The Rarest John Rigby & Co. Rifles In the Entire World ?

[chashardy]

For me, as a new owner of a new Rigby Big Game chambered in 416 Rigby, it was just something I had always wanted. Rigby rifles are part of the history, tradition and romance of big game hunting in Africa and India. Now that they are back in business in London after strugling through a couple of decades of ownership in the U.S., Rigby is making their rifles the same way they did 100 years ago and in partnership with Mauser just as John Rigby did 100 years ago when he created the 416 Rigby. Rigby, Mauser, Blazer and Sako are all part of the same company now, so there will be stability in the business going forward and it's great that the Rigby brand which originated in 1775 will continue. (Note: only 189 of those original Rigby's were made before the Rigby/Mauser partnership dissolved due to the world wars.)

So, what is the difference between a Rigby and, for comparison sake a Winchester Model 70 big bore rifle? I own both and I have asked myself that question with the rifles sitting side by side. The Model 70 is based on the Rigby/Mauser rifle and has always been produced as a low cost, high quality bolt rifle and it rightly deserves all the praise it gets as "the rifleman's rifle." When you put my Model 70 Safari Express next to my Rigby Big Game , however, you can see the differences. The Mauser M98 Magnum action is machined with more precision and is "beefier" or much more durable in appearance, though I have never had any reliability or endurance problems with any of the three Model 70's I own, including one pre-64 model that was my father's 30-06 and is now 50 years old. The actions on both the Model70 and the Rigby are smooth as silk. It's the little things that begin to set the Rigby apart. The wood on the Rigby is Grade 4 Turkish walnut, hand-rubbed and hand chequered. Winchester has nice wood, but there really is no comparison to the Rigby. You can tell in an instant which is the finer rifle just by looking. Rigby takes the raw action from Mauser and then the rifle is hand finished by craftsmen in their London shop. The process takes hundreds of hours and each rifle is meticulously crafted, hence they produce only a few dozen in a year. There is very little hand work on the Winchester production line, though the finished product, assembled in Portugal now, is still a great rifle at a fraction of the price of a similar caliber rifle from Rigby. But their process can produce thousands of rifles in a year. It's why a production line car from GM costs less than a Bentley. Both will get you from place to place, but one is a way sweeter ride.

 

[mark-hunter]

@Fastrig
There is no special ingredient... You asked for Rigby, so I replied. But, I could say the same answer for Holland & Holland, Purdey, Westley Richards, Boss, number of Austrian gun makers etc... Most probably they cook with same spices? Best wood, craftsmanship, working hours, family trade and tradition, etc
There are people who like cars - so they buy cars. Others like wrist watches, so they buy wrist watches. Some like fine guns, so they buy fine guns. Those who can afford of course. (I cant).

Personally, I buy factory rifles, but I take a deep look, for what I really need (type of hunt, game to hunt, availability of ammunition in local shops for some calibers, etc), then I buy a factory rifle.
I can afford any of factory rifles today in production, but I will not buy features that I do not need. Or calibers that I dont need, etc.

(for example - if I do not need exchangeable barrels, or modular rifle, then i will not look in those type of rifles, which in general, cost more, and are considered as high end rifles), etc... I just try to be rational, extra money is better spent on better scope, or safari in Africa.

In the same time, I really appreciate fine, or bespoke guns some brands offer, but it is only for that added value that I see in them, not that they will "hunt better", or at least not so much better to justify exponentially higher price, for blue collar working guy - like me.

 

[mark-hunter]

@Major Khan
However , it is also a widely documented fact that Karamojo Bell ( In his final piece of writing , prior to his death in 1954 . ) actually declared a Winchester Model 70 , chambered in .308 Winchester to be infinitely superior to any of the various English rifles which he used , during his career .

I think that you are referring to W. D. M Bells famous interview in American Rifleman magazine in 1954.
I did read article few years ago, but could not find it again to refresh my memory in details.
He mentioned that his choice today (1954) would be winchester m70 in caliber 308 win.

I was not able to find the article, but Chuck Hawks, mentioned this on his web pages, as follows:

However, if he had to do it all over again with a modern rifle he would choose a Winchester Model 70 in .308 Winchester loaded with homogenous bullets and sighted with a ghost ring rear aperture sight.

I beleive it was meant as rhetorical statement, rather then one that comes from experience.
You see, WDM bell passed away in june 1954.
308 winchester cartridge was designed in 1952.
So this cartridge and WDM Bell have been contemporaries for less then year and a half, he could not possibly have any experience in elephant hunting at that time, with that rifle in that caliber.
He retired at his estate after the ww2.

Edit:
I found the article!
Qouted as follows:
Good word-for .30-'06
The ,30-'06., I regret to say, ne"er
came my way so I cannot speak of it
from experience on African game. But
coming as it does between ,275 and
.318, it might well prove to be the
ideal caliber, large enough in diameter
to resist bending, heavy enough to
hold a true course, and with sufficient
density to give good penetration. The
new short version, the .308, with a
suitable bullet may yet prove to be the
answer to the hunter's prayer. Sufficient
diameter, enough penetration with no
bending, is a specification that would
answer others' than the hunter's dream.
There IS a simple test for bullets suitable'
for kIlling large game. It should
never be less than four times its diameter
in length and should have a short
round-nose POll1t and long parallel
sides. Its jacket should be of steel of a
thickness that will keep it together
through any going, however tough. Or
it should be of homogeneous metal.

AND THIS:
I would base my battery on a Winchester
.308 Model 70 burning a cartridge
loaded with a homogeneous
bronze or Monel metal bullet ,of the
form as worked out by Kohlbacker. At
the same time,

 

[Tokoloshe Safaris]

Is a Rigby worth the money? I own two pre-war Rigbys. One is of the original 189 .416Rigbys the other was originally a .350 Rigby. Both are single square bridge. The one that was originally a .350 is on the intermediate single square bridge. The original owner had it re-bored to.404J! Now if those rifles were in a long row rifle rack in a firearms store they would not stand out from other rifle (unless you were able clearly view the actions), the wood on both are very plain, simple hand rubbed oil stocks. These rifles were made as dependable working rifles. Today the replicas are made with beautiful stocks and possibly case coloring, is the stock fit better? I do not know. Are the new ones more accurate? Again I do not know. Are they any better than most of the pre 64 model 70s that I have owned, I do not think so.

Whoever the original owners were of my two Rigbys, I do not think they went "oohh & aahh" when they saw the wood (as in the previous pictures). They probably shouldered the rifle, checked the sights, tried the action with and without cartridges and then went hunting! If many years had passed maybe their backup rifle was a M-70 in .375H&H or .458 Winchester

 

[perttime]

Looking at the Rigby website, you can get a relatively plain Rigby. Which isn't exactly cheap. And then you have the option to embellish it.

 

[Fastrig]

@Fastrig
There is no special ingredient... You asked for Rigby, so I replied. But, I could say the same answer for Holland & Holland, Purdey, Westley Richards, Boss, number of Austrian gun makers etc... Most probably they cook with same spices? Best wood, craftsmanship, working hours, family trade and tradition, etc
There are people who like cars - so they buy cars. Others like wrist watches, so they buy wrist watches. Some like fine guns, so they buy fine guns. Those who can afford of course. (I cant).

Personally, I buy factory rifles, but I take a deep look, for what I really need (type of hunt, game to hunt, availability of ammunition in local shops for some calibers, etc), then I buy a factory rifle.
I can afford any of factory rifles today in production, but I will not buy features that I do not need. Or calibers that I dont need, etc.

(for example - if I do not need exchangeable barrels, or modular rifle, then i will not look in those type of rifles, which in general, cost more, and are considered as high end rifles), etc... I just try to be rational, extra money is better spent on better scope, or safari in Africa.

In the same time, I really appreciate fine, or bespoke guns some brands offer, but it is only for that added value that I see in them, not that they will "hunt better", or at least not so much better to justify exponentially higher price, for blue collar working guy - like me.

Sounds like you and I shop for rifles the same way. My last two purchases were the Mauser M12 Max 9.3x62 (for Africa/Alaska) and a Merkel RX Helix Explorer 300 win mag (my general purpose rifle to replace an old 308 win that's seen better days). Very pleased with both, though the eye candy rifles from makers like Rigby are certainly tempting.

 

[mark-hunter]

@Fastrig

Oh, what were my last two purchases? Let me think?!

I bought Anschutz 1903, 22lr, for purpose of target shooting on local matches.
Accuracy was the key point, hard to beat anschutz in 22lr matches (although, the rifle shoots better then me, but its another story...)

Last hunting rifle, then is good example of my shopping mentality: I bought benelli argo semi-auto, 9.3x62, for use in boar driven hunts.
In other words semi auto is poor mans double rifle giving me 2+1 fast consecutive shots, on running boar.
So it is, a poor mans double for real.

(proper double I consider, then in price range starting only at kreighoff, heym, chapuis level, .. so this one semi-auto for more economic option)
Note, it is not itended as DG double rifle... there are no cheap double rifles for DG... but this "poor mans double" in semi auto guise, is OK, for local driven hunts, and accuracy is very good, and no issues on reliability. (no ftf, or fte, jamming etc)

On a more general note, after reading A LOT, and researching a LOT on quality, reliability, inteded use and accuracy, it is very hard to say in general what is best buy rifle, in terms of investemnt
but I came to following.... general guidelines.

The cheapest factory guns are not the way to go.
then the price picks up more or less parallel in line with quality from cheapest to higher end factory guns, till some point.

And at one point, prices rise exponentially to - the final level of bespoke gun prices.
Bespoke guns will have, first the brand name (and brand will take at least 30% of cost) then, top class wood, exotic materials, engraving, gold inlays, master gunsmith work hours, you name it.
However, comparing this, for purpose intended, (Hunting, reliability, accuracy, etc), they cant do nothing, what top end factory rifle can do (if chosen well).

So, I came to conclusion, if one will choose wisely, and will be honest with himself for what the gun is needed, he will look at high end factory rifle, with minimum to none of luxury features (such as engravings, gold inlays, exotic wood, etc) then it could be best buy gun, and price range will be between 2,000 to maybe max 4,000 eur. (cca)

All above this, and more then that is luxury, where price goes up exponentially. (I dont mind luxury, but I am not buying it)
It does not mean that cheaper rifles will not do, or be useful, but better then this, in terms of performance, it can not get.
This is above is for bolt actions, or factory made shotguns, my theory.

For double rifle, at least twice the investment as stated previously. (8k, and up)

 

[CAustin]

I was curious enough to search. I found one thing a little related. The caption says:
"Firstly we have a J. Rigby & Co. bolt action rifle chambered in .243 Winchester on a Sako action built in 1986, then a Rigby in a .275 Rigby caliber, completed around 1998 and built on a Mauser action, then a Rigby .375 H&H Magnum, completed around 1997 and built on a standard length Mauser action. Lastly, a W.J. Jeffery in .500 Jeffery calibre, completed around 2002, built on a double square bridge magnum Mauser action."

https://gentlemanbobwhite.tumblr.co...irstly-we-have-a-j-rigby-co-bolt-action-rifle

View attachment 335502

thanks for sharing the picture as the beauty of the wood on those rifles is just stunning

 

[chashardy]

Looking at the Rigby website, you can get a relatively plain Rigby. Which isn't exactly cheap. And then you have the option to embellish it.

This is accurate. For DG rifles, the Rigby Big Game is their "base model" at about $15,000 in the U.S. The price goes up for engraving, and finer grades of wood, case color hardening, etc. and can add thousands to the price. Then they have the "London Best" rifles which are essentially bespoke rifles costing $35,000 and up depending again on engraving, wood, etc. They also have a limited number of "Vintage" model rifles that are replicas (made to same specifications) as famous rifles from the past. I think one is a replica of Corbett's rifle. Not sure.
When you move into their double rifles, their famous Rising Bite doubles go over $100,000 and are bespoke rifles.
In smaller calibers, including the famous 250 Rigby, the model is called a Highland Stalker and they start at a little under $10,000, again depending on how much engraving you want.
I think a poster above gave the website for Gordy & Sons in Houston, a Rigby dealer and the website has lots of great pics of the rifles in their inventory. I bought my 416 Rigby from them. It's a beautiful store with lots of hunting gear.
As a quick aside, I had a question about my rifle and posted on the Facebook group of dedicated Rigby fans. Got a quick response from the managing director of John Rigby & Co. in London. I also had exceptional service from the U.S. sales representative here in Texas when I was deciding on optics for my rifle. He had the scope rings and mounts to me overnight.

 

[Major Khan]

For me, as a new owner of a new Rigby Big Game chambered in 416 Rigby, it was just something I had always wanted. Rigby rifles are part of the history, tradition and romance of big game hunting in Africa and India. Now that they are back in business in London after strugling through a couple of decades of ownership in the U.S., Rigby is making their rifles the same way they did 100 years ago and in partnership with Mauser just as John Rigby did 100 years ago when he created the 416 Rigby. Rigby, Mauser, Blazer and Sako are all part of the same company now, so there will be stability in the business going forward and it's great that the Rigby brand which originated in 1775 will continue. (Note: only 189 of those original Rigby's were made before the Rigby/Mauser partnership dissolved due to the world wars.)

So, what is the difference between a Rigby and, for comparison sake a Winchester Model 70 big bore rifle? I own both and I have asked myself that question with the rifles sitting side by side. The Model 70 is based on the Rigby/Mauser rifle and has always been produced as a low cost, high quality bolt rifle and it rightly deserves all the praise it gets as "the rifleman's rifle." When you put my Model 70 Safari Express next to my Rigby Big Game , however, you can see the differences. The Mauser M98 Magnum action is machined with more precision and is "beefier" or much more durable in appearance, though I have never had any reliability or endurance problems with any of the three Model 70's I own, including one pre-64 model that was my father's 30-06 and is now 50 years old. The actions on both the Model70 and the Rigby are smooth as silk. It's the little things that begin to set the Rigby apart. The wood on the Rigby is Grade 4 Turkish walnut, hand-rubbed and hand chequered. Winchester has nice wood, but there really is no comparison to the Rigby. You can tell in an instant which is the finer rifle just by looking. Rigby takes the raw action from Mauser and then the rifle is hand finished by craftsmen in their London shop. The process takes hundreds of hours and each rifle is meticulously crafted, hence they produce only a few dozen in a year. There is very little hand work on the Winchester production line, though the finished product, assembled in Portugal now, is still a great rifle at a fraction of the price of a similar caliber rifle from Rigby. But their process can produce thousands of rifles in a year. It's why a production line car from GM costs less than a Bentley. Both will get you from place to place, but one is a way sweeter ride.

What really impresses me about John Rigby & Co. is this , Chashardy :
During my 10 year career as a professional shikaree , I have seen double barreled rifles made by countless English , Austrian , German and Belgian makers . However , it was only John Rigby & Co. who were able to ensure that their double barreled rifles were extracting the expended cartridge cases of rimless calibres ( such as the .375 Holland & Holland magnum ) with 100 % flawless reliability. This was a feat , in and of itself ... especially considering that the British royal gun makers , Holland & Holland themselves were being unable to ensure that their rimless calibre double barreled rifles were extracting the expended cartridges reliably in the shikar field.

 

[Major Khan]

@Major Khan
However , it is also a widely documented fact that Karamojo Bell ( In his final piece of writing , prior to his death in 1954 . ) actually declared a Winchester Model 70 , chambered in .308 Winchester to be infinitely superior to any of the various English rifles which he used , during his career .

I think that you are referring to W. D. M Bells famous interview in American Rifleman magazine in 1954.
I did read article few years ago, but could not find it again to refresh my memory in details.
He mentioned that his choice today (1954) would be winchester m70 in caliber 308 win.

I was not able to find the article, but Chuck Hawks, mentioned this on his web pages, as follows:

However, if he had to do it all over again with a modern rifle he would choose a Winchester Model 70 in .308 Winchester loaded with homogenous bullets and sighted with a ghost ring rear aperture sight.

I beleive it was meant as rhetorical statement, rather then one that comes from experience.
You see, WDM bell passed away in june 1954.
308 winchester cartridge was designed in 1952.
So this cartridge and WDM Bell have been contemporaries for less then year and a half, he could not possibly have any experience in elephant hunting at that time, with that rifle in that caliber.
He retired at his estate after the ww2.

Edit:
I found the article!
Qouted as follows:
Good word-for .30-'06
The ,30-'06., I regret to say, ne"er
came my way so I cannot speak of it
from experience on African game. But
coming as it does between ,275 and
.318, it might well prove to be the
ideal caliber, large enough in diameter
to resist bending, heavy enough to
hold a true course, and with sufficient
density to give good penetration. The
new short version, the .308, with a
suitable bullet may yet prove to be the
answer to the hunter's prayer. Sufficient
diameter, enough penetration with no
bending, is a specification that would
answer others' than the hunter's dream.
There IS a simple test for bullets suitable'
for kIlling large game. It should
never be less than four times its diameter
in length and should have a short
round-nose POll1t and long parallel
sides. Its jacket should be of steel of a
thickness that will keep it together
through any going, however tough. Or
it should be of homogeneous metal.

AND THIS:
I would base my battery on a Winchester
.308 Model 70 burning a cartridge
loaded with a homogeneous
bronze or Monel metal bullet ,of the
form as worked out by Kohlbacker. At
the same time,

Why yes , Mark Hunter ! That is the very article which I had acquired my information from . 1 thing which really impresses me about Mr. Bell is his immense level of fore sight. He wrote this article in 1954 ... almost 33 years prior to the very 1st monolithic solid bullets ( developed by A Square ) hitting the market in 1987 . However , in his article in 1954 , Mr. Bell makes a prediction that the monolithic solid bullet shall replace the traditional solid metal covered bullet of his ( and my ) time . Today , in modern times ... the monolithic solid bullet has virtually COMPLETELY replaced the traditional solid metal covered bullet .
Mr. Bell certainly had a great deal of fore sight .
You make an excellent point about the .308 Winchester calibre being introduced in 1952 , long after Mr. Bell had retired from hunting dangerous game . And I wholeheartedly agree with you .
However , he HAD been familiar with the Winchester Model 70 bolt rifle for a number of years already . He purchased a Winchester Model 70 , chambered in .220 Swift during the late 1930s ( if my memory serves me correctly ) which he would use for shooting Scottish Red Deer . After purchasing this Model 70 , he sold a John Rigby & Co . Mauser 98 action bolt rifle chambered in .22 Savage Hi Power , which he was using previously .
And , of course in this very article , Mr. Bell recommends using a Winchester Model 70 bolt rifle as well.
Now , I ADORE John Rigby & Co. rifles more than anybody . But
for a gentleman who chooses a Winchester Model 70 after years of hunting African elephants with Rigby rifles ... well, that is saying something !

 

[Major Khan]

Is a Rigby worth the money? I own two pre-war Rigbys. One is of the original 189 .416Rigbys the other was originally a .350 Rigby. Both are single square bridge. The one that was originally a .350 is on the intermediate single square bridge. The original owner had it re-bored to.404J! Now if those rifles were in a long row rifle rack in a firearms store they would not stand out from other rifle (unless you were able clearly view the actions), the wood on both are very plain, simple hand rubbed oil stocks. These rifles were made as dependable working rifles. Today the replicas are made with beautiful stocks and possibly case coloring, is the stock fit better? I do not know. Are the new ones more accurate? Again I do not know. Are they any better than most of the pre 64 model 70s that I have owned, I do not think so.

Whoever the original owners were of my two Rigbys, I do not think they went "oohh & aahh" when they saw the wood (as in the previous pictures). They probably shouldered the rifle, checked the sights, tried the action with and without cartridges and then went hunting! If many years had passed maybe their backup rifle was a M-70 in .375H&H or .458 Winchester

I see that you and I share an extremely similar view , Tokoloshe Safaris . Old school masters of the art of shikar , such as Mr. Bell and Jim Corbett simply viewed an English Bespoke rifle , as another tool of the trade.

 

[chashardy]

Is a Rigby worth the money? I own two pre-war Rigbys. One is of the original 189 .416Rigbys the other was originally a .350 Rigby. Both are single square bridge. The one that was originally a .350 is on the intermediate single square bridge. The original owner had it re-bored to.404J! Now if those rifles were in a long row rifle rack in a firearms store they would not stand out from other rifle (unless you were able clearly view the actions), the wood on both are very plain, simple hand rubbed oil stocks. These rifles were made as dependable working rifles. Today the replicas are made with beautiful stocks and possibly case coloring, is the stock fit better? I do not know. Are the new ones more accurate? Again I do not know. Are they any better than most of the pre 64 model 70s that I have owned, I do not think so.

Whoever the original owners were of my two Rigbys, I do not think they went "oohh & aahh" when they saw the wood (as in the previous pictures). They probably shouldered the rifle, checked the sights, tried the action with and without cartridges and then went hunting! If many years had passed maybe their backup rifle was a M-70 in .375H&H or .458 Winchester

I'm guessing there's a lot of serious rifle envy going on about your post! An original 416 Rigby is a museum quality rifle.

 

[WAB]

This is accurate. For DG rifles, the Rigby Big Game is their "base model" at about $15,000 in the U.S. The price goes up for engraving, and finer grades of wood, case color hardening, etc. and can add thousands to the price. Then they have the "London Best" rifles which are essentially bespoke rifles costing $35,000 and up depending again on engraving, wood, etc. They also have a limited number of "Vintage" model rifles that are replicas (made to same specifications) as famous rifles from the past. I think one is a replica of Corbett's rifle. Not sure.
When you move into their double rifles, their famous Rising Bite doubles go over $100,000 and are bespoke rifles.
In smaller calibers, including the famous 250 Rigby, the model is called a Highland Stalker and they start at a little under $10,000, again depending on how much engraving you want.
I think a poster above gave the website for Gordy & Sons in Houston, a Rigby dealer and the website has lots of great pics of the rifles in their inventory. I bought my 416 Rigby from them. It's a beautiful store with lots of hunting gear.
As a quick aside, I had a question about my rifle and posted on the Facebook group of dedicated Rigby fans. Got a quick response from the managing director of John Rigby & Co. in London. I also had exceptional service from the U.S. sales representative here in Texas when I was deciding on optics for my rifle. He had the scope rings and mounts to me overnight.

I agree completely with this comment. My experience with Rigby has been second to none. This is a first class group of professionals dedicated to excellence in every aspect of their business. We have a highland stalker in 9.3x62. I have nothing but praise for the rifle and the staff at Rigby. If I were in the market for a bespoke rifle (I wish I were!), I would look no further.

 

[Accidental Villain]

Is a Rigby worth the money? I own two pre-war Rigbys. One is of the original 189 .416Rigbys the other was originally a .350 Rigby. Both are single square bridge. The one that was originally a .350 is on the intermediate single square bridge. The original owner had it re-bored to.404J! Now if those rifles were in a long row rifle rack in a firearms store they would not stand out from other rifle (unless you were able clearly view the actions), the wood on both are very plain, simple hand rubbed oil stocks. These rifles were made as dependable working rifles. Today the replicas are made with beautiful stocks and possibly case coloring, is the stock fit better? I do not know. Are the new ones more accurate? Again I do not know. Are they any better than most of the pre 64 model 70s that I have owned, I do not think so.

Whoever the original owners were of my two Rigbys, I do not think they went "oohh & aahh" when they saw the wood (as in the previous pictures). They probably shouldered the rifle, checked the sights, tried the action with and without cartridges and then went hunting! If many years had passed maybe their backup rifle was a M-70 in .375H&H or .458 Winchester

Your Rigby rifles are most likely equipped with stocks made of 400 to 500 years old genuine English or French walnut. Its crem de la creme.. While working in a gun shop I had the privilege to administrate/facilitate the sale of a number of English best guns among them a rising bite double (still have nightmares for not buying it myself) and also a highly ornate Rigby double squarebridge Big Game with lot of fantastic gold inlaid engravings..(nightmare # 2) anyways, the stocks on any of them was beautiful alright but not at all stunning, but it was just the kind of stock material you would want in a hard recoiling rifle that was meant to last for years in the bush. If you booked a 30 day DG safari what do you want? Super dense and straight grained French/English Walnut of course. The Britts knew very well what they where doing and still do.
I myself is a Rigby owner and user (have a vintage 416) and I use it not because its a Rigby but because I regard it the very best for my use.

While show-rooming the best guns me and one of my collagues compared a couple of them to some of the bespoke Russian shotguns we had on display..they featured top grade Circassian walnut..interesting to say the least not saying anything bad about the other because that would be impossible.. but I suspect todays Rigbys are made with walnut from approximately the same region, meaning walnut that have grown in mountainous semi desert conditions for 300-500 years.. Such a stock on a Rigby.. eye candy which I think some of the new ones are.

Is a Rigby worth the money? Most certainly! If you want to make the best you have to use the best subcontractors, you need to source the best materials and most importantly, you need to employ the best artists/mastercraftsmen. This comes at a price.

I don`t know about your eyesight Lon.. but to me, a genuine Rigby is easily recognizable from a distance. It has some unique features.

 

[perttime]

...

I don`t know about your eyesight Lon.. but to me, a genuine Rigby is easily recognizable from a distance. It has some unique features.

What would I look for, to recognize a Rigby?
... I've only seen them in photos and they look ... right.

 

[Accidental Villain]

What would I look for, to recognize a Rigby?
... I've only seen them in photos and they look ... right.

Shure. The most obvious features visible and recognisable and that I also appreciate is the design of the forend. Its kind of square in its design helping me control the rifle when shooting fast minimising muzzle jump. But what`s really visible is the Rigby barrel profile supporting the unique quarter rib which I regard as the best. I only hunt DG with open sights so I`m quite picky when it comes to the sights. These are features that are easily recognised.

Other than that the front sight is unique both in design but also that it is positioned about an inch from the muzzle. It is also sleeved on the barrel (not visible from a distance though. The forend is cut off type rather than rounded off on most other makes.
Some of the vintage Rigbys have a type of "brownish bluing"..and when the action gets a little worn it gets this wonderful warm red/brown colour...candy for the eye.