470 dilemma

Ray B

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I have an old Rigby 470 NE and also several boxes of various bullets for it- however after reading a few books on it I'm concerned that some of the bullets will damage the barrel if fired. The ones in mind are copper plated steel jacket Hornady bullets. So I have two alternatives: sell, trade or give away the questionable bullets OR buy a rifle such as a single barrel bolt action rifle chambered for .470 Capstick. Buying a rifle just to shoot some bullets seems like overkill, but I hate to part with the bullets after waiting so long for them to be In-Stock.
 
The Woodleigh solids will not likely be made for a very long time. There is no to very little demand for them since the advent of the Hydro, and I don't think Geoff will spend his time making bullets that is not only expensive to manufacture but is also not going to sell in a hurry. The Hydro is kind on old barrels and is a much, much better choice for a solid in any event. I would buy a party pack of Hydro's in .474" and not look back. Steel jacket solids and old doubles (old rifles, in general) are not good friends.
 
The Woodleigh solids will not likely be made for a very long time. There is no to very little demand for them since the advent of the Hydro, and I don't think Geoff will spend his time making bullets that is not only expensive to manufacture but is also not going to sell in a hurry. The Hydro is kind on old barrels and is a much, much better choice for a solid in any event. I would buy a party pack of Hydro's in .474" and not look back. Steel jacket solids and old doubles (old rifles, in general) are not good friends.
Thank you for saying that, other times I’ve mentioned Hydros and people have had a back flip over “mono metals in old barrels” even though Geoff says on the website they are safe.

500gr softs and Hydros hit the same point of impact in my .470
 
I agree with the above: First, I'm not giving up the Rigby and Secondly I have a few hundred Woodleigh Weldcore that are safe in it. I don't have any Hydros yet, but plan on getting prior to needing them. Lastly, the questionable bullets are some Trophy Sledgehame solids and Hornady steel jacket solids, total about 500 rounds, for which I'd get a 470 Capstick- not for safari use, but possibly some in-country trips where a scope would be preferred- however it's redundant to other rifles since I could just as easily used scoped M 70s in 404 and 458Win.
 
I’m pretty sure I will have a good supply of woodleigh solids if needed. PM me I’ll be back from hunting at the end of the month.
 
I thought the mono metal bullets were the problem in older Dubs?
Per Woodleigh's website....

"This homogenous bullet is made from a specially formulated copper alloy. Only the purest raw materials are used in its manufacture. The result is a bullet that has better toughness than modern homogenous bullets but creates breach pressures similar to standard gilding metal jacketed soft nose projectiles. This combination of materials and design allows for good regulation in most types of nitro double rifles, as well as good accuracy in magazine rifles."

 

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