quote:

Originally posted by Tsquare2:
Thought some of you might like to see there checkering pattern Gary did on my rifle. He asked me what pattern I wanted on the rifle and I gave him a free reign to do what he felt like doing. He calls it his Turpin Pattern. It is a bit more ornate than I usually get but impeccably executed.

quote:

Ole Ugly, my 458 Win.

quote:

Originally posted by Biebs:

quote:

Ole Ugly, my 458 Win.

In Moose camp, that's what we called the guy holding the rifle :-)

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
Forrest,
You are surely an advanced riflecrank, in the best sense of the disease.
Here is a little history of of the Prechtl-actioned Mauser 450 Dakota above:

I worked in South Dakota for a year, 2004-2005. Summer of 2004, one weekend off, on impulse, I decided to go check out the Gun Library at the original Sidney, Nebraska Cabela's, location number one, ground zero.

They had this basic model Magnum Mauser 98 gathering dust. New. made in 2000. Still sitting there. Chambered for 450 Dakota. Was that why it had not sold? No pinky finger appeal in the cartridge? Well, it was love at first sight for me. I even talked them into knocking $500 off the price.

Having previously visited Dakota Arms in Sturgis, SD and First Stop gun shop in Rapid City, SD, I much preferred this rifle in 450 Dakota to any I saw elsewhere, plus the price was very right.

Also it came with a factory target signed by G. Prechtl. He built the action AND test fired the finished rifle for Mauser? Is that routine or special?

If you get access to any factory test targets please do share.





Gottfried Prechtl is pictured below, he is the one on the right in the picture, and that is not a rifle he is cuddling:



All sorts of special editions and various custom touches are available on these rifles. Mine is the basic Mauser.
Superbly functional, not bad on the eyes.
The rosewood forend tip tells me she is a redhead.

My serial number is MM 0016. The sixteenth rifle made of this Y2K-turn-of-the-millenium, basic edition.
Sweet Sixteen, same as my wife's age when I met her, over 40 years ago, and I am still married to her AND this rifle.



















Compare brass specs from ammoguide.com, case capacities there are algorithm generated from external specs, not measured water capacity of real brass:

460 Weatherby Magnum:





450 Rigby:

Ammoguide drawing is incorrect, deleted here.
See C.I.P. specs, where the 460 Wby is also found.



450 Dakota:









They say Art Alphin of A-Square helped designed the 450 Dakota with Don Allen of Dakota Arms, about 1991, released with the proprietary Dakota Arms cartridge line in 1992.
The 450 Rigby Rimless Magnum from Paul Roberts was concocted in 1993, announced in 1994, the first new cartridge from Rigby since 1911's .416 Rigby, and hit the field in production 1995.

The 450 Dakota is very like a 460 Weatherby minus the belt and with a 26-degree shoulder instead of double-radiused, only 0.013" shorter brass length, and no rebated rim.

It must have been conceived when .416 Rigby brass was scarce as hen's teeth but 460 Wby was plentiful for turning off the belts.

Shockingly, the 450 Rigby is only 2.894" long in the case. This shows it must have been made up by fire-forming .416 Rigby brass and settling on the shortened length which that produces.

At ammoguide.com calculated capacities serve as a relative comparison only, not real:

460 Weatherby: 128.5 grains H2O
450 Dakota: 127.1 grains H2O

My actual 450 Dakota brass measured by me to nearest grain: 139 grains H2O

Pierre van der Walt lists relative case capacities in his book, African Dangerous Game Cartridges:
450 Rigby: 133.0 gr water
450 Dakota: 137.0 gr water
460 Wby: 141.1 gr water



Most amazing thing about this Magnum Mauser 98 model is that it is offered in 500 Jeffery, "at extra cost."


NRA Life Benefactor and Beneficiary