Classic stalking rifles - today

pc3 said:

What would Rigby charge to order the Highland stalker barreled action in .275 and make one change, a stock in the traditional stalking format like they have on their London Best I wonder ?

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RIGBY said:

I would encourage you to reach out to Slade in London with your request: slade@johnrigbyandco.com

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woodsrunner said:

How about a 96 Mauser from Husqvarna? I just re-finished one in 9.3x57 (a stalking rifle for woods in this calibre, not longer ranges, pic attached from prior to final buffing-out hence the glassiness.) The hardware aside from the smaller profile receiver ring, from trigger guard to thumbnotch, bolt-release, barrel-band swivel, bottom plate, striker, controlled-round-feed - it's virtually indistinguishable from a vintage .275 Rigby of Corbett's days. With the minor reshaping of the stock, this one's the most streamlined bolt action rifle i could imagine, it's as much like carrying a nicely balanced spear as carrying a rifle. Haven't weighed it, but the heft is negligible. The cock-on-close bolt takes a bit of getting used to but in fast cycling is not noticeable. The accuracy of this thing truly surprised me, shoots very well. You can pick these things up for a song. Lack of checkering on foreend is odd, but one can remedy that. Never going to be my go-to, but i look forward to doing some still-hunting in the big woods with it this fall. As an aside, Kimber bought up a bunch of these actions back when and released them as the Kimber 96 chambered up to .308 Win. I'm curious what the 9.3x57 is capable of loaded with modern bullets like the 286 grain cup nose solids from North Fork. Scandinavians used it (still do?) for their version of the grizzly and for moose.

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JPbowhunter said:

I’m not opposed to them, although I believe they do not come in 7x57 as a factory option.

I also am used to the cock in closing actions with my Lee Speed. I can’t say I really have a preference to cock on open or close.

Your rifle is beautiful by the way sir!

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JPbowhunter said:

If you wanted a true classic stalking rifle in a standard calibre like 7x57 of days gone by where would you turn today?
This is my current dilemma and there doesn’t seem to be many modern options.

For those of us that appreciate iron sight and off hand shooting a light, slim stocked rifle with some drop at the heel of the stock makes for a much nicer and more comfortable weapon.

Having the option for QR systems is also great allowing me to bush stalk for shots up to 150m with my irons and chuck on a scope for mountain or plains hunting where shots extend further.

What are the real options for a rifle such as this these days? Particularly if you want to keep it under $10k.

I can only really think of some heym sr21 models, Steyr MS12 or to just look backward to a Mannlicher schoenauer, early Mauser 98, Brno 21 or zg47 etc.

I am a little bit of a stickler for top loading, not essential but I prefer it, that’s one of the only knocks against heym I can think of.

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Ronald Wharton (from Rigby's) | Charles Lancaster Gunmakers

A short biography of Ronald Wharton (from Rigby's), the master rifle maker behind the brand bearing his name, and later behind David Lloyd Rifles and Charles Lancaster Gunmakers.

www.clguns.com

Hedge774 said:

Yes Sir. I do agree. I thought long and hard on a custom stalking rifle, but nothing was really in my budget. Not long after, my LGS buddy said, "Hey, we've just gotten something in I think you'd be interested in. It's a Lipseys No.1 in 275 Rigby." I thought, "There is your stalking rifle." It's light, handy, and more accurate than it's owner. With it's 2-7 Leupold, it has enough reach for the majority of.my shots. It will be on the Delta 200 flight with me in August for Mt. Reedbok, Steenbuck, Springbok, and maybe a nice warthog if he's at home. Bespoke? Nope. But most of my buddies say, "Man. That's fancy."

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Rigby375 said:

Schulz and Larsen rifles have been mentioned on this thread already but I’ll add my recommendation as a new, off-the-shelf option if available in your local market.

S&L are renowned for their barrels (they cut the rifling rather than button drawing or hammer forging so stress is kept to a minimum) but the actions are the smoothest I’ve ever handled straight out of the box.

I’ve just bought a Victory model in 6.5x55 SE and can’t fault it so far. I was able to upgrade the wood and add a silvers-style recoil pad all for considerably less than AU$10k.

On its first range trip over the weekend, my bore-sighted rifle put two rounds 4cm high at 100m after which I adjusted the elevation on the scope and fired the third round from the magazine dead on. The next 3 round group was as below.

The downsides as I see them are: single-stack 3 round magazine as standard (5 round option available direct from the manufacturer) whereas I much prefer the flush, double stack magazine on my Sako 85 but I’ll live with it; and the standard barrel comes threaded for a moderator (again, unthreaded barrels available from the manufacturer but I’m not sure iron sights are offered - that being said, I’m sure you could have an aftermarket set added by a gunsmith and still have change for your AU$10k)

The Victory is a switch barrel model so offers the versatility of changing from 22-250 to 9.3x62 on the same bolt; switching to a magnum bolt covers up to .458 Win Mag (although I suspect the resulting rifle will be a little on the light side for anything with recoil that robust!)

They’re also available in true left handed variants and with a variety of barrel options (profile, twist rate and fluting).
Reading your range report makes me miss my old Sako something fierce because that feeling of a rifle stacking rounds right out of the gate is hard to beat and it tells you the barrel and bedding are doing their job while the shooter just stays out of the way. I have spent years chasing that same accuracy in the airgun world and eventually realized that a good pcp air rifle can teach you wind calls and trigger discipline for pennies a shot compared to centerfire ammo, which is why I keep a couple around for practice between hunts. The S&L Victory sounds like a genuine winner for the money and the switch barrel feature alone justifies the price if you like owning one rifle that does three jobs, though I would test a magnum bolt before committing because lightweight stocks and hard recoil rarely make friends. The single stack magazine would bug me too after getting used to flush fit, but honestly a three round mag keeps the belly slim for carrying and you can always order the five rounder later. What matters most is that first trip where everything clicked and you walked away knowing the rifle is better than you are, because that is the sweet spot where practice actually pays off.
It’s early days but I think it’s a lot of rifle for the money.

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bluefish said:

Would someone post pics for me? Perhaps PM email addy?

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bluefish said:

Got it. Here are two before stain. I can see about some others.

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