Thanks Gents. I will have a go with that and let you know how it goes in a couple of months.

quote:

Originally posted by Harland:
Richard,

Is yours an original Gibbs ?
I have one - 1925 - will try to get someone to post pics for me + will PM Serial Number to you.

500N,
Yes, made by George Gibbs in Bristol approx. 1927/8. The Germans bombed the factory in WWII and many records were lost, but I got further info from the Crudgington family who own the Gibbs brand. I once handled the original "pattern" .505 rifle when in their shop in Bath, UK. A piece of history indeed!
My rifle's number is B7361.
Yours,
Richard.[/QUOTE]


Richard,

Have sent you an email.

Rich,
I had NEI tools out of Texas make my mould and Wayne Doudna with LTD Custom bullets has the mould, he can cast you up some bullets. He'll charge you five dollars extra for the use of my mould (trying to redeem some of my cost on the mould). The bullets look like Woodies with a gas check and .507 size.

LTD Custom Bullets
Wayne Doudna
608-647-8070

Dirklawyer,

thanks for the heads up.

Rich
DRSS

I just returned from Coutada 12 in Mozambique where I had the great pleasure of hunting with Kevin as my PH, and the more dubious pleasure of shooting his 505. I shoot a Lott, and I can assure you that the Gibbs generates noticeably more recoil. Kevin says it's around 82 foot pounds. I calculate the Lott at about 68. Also noticeable is the roar or that thing. Wow!

Kevin says each shot is a bottle of Scotch. Good Scotch! Fortunately, I think Norma provides him free ammo now that he has his name on their new line.

We took a nice sable, excellent reedbuck, and a great 13 year old dagga boy. We surprised him, sound asleep under a tree at 7 yards. I could hear him snoring!!!

Brice,

how neat!

My cast bullet loads in the 505 Gibbs are 650gr GC cast bullet in front of 140gr of VVN165 for about 2200fps.
I am switching to some milsurp powder 7383. I can get 2100+fps with the cast, and shoot for about 50-cents per round!

Why have a big bore (.375" or bigger) if you don't shoot it? Superior Ammunition gets about one-hundred&fifty dollars for a ten pak.

Your Lott is a great choice for anything in the world. Feel free to post pictures!

Rich
DRSS

quote:

Originally posted by Brice:
I just returned from Coutada 12 in Mozambique where I had the great pleasure of hunting with Kevin as my PH, and the more dubious pleasure of shooting his 505. I shoot a Lott, and I can assure you that the Gibbs generates noticeably more recoil. Kevin says it's around 82 foot pounds. I calculate the Lott at about 68. Also noticeable is the roar or that thing. Wow!

Kevin says each shot is a bottle of Scotch. Good Scotch! Fortunately, I think Norma provides him free ammo now that he has his name on their new line.

We took a nice sable, excellent reedbuck, and a great 13 year old dagga boy. We surprised him, sound asleep under a tree at 7 yards. I could hear him snoring!!!

Hi Brice!
Sounds great!
Was it Kevin you found under a tree at 7 paces?
Please send photos and tell us about Coutada 12 and the hunt!!!

I am leaving on the 26 September for Coutada 12 and hunting with Doctor Robertson.

My .505 isn't ready yeat, so i will hunt with my trusty Brno ZG 47 in .404 Jeffery and Norma African PH 450 grainers..

Kevin with my .404 in my home;

Husky you lucky SOB!

What more can I say...take me with you please?

quote:

Originally posted by cewe:
Husky you lucky SOB!

What more can I say...take me with you please?

Fifan asså!

That .404 will probably be somewhat adequate when backed up by the .505

Good luck, you lucky so and so.

Boha

quote:

Originally posted by boha:
That .404 will probably be somewhat adequate when backed up by the .505

Good luck, you lucky so and so.

Boha

You mean a medium bore backed up by another medium bore???

Don´t quarrel boys! We all know that eles have been shot with .22s!

It´s all in the shot placement!

Fifan!

Thanks Idaho Sharpshooter,
I know I'm a pansey for shooting girlie guns, but I do ride and rope and holler yeehaw every weekend, and that qualifys as manly doesn't it?

Oh yeah, and being from Idaho I want to make it very clear that I won't tap my shoe in the mens restroom like Larry!

okay, you're not a complete pansy...maybe just a few petals off!!! HeeHaw!!!

Yeah, no more going to bars and tapping your feet to the music while standing at the urinals anymore!

Rich
DRSS
Knowledge not shared is knowledge lost...

So Far I have found the following manufacturers offereing unprimed Brass for sale. Bertram, Horneber, Jamison and A-Square. Can anyone tell me from their experience with the 505 Gibbs how good is the quality of the brass from each of these manufacturers?

Norma will produce .505 Gibbs cases this fall. Hopefully also cases for us reloaders and not only for their African PH line.

quote:

Originally posted by 338User:
So Far I have found the following manufacturers offereing unprimed Brass for sale. Bertram, Horneber, Jamison and A-Square. Can anyone tell me from their experience with the 505 Gibbs how good is the quality of the brass from each of these manufacturers?

HB & JI are top quality, I've used both and have never had issues with either...

I've never used Bertram or A-Square but have not heard good reviews about them...

Even in my limited experience with the 505 I have had numerous problems with the A-square and Bertram brass. The Jamison brass has worked flawlessly.

My experience is limited as well, but... Last summer, while working up cast practice loads for a friend's Wisner-built 505 on a P17 Rem, I had the pleasure of using Jamison brass. I loaded and fired one case 22 times with a load consisting of a 650gr cast, gas-checked bullet in front of 120gr of Vihta Vuori Oy N160. The load clocked 2108fps (avg for 25 shots) out of the Wisner rifle, and just clocked 2096fps for eight rounds out of my CZ 505. Fairly inexpensive to shoot, and close enough to factory power levels to let me work on speed drills on a 9" paper plate at 50yds...sub 2" 4-shot groups at that range.

Rich
DRSS
Knowledge not shared is knowledge lost...

Hi All, Thanks for those responses. I have ordered some Norma factory ammo, but I think I will keep those cases for hunting with, as due to the cost I could not get the number I wanted. I communicated with Norma, and the official line is that they are only supplying loaded rounds for the 505, and not unprimed brass. (Hopefully that may change.) In the mean time I will try and get some Horenber or Jamison brass, so I can load up some practice rounds. Idaho Sharpshooter:- The 650gn Cast bullet load look like a perfect practice load, could you please let me know who you got the mould from. I have never done any casting, but I recently ordered the Lyman handbook and "The Art of Bullet Casting" by Wolfe, as I recognise it is the only way I am going to get enough affordable practice in. Thanks

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Sharpshooter:
My experience is limited as well, but... Last summer, while working up cast practice loads for a friend's Wisner-built 505 on a P17 Rem, I had the pleasure of using Jamison brass. I loaded and fired one case 22 times with a load consisting of a 650gr cast, gas-checked bullet in front of 120gr of Vihta Vuori Oy N160. The load clocked 2108fps (avg for 25 shots) out of the Wisner rifle, and just clocked 2096fps for eight rounds out of my CZ 505. Fairly inexpensive to shoot, and close enough to factory power levels to let me work on speed drills on a 9" paper plate at 50yds...sub 2" 4-shot groups at that range.

Rich
DRSS
Knowledge not shared is knowledge lost...

This is good news considering the brass for the 577 Belted Magnum Express is jamison 505 brass

338User,

it's a complicated story...
My brother has a Shiloh Sharps in 50-90, and a Brooks mould for it that casts a 650gr RFN .512" plainbase bullet for it. I cast a pile, stuck them in a collet and turned a gas check shank on them to be .001" oversize for the Hornady gas checks. Then, I sized and lubed and gaschecked them at .512" Then I used a tapered pin reamer and made a swaging die to reduce them from the "as cast" diameter of .512" to .506". Tedious, to put it mildly. I just have not gotten back to Steve Brooks to have him cut me one with a gas check shank on it in .506" diameter. If you are interested, you might PM me your address and I will send you three or four of them to look at. They will be .512"-then sized down to .506", but you can contact Steve and see about having a proper mould cut. The good news, they feed like they were designed for the Gibbs. I figure by time I can keep four rounds in a 6" circle at 50 yards in ten seconds I'll be ready for the Dagga Boy waiting for me somewhere in Zim next spring.

Rich
DRSS
Knowledge not shared is knowledge lost...

Sharpshooter, what kind of 505 do you have? What kind of recoil goes with this round?

danlfraser,

I currently have two; a CZ factory model, and an Enfield custom. Recoil, in a eleven pound rifle is in the 90-95ft/lbs range. Not uncomfortable in a well designed stock, expecially the CZ which has a mercury recoil reducer in the butt and a muzzle brake that works very well. I would definitely counsel anybody looking to actually shoot one a couple hundred rounds a year to get a brake. You can take it off for hunting, where you will not notice recoil. I like the idea of shooting mine ten to twenty rounds when I take it out, and that means monthly or more often.

Last Thursday for example, I had my CZ 416 Rigby and the Gibbs both out for some load testing. I shot a dozen rounds thru the two rifles to see what the chrono told me, and shot a friend's 450/400 DR. After we got back to the house, I loaded up another twenty rounds of 416 and went back to finish up the chrono work. I have to say the loads were cast bullets, but the Gibbs was 650gr cast GC at 2100 or so fps. The 416 was initial testing with a 360gr RFN cast GC bullet from an RCBS mould, and velocities ran from 2150 to 2330fps with AA5744, and from 1980 to 2367fps with H4350. No leading either rifle, and I think there is another 100fps in the 416 and 200-300more in the 505 with cast. No need, IMHO, to use $1-$3 per bullet jacketed to punch paper practicing when you can replicate the power levels with 10-cent cast.

Rich
DRSS
Knowledge not shared is knowledge lost...