308 Highland Stalker

[Dakota Hunter]

Would you buy a Rigby Highland Stalker in 308 if it was one of your favorite calibers or get a 275 Rigby ?

 

[forshoes]

275 Rigby all day long

 

[RR 314]

If you are going to keep it, and hunt with it, get what you like! If you get 20 or 30 years of hunting out of it, who cares what resale value is? Resale will be less than the .275, but again, if .308 is your pet caliber, by all means roll with it.

 

[Hedge774]

I agree with @RR 314

 

[JPbowhunter]

As a HS owner I can say that some of the gloss wears off after a while and it becomes a tool (a beautiful one no doubt). I recommend getting the calibre that you prefer. For me, of those options it would be the 275, although I own a 9.3x62 and love it.

 

[Velo Dog]

Count me in as one of the numerous Elmer Fudd types in this forum that favor the 7x57.
I like it very much, be it in the superb Rigby Highland Stalker or some lesser rifle, it is one of my favorites, globally.

However, if I liked the .308 more than the 7x57 and could afford the Rigby, I’d go ahead and get one in .308 or, whatever cartridge I favored over all the rest.

 

[Andrew62]

I'd buy the caliber that I preferred!

 

[farmer_john]

Would you buy a Rigby Highland Stalker in 308 if it was one of your favorite calibers or get a 275 Rigby ?

While i would lean towards 275 as a classic round.

Id say whatever caliber you will use the most. If 308 is your absolute fav then a similar caliber in 7mm isnt going to do alot different. Other than collect dust.

But then im not a fan of collecting things. Id suggest finding someone with a 7mm mauser/275 rigby and shoot it and see how you like it. Realistically they will both get the job done. Pick what you like best.

If i got one it woukd be 3006 becsuse its my go to caliber and id retire my 700 to a training rifle.

 

[pc3]

I have been going through a similar dilemma (mentally). Currently I have a deposit on HS 30/06 and a deposit/hold on .375 H&H with a nice stock.

I will also purchase a .416...its my favourite caliber so this is a given. I will help finance this by selling off a few guns etc.

I am a sucker for nostalgia....so the dilemma is the 30/06 was at a fair price, BUT my heart says .275. I also have a .308 on a surgeon action, manners stock that takes AI mags etc. that I wouldn't sell because its like a culling rifle and is deadly accurate can take a bipod etc. The .375, well the timber is really nice, maybe impulsive.

The thing is I'll still want the .275, that's how I am, I'm embracing "Rigby" not really the caliber if you get what I mean so in the end I'd finish up spending more because I will want the Rigby offerings.

To that end I am seriously thinking about altering so the battery will be:

.275
.350
.416

Because I'm likely to still get those (.350 and .275) over the coming years if I follow through with the 30/06 and .375 and the idea is to trim down the collection.

I am wondering about modern handloads with the .350 Rigby and I am thinking if needs more than the .350 well bang you step up to .416 anyway.

Its all keeping me up at night because it is a lot of $$ I am going to spend and the mix needs to be right.

There is no doubt the 30/06 & .375 H&H are the more practical calibers.....and I still could go that way, the .375 I've go there really has nice timber.

So the OP think long and hard about what you want as its not chump change....in all of this the calibers are not all that different the .275 will kill just as well as .308 and vice versa, its about how you want to structure your collection moving forward and what you value, nostalgia/practicality etc.

 

[BeeMaa]

@Dakota Hunter - This is your rifle and you should get EXACTLY what you want. Especially if you are going to the trouble of making it a Rigby.

That said, I'm a Fudd...and I know it. If I were choosing a cartridge for a Rigby rifle in the 7mm to .30 caliber range, it would be either the 275RIGBY or 30-06. I'm not a fan of short action cartridges, preferring at least a standard length if not magnum or safari. It has something to do with the aesthetics of it and the proportions of the action to the stock and barrel. The short action seems...too short, if that makes any sense.

I wish you all the best in your journey to a new Rigby and please hold your own opinions above all others. It's a Rigby, you won't make a bad decision on the cartridge.

 

[dogcat1]

Buy what you like. I have both calibers and like both. For general shooting, I take either. My last hunt in Austria was with a .308 and took fallow deer, red stag, alpine ibex and boar. Worked perfectly.
I use the .275 Rigby for those as well.
You cannot make a mistake on this decision.

 

[txtrout75218]

I don't think a person can go wrong with a 7x57, 308 or 30-06. The 308 is just practical. Boring , but practical.

As previously stated, while Highland Stalkers are pretty, they are tools. And it's best to use the tool you like

I shoot 175 grain Terminal Accents out of mine, and don't feel like I give up anything to the 7x57.