450 Rigby and whether to scope or not?

My recommendation would be the lightest and most compact LPVO ever designed (that I know of at least), i.e. Leupold fx-2,5 Ultralight. The added benefit is its’ generous 4,9 inch eye relief.
 
My 450 Rigby is not scoped . A single square bridge magnum . Shoots like a dream . I do not notice recoil . The one thing I did was to put a 3 point diamond on front sight . It cost me $90 for the diamond plus some glue . Now have a bright front sight even in poor light conditions . It stands out really well against dark hides . A fantastic cartridge .

Could you post a picture of this diamond front sight? Thanks!
 
Here is a diamond glued onto front sight of a 500NE double . Fired many rounds and bounced about in a truck buff hunting. Still in position .

IMG_7749.jpeg
 
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Here is a diamond glued onto front sight of a 500NE double . Fired many rounds and bounced about in a truck buff hunting. Still in position .

Just because the picture is not so clear, that is an actual diamond (as in the stuff you put in a ring) as the front bead?

And this is more reflective than anything else? Does it need a specific cut for this purpose?
 
Just because the picture is not so clear, that is an actual diamond (as in the stuff you put in a ring) as the front bead?

And this is more reflective than anything else? Does it need a specific cut for this purpose?
Yes it is a 3 point diamond which I purchased from a jeweler shop . It is very reflective particularly in poor light conditions . The other benefit for me is that I am profoundly colour blind . Red , green , yellow dots no good for me . The diamond front sight is brilliant for shooting in heavily wooded or jungle conditions. I am 67 years old and this really works well with express sights .
 
This picture is old, but the top rifle is my .500 A2. I'd never consider shooting it in a standard mount. It's currently wearing a lightweight Leupold 2.5x fixed, and that seems to be just about perfect for speed and accuracy at reasonable ranges.

35387239724_61ccb34a22_h.jpg
 
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My 500 Jeffery is scoped. The Leupold 1.5-5x has tons of eye relief. I won't shoot it prone though.

full
 
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I find a scope on 1X with illuminated dot for close DG is good for me, especially with ageing eyes, open sights were great when I was younger.
Up close, I find a true 1x scope with a heavy duplex to be as fast as irons. Anything aboxe 1.25x is slow and above 2x is really slow for me close in. A little magnification doesn't seem to bother some people at bad breath distance, but our eyes are all different. Would check any scope out for speed close in before use on a DG rifle.
 
I learned to shot rifle with a scope and always have had scoped rifles. At 1.5x it's faster for me to get on target, even in the brush at 10 yards than with irons. I do practice with irons just in case.
 
Sorry if this has been discussed, but I am not finding any threads discussing this. I am looking for some insights for those who have a 450 Rigby and running an LPO on it. It the recoil enough that you will have to worry about scope eye or worse, or is it manageable enough that this is not as bad a the 460 Weatherby, so you can run a scope, and not have to worry. I have a 450 getting built, and needing to make a decision on what optic, red dot to run, or stay with iron sights. Recoil is not something I get to worked up over generally once I take time with the rifle. Any insights would be greatly appreciated.
I recommend a Trijicon RMR. low riding non intrusive no worry of recoil eye yet deadly accurate
 
I do not have a 450 Rigby, I do have a 416 Rigby. On mine I run an Aimpoint or Trijacon 1.25-4X24. I run the Trijicon for a couple of reasons. It can handle the recoil and more, clear optic and the Picket Post reticle and 5 inches of eye relief. I would run the nightforce but would scope myself. Well maybe not now I have a decent length of pull.

I have seen numerous scopes on calibres bigger than the 416 Rigby. Just make sure the length of pull suits you and the scope has 4+ inches of eye relief, or go with an Aimpoint.

If your eyes are good you should not need to scope or red dot the rifle, but if hunting at dawn or dusk either of the optics is better than open sights.
 
My 450 Rigby is not scoped . A single square bridge magnum . Shoots like a dream . I do not notice recoil . The one thing I did was to put a 3 point diamond on front sight . It cost me $90 for the diamond plus some glue . Now have a bright front sight even in poor light conditions . It stands out really well against dark hides . A fantastic cartridge .
Any chance you can post a picture of that, thanks.
 
I have a Nikon Monarch African w/German #4 reticle on my CZ 550 450 Rigby. Have yet to get the dreaded "scope eye".
 
I don’t have a .450 Rigby, but have a S&B Exos on my Lott and love it. True 1x and have cranked it up to 8 on occasion.

Then again, I went with an RMR on the .550 Magnum. :)
 
I have a Leupold 1-5x20mm on my 500 Jeffery, 4.5" of eye relief. I like it a lot. I have it on Talley steel QR rings, so if I want to use irons in case something happens I can. I don't think your 450 Rigby will recoil any harder unless it's super light.

ZfchaWX.jpg
 
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IMG_0425.jpeg
I run a Docter/Noblex reflex sight on my Blaser 470NE. Wonderful option especially when my eyesight is deteriorating quite quickly…
 

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I have a Ballard Arms Model 1885 chambered for .333 Jeffery Flanged. Do you have any idea where I can get ammo for this?

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