Those with high value firearms, do you bring them to Africa to hunt with?

[Berettaco]

Yes - the saying I heard and laugh at is - “life is to short to hunt with an ugly gun”

Isn't there also a saying going something like:
You wouldn't "save" your wife/girlfriend for the next guy, right? Enjoy your fine things while you can.

We will all too soon be sitting on a couch or in bed, with our biggest accomplishment of the day being to reach the toilet in time. While you are sitting there, would you rather be looking at a pristine rifle in its original box, or caress a well-worn and cared for rifle you shared many adventures with?

 

[Challer]

Of course I take them. This really close to the synthetic versus walnut stock thread floating around.

 

[rnovi]

I brought my K1 in 7mm RMag to Africa - it took one trip to scratch the beautiful wood up…mar the bluing…put a ding in the scope…

It took 8 PG on that trip…up to and including Eland…another half dozen deer in the USA. Every scratch a memory frozen in time.

I’m like others. I like pretty things and I sure like using them. High Quality tools have their own unique feel to them - why put them away and hide them?

 

[ActionBob]

I took my Marcel Thys 470NE double to Tanzania. It is a Best Gun sidelock and the most valuable gun we have. Second would be the Holland and Holland Royal 12 bore Paradox that i hope to take someday.

When @Just Gina dropped from heat exhaustion chasing Buffalo up in the mountains in Tanzania, I apparently dropped that 470NE rifle to grab her. It's all a bit of a blur but a tracker brought the rifles out as I half carried Gina out of that tangled mess of Buffalo and elephant tunnels accross the mountainside.

The 470 survived that quite nicely Gina brought her Rigby HS 9.3x62 and we had a routine of how to carry it in the truck but in 21 days of hunting, it got put in the rack the wrong way a couple times and the finish was rubbed off on one side of the wrist. We plan to hunt more with that rifle so decided not to have it refinished yet.

In spite of that we also took our other Rigby HS in 275 Rigby this past year, it survived the trip better. Also took my William Evans hammer top lever 450NE no 2 3.5" which is about as valuable as the Rigby's.

I get satisfaction and pleasure from using the guns I want to. I like using my own guns even if the lower cost ones. I've used camp guns several times but they just never quite fit right. Almost never get to shoot them enough to get a feel for them so it almost always feels a bit awkward taking a shot at an animal with them.

Kind of like pickup trucks... it's always a bit of relief to get the first scratches on it so you can settle into using the darn thing

 

[VertigoBE]

I took my Marcel Thys 470NE double to Tanzania. It is a Best Gun sidelock and the most valuable gun we have. Second would be the Holland and Holland Royal 12 bore Paradox that i hope to take so.eday.

When @Just Gina dropped from heat exhaustion chasing Buffalo up in the mountains in Tanzania, I apparently dropped that 470NE rifle to grab her. It's all a bit of a blur but a tracker brought the rifles out as I half carried Gina out of that tangled mess of Buffalo and elephant tunnels accross the mountainside.

The 470 survived that quite nicely Gina brought her Rigby HS 9.3x62 and we had a routine of how to carry it in the truck but in 21 days of hunting, it got put in the rack the wrong way a couple times and the finish was rubbed off on one side of the wrist. We plan to hunt more with that rifle so decided not to have it refinished yet.

In spite of that we also took our other Rigby HS in 275 Rigby this past year, it survived the trip better. Also took my William Evans hammer top lever 450NE no 2 3.5" which is about as valuable as the Rigby's.

I get satisfaction and pleasure from using the guns I want to. I like using my own guns even if the lower cost ones. I've used camp guns several times but they just never quite fit right. Almost never get to shoot them enough to get a feel for them so it almost always feels a bit awkward taking a shot at an animal with them.

Kind of like pickup trucks... it's always a bit of relief to get the first scratches on it so you can settle into using the darn thing

I’m sure you have shared it before, but since it never gets old: can we see a pic of your Marvel Thys? [emoji7]

 

[ActionBob]

I’m sure you have shared it before, but since it never gets old: can we see a pic of your Marvel Thys? [emoji7]

 

[KJE81]

View attachment 657770

Beautiful rifle, what is the second foreend for?

 

[ActionBob]

Beautiful rifle, what is the second foreend for?

No idea. I believe the seller had inherited the rifle and could not find a second barrel.

 

[dogcat1]

That is why I bought it... to take it to Africa and other places. It is safer there than in a gun safe in my house.

 

[rookhawk]

The answer to the OP is most definitely yes, you do use them.

Some guns are valuable because they are the necessary cost to be functional, others are valuable because they are rare. A new Heym double is expensive because that is required for utter reliability of a large bore double rifle, a vintage westley richards is valuable because it is an antique.

What is the lynchpin in all of this is servicing your weapon. A fine gun or vintage gun deserves to be treated carefully and serviced frequently. When you look at a pristine Boss, Holland, or Westley that has been used extensively and every year it was sent back to the maker for whatever was required that year: adding oil to the stock, repairing a broken striker, recutting checkering, replacing a pad, rebluing a barrel, steaming out a dent in the wood, buffing out small scratches, etc.

No self respecting owner of a gun or rifle in vintage times failed to have their maintenance done whether themselves or by the trade. If you buy a fine gun or merely a modern high quality gun, it needs to be maintained.

Another thing to consider is the expensive, not-so-fine guns. Not naming names, but many of the sub-$10,000 guns are disposable items. They were polyurethaned so the stock damage is irreparable since you can't apply more oil or steam out dents. The pressed checkering cannot be re-pointed. The finishes are usually cerakote or a less than real rust bluing which makes maintaining them in good condition virtually impossible. Plastic-Synthetic guns do not age well nor do they "patina", they just go bad.

I prefer not to own items that cannot be maintained in good working order indefinitely, so I do not buy modern technological driven firearms that fall out of fashion and also fall into irretrievable disrepair. Unless you're just thuggish and reckless with your vintage or fine firearms, you should be able to unravel minor wear from hunting and shooting on an ongoing basis with minimal cost. Doing so, you also have an asset that has minimal depreciation (perhaps appreciation) that never gets discarded.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I do not own any of them and probably will never will. However, a $2,000-$3000 rifle to me is expensive, and I do hunt them. If I was rich enough to own such a fine firearm, I would definitely take them with me. What's the point for them to sit in the same and shot only at the range.

@PARA45
I'm in the same boat as you. None of my rifles approach the value the OP is asking about. My most expensive is around $4000 to replace if I could but it still goes hunting with me
But a rifle/shotgun is bought to hunt with not kept as a safe queen.
To me not taking your weapon hunting is akin to buying a watchdog and barking yourself. Not much point but that's me.
Bob

 

[RR 314]

I have a friend who went to Tanzania with a business associate. The guy used a camp rifle and kept his gun in the bakkie in an aluminum case and busted it out for pictures. The trackers got a kick out of it except when the retrieval was a looong trek.

 

[Rare Breed]

I’m sorry I can’t help myself with that guy you said took his gun out for just pictures…there is a fraud born every minute

 

[RR 314]

I’m sorry I can’t help myself with that guy you said took his gun out for just pictures…there is a fraud born every minute

My friend died a couple years ago. That is all I can recall and I’m not sure he even told me the specific rifle used for the photo ops. He was crying when he told me this . . . and other tales of the trip.

 

[BJH65]

The answer to the OP is most definitely yes, you do use them.

Some guns are valuable because they are the necessary cost to be functional, others are valuable because they are rare. A new Heym double is expensive because that is required for utter reliability of a large bore double rifle, a vintage westley richards is valuable because it is an antique.

What is the lynchpin in all of this is servicing your weapon. A fine gun or vintage gun deserves to be treated carefully and serviced frequently. When you look at a pristine Boss, Holland, or Westley that has been used extensively and every year it was sent back to the maker for whatever was required that year: adding oil to the stock, repairing a broken striker, recutting checkering, replacing a pad, rebluing a barrel, steaming out a dent in the wood, buffing out small scratches, etc.

No self respecting owner of a gun or rifle in vintage times failed to have their maintenance done whether themselves or by the trade. If you buy a fine gun or merely a modern high quality gun, it needs to be maintained.

Another thing to consider is the expensive, not-so-fine guns. Not naming names, but many of the sub-$10,000 guns are disposable items. They were polyurethaned so the stock damage is irreparable since you can't apply more oil or steam out dents. The pressed checkering cannot be re-pointed. The finishes are usually cerakote or a less than real rust bluing which makes maintaining them in good condition virtually impossible. Plastic-Synthetic guns do not age well nor do they "patina", they just go bad.

I prefer not to own items that cannot be maintained in good working order indefinitely, so I do not buy modern technological driven firearms that fall out of fashion and also fall into irretrievable disrepair. Unless you're just thuggish and reckless with your vintage or fine firearms, you should be able to unravel minor wear from hunting and shooting on an ongoing basis with minimal cost. Doing so, you also have an asset that has minimal depreciation (perhaps appreciation) that never gets discarded.

A fairly recent photo of my late uncle James “Jim” Dougherty from a few years ago. Note the worn Remington 700 BDL 7mm Rem Mag, one of the early ones made in the early 60’s with a blackened stainless steel barrel and vintage Leupold Vari XII 3-9 scope. My dad gave him this rifle as a gift back in the late 70’s after he lost his first 700 BDL 7mm mag in a fire.

Over the next 45 years, he killed over 40 elk, countless deer and bear with this rifle wearing off the bluing, revealing the stainless steel underneath. This was his only rifle, he was not gentle with it. A more apt description would be this rifle went through hell and back. I’m sure he used it on his job as a federal trapper in western Oregon with his government pack of hounds chasing after bear and cougar, which he killed hundreds of over his career.

Since I hunted with him on occasion, I know his rifle has been subjected to the harsh salt air environment and rainforest of the Pacific Northwest and the mountains and snow of western Oregon and Idaho. He cleaned the bore and wiped the metal down with an oily cloth, that was the extent of his maintenance program. He passed away last year, a few months before he was to go to Zimbabwe, he really wanted a zebra.

He was one of the toughest men I ever knew and hands down the best outdoorsman I’ve ever known. Anyhow, the point of this story is a well made modern rifle including high dollar ones can go through quite a bit of abuse and keep on working fine with a minimum of maintenance.

 

[Doug Hamilton]

Yes I know it’s what these firearms were designed for. But I’m still curious because that first scratch must hurt.

Those who paid $20,000, $50,000, $100,000+ for a quality bespoke firearm, do you hunt with it in Africa? Does it come along with you in the land cruiser and get beat up when in the bushveld.

I’m particularly thinking of the likes of Rigby, Jeffery, Holland and Holland, Westley Richard’s etc.

While I have never owned a gun that would cost $20,000 or more, I do have a couple of custom built rifles that cost quite a bit. My feeling is this: if You are holding the firearm as an investment, as you would with a piece of fine art, store it in a safe and just show it to friends and admirers of such weapons. If you bought it to.use and enjoy, then take it to Africa and hunt with it. Yes it may get a little ding in the finish, but you will remember the adventure and maybe how the mark got there with fondness for many years. The gun with blemishes and all will become part of your life story.

 

[Cleathorn]

The rifle on the left is a working class Merkel, leaning up against the same tree as a custom made Perugini and Visini. You can see the P&V again leaning up against the elephant, sitting next to the bolt action Kimber (I think it's a Kimber anyway).

The P&V cost more than my first house (by quite a bit). But it's in the bush and hunting, right along side the Merkel and the Kimber. I did not get a chance to ask, but I do not think the elephant could tell the difference between which gun fired which bullets. And it really does not matter how much you spend on the gun, it's the experiences you have with it that matters.

In the case of this particular bespoke rifle, the best part is that it's not even mine. Its owner is a very dear friend of mine, and we got the chance to hunt together (story below) back in 2022. He handed it to me on the 1st day, and I hunted with it (and put the first scratch on it). But it plays a part in a great story that will forever make that already bespoke rifle truly priceless.

Post in thread 'A Story Of Short Notice, Good Friends & Flexible Professional Hunters'

Jun 27, 2022

Nice Story. I wander if I can be introduced to Lary

• Malambo

• 

 

[Philip Glass]

Yes I know it’s what these firearms were designed for. But I’m still curious because that first scratch must hurt.

Those who paid $20,000, $50,000, $100,000+ for a quality bespoke firearm, do you hunt with it in Africa? Does it come along with you in the land cruiser and get beat up when in the bushveld.

I’m particularly thinking of the likes of Rigby, Jeffery, Holland and Holland, Westley Richard’s etc.

I am just in the $10-$18k range in what I have but they go and they do get beat around. Like you I am curious as to others answers on the true high end guns. I might buy something up to $50k and hunt with it I suppose but beyond that I don't know.

 

[Fatback]

I can’t speak to the high end, bespoke type of rifles but it is all relative to the person. The most I have in a rifle is about 5k and until a few years ago I would never have thought I’d have more than $1,000-1,500 in a rifle. (Thanks AH enablers). I plan on hunting with all the different rifles I have. I have even bought a rifle with planning a particular hunt in mind that I don’t even have scheduled yet… I think I’ve got all my rifle bases covered now and will probably focus on getting hunts planned for the rifles I do own.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

Yes. One of the prettiest rifles I own is an old vintage FN Browning Medallion Grade rifle in 308 topped with a vintage Balvar optic. That rifle has been labelled by me more than once as being too pretty to hunt with. But, I did take it on Safari last year and it performed very well, scoring five 1-shot kills without failure. While it may have acquired one or two small dings while bouncing around in the back of the Land Cruiser, it is also true that most of my rifles are more likely to be damaged while being moved around in the safe despite my best efforts to avoid such. To not take them and use them would be to waste their potential and intended purpose.

I will not be taking it to Alaska since there are better tools for that environment and will not take it back to Africa this year only because I need a different tool for that hunt. I will however, be taking what is likely the most beautiful rifle I own with me to Africa this year. It is an ER Shaw custom P14 Enfield in 375HH. While not a Rigby, or other exclusive grade bespoke rifle, it is very close in overall fit, finish and performance. Easily one of the three or four most accurate and precise rifles that I own. It was acquired for this purpose and I trust it will serve me well. Unlike a PH who uses his favorite rifle every day for decades, I will never hunt with it so much that I wear the bluing from the barrel or beat and bang the stock until it has a wonderful patina of much love and hard use. But when I hunt in Africa and similar climates, it will be one of my tool of choice. If I was hunting Elk, Moose, or other NA game in snow or rain, it would likely not be my tool of choice. There are better options out there. My 2 cents.