416 Rigby case, as are the .450 Dakota, .450 Rigby and .500 Whisper. We could find absolutely nothing wrong with the Dakota. The Ruger fed and fired perfectly, but all who tried it wanted a better trigger pull. The wood was adequate in figure and excellent in grain. The cartridge was designed as an improvement to the .50 BMG cartridge, a common machine gun and rifle cartridge. You are using an out of date browser. Mag. The cartridge holds the same excellent reputation today, but not a whole lot of rifles that can handle it are available. Professional hunters such as John Taylor, David Enderly Blunt and Harry Selby used the cartridge extensively for the hunting and culling of elephants and Cape buffalo. In his The Rifle Booka must-have tome for any serious student of the hunting rifleOConnor said, [The .416] is an outstanding cartridgedrives a 410-grain bullet, according to claims, at a velocity of 2,371 and turns up 5,100 ft.-lbs. with 4,500 ft.-lbs. Mag. The accuracy was as good as the Rugers, and we got 2-inch groups with a variety of our ammunition. The caliber is obviously effective far beyond 100, but from what I've read, a PH will try to get you that close or closer. The rifle design would go on to become the most common and successful rifle design in the history of firearms. Two stainless cross bolts were hidden within the wood, one near the trigger and one behind the main recoil lug. -Velo Dog. Use hard-cupped primers, such as those by Winchester and CCI, paired with medium-slow burn rate powders, such as H4831, Reloder 22, and IMR 7828. If you start sending 400-grain bullets downrange at a scorching velocity, your enjoyment of . The .416 Weatherby Magnum, which uses a case of similar size as the Rigby, is capable of launching the same bullet at 820m/s (2,700ft/s). The bolt had a protrusion on its side that aided smoothness. 416 Rigby The .416 Rigby was the first cartridge to utilize bullets in the .416 caliber and is a classic dangerous game cartridge. Now adding a muzzle brake creates an issue of noise. However, unless you absolutely have to have a custom .416 Rigby, wed pass on this idea. and churning up some 4,700 to 5,100 ft.-lbs. If you can make do without a classic .416 Rigby and all its nostalgia, the Taylor might just be for you. On the other end of the stick, Barnes's 350-grain TSX, Swift's 350-grain A-Frame, and Cutting Edge's 350-grain MTH can be driven to 2,600 fps or a bit more and offer legitimate 250-yard usefulness on hooved game and the biggest bears. Rigbys magnum magazine rifle was an instant success, though the raw numbers made it seem paltry. The burn rate of Cordite was modified by the surface area early on. The .416 Rigby's dimensions and specifications are governed by C.I.P. The .416 Rigby was introduced as a proprietary cartridge in 1911 by the John Rigby firm for use in the Company's bolt action safari rifles, which were built on Magnum Mauser actions. And if you're dead on at 50, you will be near enough at 100 that you won't have to adjust at all. To see what gun in this class can do, we gathered a production Ruger and a custom FN Browning in .416 Rigby, and a .416 Taylor built on a pre-64 Winchester Model 70 action, and shot them side by side. This load is perfect for North American and African plains applications. AIR RIFLES; 177; 20; 22; 25; 30; 45; DOUBLE RIFLES; 9, 3x74R; 45-70 Gov; . Some 23 years later, Rigbys facility was raided by Town-Major Henry Sirr and police force. Mag.- and burning a blended, proprietary propellant. The .450 Dakota was designed by Don Allen of Dakota Arms. bullets. Besides the recoil, cartridges are more than $5 per round. Mag. The rifles, as built by John Rigby & Co., were initially made up on the Magnum Mauser 98 action (a derivative of the Gewehr 98 bolt-action rifle), although in later years, some were made on standard length actions, a perfect example being the rifle used by legendary professional hunter Harry Selby. 6.5 Creedmoor vs. 6.5 PRC: Which is Better? The .404 Jeffery needed a Magnum Mauser action to accommodate its overall length. To get started, click the link below to visit mymagnow.com and learn how to access your digital magazine. [5] The large bolt face and the length of the Magnum Mauser 98 No. This was a custom rifle for those who traveled the world in search of big game, so rifle and cartridge were proprietary. Available in .375 H&H, .404 Jeffery, .416 Remington, .416 Rigby, .450 Rigby, .458 Winchester Magnum, .458 Lott, and a variety of other dinosaur killing cartridges, this rifle is built to your exact specifications. We think you could get a .416 Taylor for about $500-$650 with loading dies, if you shop around. The front sight base was also sweated to the barrel. A 400-grain .416 at 2,400 fps will generally out-penetrate, say, a 500-grain .475 bullet at 2,150 fps. I also solved the problem by buying one of each. Custom Mossberg 500 at the Range and Live Turkey!. Too, the idea caught on among some that a magazine rifle could hold more cartridges and therefore be rather valuable when things went sideways with an animal that can bite, claw or stomp a hunter, as well as his entourage, in the event of a poorly placed shot. Forward was fire, and the middle position permitted the bolt but not the trigger to move. So the .416 Taylor can drive a 340gn Woodleigh PPSN bullet with a ballistic coefficient of .330 at a healthy 2,500fps or more, making it able to be zeroed at 200 yards and used reliably out to around 300 yards. Weatherbys .30-378, .338-378, .378, .416 and the .460 Weatherby Magnums may have a beltalmost a trademark of Weatherby cartridgesbut dimensionally each can be traced back the Rigbys original case. We show you how. Shooting 223 ammo through a firearm chambered in 5.56 is safe, but not always optimal. Bob my friend from Sydney went to Safari firearms yesterday to pick up some stuff & looked at the Marlin 35 REM for me, they want $1900 for it with a tasco scope, & $1600 with out scope i think its a $900 rifle at the most thank you for the lead but i will not pay that much. It looked appropriate and did its job well. Art I did all at 100 yards and it has worked out fine! 's unprecedented performance, Remington engineers started with 8mm Rem. . The cartridge is capable of producing over 5,400J (4,000ftlbf) of energy at a range of 100m (110yd). Compared to the classic .416 Rigby, it's still a young cartridge, but it has already displaced the .458 Win. We didnt entirely like the three-position safety, in that it was difficult to find it when it was fully on. versus 104 grs. Out of stock. With its admirable sectional density of .330, a 400-grain bullet driven at 2,200 fps is still big medicine capable of cleanly and efficiently dropping any buffalo or elephant that roams the veldt. Next. The first was the development of cordite in the UK in 1889 and second the development of the Magnum Mauser 98 action based on the Gewehr 98 bolt-action magazine rifle which was designed in Germany. At first glance, a brawny, classic African express rifle emanates an aura of power and old-time African adventure. The scope was set far enough forward that we thought it would be safe to fire this rather light rifle without fear of imbedding the scope into our skulls. Mag. Woodleigh's 450-grain solids and softnose bullets can't be pushed quite as fast- 2,300 fps is about the limit- but they have a high sectional density of .371. Modern .416 Rigby factory ammo by Barnes, Federal, Hornady, HSM, Norma, Nosler, Swift, and Winchester all push a 400-grain bullet at or slightly in excess of 2,400 fps. As a result, the .416 Rem. Pressing onward with our test session, we got a best group at 100 yards of 2.5 inches for five shots, more than good enough for any hunting we might do. Due to the slow burn characteristics of black powder, it did not produce high pressures and therefore did not produce high velocities required to take large, thick-skinned game such as Cape buffalo, rhino, and elephant. It appeared to be sawn with the grain in the most favorable direction through the pistol grip and into the forend to give the best strength. The Taylor has a lot going for it. Rifle actions appropriate for this relatively compact .416 are shorter than those for the Rigby and Rem. Based on the .458-length belted case, it slings a 400-grain bullet about 200 fps slower than the .416 Rigby. 50 yards. All Shooting Times subscribers now have digital access to their magazine content. The bolt came out of the rifle by depressing a button on the left side of the shroud, standard Browning treatment to the FN action. MFG #: 7001-416. The .416 Weatherby Magnum is by far the fastest, a 400-grain bullet loaded to the gills at 2,700 feet per second, yielding nearly 6500 foot-pounds of energy. The .338 Lapua Magnum cartridge is a redesign by Lapua of a prior designed by Research Armament Industries (RAI) and Brass Extrusion Labs Ltd. (BELL) known as the .338/416. Wink. Reloading Data Rangemaster; . I have no intentions or thoughts of using it for any other type of game. The .416 Rigby cartridge case is one of the most voluminous case and was originally designed to utilize cordite strands as a propellant. Want even more speed? The forend was checkered completely around in an English-style point pattern, and the pistol grip had a large panel of checkering on each side. This included hidden cross bolts embedded in Brownells Steel Bed, and relief between stock and metal where recoil could drive the steel as a wedge into the wood. We ran new .458 cases through the sizing die, trimmed them to uniform length, and had .416 Taylor cases.