400 H&H

[Pheroze]

I may have mentioned for my 50th birthday my wife gave me a walnut stock for the 400 H&H. The barrel is in, and now the blanks are being sourced. Here is the one that Christian at Lemieux Armuriers has suggested based on the budget. It is English walnut

I think the grain is very straight, not fansy, but quite beautiful.

 

[Double BC]

I may have mentioned for my 50th birthday my wife gave me a walnut stock for the 400 H&H. The barrel is in, and now the blanks are being sourced. Here is the one that Christian at Lemieux Armuriers has suggested based on the budget. It is English walnut


View attachment 213929

View attachment 213931

I think the grain is very straight, not fansy, but quite beautiful.

I like it

 

[Pheroze]

I thought this was cool, it's the reamer for the conversion.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Glad your bride is supporting the build.
Make sure they save all the shavings from that expensive chunk of wood.

 

[nztimb]

That is a nice blank and will make up into a very appealing stock when the straight grain will change where the curves and facets of the stock shape will enhance its apearance.

 

[CTDolan]

That is a lovely piece of walnut! Love the dark streaks!

 

[Pheroze]

From Dangerous Game Cartridges, 2nd Ed. by Terry Wieland:

The new .400 H&H Magnum shoots a 400-grain .411" bullet at 2,400 fps. The case is tapered with a gentle shoulder for optimum feeding. Rifle for rifle, you should get one more cartridge in the magazine than you would with a .416 Rigby. Another way of looking at this project is that Wilkin examined all the available .416s, then set out to incorporate each of their good qualities while eliminating the problems. The Rigby’s bulk, the Remington’s parallel sides, the rebated rim of the Westley Richards — all are eliminated.

 

[Shawn.54]

I may have mentioned for my 50th birthday my wife gave me a walnut stock for the 400 H&H. The barrel is in

I think the grain is very straight, not fansy, but quite beautiful.

Straight grain tends to be stronger than fancy my farther builds custom muzzleloaders tries to keep the wood in the wrist straight.
He has had big pieces just pop out of highly figured wood.
Shawn

 

[CTDolan]

https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2017/2/27/not-a-question-of-need-the-400-hh-magnum/

 

[CAustin]

Great looking wood!

 

[jacques smith]

Pheroz
Pretty, pretty wood Can’t wait to see it finished

 

[Pheroze]

Thanks guys. I am gaining a much better appreciation for walnut blanks. It's absolutely amazing what goes into a proper blank for a large bore. Again from Mr. Wieland's book:

“Age is critical. A tree of 300 years or more will begin to exhibit very dense wood with complex grain and figure. By the time a tree is 500 years old or more, it is perfect for heavy-caliber gunstocks. That alone is still not enough, though. The tree must have good genetics — that is, not a hybrid — and have grown slowly in harsh conditions.”

And then, after this 500 year old tree is cut the blank dries for about a decade or two! It's such an amazing industry. When you pick up your big bore rifle the wood your hand is on is centuries old.

 

[Abeln]

Thanks guys. I am gaining a much better appreciation for walnut blanks. It's absolutely amazing what goes into a proper blank for a large bore. Again from Mr. Wieland's book:

“Age is critical. A tree of 300 years or more will begin to exhibit very dense wood with complex grain and figure. By the time a tree is 500 years old or more, it is perfect for heavy-caliber gunstocks. That alone is still not enough, though. The tree must have good genetics — that is, not a hybrid — and have grown slowly in harsh conditions.”

And then, after this 500 year old tree is cut the blank dries for about a decade or two! It's such an amazing industry. When you pick up your big bore rifle the wood your hand is on is centuries old.

A proper stocked rifle is a beautiful piece of functional art and history. Add in a fine handcrafted meticulously assembled rifle and it is a man's statement of who he is.

 

[Pheroze]

It's coming together...

 

[CoElkHunter]

View attachment 390962

It's coming together...

Nice!

 

[TOBY458]

Wow! That took awhile! Haha!

 

[Pheroze]

Wow! That took awhile! Haha!

OMG I know, I have been working and dreaming about it for years. It takes a back seat to other commitments. But, I think we should be properly on the way now! I am not sure about getting the wood blank cut because of shops being closed. It's always something!

 

[TOBY458]

OMG I know, I have been working and dreaming about it for years. It takes a back seat to other commitments. But, I think we should be properly on the way now! I am not sure about getting the wood blank cut because of shops being closed. It's always something!

May have to get a synthetic stock made for it until the wood is ready.

 

[Pheroze]

May have to get a synthetic stock made for it until the wood is ready.

Interesting idea. I was also thinking of just fixing up the old stock until the new one is cut.

 

[IvW]

your missing some key H&H cartridges!
375 flanged
500/450 NE
500/465 NE
577 NE
600 NE
700 NE

you better get working on rounding out that collection of yours.

-matt

600 NE was developed by WJ Jeffery not H&H