"An ideal battery for the sportsman whose funds are limited consists of a best-quality double .465 or .470 non-ejector (or similar) and a Jeffery .404 magazine regulated for both standard and high-velocity ammunition. (This, of course, if you expect to be doing a considerable amount of elephant hunting; if not, but only a reasonable amount, then Holland's .375 magnum will prove every bit as good--and possibly would in any case.)"

John Taylor - "Big Game and Big Game Rifles".

Okay, Nick. You nailed it. And don't you just love the "limited funds" qualifier tied to the recommendation of a best-quality double!

But why did Pondoro pick the .404, when he self-admittedly knew a better round was then chambered in a best-quality magazine rifle?

For the bonus round, name the reason and the better round.

(You can tell what book I re-read this weekend!)

P.S.: The when?

Too, too easy. Kids!

I thought he preferred the 425WR

There is no better round, just other options..end of story.

quote:

Originally posted by Atkinson:
There is no better round, just other options..end of story.

I agree!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The better round was the .416 Rigby, but Pondoro didn't feel right recommending it because the ammunition was too costly. (Note that he had no such qualms about recommending a best-quality double rifle--consistency was never his strong suit.) Some things never change. In any case, the Jeffery .404 was cheaper.

Now, Ray, before you get too worked up, please remember that Pondoro was comparing original ballistics, not your souped up stuff.

1948 was the year.

Pondoro also liked the .465 more than the .470, because Holland & Holland made a lighter double than the competition, and the .465 used a parallel sided bullet, which he felt was a more reliable performer than the tapered one used in the .470.

And Will, you know you're disqualified anyway, since you learned all this stuff at Pondoro's knee and have an unfair advantage over the rest of us.

He had a new favorite everytime he got his hands on a piece of paper. I recall his favorite battery at one time as a double and bolt gun, both in 425 WR.

Not an easy call but after reading / re-reading his writings, I always come away with the impression of great objectivity on the part of Mr. Taylor. He seemed to enjoy and see the merits of many different cartridges and rifles, with few but consistant provisos. If something was wrong he explained why he thought so, offering either corrective measures that might be taken or other, perhaps, more realistic alternatives. Considering all the game he took and his passion for experiencing many, if not most of the available rifles and cartridges of his day, I feel he comes off as anything but a pompous know-it-all and there's very little he has written that I would take issue with. Just my humble opinion, of course.

When did a 425 WR ever come in a double rifle?

The original Jeffery was the cheap trade gun. Everybody and their dog had one. How it has become the darling of the internet I still do not understand. Elephant hunters usually disposed of theirs in the nearest creek, if they lived long enough to give it a heave-ho.

quote:

Originally posted by Will:

When did a 425 WR ever come in a double rifle?

My reaction exactly. But Pondoro claimed that Westley Richards chambered a double rifle in .425. Could be, I don't know.

In spite of everything we once thought, we do know now that Rigby (i.e., good old days, London Rigby) actually did chamber one double rifle in .416.

In Big Game and Big Game Rifles, Pondoro disparaged the .425 because of WR's practice of barrelling everything, including the .425, with 28" barrels.

Pondoro admitted that this was a bit irrational, since WR would give a man any length barrel he wanted, but he said he always associated WR with too-long barrels.

He also said the .425 ammunition cost too much for the average man, just like the Rigby.

BTW, I've always gotten a kick out of the last sentence of a book entitled Big Game and Big Game Rifles:

"Never load more than five chambers of your revolver; and let the hammer down on the empty chamber."

.

Look what I found on the WR website:

.425 WR Double

.

WR doubles in 425 WR are not rare. I have seen two over the years and have seen several more offered for sale. A WR in 416 Rigby is indeed a rare duck

465H&H

"WR" informs me that current interest in doubles of this caliber "exceed all capability". It seems that a particular customer of theirs is in the process of developing a flanged version.

Well I'm up for getting a public lynching, or at least a stoning, for not knowing that WR made 2, or maybe more, doubles in a rebated rimless cartridge. The idle rich, eh?

Pondoro must have had ammo troubles galore to want a double and bolt gun in the same caliber, especially an oddball like the 425.