416 rem mag VS. 416 Rigby

07 April 2002, 05:33

<jthessen>

Tumppi,
Are You choosing between a CRF, straight stocked, nostalgic 416 Rigby ala CZ 550 and a
416 Remmington in an push feed, monte carlo stocked Sako ?

Get the CZ, bed it and have it feed reliably and donï¿½t look back.
As a bonus, You will not have to deal with the sako "wedge" of bases.

I have never hunted in Africa, but I have both rifles (The hunter in 375 thou)

All this is pure BS of course if You are partial to the sako , get the rifle You want.

All the best

//Jens

07 April 2002, 06:23

<allen day>

Rifles chambered in .416 Remington tend to be a lot lighter and a lot handier than .416 Rigbys, mostly due to action size requirements. That's why I prefer the .416 Remington for my own use and own a rifle in this caliber.

Both cartridges propel a 400 gr. bullet at 2400 fps., so the ballistics will be about the same either way.

I like handy, quick-handling rifles best.

07 April 2002, 07:23

Nickudu

I feel as Allen does. All things considered, I favor the Remington round.

07 April 2002, 13:06

If one were hunting Africa the .416 Rigby would be kept to 400gr@2400 fps. However the potential is there to load heavier with the Rigby. My cz 550 with norma cases can get 2650-2700 fps with the 410 gr woodeligh SN. I only have a handful of Norma cases and Bertram stuff in quantity and am loading lower to avioid problems due to there soft Brass. I amstill getting 2500 fps with the 410 gr woodleigh SN.

I like te Rigby personally.

Regards PC.

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07 April 2002, 13:31

<500 AHR>

The Rigby hands down. With the bullet selection currently available for the .416 bore you can load a Rigby up or down with anything from 300 to 450 grain premium bullets and hunt anything that walks the planet earth! With a 325 gr Barnes X bullet travelling at 3000 fps (or darned close) I can match the trajectory of a 300 Win Mag! I will however have twice the "knock down power" on the target. I originally bought my Rigby because the 300's could not reliably kill elk at 500 - 600 yards (at least not quick enough for us to find the remains). Prior to the Rigby I had used a custom built 300 Weatherby. I had lost teo bull elks do to the marginal capabilities of the 300 so I made the switch. The above 325 grain Barnes loads knocks them off their feet at those ranges.

The 416 Remington is compromised somewhat in this department, but can do everything the Rigby can (except about 150 - 200 fps slower). I haven't hunted Finland so I have no idea if you would ever need to make a 550 meter shot. It is a necessity sometimes over here in the US (although some of the holier than thoughs will say otherwise, I sometimes wonder if these guys are really hunters or just talker and dreamers though).

Todd E

07 April 2002, 13:49

Atkinson

I agree with Allan, the Rem can be made lighter and thats a major plus if you hunt with one..

If I want to shoot things way out younder I don't need to try and make a silk purse out of a Sows ear...I will simply use my other rifle, like a 300 or 338 with lighter bullets...

They are both DGRs and thats all they are IMHO.

------------------
Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com

07 April 2002, 15:52

<500 AHR>

Ray,
How can you honestly believe that a 300 or 338 are the equal of the Rigby at any range. I have had good shots (placementwise) fail to bring down elk at 400+ yards with a 300 Weatherby using 180gr Noslers. I Switched to the Rigby and was shooting 325gr X-bullets at 2970 fps. The ballistic trajectory was almost the equal of the 300 Weatherby. I never had another elk take off after that.

For dangerous game give me a stopping rifle! Unfortunately a 416 anything ain't a stopper.

Todd E

07 April 2002, 16:28

Mike375

Todd E

I would agree with Ray in general on 416s in the context of your post.

The recoil of the 375 is upper limit for precision shooting, especially from improvised rests and for lots of shots.

I would even go one step further and say the 375 is too much when fully loaded as opposed to original Kynoch ballistics. That is 270 grainers at about 2600 and only 60 grains of powder.

I have no problem with a 378, 416 or 460 Wby across the sandbags on a benchrest. However, I have to allow for recoil in the field with that level of recoil and improvised rests. That means a loss in precision.

In short, I can shoot up to 375 the same way I would shoot a 270. But can't do it with 416 and up.

You should try a 416 or 458 across a sandbag that is sitting on top of the rear vision mirror on the door of the vehichle.

I have yet to see anyone use more than 375 without some compromise being made.

Mike

08 April 2002, 09:46

I have fired 7 or 8 shots from my Rigby through my landcruiser ute window using the door mirror as a rest, and I agree Mike it hurt, enough that I will not go out of my way to do it again, especially for rabbits

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[This message has been edited by PC (edited 04-07-2002).]

08 April 2002, 06:41

<500 AHR>

Mike,

In the US (at least everywhere I have hunted) it is beau coupe illegal to shoot from a vehicle (especially the cab); therefore, I have not shot in that position and most likely never will. Besides if you can get a pickup or land cruiser into the high country after elk to shoot from it I would be greatly impressed! This is typically horse and/or foot travelling country, not Australia's outback.

I am sorry that you CANNOT shoot a big bore accurately. I fortunately CAN. It does take practice and discipline to learn to tolerate the recoil. Some people cannot get there from here. I personally don't find a 375's recoil to of much significance at all. I have shot 7mm Mags that beat me up far worse than a 375.

My exception to Ray's post was that he seemed to claim that a 300 or 338 was as good as a 416 in killing animals at long range (therefore any range).

Todd E

08 April 2002, 06:50

<Big Stick>

Why not the 416Ultra?

Same size,weight and handling characteristics as the 416Rem but more "Oooomph",should you deem it necessary.

I am going to try and build one this year..........

09 April 2002, 02:28

<Peter>

Todd E. You don't seem to have an email address listed, so I am corresponding via this forum. I have a 416 Rigby (CZ 550). After playing with the Hornady 400's and GS 380's, I am interested in trying some of the lighter bullets that you mentioned. Would you share some of your reloading data, and hopefully, accuracy results, with me?
Thanks, Peter.
PS. I lived in Cleveland in the early 70's. Went to grad school at CWRU etc.

09 April 2002, 04:23

Heritage Arms

I have been with clients shooting both calibres on a variety of game including buffalo. Shot placement is paramount. They seem to do about the same job. For ease of scope mounting the .416 Rem Mag in a Winchester Safari gun is one of the better options.

09 April 2002, 06:22

rick3foxes

quote:
Originally posted by Todd E:
Ray,
I Switched to the Rigby and was shooting 325gr X-bullets at 2970 fps. The ballistic trajectory was almost the equal of the 300 Weatherby.
Todd E

Todd, I'm curious.

What is the drop of a 325gr .416 caliber bullet after 600 yards?

I don't have the BC for that bullet, but it appears that it is a bit over 100 inches, or around 8 feet.

Rick.

09 April 2002, 11:07

<Reloader66>

The 416 Rigby wins hands down and can only be topped by the awesome 460 Weatherby cartridge. Those two are the finest big game cartridge ever developed with the 375 HH magnum taking the number three slot. Granted there are several more big game cartridges to choose from, but none have the power of the 416, 460, or the versatility of the 375 HH Magnum.

09 April 2002, 11:51

<500 AHR>

Peter,

Check your email. I don't usually share this information. Those are max or near max loads so back off 10% and work your way up.

Rick,
With a 250 yard zero drop off is around 60 inches. That amounts to 10 minutes or 40 clicks on my scope. My 300 Win Mag drops almost exactly the same with a 180 Hornady and quite a bit more with a 180 Nosler partition.

Todd E

[This message has been edited by Todd E (edited 04-09-2002).]

09 April 2002, 14:27

JohnTheGreek

reloader66,

The .416 Rem Mag, for all practical purposes, has all of the power of the Rigby but is available in a lighter and cheaper format. Sure, you can load up a .416 Rigby to Weatherby velocities but why would you since the 400 grain solid at 2400fps will penetrate the skull of any pachyderm on the planet? More velocity (even a simple 150 or 200 fps) just equals more recoil and may result in some funky bullet performance.

JMHO,

JohnTheGreek

09 April 2002, 15:04

<500 AHR>

With all this concern over the weight of a 416 caliber rifle I am a little curious as to what the ideal weight should be. What should a 416 weigh?

I have a 11 pound Rigby and a friends Rigby weighs 10 pounds. Personally, I like the 10 pounder best. Just enough weight to keep the recoil comfortable and not too much weight to wear you down toting it all day.

I mean for crying out loud this is a big bore it kicks pretty good. Weight is your friend. We aren't talking about 300 WSM mountain rifles are we?

Todd E