Custom Double Rifle Must Have Features? Opinions Needed

Noah Hutchens

Noah Hutchens

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Long story short I sent off my deposit on the two double rifles Mr Bailey Bradshaw is going to make for me(one for me one for my son) and I still have a few months to iron out every detail before I need to be locked in for his scheduling and material ordering sake. The more I sit and ponder the more I come up with another “oh that would be nice to add”. I am coming here to hopefully gain some insight from those who have gone through the process of getting a double rifle made with custom specs, or have a double rifle and wish they had a certain item added or different so I can make sure I don’t miss anything or don’t do something that I might regret in the future.

As of now I have the following must haves on my list:

Flip up ghost ring rear sight
Flip up forward night sight
Extended top and bottom tangs
Inletted sling swivels
Premilled rib for Talley rings
Custom fitted stock

Those are the more important/usable options I’ve thought of that aren’t the esthetic adornments he’s going to add for me.

Am I missing anything obvious one should consider on a lifetime rifle?
 
Noah Hutchens said:
Long story short I sent off my deposit on the two double rifles Mr Bailey Bradshaw is going to make for me(one for me one for my son) and I still have a few months to iron out every detail before I need to be locked in for his scheduling and material ordering sake. The more I sit and ponder the more I come up with another “oh that would be nice to add”. I am coming here to hopefully gain some insight from those who have gone through the process of getting a double rifle made with custom specs, or have a double rifle and wish they had a certain item added or different so I can make sure I don’t miss anything or don’t do something that I might regret in the future.

As of now I have the following must haves on my list:

Flip up ghost ring rear sight
Flip up forward night sight
Extended top and bottom tangs
Inletted sling swivels
Premilled rib for Talley rings
Custom fitted stock

Those are the more important/usable options I’ve thought of that aren’t the esthetic adornments he’s going to add for me.

Am I missing anything obvious one should consider on a lifetime rifle?
Click to expand...
Ejectors and make sure the weight of the gun matches the caliber meaning if it is too light for a heavy caliber it will be miserable to shoot
 
Mountaineer said:
Ejectors
Click to expand...
Good point, his design is a falling block style with a lever at the bottom to open the breech and work the extractors. It doesn’t have traditional ejectors per se, however if one were to operate the lever with force/speed it would “eject” the brass out just the same as traditional ejectors.
 
Rare Breed said:
Ejectors and make sure the weight of the gun matches the caliber meaning if it is too light for a heavy caliber it will be miserable to shoot
Click to expand...
Thank you, I have been in talks with him extensively about this, the 500 NE double is going to weigh 12 pounds or just under. Aiming for 10 pounds for the 375 Flanged. You reckon this is appropriate?
 
I also need to decide if I want to add a crossbolt in the buttstock, it’s and additional $500 to have it installed and engraved and CCH to match the rest of the rifle. I’m assuming the consensus would be that it is a worthwhile investment on the 500 NE, but how about the 375 Flanged?
 
Flip up ghost ring rear sight - I will not do it.
Flip up forward night sight - Are you planning on hunting DG at night? Maybe Hippo and plan to use iron sights?
Extended top and bottom tangs
Inletted sling swivels
Premilled rib for Talley rings - For 375 I guess? For 500 I'd rather go the custom route for a pre milled mount for your chosen red dot sight. Suggest Aimpoint P2 Accro.
Custom fitted stock
 
I’m a huge fan of ghost ring sights, I would add that to the list. The night sight is cool, but honestly in today’s world l, it’s antiquated. Especially if you are planning to mount a scope or a red dot. If you are going to shoot irons the ghost ring and a good size gold or ivory bead should suffice.
 
SStomcat said:
Flip up ghost ring rear sight - I will not do it.
Flip up forward night sight - Are you planning on hunting DG at night? Maybe Hippo and plan to use iron sights?
Extended top and bottom tangs
Inletted sling swivels
Premilled rib for Talley rings - For 375 I guess? For 500 I'd rather go the custom route for a pre milled mount for your chosen red dot sight. Suggest Aimpoint P2 Accro.
Custom fitted stock
Click to expand...
Do you have a reason on not going with a ghost ring?

Not currently planning on night/super low light hunting but I could in the future and would like the option, it’s only an $100 upgrade.

Yes, Talley rings for the 375. Good thought on the custom mount for a red dot. I currently have a trijicon mounted on my Merkel double that JJ installed so I might inquire about that.
 
Tdsmith517 said:
I’m a huge fan of ghost ring sights, I would add that to the list. The night sight is cool, but honestly in today’s world l, it’s antiquated. Especially if you are planning to mount a scope or a red dot. If you are going to shoot irons the ghost ring and a good size gold or ivory bead should suffice.
Click to expand...
He said he could either do a flip up ghost ring to complement the standard express rear sights or I could purchase a Talley peep that could fit on the receiver. I think the flip up would be a lot better so that’s what I chose. I quite love the aperture style iron sights and can shoot them a lot better than the standard V notches it seems but I’d like to have the option of the express sights just in case too, seems the best of both worlds.
 
The express sights are there for looks honestly. I have a few rifles with express sights and I use receiver mounted peeps. They are just as fast and way more accurate in my opinion.
 
Noah Hutchens said:
Do you have a reason on not going with a ghost ring?

Not currently planning on night/super low light hunting but I could in the future and would like the option, it’s only an $100 upgrade.

Yes, Talley rings for the 375. Good thought on the custom mount for a red dot. I currently have a trijicon mounted on my Merkel double that JJ installed so I might inquire about that.
Click to expand...
I'm a firm beleiver of keeping things simple, specially when it comes to big bore doubles. You have iron sights, a front sight and hopefully red dot, how many sights would you need? Secondly in a fast situations I'm not sure how much a ring sight would help...I have never used one, but have looked through a few and its not for me. Your mileage may vary.
 
What is the opinion on a leather wrapped recoil pads? Just base it on personal aesthetic preference?
 
Noah Hutchens said:
What is the opinion on a leather wrapped recoil pads? Just base it on personal aesthetic preference?
Click to expand...
Looks cool, I have seen few, they are mostly on high end British Doubles or custom guns. If I remember they were pig skin.
 
Congratulations! Tell me the secret! Two months from a fairly limited budget for a Merkel to sending deposits on 2 custom double rifles.

IMG_0171.png
 
Noah Hutchens said:
Long story short I sent off my deposit on the two double rifles Mr Bailey Bradshaw is going to make for me(one for me one for my son) and I still have a few months to iron out every detail before I need to be locked in for his scheduling and material ordering sake. The more I sit and ponder the more I come up with another “oh that would be nice to add”. I am coming here to hopefully gain some insight from those who have gone through the process of getting a double rifle made with custom specs, or have a double rifle and wish they had a certain item added or different so I can make sure I don’t miss anything or don’t do something that I might regret in the future.

As of now I have the following must haves on my list:

Flip up ghost ring rear sight
Flip up forward night sight
Extended top and bottom tangs
Inletted sling swivels
Premilled rib for Talley rings
Custom fitted stock

Those are the more important/usable options I’ve thought of that aren’t the esthetic adornments he’s going to add for me.

Am I missing anything obvious one should consider on a lifetime rifle?
Click to expand...
Two triggers ?
 
PCC600 said:
Two triggers ?
Click to expand...
Yes it has two triggers, I’m not sure the official term for it but the front trigger moves/flexes forward a little so when shooting the rear trigger it doesn’t smash your finger.
 
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